My Story

In late October 2010, my good friend Ben asked me if I wanted to run a marathon and I said yes before I could properly consider the enormity of this decision. I'm glad I took the first steps however and I hope you enjoy our training log!

21/05/2011-I think I have finally collected in all of the donations and totted up all of the totals. With one more event to go, cricket match in June, I have doubled my target of £500 to now reach the sum of over £1100. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped me raise money for Prostate Action!

12/04/2011-We did it! Two days ago at around this time, I was reflecting on having completed the 2011 Brighton Marathon in a time of 5:10. Ben and I crossed the line together just as we had trained together. What an amazing day. I barely slept the night after the run thinking about all of the great people I met, all of the motivation and support from the thousands who took the time out to cheer us on. The weather could not have been better (for a spectator), for a runner it was not ideal at 23 to 25 degrees with a cloudless and sunny sky.

The first half of the run was splendid exploring the regions and hamlets around Brighton Marina looping back to gaze upon the English Channel. At mile 16, the knee I had been so worried about packed it in and the pain became too acute to carry on. From then on, Ben slowed his pace slightly to let me run/hobble/walk to keep up with him. The last six miles were endless and the pier seemed to linger on the horizon, never getting any nearer. After passing the 25 mile mark, we were shortly greeted by Heather, Jenny and dad, a pleasant sight after such a long run. They encouraged us on and ran beside us among the pedestrians. Dad rolled back the years and tried to run the last mile of the race in a pedestrian area, dodging mums, dads and kids like a full back dodging tackles on the school pitch. It was a sureal sight to see in the afternoon haze with the finish line coming into view. It was all worth it crossing the line, knowing that we had achieved our goal and knowing that we were making a difference for our charities. Thank you all to everyone who has helped me on this journey.

06/04/2011- It has been quite a while since my last entry. The Ironbridge Half Marathon went well. Ben and I ran 2:07 on a very hilly course. I was happy with the performance but not so happy with the illness I developed after it which sidelined me for a week. Then when I returned to running at the end of March, I developed a new injury with regards to cartilage damage in my left knee. It is hit and miss and certainly bothers me after the longer runs. I've trained long and hard for this marathon, running 296.5 miles todate, raised awareness about Prostate Cancer, Prostate Disease and encouraged the public to think about the prostate. On Sunday 10th April, I will run the marathon and hope that my injury does not prevent me from finishing. Thank you again to everyone for all your support. 

27/02/2011-It's now been a week since I returned to training after my shin splints disaster. I started training on the treadmill last Sunday with an easy 30 minutes then returned on Tuesday for a cardio session before tackling the road for the first time again on Thursday with a 50 minute run around East Park. Today was the tester as I returned to training with Ben who has been running well over the last few weeks. We stayed to the safety of East Park where we could run often on the grass verge to give some release from the pounding of the pavement. We achieved 13 laps of the park at 2:20 running 14.5 miles today. Now, roll on next Sunday where we hope to up to the 17 mile range in preperation for the Ironbridge Half-Marathon in two weeks time.

Luckily, my fundraising hasn't had to be sidelined as the work 50/50 draw continues to raise interest. So far, it has raised £20, £17.50, £17 and £15 so adds valuable money to the cause. The pub quiz is the next venture on Monday 7th March at 8:30pm at the All Nations Pub in Ironbridge so please get in touch if you want to participate. Then the Football charity match will be on Sunday 20th March, more details to follow...

13/02/2011- Shin Splints! Two days after the Turkey Trot I went out for a run, having a go at some interval training only to find I had a strong pain in my right shin, half way down. It was more of an ache and made my leg feel weak. Two days later and a trip to the doctor and I'm told it's either a shin splint or a stress fracture. Good news is I should be ok to start running again in just over a week. I've been keeping my training up at the gym with cardio (cross train, bike and swimming) so hopefully I won't have lost too much when I start running again. Whatever happens, I'll run through the pain on the day. This injury may have set me back a bit, but I now have to shift my focus from getting sub 4 hour race to finishing. Well done to Ben for running a 7 mile race in Telford today!

30/01/2011- Today, Ben and I ran our first competitive road race, the turkey trot, a 5 mile race that starts and finishes at Aldersley Stadium. Both of us ran well, running personal best times. Ben ran just over 38 minutes and I ran at 36:08. Becky and Henry were cheering us on. At the end, we were given our prize, a small turkey treat to eat later on. The running continues and so does the training.

23/01/2011- After a small break this week with a small niggle in my left calf, I took a few days off to rest. Today, I decided to push on with my training and reached the half way point, running my first half marathon distance!

Also, last night, I attended a Prostate Cancer Support group meeting that my dad runs and had a lovely evening spending time with those who have the disease as well as those who are recovering. The food was a treat and the group was generous as they donated £90 to my fundraising campaign.

21/01/2011- Hello everyone, we're almost past the most depressing week of the year and the weather has not been too good for running. January training has been going well so far as I've done an 11mile and am aiming for a half-marathon distance next weekend, maybe even 15 miles who knows.

The fundraising game is going well. We have now booked a Quiz Night at the All Nations Pub in the Ironbridge Gorge for Monday 7th March 2010 from 8:30pm until late. Contact me by email on joehea@hotmail.co.uk for more details.

We are also close to announcing our charity football match which will be held at Bilston Goals Soccer Centre.

Thanks again for all your support!

06/01/2011-Happy New Year everyone. I've had a bit of time off updating the blog in the build up to Christmas. I had my first small setback in early December as I had a big muscle strain in my right calf and had to take a week off running. I got back on track by mid December however. Over the holiday break was hard to keep going but I ran at least twice a week over Christmas which was good. I had hoped to have run a 10 mile in 01:27 run by the end of December but I fell just short of my goal, however I reached the milestone on 02/01/2011 which isn't too bad. The goal now is to get up to a half marathon by the end of January.

The pledges are going well at work too and I hope to organise a few more fundraising events soon so watch this space.

30/11/2010- Well, it's the last day of November and we have now been training for a full month. We've hit several milestones since we started and we are continuing to make good progress. Our first run was for 3.2 miles and by the end of the month we are up to 7.44 miles in 1:03hrs, so we are almost at a 1/3 of a marathon distance. 

As for fundraising, it may not look like a big total online, but my old fashioned paper fundraising is doing much better. In January, I will be attending a local prostate cancer support group to discuss my charity challenge. I've also got a quiz night planned and Ben and I are planning a charity football match soon as well.

The journey continues...

21/11/201-Milestone reached today as Ben and I ran 6.4 miles in just over 54 minutes meaning we have run the equivalent of a quarter of a marathon so we are definitely improving. The moment of the run was as we had just passed mile 6 and we were almost home, I said '...if this was race day, we would only have 20 miles left'! That puts things into perspective a bit doesn't it.

Next task, buy a new pair of trainers and more running gear! And speaking of fundraising, I've now received my first few pledges from work with £45 on the books so far. I have a few ideas in the works and after Christmas, Ben and I will be arranging a charity football match as well as Friday '50/50' draws at work.

I had a good look at the Brighton marathon website as well today, checked out the video of the whole run which looks very cool in deed with a lot of beach front and sea cliff running! Next, have to book the hotel. 

15/11/2010-We're training three times a week at the moment, alongside three times at the gym to keep myself fit. So, far we are running at a pace of under 9 minute miles and our longest run so far is about 5.4 miles. They say the marathon is a slow burner, we will try to increase slowly to get our distances up.

 

 More than three-quarters of men diagnosed with prostate cancer now survive their disease beyond five years. In the 1970s is was less than a third. 

In the 1970s only two out of ten men diagnosed with prostate cancer survived their disease for at least ten years. Now it is nearly seven in ten.

Much of the improvement in survival can be attributed to the increased use of PSA testing in the UK which has led to the diagnosis of many prostate cancers which would have gone undetected.

Men with one or more first-degree relatives (father, brother, or son) diagnosed with prostate cancer have an increased risk of prostate cancer, especially if the relative was diagnosed before the age of 60. 

My name is Joseph Sugden and I am one of those relatives. My uncle Steve sadly died of Prostate Cancer almost 10 years ago. My paternal grandfather also died with Prostate Cancer. The death of my uncle opened our eyes to the harsh reality of this disease, as he contracted the cancer very young. He helped my dad though as through early regular PSA and prostate checkups, he was able to detect his cancer and he has made a full recovery. It is with regret that Steve was not privileged to the same early detections.

In 2011, I will be 30 years old and it will have been 10 years since Steve's death. What better time to remember Steve, raise money for a good cause and have a great time running along the cliffs of Dover!

The time is now right to raise my own awareness and hopefully to raise the awareness of a few of you. On the way, I hope to raise over £500 for Prostate Action Charity (Registered Charity 1117399). I also hope to achieve my goals of running the longest race I have ever run and to do it with my friend Benjamin Bond.

So please have a look at the work of Prostate Action and please help me to reach my goal!

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