Trapped Nerve And Wee Stops - Running A Marathon 22 Weeks Pregnant

BySarah Dawkins

BBC Sport Senior Journalist

ByAilsa Cowen

BBC Sport journalist

For an elite jock who has represented Great Britain astatine nan Olympic Games, moving nan Boston Marathon successful 2 hours and 43 minutes mightiness not look for illustration overmuch of an achievement.

That is, aft all, 20 minutes slower than her individual best.

But Calli Hauger-Thackery managed it while 22 weeks pregnant connected Monday - and points to nan title arsenic an "incredible" and "more meaningful" infinitesimal successful her career.

The 33-year-old, from Sheffield, ran nan aforesaid title past twelvemonth and vanished sixth pinch a clip of 2:22:38, and knew she was going to look a tougher task this year.

"I'm grateful that I sewage done that today. 26.2 miles is nary easy feat and to do it this acold into pregnancy, I'm ace grateful," she told BBC Sport.

Like immoderate marathon runner, she encountered immoderate hiccups on nan course. She had to beryllium treated for a trapped nervus successful her glute astatine mile five, and again astatine mile 11.

"I had to dash into nan aesculapian vessel because I had this crazy trapped nerve.

"I genuinely couldn't moreover prime up my correct limb properly. I was dragging it and I was like, ohio no, this is not bully and this is mile five. I was like, 'guys, is location thing you tin do?'

"Luckily they were superb and they were capable to merchandise it.

"I had 2 wee stops, arsenic you do erstwhile you're pregnant, you request them much than ever, but this was each earlier mile 13.

"The 2nd half felt flawless, for illustration I was successful tune pinch my body. I felt a cardinal dollars. I was like, OK, we're really doing this. Because location were galore times earlier mile 13, which is nan halfway point, I did not deliberation I was going to beryllium vanished successful that race."

This benignant of beingness situation is thing Hauger-Thackery is utilized to, having only discovered she was pregnant aft moving - and winning - nan Honolulu Marathon successful December. She was vomiting connected nan people and put it down to it being a basking day.

"I joked to Nick, my husband, and said 'imagine if it is greeting sickness'.

"We conscionable laughed it off, genuinely didn't deliberation thing of it. It was Christmas Eve we recovered retired and we were for illustration 'oh, that makes consciousness now'. I won nan title and I really felt astonishing truthful I was conscionable shocked."

Her adjacent title was nan Houston Marathon successful January, erstwhile she was successful her first trimester and won pinch a clip of 2:24:17.

"That was astir apt nan hardest marathon for maine conscionable because I was 8 weeks pregnant, but I was still taking it very seriously. I conscionable thought, you cognize what, I'm going to astatine slightest spell for it and effort and see."

It was aft not finishing nan Chicago Marathon successful October that Hauger-Thackery and hubby Nick, who besides trains her, decided nan clip was correct to commencement a family.

"It benignant of conscionable made consciousness this year," Hauger-Thackery said.

Missing retired connected a decorativeness successful nan Chicago title meant it felt for illustration "a sad, sad day" for Hauger-Thackery, until she and Nick looked astatine what their early mightiness hold.

Calli would support moving and competing, but they had different extremity too.

"We conscionable turned it into a happy time. I was like, 'wow, are we really gonna do this? Is this nan twelvemonth we wanna commencement a family?' Nick and I some agreed that it was a cleanable year."

Hauger-Thackery's profession contains a multitude of achievements, including mounting nan associated 2nd fastest marathon clip for a British female (behind Paula Radcliffe, associated pinch Charlotte Purdue) and winning bronze successful nan women's half-marathon astatine nan 2024 European Athletics Championships.

With nary outdoor Worlds aliases Europeans connected nan almanac this year, and having already "ticked off" competing successful a Commonwealth Games, looking to commencement a family made cleanable sense.

"If we do it this year, I'll person a two-year-old for nan Olympics," Hauger-Thackery said.

Running marathons while pregnant feels "even much meaningful" than her erstwhile achievements successful athletics, according to Hauger-Thackery.

"It is specified a typical thing. I deliberation I've been truthful fortunate passim this gestation truthful acold and and to beryllium capable to do this now is conscionable incredible," she said.

"It's a different benignant of hard, for sure, than what I've ever done, a batch harder than nan European medals aliases these different things that I've achieved. But successful a different way, successful a much meaningful way, and I deliberation it's conscionable fixed maine much intent than ever before."

Hauger-Thackery has recovered nan support on her travel "really bully and special", whether coming from chap runners, spectators lining nan way aliases those closest to her.

There person been immoderate antagonistic comments, from "people down nan keyboard", but Hauger-Thackery said: "I conscionable effort to not fto them get to me.

"I cognize my assemblage and I cognize what's correct for me, and I said to my doctors, they each cognize my communicative and they're really supportive.

"There's been much investigation than ever earlier connected why you really should tally while you're pregnant, particularly if it's each you've known."

Long-distance stars Paula Radcliffe, Liz McColgan and Sonia O'Sullivan each continued their moving careers astir having children.

"You conscionable spot unthinkable moving mums earlier maine who person been location done it and now travel back. And they're moreover amended than ever before, aft pregnancy," Hauger-Thackery said.

Looking to commencement a family while remaining successful athletics is thing galore now purpose for.

Manchester United's precocious Celin Bizet Donnum revealed she was pregnant, taking clip distant from nan pitch, while England's Rugby World Cup-winning skipper Zoe Stratford is expecting her first child.

In ray of this, Hauger-Thackery believes attitudes are changing and she wants to show women "can do both".

"It intends truthful overmuch to me. We tin beryllium a mother and besides sprout for these crazy large goals, much than ever. It's decidedly not going to scare maine distant from immoderate goals," she said.

"I think, if anything, it's going to push maine to show my boy what is possible. I conscionable deliberation that makes it moreover much meaningful for maine and I'm conscionable honoured and excited to beryllium a portion of that space."

Hauger-Thackery has nary much races planned for now, saying she'll beryllium "putting her feet up for a bit".

She said: "The post-marathon betterment takes connected a full caller level erstwhile you're 22 weeks pregnant."