From cancer patient, crippling foot pain to running a 25km trail race

A year ago, I couldn’t have imagined doing this. I had days where I could barely walk - but it is possible to get fit again after cancer

Today, I felt like me again. ❤️

Not the old version of me from before cancer. Not the “pushing through at all costs” version either. Just… me. Strong, present, capable, and very much alive in my body.

Today, I ran a 25km trail race.

In the world of trail running, 25km isn’t especially long. But in my current world – post-cancer, post-menopause, post-crippling foot pain – it feels enormous. It represents months (and years) of rebuilding, adapting, backing off when I needed to, and starting again when things didn’t go to plan.

I finished strong. I ran it at a decent pace. And for the first time in a long while, I crossed a finish line feeling genuinely proud, rather than relieved or broken.

I’ll be honest: I still look at the numbers. I still compare. I tell myself I don’t let performance define me anymore, but old habits die hard. A part of me was disappointed to be a few minutes slower than the last time I ran this race back in 2021. Which, when you say it out loud, is completely illogical. Since then I’ve been through cancer treatment, menopause, eighteen months of foot problems, and I’m four years older. Of course I’m slower.

And yet.

Post cancer, I couldn’t have imagined being able to do this. I was exhausted and my feet hurt so much I could barely walk. Today, I ran 25km. And got to stand on the podium!

That internal comparison is something many cancer survivors will recognise. We measure ourselves against a “before” body that no longer exists. We forget everything our bodies have been through. We expect progress to be fast, smooth and obvious, when in reality recovery is anything but.

So it was a lovely, unexpected bonus to make it onto the podium in my age group. As much as I try not to measure myself against others, it’s reassuring to know that I can still hold my own. Not because it proves anything to anyone else – but because it proves to me that feeling well again is possible.

The Mont Blanc cross and marathon are legendary in the trail running world. The scenery is breathtaking, but the cross is essentially an uphill race. It’s fast, uncomfortable, and the final kilometres are cruel. You can see the finish line, but it never seems to get any closer. Honestly, it’s not unlike cancer treatment. You keep going, step by step, even when it feels endless.

What’s different now is perspective.

I will never take those views for granted. I will never take my body for granted. Being able to stand on a start line, to move freely, to feel strong and capable in my body again – that is a privilege I don’t overlook.

And that’s the message I want other cancer survivors to hear: it is possible to feel well again after treatment. It is possible to get fit again. Not overnight, and not by doing things the way you used to. It takes time. It takes patience. It takes a gentler, more compassionate approach. Your body is different now, and that’s not a failure – it’s a fact.

Progress might be slower. Goals might change. You might need more rest, more recovery, more flexibility. But strength can come back. Joy in movement can return. And moments where you feel like yourself again do happen.

Today was amazing.
So fun.
So hard.
And so very, very hot. 🥵

And for now, that’s more than enough.

I even got to stand on the podium for my age group. #fuckcancer