‘Getting up to run at 5am in a heatwave is not my idea of fun’

I have got to be honest with you, getting up at 5am to go running in the summer is not really my idea of fun.

I like to work hard…but I love a lie-in too.

As my alarm went off early in the morning on many occasions, I kept reminding myself that it was all for a good cause. A very good cause.

I first ran the Great North Run for the Bodie Hodges Foundation charity in 2019. Back then, they were a cause I strongly believed in. In 2022, I share a work building with them too.

My 2019 efforts represented my first ever half marathon and was one of the best experiences I have ever had in terms of the atmosphere. It was unique and very special and I was buzzing at the end of what was a very hard challenge.

Great North Run

I enjoyed it so much that I planned to do another one but then Covid hit and I got injured last year so it was really nice to be back on the streets a few weeks ago for the 2022 Great North Run.

The Bodie Hodges Foundation provide brilliant services for bereaved families so it felt good to be out there raising money for them, especially in these challenging times for charities. I know people personally who have found solace and support from the Bodie Hodges Foundation after finding themselves in the most challenging circumstances imaginable after the death of a child.

Me and the rest of the Wellbeing Therapy Solutions team love working side by side with their team. We all get on really well and we support each other so it fits perfectly.

The Great North Run presented the kind of personal challenge that I can get stuck into and thrive on. Setting myself regular challenges really helps my own physical and mental health. I am not great at doing things like that unless I have a specific goal and I was getting up early during the heatwave and running at 6am to get fit and to get miles in my legs.

It was way out of my comfort zone!

Sense of achievement

But doing the run gave me a real sense of achievement. It never seems to get any easier – but I felt really good afterwards.

This year’s run was a big challenge. It was hot and I struggled at half-way but found another gear and some more determination to get round and finish it. I also like to think that doing things like this is a good example to my daughter. You don’t have to be great at everything to give things a go and set your own goals, even if you are not going to finish first!

We also have friends in Northumberland – someone I lived with at university who I don’t get to see very often. The Great North Run gave me and my family the chance to spend the weekend with them and their family and those connections and actually seeing people face-to-face after the pandemic is beneficial for all of us.

I can’t thank my family and friends enough for their wonderful support both financially and emotionally throughout the race and the build-up to it.

Don’t ask me right now…but I might do it next year too!

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