MONDAY 18TH APRIL 2011

So...one year on and I did it!! Thank you all for your support - it means so much and will make a huge difference to the Lily Foundation.

Yesterday was an amazing day - the atmosphere was unbelievable and despite the heat and gazillion runners, I got round in one piece. It was hardly record-breaking pace, but I did it, so am pretty chuffed.

Loads of you sponsored me last year when I was due to do the 2010 Marathon, before getting injured and withdrawing. But some of you have asked about sponsoring me again, so if that is you THANK YOU - you are very kind and generous. My aching legs and juicy blisters are very grateful for your support.

Love Helen xxx

FRIDAY 16th APRIL 2010

Hello everyone,

 I am sorry about the mass email, but I come bearing bad news.

As some of you may know, a little while I suffered a painful tendon injury while training for the marathon. As you can appreciate, it really panicked and upset me, fearing that I wouldn’t make it to next week’s start line. I started seeing a physio and getting regular sports massages, and he was sure that I would be ok. He said it was a common running injury, and if I followed his advice, all would be ok. So for the first time ever, I actually did what I was told.  He told me to do no training at all for a few weeks and just rest, but last weekend I step foot outside with him for the first time, and my knee was in agony after just a few minutes.

In simple terms, my knee has become so weak that the muscles either side of it cannot support the knee joint itself, meaning that any impact means that the kneecap becomes displaced and causes a lot of pain. After being in real discomfort last weekend, I had an emotional chat with my physio on Tuesday and we decided that doing the marathon could cause long-term damage and it would be safest for me to pull out.

 The reality of withdrawing from the marathon has obviously been devastating. I was really enjoying my training, was well on course to complete it in a time I could be proud of, and was genuinely excited by the whole experience. It has been a huge personal journey for me and those closest to me have had to put up with a lot over the past few months, so to not even get to the start line is difficult for everyone, as they will have to go through it all again next year!

So I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for your support and to let you know that your sponsorship hasn’t gone to waste. The charity will still receive all the money and I will simply be running it in 2011 instead of next weekend, thus giving me another 12 months to strengthen my knees and get my body in tip-top condition.

I really hope I haven’t let any of you down. I have been so upset about what has happened, and to have got so near yet so far is agonising. Thank you everyone for your support.

Love Helen xxxx

I am running the London Marathon to raise money for the Lily Foundation, whose mission is to find a cure for mitochondrial disease.

When a person has mitochondrial disease, the mitochondria in the cells within your body don't produce enough energy to fuel the cell. As cells make up every organ and tissue in the body, without enough energy to function, these tissues and organs cannot work properly. Logically, the most common parts of the body affected by mitochondrial disease are those that have the highest energy demands; the brain, muscles, liver, heart and kidneys.

The Lily Foundation was set up in memory of Lily Anna Merritt, who died at just 8 months old from mitochondrial disease. With little known about the disease and other metabolic disorders, Lily's family decided to set up the Lily Foundation to help raise awareness and fund research into the condition.

Now I personally know about the Lily Foundation because I work with Lily's Uncle, John. Since Lily died, I have seen the massive effect her death from this disease has had on his whole family. But what has been so amazing - and what has led me to want to support them in this way - is how such an awful event has been used to create something so positive. Lily's Mum, Liz, talks about the inner strength and fighting spirit that Lily showed during her short time on earth, and it is that spirit and and strength that Liz and the whole family bring to the Lily Foundation. They are such a wonderful family, and the way in which they have thrown everything into raising awareness of mitochondrial disease and supporting those who going through similar experiences, is truly inspirational. And so I want to follow their lead and find some inner strength and fighting spirit of my own and run the London Marathon.

It really is a fantastic cause, and any donation you could make really would make a difference to the Lily Foundation's work. In under 3 years they have raised nearly £300,000 towards the £400,000 they need to fund a new gene-testing programme at Guy & St. Thomas' Hospital, which will be used in research units all over the UK. Your donation will help fund this desperately needed programme, and take the giant steps needed to find a cure for this disease.

If you would like to read more about Lily's story and the work of the Lily Foundation, please go to www.thelilyfoundation.org.uk