I have decided to participate in the Royal Parks London Half Marathon on 14 October 2018.

I only started running 18 months ago. I'm not a professional runner nor do I project myself or aspire to ever become one. On the contrary. I consider myself to be an amateur who till this very day does rookie mistakes. But that is not what this post is all about.

I didn't just wake up one day and decide to start running. It was a series of events, circumstances and personal encounters which have got me to the point where I am today, running 4 times a week (when my body permits that and I'm not sporting any injury).

My running experience so far has been a roller coaster ride. From that ecstatic feeling of running my very first 5km, to the adrenaline rush of the first race, to the painful dark moments of recovering from endless injuries to waking up on those cold wintry mornings at 4:44 a.m. No, it hasn't been the smoothest of rides, but it has been a ride worth taking.

I'm not competitive with others but myself, to push harder. I'm not  particularly bothered about placings in races nor about timings either. That's all secondary. The minute it gets competitive would be the minute I'd call it quits. I run because I enjoy it. Its the most excruciatingly painful Iiberating feeling ever.

Running has given me much more than I could have ever imagined. Not only physically in making me aware of my capabilities and limitations, but has been the perfect therapy for the mind, body and soul.

Although every training session, run and race are gruelling (as they should be), the sense of gratification when a run is over cannot be put into words, and I always find myself planning my next run, be it in the gym, round the block, to the track after work or planning long runs with my running mates over the weekend.

In participating in this marathon, I want to reach out to as many people as possible about the benefits of running, particularly the psychological and mental aspect of it, and want to give something back to society via a sport I am completely new to. That feeling of self belief. To never give up. That sacrifice pays off.

I will be running for a charity, but my application to participate in this marathon depends on how much money I can raise till race date.

I will be running in aid of the British Heart Foundation

- Why a half marathon abroad and not in Malta? I ran a couple in Malta before but it was always a personal goal of mine to run abroad, plus London is my favorite city and home to the Hammers ⚒, so it was a no-brainer.

- Why run for a 'foreign' charity? Apart from the fact that in order to be guaranteed a running slot, I need to commit to raising a certain amount of money for charity (makes perfect sense to me), I personally do not distinguish between local or foreign charities, as at the end of the day, we are all citizens of the same universe.

I invite you to join me on this journey and hope to use this experience to try and make a difference in raising awareness on the health benefits of running, physicallly but particularly mentally. Running has in fact been my best therapy. My biggest achievement would not be crossing the finish line but knowing that in all this, I managed to be a voice.

Kindly click help me raise awareness by raising funds and donating to this worthy cause.

Thanks for all your support.

#finishline
#stopstigma
#believeinyourself
#waveofchange
#coyi