I’m running my first ever marathon—the Manchester Marathon on Sunday, 19th April—and raising £400 plus for the British Heart Foundation. I'd be so grateful for your support.

Heart disease has impacted my family personally. My dad has had several heart attacks over the years, and I’ve seen firsthand how suddenly life can change—not just for the person who’s ill, but for everyone who loves them. I’ve also seen what recovery really looks like: the fear, the hard work, and the support people need to rebuild their lives. The British Heart Foundation plays a major role in that through research, training, and ongoing support that gives families hope when they need it most.

Personally, the past four and a half years have been among the toughest of my life. COVID led to long COVID, and since then, I’ve been diagnosed with coeliac disease and, later, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).

At the start, I could barely walk a few hundred yards without being out of breath. Some days I couldn’t do anything at all—and those days often stretched into weeks. I’ve had many investigations, including under the cardiologist after having an ambulance called out on blue lights after experiencing heart issues. Luckily, nothing sinister was found. My wife has also had her run-in with suspected heart condition and ambulance coming out on blue lights. These are very scary moments.

Even now, CFS still hits hard. There are still days when I simply walk up the stairs, my heart pounds, and I’m left breathless, for no real reason. And days when recovery from anything takes… days!

But I’ve been fighting to rebuild myself—slowly, patiently—and learning to be kinder to myself along the way. Last year, I knew I needed something to aim for, a challenge that would pull me out of a physical and mental rut and help me find “me” again. It had to be genuinely outside my comfort zone.

I’m not a natural long-distance runner, but I have supported elite athletes through long-distance events with Strength and conditioning and nutrition support. So, I signed up for the Manchester Marathon… and the couch-to-marathon programme began.

Not only am I supporting the BHF, but I’m also doing this for a few personal reasons. I’m doing it to keep fighting back against health conditions—physical and mental—and to prove to myself that I’m still here, still capable, still moving forward.

A deeper reason, that will get me through the pain and dark moments of the run, is that I’m also doing it for all my friends who can no longer be with us. The friends we have lost along the way to both physical and mental illnesses. And as a reminder, even when things feel heavy and dark that, I, and we all can still take the next step.

I’m also doing this alongside my wife, who’s going from couch to marathon, too. Training has been going well, and I’m genuinely enjoying it, but recovery has been the hardest part—and every mile has reminded me that nothing is guaranteed and that health is something we cannot take for granted.

The BHF has helped halve the number of people dying from heart and circulatory disease in the UK, but sadly, every day, hundreds of people lose their lives. It's only thanks to support from people like us that the BHF can create new treatments and discover new cures. £24 could pay for two hours of research by an early-career scientist, but every pound helps, so please give what you can to help me hit my target. Thanks!

Please donate anything you can, however small. Every pound helps support research that saves lives, improves treatment, and gives families more time together. And on race day, knowing you’ve backed me will mean more than I can put into words—it’ll be the extra push when it really starts to hurt.

Thank you for reading, for supporting, and for being part of this with me.