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Introduction and Injury
As some of you will have seen, Origin has partnered with several athletes who share our values and mission over the last year. This year, we wanted to spend more time discussing their stories and sharing their personal journeys.
One of our athletes is Austin Milward, competing for Great Britain in Bobsleigh! After a nasty 80mph crash during the World Cup race in Sankt Moritz, Switzerland in January, Austin has come away with an injury to his lower back. MRI and CT scans confirmed damage from L3 to L5 vertebrae. Therefore, will be forced to miss the World Championships in Lake Placid, New York.
With one year to go to the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, Italy, in 2026, this has set the stage for his recovery and return to intense competition.
We have partnered with Austin to showcase his recovery, get his insights into training and explore his experience and mentality with dealing with setbacks.
Let’s hand it over to him to continue:
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Welcome to my new blog! I’m Austin, a current athlete competing for Great Britain in Bobsleigh I’ve also been a strength and conditioning coach for half a decade now.
Fitness has been ever-present in my life, and I believe it is intrinsically tied to wider aspects of life: confidence, self-esteem, energy, emotional regulation, and passion.
As an athlete, my body is my job. However, this reigns true for all people. I think that often gets forgotten. The mind is connected to the rest of us, and the mind will follow when the body feels good. I know all too well that when I cannot use my body, everything else is a much bigger struggle.
So, I am creating this blog not only to share some helpful knowledge and have a bit of a chat, but also to practise a bit of vulnerability.
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The Gift of Fitness:
As someone whose life has been completely changed by fitness in the most positive of ways, I’d like to share that gift with others. My recent injury has reminded me of that perspective.
Fitness has been the transformative force in my life, gifting me with:
- Newfound confidence that a younger me could never imagine.
- The resilience and discipline to overcome obstacles outside of sport.
- The ability to immensely impact others’ lives positively.
However, that was not always the case.
When I was 18, I underwent surgery for Graves’ Disease after 2 difficult years in and out of hospital.
Afterwards, being able to use my body again felt like a godsend, and fitness became my everything. I even earned a place at a University in California to play American Football. My dreams were on the way to coming true. However, while in the United States at age 21, my illness returned, and I was forced to leave those dreams behind and come back to the UK.
Another brutal gut-punch, it felt like the world was against me. Faced with another recovery period, it was daunting. I was back home in London with my lockdown gym equipment again. However, my discipline taught by fitness and gradually set small goal posts to achieve again.
Now, fast-forward a couple of years, I am chasing the Winter Olympics in 2026 with Team GB, all of which started with some rusty weights in the garden.
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Overcoming Injury: The Mentality
Learning I was going to miss the World Championships this year was brutal. The mental blockage created when your plan is derailed like that is definitely difficult to deal with. Unfortunately, the usual way I deal with any mental blockage is through movement—but being injured, that option is limited.
I’ve always said that ‘doing’ is better than ‘thinking’ when you are in a rut. So regardless of ability, make sure to move as much as you can. For me, that is often a long walk with a good podcast. However, that is a short-term balm to a larger sore.
Everyone has that inner critic that holds us back and for me recently that voice has been quite loud. To deal with this, we must reframe our mindset. Confidence comes from giving ourselves the hard evidence that we can achieve things. Focus on the facts, not the feelings that can seem overwhelming. I look back at the evidence of me returning from injury before, multiple times, and therefore I can do it again.
As people, we all need teammates. Someone with your back and who can discuss things with you when things get rough. Do not be afraid and bottle your thoughts. This doesn’t mean expunging negativity onto someone else repeatedly, but rather having someone you trust to help talk things through. Humans are social animals, and we are each responsible for creating an environment around us that is positive and boosting, not only for ourselves but for those we care about, too.
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Overcoming Injury: The Physicality.
Now, muscle injuries don’t just happen to professional athletes. Everyday athletes, whether lifting a heavy box at home or going for a casual run, can experience muscle strains and other soft tissue injuries. The good news? With the right knowledge, you can identify, treat, and recover from these injuries effectively. Equipping yourself with the right information could save a lot of hassle.
A strain is simply a disruption to the fibres of the muscle. Think of a muscle as a collection of thin, stretchy rubber bands bundled together and used to move your skeleton. A muscle strain can range from an overstretch of the fibres, to actual separation of them.
Here is an actual, simple roadmap to recovering from a strain:
Example: Hamstring strain from running
IMLL
Isolate – Find a movement pattern that can isolate the injury. Example; single leg bridge
Move – Begin slowly to complete that movement pattern, aiming for complete normal range of motion.
Load – When that becomes comfortable, begin to introduce load. Start with a shallow angle (knee very bent) and hold that position for as long as you can.
Lengthen – As you progress, increase the angle of the knee by moving your heel further away from you. Hold that position for as long as you can, aiming for a comfortable 1 minute.
Once all those steps become comfortable, you are able to graduate to returning to regular activity.
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Now we have seen an example of what TO do. Here’s a quick acronym used by physios I’ve had that tells you what NOT to do.
AMACI:
Alcohol
Massage
Anti-Inflammatories (Ibuprofen)
Complete Rest
Ice
Many people have gotten this wrong in the past, but modern sports science shows how important blood flow is to recovery. Although stretching or ice might feel good in the moment, they won’t help recovery in the longer term.
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Wrapping Up:
Taking these principles into my recovery, I have received a support package from my team at Origin to help with my recovery.
I use power bands, a foam roller, an ab mat, and an exercise mat each morning to get back on track as quickly as possible.
Next time, I will detail my morning movement sessions and explore the neurological link between exercise and endorphins and how we can all use a little bit more of both.
Find me on Instagram @austinmilward and follow @origin.fitness for more updates.
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