It has been a dream of mine to take part in the London Marathon since watching it for the first time on television aged 11. However, whilst dabbling with jogging on and off in my 20's and 30's, enjoying the thought of it more than the execution, I've never been a runner by any stretch of the imagination and thought running 3 miles, let alone a marathon, impossible. 

Sadly my 15 year old cat Zico was put to sleep last summer having suffered a blood clot caused by other complications.  He had been an integral part of my life helping me through some very difficult times. I wanted something positive to come from Zico's death and as I wasn't ready to have another cat decided to raise funds in aid of Cats Protection to help improve the lives of other cats.

Last year I applied to run in the London Marathon  2018 in aid of Cats Protection but the places had already been allocated.  I was however offered a place in the Brighton Marathon 2018  and thereby embarked on a training plan on Christmas Day to get me from a walker to a Marathoner in 16 weeks. I achieved a lifetime ambition of completing a marathon.

So now I have been lucky enough to secure a place in the London Marathon 2019 running again in aid of Cats Protection.  I'm so excited to be able to participate and achieve a lifetime ambition whilst also combining it with running to raise funds for a great charity.

I'm pretty much starting from scratch again with my running. Having done it once I realise I'll be opening myself up for discomfort, pain and, towards the end of the training, exhaustion coupled with early Sunday morning long runs, more than likely in the rain, whilst wishing I was still in bed.  However, it will probably be the one and only time I run the London Marathon and crossing the finish line will be so emotional for so many reasons and more than compensate for any pain and discomfort. I would really be so grateful if you could join me in my journey and ultimately support cats. 

Thank you so much 😻

Cats Protection is the UK’s leading feline welfare charity. Their vision is a world where every cat is treated with kindness and an understanding of its needs. Cats Protection has simple and clear objectives to help cats: Homing - Finding good homes for cats in need Neutering - Supporting and encouraging the neutering of cats Information - Improving people’s understanding of cats and their care.  Achieving this vision is only made possible due to kind cat lovers who support our work. Visit www.cats.org.uk for more information.