WHAT AN AMAZING DAY!  I DID IT!!!!  4 hours, 27 mins, 44 secs.  Beat my target time and had an amazing motivation to keep going - thanking you for all your generosity!  More news to follow soon xxx

THANK YOU ALL FOR HELPING ME SMASH MY TARGET.  IT WAS INITIALLY £1,600 BUT DUE TO YOUR GENEROSITY I HAVE NOW OVER £5K INCLUDING GIFT AID FOR THE CHARITY!!!

LOVE YOU ALL XXX

P.S. FEEL FREE TO JUSTKEEPGIVING

I am running the Virgin London Marathon on Sunday 25th April to raise funds for the National Osteoporosis Society. My little sister Jodie found out in the month before her 30th birthday that she has osteoporosis and I am determined complete the marathon to do just a little to help find better treatments for this condition. Plus, seeing Shamu running 26.2 miles will be proof to my sister that we can achieve anything in life if we put our mind to it!

On top of that, for training purposes, I'm cutting down on my usual weekend (and midweek to be honest!) drinking antics - something in itself that I think deserves to be celebrated - and sponsored!

**Thank you to A&N Media for the donation of £250 through our company's matched funding pledge**

**A big THANK YOU to everyone who sponsored me early on. JustGiving gave me £500 towards my cause for having the most individual sponsors during that period**

Progress:

Sat 23rd January - Back up to 12 miles - trying to break the half way distance next weekend

Sun 30th January - Quick run during the week (10km) then 14 miles today - the furthest I've ever run :) this could be a pattern over the next few weeks... a bit tired, but able to walk still

Weekend of 7th Feb I didn't really do any long runs.  There were a few 10km but nothing to write home about.

Sun 14th Feb - 16 miles!  Woo hoo... But I had to do it as I naughtily drank some wine during the week (and by some I mean some bottles :)) 

Sun 21st Feb - 18+ miles = 30km = 3 million centimetres :)  Did a very quick 5km during the week and then the big one on Sunday.  Had a minor Paula moment near Battersea Bridge, but managed to work through it (and find a toilet in time).  Writing this on Monday when, rather surprisingly, I can still walk.

Sat 27th Feb - longish run of about 8-9 miles around Irvine - it probably would have been faster had I encountered any of the locals

Sun 7th March - 7 weeks to go! - I took part in the Newham London 10k round the new Olympic Stadium construction site. New 10k personal best of 48 mins 38 secs :)

Sun 14th March - Did my first 20 miler... well 21 miles (the extra one was an accident).  Felt ok, tho my feet were hurting somewhat and I did fall asleep for the rest of the day... never again (well at least for a few weeks)

Sun 21st March - I was only going to do a 10k but was really enjoying the run in the sunshine and ended up doing 12 miles. I think I was running about 9 minute miles, which was on a par with the run that I did last October.

Sat 27th March - after a hell week at work and a big awards do on the Friday night, I forced myself to go out and run a 10k.  I nearly vomited. Quite possibly the worst run in ages... Hangover soo...

Friday 2nd April - Good Friday? not quite. I went out for my second 20+ miler and after about 18 miles my calves seized up and couldn't run any further. I walked the rest home.  Ouch... It's Sunday now and the legs don't seem too bad, so hoping it was a minor blip.  Time to taper down tho... 

Sunday 11th April - Into the taper! yay... seems to have timed itself with hectic mad work period.  Today, I did what should have been an easy run, but was psychologically difficult - I ran the 14 miles from my grandparents to my parents... a distance I would never have EVER contemplated walking, nevermind running.  It was a nice day, but I got sunburnt elbows. 2 weeks to go x

 

About Osteoporosis:

Almost three million people in the UK are estimated to have osteoporosis Combined cost of hospital and social care for patients with a hip fracture amounts to more than £2.3billion per year in the UK – that’s approximately £6 million a day In the UK, one in two women and one in five men over the age of 50 will break a bone mainly because of poor bone health. Osteoporosis costs the NHS and government £2.3 billion a year – that’s £6 million a day. There are about 230,000 osteoporotic fractures every year. 1,150 people are dying every month in the UK as a result of hip fractures.

 

Donating on JustGiving:

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.