Hi everyone!

Starting on the 26th May, I will be taking on the 10 in 10 challenge where I’ll be running 10 marathons consecutively for 10 days. I’ll be doing this with the hope of raising lots of money for Project RED-S - an important and growing charity that aims to increase awareness, prevention and recovery from RED-S.

RED-S stands for Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport. It is where athletes suffering from energy shortage become unable to keep up the demands of sport and exercise on top of daily bodily functions. Although it’s not often spoken about, RED-S is a rapidly growing problem in sport and health consequences can be serious if the problem isn’t addressed early.

Having been involved in sport for the majority of my life, I have found myself getting caught up in the sporting pressures and “idealistic” body standards that are thought to be beneficial. As a result, I have struggled with disordered eating since the middle of secondary school. Unfortunately, this is becoming an increasingly more common concern amongst young individuals.

In my second year of university, I unexpectedly lost a close friend from my course, Elly. This took me a long time to come to terms with and I struggled to control my emotions and talk about my grief with others around me, so I took control of food instead. Mentally, I spiralled and loneliness crept up on me as I found it difficult to open up to those around me and pushed a lot of people away. I was constantly trying to distract myself and my disordered eating worsened and I eventually developed bulimia. Following a year and a half of secrecy and silence, my physical health had been impacted and I realised the toll it had taken on my body.

It is so important to be brave and open up about your emotions to others, even if your devils are telling you not to. It is so easy to be blind sighted and think what you are doing is right but please listen to your body and those around you.

With your donations, we can raise awareness about RED-S and launch projects and provide educational resources to help others in sport.

I am doing this challenge for myself, Elly and for all other individuals struggling with disordered eating and poor mental health. Please reach out and talk to others.

Find out more about Project RED-S=

https://red-s.com

Instagram = @project_red_s_