New runner from Brooklyn tackling TCS NYC Marathon with help from the Hospital for Special Surgery
CROWN HEIGHTS, Brooklyn (WABC) -- Fifty-two-year-old Anne Broomfield, of Crown Heights, just started running one year ago and is proudly running in this year's TCS New York City Marathon. But first, she had to make sure she could still walk.
It was last February when she came to the Hospital For Special Surgery after a training race left her hips and legs in excruciating pain.
"It was devastating," Broomfield said. "I felt like a curse, like, the one thing I now love to do, I can't do."
That was until she met Dr. Daphne Scott, who specializes in sports medicine at the hospital.
Dr. Scott determined that Broomfield had an offset in the bones of her hips, and the answer was to stretch and strengthen the glutes and pelvis.
Dr. Scott explained how she can spot weaknesses in these supporting areas, even from runner's squats.
"I tell them, running is a series of single leg squats," she said.
If the pelvis and knees aren't properly supported and aligned in a squat, then they surely aren't while running, she explained.
The great news? Anne joined two runners clubs, and she lost 49 pounds while training. And then a month ago, she ran in the Chicago Marathon.
Her tips? When tired, don't think about distance, think about form. And just like passing her bar exam, it's also knowing that sometimes, if you believe it, you will achieve it.
"I didn't think I could do the marathon," she said. "But I made myself think I could do it. Kinda like, fake it til you make it. And then I'm like, wow, I'm doing this."
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