What it's all about...

In December 2014 I found a training programme online for a marathon.  I was looking for inspiration having retired from GB Orienteering after 13 years - a time when I felt both sad and free.  I decided to follow it.  I so because I was doing a marathon training programme I decided that I should probably do a marathon at the end of it.  I chose the Howgill's Montane 26 Trail Marathon.  And so in May 2016 I ran my first trail marathon with 1000+m climb in 4 hours 03 and I loved it.
I then did the South Down's Marathon in June 2015 and the Leith Hill Marathon in Oct 2015.  Hooked.

So suddenly I found myself doing lots of miles.  More miles than ever before.  And the thing about that is that you suddenly have a lot of time to think.  I think about work, about patients.  I think about my son, my husband, life.  And I think about me.  And I was thinking about turning 40.  And I thought that I would like to do something to mark my 40th Birthday.  And suddenly I was thinking about doing 40km and why not for 40 days, finishing before my 40th birthday.
Usually I get home and the oxygen returns to my brain and my ideas get something called 'perspective'.  But on this occasion I talked to Dave about it.  And he didn't think it was complete madness... relatively.
So suddenly I have 6 weeks off work and starting on 04 June I am going to try to run 40km for 40 days finishing on the day before my 40th birthday.
And I'm going to try to raise some money for three causes.

I am an ex-Army doctor, now working for the MOD at the Regional Rehabilitation Unit in Aldershot.  It is a clinic within a gym and we look after injured serving service personnel.  Many of them get 'fixed'.  Some of them don't.  I see the difficulties that they can have when they are told that they may not be able to continue in the job that they love.  And it can be difficult to transition back to the civilian world.  Walking with the Wounded gives service personnel the chance to prepare for that transition.  Their great work can be seen at: http://walkingwiththewounded.org.uk

The second charity is the WWF.  My son is nearly 9 and he often talks about things that he has seen on the TV or heard about at school that upset him.  Things like plastic in the oceans, loss of forests for palm oil, pollution, melting ice caps, climate change.  And it makes him sad.  We have supported WWF since he was a little boy, sponsoring a snow leopard.  And he asked me to raise some money for them.

Finally, I wanted to do something to help locally and my son's school is trying to raise money to fund the building of new Year 6 classrooms.  The school is great with an emphasis on working hard and being active.  I particularly love the comment on the head teacher's welcome about 'loving challenges, being intrigued by mistakes..' something I was always told by the previous GB O squad's psychologist Steve Sylvester.

Anyway here I am. Trying to be a good mum and a good doctor.  And now trying to prepare for something I don't even know if I can do.  But running has always helped me with everything else in my life.  Time to think.  Time to be alone or together.  Sun, rain, mountain tops, valleys.  I expect that I will see them all on this challenge.  I can't lie... it's going to hurt but I expect that I will have times when I am truly happy being outside, feeling alive.

alone...

together...