This is my first marathon and I'm excited and terrified in equal measures (although if my coach is reading this, I've got to be positive, so I'm just excited ... ok ;-)! ). I was inspired to enter the ballot last year after watching the documentary "Mind over Marathon", which showed the benefit of exercise for mental health. I'm a big advocate of this and I know it helps me tremendously in my everyday life. Another reason for wanting to complete a marathon is that I completed two half Ironman triathlons last year and aim to complete a full Ironman in 2019, but wanted to make sure I was capable of running a marathon on its own first! I didn't expect to be 'lucky' enough to get a place on my first attemptm but after 5 months of training I'm ready!

I decided on Mind as my chosen charity as all our lives are touched, increasingly so, by mental health issues. We need to continue to strive to remove the stigma associated with such illnesses and to make treatment more available and accessible. The smallest donation will count to helping people live happier and fuller lives.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. 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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.