Here at Blizard Physiotherapy, we are proud to support a huge range of athletes and non-athletes from across the country, who often travel hundreds of miles to access our expertise having heard about our high success rate.

Team Blizard Elite’s Fiona Davies from Rotherham Harriers is lucky enough to be able to access Jenny Blizard’s services for free as part of her elite athlete status.

Although no athlete wants to be injured and have to seek out treatment, we do recommend runners and active people participating in a range of sports seek out regular ‘pre-hab’ treatment - otherwise known as an ‘MOT’ - to ensure any small niggles are picked up early and dealt with before they turn into full on injuries leading to a longer period out of training.

Fiona is fortunate in that she is able to continue training whilst having treatment, albeit at a lower intensity - our physiotherapists very often advise athletes to carry on with light activities instead of stopping altogether for a variety of reasons, some physical, some mental! - but she has been impressed with the treatment she has received so far for an ‘extreme tightness and pain’ in her sciatic nerve.

She enthused: "Jenny is an excellent physiotherapist who has in-depth knowledge and experience. She has a particular interest in identifying the probable causes of an injury - which may not be associated with running at all - and discuss ways and means to overcome these problems and suggest solutions."

Indeed, one of the possible causes behind her condition may surprise some of you reading this article too, so read the whole way through!



Fiona explained what problems she has been experiencing to require professional treatment: “My symptoms are; pain and restricted movement in the left glute/back of upper thigh area, down to the back of the knee when I extend my leg forwards, and pain while in the seated position - driving is particularly uncomfortable, and a ‘dead leg’ effect is experienced over even short journeys. Initially there was also some numbness in my left foot but this has reduced greatly.”

The popular top club runner has a number of theories about how her symptoms developed, including continuing to train hard with a piriformis niggle, losing conditioning due to illness and straining her hamstring, running with a heavy rucksack to work, or straining the nerve during a grass session. Rather unwisely she admits, she carried on with the session despite being in agony, but what runner hasn’t tried pushing through pain at any point? Unwise, but certainly not uncommon!

So how has Fiona’s treatment been progressing thus far?

She explained: “I’ve had a total of six appointments with Jenny, and, although she manages to ease my injured sciatic nerve each time, the tightness returns - it’s a very stubborn injury. However, the physiotherapy is invaluable to me, and without it I am sure I would be taking forced time off running. Instead, I'm able to keep a firm training base by continuing easy and threshold runs. I have also been able to compete in the Liversedge half marathon, where I had a very strong run and finished second lady overall in 86:44.

“The treatment I have received so far has been; releasing the piriformis muscle, easing the sciatic nerve in my lower back, acupuncture, and, this week, mobilising my upper back including ribs and connecting tissues. It can be uncomfortable, but it is all for the better good!”



The 17:31 5k runner - who also holds a 2:51 marathon PB - gave a fascinating insight into how Jenny is able to think ‘outside the box’ when considering the origins of a patient’s symptoms.

“During my treatment, Jenny discovered the muscles down one side of my body (in the back, glute and legs) were slightly different to the other side. Following a conversation about my job, I realised I have been using the same foot to operate the foot pedal when audio typing for the last 18 years! Her simple solution? Alternate feet! So simple, yet sometimes it takes someone such as Jenny to identify a problem and make the necessary changes. I have eliminated commuting with the heavy rucksack and bought a bike.

“I am looking forward to my next appointment with Jenny at Blizard Physiotherapy, and will be interested what method of treatment she tries out next. I have every confidence in Jenny's expertise and know she'll get me back to running at my best soon.”

We cannot wait for you to be back to your best Fiona, you’re an inspiration to us all and you know you are in good hands with our physiotherapy experts.