I can’t quite believe I’m saying this, but I’m running the London Marathon in April 2027 for Save the Children 👟👟👟

Yes that’s right, the woman who didn’t run until summer 2025 and who spends the majority of her time in the quiet countryside has voluntarily registered to run 26.2 miles across one of the world’s busiest cities.

🫨 “Why on earth would you do that?!?” I hear you ask.

In short, it’s a challenge I have always wanted to do but never believed I’d be capable of, and it’s for a valuable cause that actually improves people's lives in the UK and abroad. Almost 1 in 3 children in the UK are living in poverty without their basic needs being met and this absolutely cannot continue. Your donations can contribute to Save The Children being able to put food in the mouths of children.

The long story, for those of you interested, is that due to battling various challenges in my life, I hadn’t been looking after myself particularly well and realised in the summer of 2025 that I couldn’t run for 30 seconds without feeling like my lungs would give in.

I had a pair of working legs and a pair of working lungs, plus the Scottish countryside right on my doorstep and, shamefully, I wasn’t using any of those things to their full potential.

I knew that something had to change. So, through hard work, consistency and a whole lot of blood, sweat and tears, I found myself running 10k for the first time without stopping on 14 November 2025.

Running not only made my body feel better, but it made my mind feel better and I learned to love everything about it. The progress, the challenges and sadly even the setbacks that came with injury.

I had to take a break from running earlier this year to rehabilitate a glute and hamstring injury that I picked up through overuse, and that break really made me realise how lost I was without the hobby that had given me my life back.

My close friends and family know that without running I would never have had the mental strength or confidence to make all of the various life changes I have made over the last year, and I will forever be grateful that I found the sport as it was the catalyst that allowed me to change my life for the better, in more ways than one.

So when the opportunity arose to take on a personal challenge that I have always wanted to do but never previously believed I would ever be capable of, how could I say no?! My physio and I have worked hard to get my body strong in a position to run again, and what better motivation than to take on an intense physical challenge that can also be used to better the lives of other people?

Will I be questioning my life choices when I’m training through the rain, snow and hail over winter? Yeah, maybe.

Will I, the queen of isolation and crowd-avoidance, be questioning my life choices when I’m battling through crowds in London to get to the start line? Yeah, probably.

Will I be questioning my life choices when I get to what people call the mental halfway mark at mile 20? Yeah, definitely.

But the thing is, no matter how much of a challenge the training and event itself will feel like, it won’t even come close to the challenges faced by children who through no fault of their own are dealing with the direct effects of poverty, global conflict, climate disasters, inability to access education and so much more.

Let’s be honest, the world is in shambles and many people like to stick their head in the sand and pretend that it isn’t happening, but it is happening and these things cannot get any better without organisations like Save the Children who work incredibly hard to provide food, clean water, medicine, education, emergency aid and long term support to children who need it.

I have faced my own struggles and I only managed to get out of the dark place I was in because my basic needs were met and I was able to focus on improving my life, but too many children across the UK and around the world do not have that privilege.

So I’m going to run the London Marathon and I’ll probably have a whinge and a moan about it because it will be uncomfortable. Actually, I’ll probably be doing lots of whinging and moaning about it. It wouldn’t be a challenge if it wasn’t hard! But I’ll push through the discomfort because I know it is my choice and it is temporary. For too many children across the world, their discomfort isn’t a choice.

I will be tackling this challenge in two main phases to ensure that I can approach this challenge in a healthy, sustainable way:

1️⃣Return to running post-injury

Monday 3rd August - Saturday 7th November

This will see me building up my strength and fitness again in a gradual manner to ensure I am not shocking my body following injury. Strength and conditioning will be my main focus here, whilst I slowly return to a regular running routine. Phase 1 will end with me running the Duthie Park 10k on 7th November 2026.

2️⃣Going the distance

Sunday 6th December 2026 - Sunday 25th April 2027

This will see me formally starting my marathon training to gradually build up the distance over a 20-week period. This is a longer training block than a lot of people do for a marathon, but will allow me to slowly build towards the marathon distance to reduce the risk of injury. Phase 2 will end with me crossing the finish line of the London Marathon, a feeling I cannot even begin to imagine!!

I plan to track my training progress on social media, primarily because I like to look back to see how far I’ve come when I challenge myself to do things, but also for a bit of accountability!

If you can support my challenge by donating, then thank you. I mean that from the bottom of my heart, thank you so much. You’re helping turn my discomfort into meaningful support for people who truly need it.

If you can’t donate, then that’s completely fine, but please share this page, follow along with my training updates and show me your support where you can. Every bit of support counts, not just the financial support, and every bit of support will be gratefully received.

Wish me luck, I’m going to need it 😁

Michaela xx