Olga Ilyina on sports medicine and recovery after childbirth
IN RUBRIC "Case" we introduce readers to women of different professions and hobbies that we like or are simply interested in. In this issue, we talked with a sports doctor, a former doctor and physiotherapist of the women's basketball club Spartak (Vidnoe), co-founder of the SelfMamaRun club and charity runner Olga Ilyina about how to get in shape after giving birth, how to perceive the Ice Bucket Challenge and whether to regret myself.
In July, I became the charity runner of the Children’s Fund, I took part in the Helping On the Run action as part of the fund for the Do Not Spill Water program. At the heart of the project “Do not spill water” was the desire to organize life in an orphanage in such a way that blood brothers and sisters were not separated. In institutions for orphans, pupils often live in groups by age. So it turns out that when they get to an orphanage or boarding school, children not only lose their home, their parents, their familiar surroundings, but also gradually lose touch with their brothers and sisters in other groups. With fund money in orphanages, rooms are furnished and arranged so that the children are not separated and from childhood they become accustomed to the concept of a family, in order to maintain their nepotism. The same funds are used to redesign the tutors of orphanages so that they also contribute to the rapprochement of children. Today, all the money from my lectures, seminars, and consultations is transferred to the foundation. And I do not refuse, even if I just asked to help. Just ask instead of "thank you" to donate funds. I do not hesitate to ask for money.
The Ksyusha Alferova and Yegor Beroyev Foundation "I am" for children with Down syndrome was organized literally before my eyes. I personally know these people and watched the process, and saw how detractors commented on their posts, they say, the guys wanted to "popiaritsya." And I was torn from the feeling of injustice! Lord, people do such a big deal - and there are such accusations. The guys from my running team Gorky Park Runners and I went to work with the "sunny" kids in one of the boarding schools, and I saw what changes were made thanks to the work done. Charity cannot be quiet. Yes, in the 90s money was laundered through it, and it undermined the attitude towards everything, it became suspicious and criminal. But since then everything has changed - all procedures are transparent, every penny is fixed there.
Ice Bucket Challenge is good because it attracts attention. I don't care if you shower daily or not. And I would never have paid attention if my friends hadn’t started talking to the camera before pouring on icy water. For example, one guy from my running team, Sasha Melnichuk, from whom I honestly did not expect this, poured himself and said the words in support of me and the foundation. That week, the list of "donors" was greatly replenished with unfamiliar last names. I was all very impressed and inspired, and with more zeal I began to invent various things in order to raise more money for the program.
Many begin to run sharply, chasing the mileage, after six months or a year the marathon is already running. And then they come to me with sore knees, feet or backs
I have been involved in athletics since childhood, and the fact that everyone started to run around is great, very cool. Let many shout that this is a profanation, it does not matter. Today is profanation, tomorrow is a common thing and a healthy nation. I rather do not like the fact that many people start to run harshly, build their trainings incorrectly, chase down mileage and high pace, after six months or a year they are already running a marathon. Sometimes there is no system in such runs, they can run four times a week, then take a monthly break. And then they come to me with sore knees, feet, backs and complain that running hurts their health. You're running the wrong way, buddy. Yes, there are a lot of problems in running, but if you run distances longer than 3 km, you have ambitions to run 10 km, a half marathon, a marathon and have a good pace, be kind to treat this professionally.
You either want to run or play sports, or you don't want to. Here sits a man in front of me and pulls: "It would be good for me to do sports too!" And I immediately suggest: come on, let's go to run even tomorrow. Someone reacts to the weakling woman, someone - to "pull yourself together, a rag", someone - to affection, regardless of the complexity of his mental organization. It’s just that everyone is given his time to get together and decide on some kind of action, and if this person is dear to me, I can spend my time and shuffle so that the person wants to lace up his sneakers and go out for a run in any weather.
I have a megasport family. Dad - the master of sports of international class, was engaged in an exotic at that time, in the 60s, a sport - motoball. Then the USSR crushed everyone. Dad always took me with him to the training camp, I was just happy, and mom and sister watched and sympathized with our obsession. We went to Lithuania for training camps and, by luck and circumstance, watched the superstar game Arvydas Sabonis from the legendary Zalgiris basketball club.
Kislovodsk, where I was born, is a Mecca of athletes. Here, in the middle mountains, teams and other teams are preparing for the season. In Kislovodsk, we all know, is the base of the Olympic training. And in our stadium in the 80s they set a path that was the same as at the Luzhniki Olympics. We had strong coaches and an olympic school. I began to study at the age of nine, at the age of 14 I had a specialization, heptathlon, in which I was a fairly promising girl. In general, I did not want to be a doctor, but an Olympic champion, but when I became older, I changed my mind. No, I was not afraid of exhausting work - I was frightened by the consequences of injuries and pharmacology.
I was a fan of anatomy. She loved to draw all these bones, muscles, collect skeletons. And my parents suggested that I go to medical school after the eighth grade. It was a medical school for blind people, where they trained masseurs. Strong school, the best in the country. And what anatomichka they have! I spent so much time there, studying the structure of the body, amazing our body - perfect and at the same time so fragile. She graduated with honors. After it was easy enough for me to enter and study at the medical institute. I am very grateful to my parents that in the last classes they sent me to a medical school and I did not suffer from bullshit, like many of my peers. It was a profession that fed us for five years when we arrived in Moscow in '98. Already at the institute, on the third course, I realized that it was very difficult for me without sports in life, and then I knew for sure that I would work not in a hospital or clinic, but directly with athletes, individually or as a team.
In 2004, Shabtai von Kalmanovich created the women's basketball club Spartak (Vidnoye) and called me to him. I say: class, come on. He says, then the day after tomorrow - to leave for Orenburg. I remember this trip to the smallest details: I really could not even tap it. We played the best of the best. Diana Taurasi, Tanya Schegolev, Sveta Abrosimova, Sue Bird - we can safely say that all the stars of world basketball played at different times in our team. Superlegand Lisa Leslie, when she finished her career, succumbed to the persuasion of Shabtai and came to us for half a season. When Shabtai died, the girls decided to play out the season at any cost and won. When they won the Euroleague, everyone put on the "4th - for you, Shabtai" T-shirts. Everyone was crying. Before us, no European club won the Euroleague (and this is like Champions League for football) four times in a row. Shabtai everyone adored, even despite its rigidity. He knew how to find and find talented people.
When we won the Euroleague in 2008, I learned that I was pregnant with my second child. By that time, I was already very tired from working at the club and thought about it with relief. During pregnancy I didn’t even run - just enjoyed my motherhood and blissed out. Of course, yes, I gained weight, but I felt so good! I treat myself like this: well, ok, I'm fat now - nothing, I will lose weight. And if I do not lose weight, but I'm awesome.
I gave birth to my first child at 21, and during the pregnancy until the seventh month I ran, swam and played tennis. After I recovered very quickly and began to run again, but not more than 5-7 km. There was a period when the son and her husband wanted me to give birth to another baby. I told them all the time: “Well, wait a minute, we will win the championship”, “Wait, we will win the Euroleague”. Working with a team means not living at home. For almost five years I came home, put a bag on the floor with dirty things, took another one and ran downstairs, where a taxi to the airport or the base was waiting for me. At one point, Danya told me: "Mom, you have already won three Euroleagues." And I say: "Yes, yes, we still have to drive to the Olympics." I was then driving. We must pay tribute to her husband that he endured it and very strongly supported and believed in me. And I had no time to feel sorry for myself.
For five years I came home, put a bag with dirty things on the floor, took another one and ran down to where I was waiting for a taxi to the airport or to the base
My youngest son Nikita is now 7 months old. This time there was a threat of miscarriage, and therefore almost all the time I was practically lying. During pregnancy, you produce the hormone relaxin, and all ligaments on the body relax. So some time after giving birth, I did swaddling, a procedure that two midwives do for five hours. At home, you are steamed on all kinds of herbs, while you are sitting in the bathroom, the midwife performs certain manipulations on osteopathy. You drink ginger with lemon, it is unrealistic to sweat: your bed is covered with several layers of blankets and a sheet in advance. Then they wipe you dry, tie them up, and for hours, while the bundles come together, you sleep for four hours. I am very sorry that 4.5 years ago I did not do this when I gave birth to an average son, Denis. The stomach goes away quickly and immediately. Osteopaths also worked with me. They take their years, and in good physical condition, they need to be and want to be.
A month after the birth of Nikita, I went for a run - give, I think, a third run for a start. And I ran 200 meters and suffocated. Legs do not run, the thigh does not rise. I began to go. I go a minute, run for three minutes. Came home, complaining to her husband. And he answers me: “What do you want? Are you a champion? You have been lying motionless for 9 months, now you need to recover. Come on, you are a doctor.” And I thought, and the truth. I'm a doctor. On March 8, I ran 8 km with the girls, and on May 9 I ran a nine - in memory of my grandfather (he had a birthday on that day). Now I run about 4-5 times a week, twice a week I train with a trainer. She is supermegaprofi, master of sports of international class, marathon. People ask me: what are you preparing for, a marathon? Kamon, guys, I'm still in shape come to run happily ever after. Sometimes, of course, I look at the state: if I get tired, I do not go for a run, I'm with the children, I have household chores, work, Nikita is still in the GW. If I run on fatigue, it is useless. I am telling everyone that recovery and rest is also work, great work.
I know the human body and I understand how under my hands it changes internally. I am a very tactile person. I love to do massage: if there was some kind of marathon massage, I would have won it. In 2007, she discovered kinesiotyping and became a fan of this recovery method. I was lucky to personally be acquainted with Kenzo Kase - the man who presented this method to the world. We talked a lot when he came to Moscow and at various conferences. Amazing man. But all this was given to me for a reason: for years without stopping, I looked for teachers, and I was lucky. A year after the residency, I started practicing in private practice and worked without stopping: I worked individually with athletes, went to seminars, conferences — I studied, I studied. Therefore, I am surprised by people who want to earn 100 thousand rubles immediately without difficulty and without experience. To achieve something, you have to work hard.
Photographer: Ivan Kaidash