I’ve not done much running in my adult life (barely any in fact) but in 2014 I discovered a love for what has been described as the ‘world’s most accessible sport’! It didn’t happen overnight, it has taken lots of prodding by some well-meaning friends, going through the process of the ‘Couch to 5k’ program about 3 times, and a shift in my opinion (i.e. “I’m not a natural runner”, “It’s too hard”, “It hurts” etc.)…before I finally started to love running.

I don’t find it easy. I’m not fast. I’m certainly not a natural. But I love it for the sense of freedom it gives, the headspace, and the visible health benefits it provides too.

This year I’ve decided to up my game when it comes to my running efforts and have challenged myself to run at least 500 miles in 12 months, which will include me entering, training for, and completing a number of races.  During the course of this I want to raise money and awareness for Sands. From the moment Sands was introduced to me,  I knew that I should do something to champion the hard work this charity does to raise awareness of stillbirth and neonatal death in the UK. And my running antics seemed to be the obvious choice.

My running journey over the past few years has been pretty pitiful. In 2013, I ran (and walked) approximately 60 miles throughout the year, and it was probably a lot less in the year preceding. Last year I was determine to make 2014 the year I would run and carry on running regardless of how much I hated it (at that time). At the beginning of 2014 I started running from scratch again and over the year I managed to cover about 300 miles. My longest ever run and greatest achievement was completing the 10 mile Great South Run in Portsmouth.

This year I want to run at least 500 miles and to keep me on track to reach my target I plan to run three half marathons, with some 10k events in between.. I’m currently in training for my first half marathon which is on 15^th March in Wimbledon.

Thank you