For those of you that know me, you will know that I do not share really personal information in a public place, but I feel that this time, I should just go for it, it seems appropriate. So, here we go... (scroll down for info on Refuge)

After almost halving my body weight over the last couple of years, I have developed a new attitude of trying things just because I can, the fact that  I may have never wanted to, does not come in to account. I spent so long not even understanding how huge the list of things I couldn't or wouldn't do was, that now I like to just go for it, if I can try, then I will (this new outlook got me into a bit of bother going down the Needles on the Isle of Wight on an ancient cable car, but other than that, I am having fun trying). 

Anyway... last May I saw a woman running down the road and thought to myself the same thing I always did when I saw a runner: "They are insane/ I can think of better ways to get fit/ Why would anyone do this?", but this time, another thought occurred and that was "Hey, I've never even tried running, how do I know it's awful" quickly followed by the realisation that I could probably now give it a go, in a way that I wouldn't have before I lost the weight. So, I downloaded couch to 5K that evening, and promised myself that although I was  most likely going to hate it, I could, and would commit to the 9 week program (and then never run again, but it was important to try).

I never actually believed that I would make the 9 weeks, however, the next day I went out and did Week 1 Run 1, and thought I was going to die. It was utterly awful. But, I am a stubborn old mule and had a gander round the forums for advice to make Run 2 a little less evil. Run 2 was a success and I knew from then that I would make the 9 weeks. By week 3 I was really enjoying myself and by week 5 I was totally hooked. Running was what I had been missing my whole life, without ever knowing it. (Seriously, if you haven't tried give it a bash, couch to 5k changes lives)

Since completing couch to 5k, I have run further and further, I am more of snail/sloth than  most but I don't care, a slow 10km is still 10km. :)

I always said 10KM was far enough, but as most addicts know, more is always better, and I love the longer runs. A friend (who has me to blame for her couch to 5K intro), has been trying to coax me into half marathon or full marathon territory for a few months now, but I always said no, it is not for me, I love the solitary run too much. 

Once again the "but if you can, you shoud give it a go" thoughts persisted, and I secretly decided I wanted to run The Royal Parks of London Half Marathon, and then decided that if I am going out of my comfort zone, then I should raise some money on my first HM and apply for a charity place.

It wasn't hard to decide which charity to choose. As a child, I spent a lot of time being taken from my home with my siblings, by our beautiful mother to various women's refuges around the country and then returning home, just to repeat the process again a little further down the line. As you can imagine this was incredibly difficult to live through, and as the oldest of four, I remember a lot from those years. Most prominently I remember the other women in these refuges, the ones that had fled their homes too, and the ones that were there to help us. As an adult I have thought many times that I would like to do something for these warrior women who need to rebuild their lives after devastating abuse, and the people that help them, but I have never really thought that I could. Well... now I think I can! So I chose Refuge, and they only went and gave me a place, I am so proud (nervous and excited) and I hope I can make them just as proud. .

Please donate whatever you can to help me make Refuge not regret their decision to choose me.

Thanks for taking the time to read my story. You won't believe how long it is taking me to hit save on this post. 

Message from Refuge - 

At Refuge, we believe that no-one should have to live in fear of violence and abuse. On any given day Refuge supports more than 6,000 clients, helping them rebuild their lives and overcome many different forms of violence and abuse; for example domestic violence, sexual violence, so-called honour-based violence, human trafficking and modern slavery, and female genital mutilation.