Having not been the sportiest of couples, two months ago we signed up for the Lewa marathon at the end of June, pitching ourselves against the long distance runners of East Africa. Wanting to do our bit to protect endangered rhinos and elephants, we have joined Tusk's band of Eco warriors in training for this fearsome endeavour.  Some of you might have seen an improbable couple running around various London parks, well that was us and it's been an uphill battle. 

The facts:

Ivory seeking poachers have killed 100,000 African elephants in just three years. The Tanzanian elephant population has declined by a catastrophic 60% in five years.  In a single decade between 1979 and 1989, half of all Africa’s elephants were lost to the ivory trade.

We are going to run a hilly half marathon in a game park in Kenya at an altitude of 5,500ft. It will be pretty gruelling  ....and there are lions about.