So Coastrek is over for another year!
Last Friday, our BJC Health physiotherapy and massage team stepped out of the clinic to help competitors at various Luv Stops for Coastrek.
Our physios were placed at Curl Curl, Manly, Kirribilli and at the finish line in Balmoral. Our job was to help any trekkers manage any aches and pains during the race.
We were all kept very busy for the day – taping and massaging various joints and muscles respectively; applying heat creams and ice on many occasions; and more importantly comforting and encouraging everyone on their efforts. The added benefit of finishing at Balmoral was the ability to jump straight into the water to ease aching muscles.
Being an endurance athlete myself, it is a nice change to help those in need, and not be the one in pain! Wild Women on Top put on a fantastic event. Most teams had team outfits, and there was definitely a lot of team camaraderie. Upon greeting many of the finishers at Balmoral, it was apparent that being in a supportive team was what got trekkers to the finish line.
Often, my advice to the trekkers at the end was to “rest up, get some sleep, keep the fluids up and eat well for the next few days”. When the body has been pushed, its immunity is lowered for the proceeding week. There were also many with aches and pains, with my general advice sounding like it came straight from a pack of tablets – “if pain persists, please see your local physio.” We did the best we could with post event massage and some recover taping but many aches and pains can last for a couple of weeks.
Seeing the spirit from all the competitors has definitely whet my appetite to compete in another event. I was so impressed with all the effort that each trekker put in on what was an unseasonably warm day.
For BJC Health, supporting Coastrek was great fun and a definite privilege.
We hope to see you all there again next year, but in the mean time, click below for our physio offer just for Coastrekkers!
