WHEN Sharon Bailey was in her late 30s and a keen runner she was told that her chronic back pain meant she would never be able to run again.

In fact, she had the back of a 65 year-old bricklayer.

Now aged 48, the Bolton businesswoman is not only running again but is taking part in the Manchester 10k in May for the Children Today charity and is also competing in a half-marathon later in the year.

And she puts this shift in her health and fitness down to a "great physiotherapist" and her own sheer determination and hard work.

Sharon's back problems started more than 20 years ago after she had her daughter, Stephanie. "I had a slipped disc and bulging joints which started the pain. I'd loved running but found that my back problem became simply too painful to do it," she recalls. "I was on constant medication and it was a struggle just to carry on with my life and running my business, Primecover Insurance."

She had already become interested in yoga - "which did help my back" - and became a yoga teacher but had to give up running altogether more than eight years ago. "And I really missed it", added Sharon.

Two and a half years ago, however, she started regular visits to physiotherapist Zainul Azam at AAC Spinal and Sports Injury Clinic based in the Gloves Community Centre in Prince Street, Bolton. He has both NHS and private patients and treats sporting, musculo-skeletal and spinal injuries. "Sharon had trouble even walking when she came to see me, with a problem involving the spinal nerves pinching and causing irritation. This was down to degenerative changes in the disc and bulging ," he explained.

He used manual therapy and worked on a tailor-made training programme of exercises for Sharon to do. ""This involved lots of core stability and she started using the gym ball," stated Zainul." It's all about re-educating the body on how to hold itself, activating the correct core muscles to get the body and brain to accept a better position.

"Sharon was very determined and likes to accept a challenge so she carries out the exercises regularly and comes to see me once a week before work. She also started cycling and is now at a very good standard, which all helps her general fitness."

Zainul added that he treats a wide range of patients of all ages - from elite athletes to older people - and that back pain is a common problem that strikes anyone, sometimes even the fittest. Back pain problems also result in 35 million working days lost in the UK each year.

After sticking to her training regime, reinforced each week by her physiotherapy visits, Sharon is now able to go out running regularly and does up to six miles a day. "It's fantastic to actually be out there on the road, but I don't take anything for granted and keep to my training regime," she said. "It just shows you, though, that anything is possible if you want it enough - provided you do it the right way."