In all honesty I started off on this journey simply as a personal challenge with no intention of raising funds for charity. Having seen others complete marathons in recent years, and not being much of a runner myself, I felt it was time to find out if I could also 'tick that box' and so I set myself the challenge of completing  26.2 miles in and around four hours.

For those of you who have trained for a marathon it's a lot of lonely time on the road - and so I've had plenty of thinking time. As a father of one (with another on the way) I've been very lucky, however I've also experienced first hand the disappointment from problems in pregnancy.

However this pales in comparison to the problems that close friends and family have had in trying to become parents in the first place - something many take for granted. You often hear of the post code lottery when it comes to IVF treatment options in the UK and lack of understanding and support out there - and with a health system already under strain, I feel more needs to be done to help those affected.

So, I've decided to use my run to raise funds for Fertility Network UK, whom help support and raise awareness for those struggling with fertility issues. 

Please donate what you can - I'm aiming to do my run in 4 hours, and as a further incentive and motivation, and to put my own money where my mouth is, I'm going to donate £5 for every minute over 4 hours.