If I could go back in time to meet the me from a year ago and tell myself that I would be signing up to do a marathon next year, I think I would say, “You’re having a giraffe” (to put it very, very politely!). Truth be known, this time last year, I wouldn’t (and couldn’t!) have even run for the bus!

Then again, I don’t think I would have believed much else that would happen in the months to come, but I think that goes for us all…

In spite of the lows, I like to look upon the last year as having been one of positive transformation, and I am grateful for the journey I’ve been on, because – to quote the late and great Martin Luther King Jr – “Only in the darkness can you see the stars”. I am so lucky to have such an amazingly supportive network of family, friends and colleagues, who have kept me sane over the past year, and I am forever grateful to them all.

Until April last year, I’d never been particularly active, and I’d sadly put on a lot of weight over the years, so when Boris declared we’d all have to stay at home, I thought it best that I start to get moving, otherwise things were just going to get worse.

I started running on 5th April 2020; just a couple of weeks into the first lockdown. I say running, but to be completely honest, people were walking past me faster than I was ‘running’! Using the ‘Couch to 5k’ app, it was a rocky start to say the least, with a break of a couple of months in between to allow my rickety old knees to recover, but I finally completed my first 5k on 25th November. I couldn’t have been prouder (as everyone I shared the news with afterwards will testify!).

I quickly discovered that running helped me both physically (I also started watching the calories and lost 6 stone) and mentally. Running helped me switch off from it all, at a time when I was seriously struggling, both personally and professionally.

After completing my first 5k, I decided to go a step further and downloaded the 10k app, and I proudly completed my first 10k on 10th January this year.

And then I decided to take it a giant leap further…

I decided to sign up to the Virtual London Marathon for Myeloma UK – a type of blood cancer for which there is sadly currently no cure – as a way of honouring my Dad, who was diagnosed in 2015. I had no delusions of grandeur; I knew that there wasn’t much chance of me competing against Sir Mo for best marathon time, but I just wanted to complete it.

It wasn’t the easiest of journeys – there were some mornings when the alarm screamed at me to get up at 4am to do one of my training runs before work – but I stuck with it, and I’m so glad I did, as I’m now the owner of a Virtual London Marathon medal and have raised over £1200 for Myeloma UK (almost £1500 including Gift Aid). I managed to complete the marathon in 6 hours, 19 minutes and 7 seconds, and I still have to keep pinching myself, as I can’t believe how far I have come in the last year!

So, to anyone out there thinking “I could never do a marathon”, have a little faith in yourself. I’m still far from being your typical marathon-runner, stick-insect, athletic-type, but with a bit of perseverance, early nights and (very) early alarms, I did it – and so can you!

I’d like to thank everyone for all the kind donations and supportive messages I’ve received during my training – the University really is ‘One Community’ and I’m truly grateful to be a part of it. My sponsorship page will remain open until the end of November, so if you’d still like to sponsor me, you can do so here.

I’m now looking forward to joining the University’s team of 75 runners & walkers for the City of Lincoln 10k on 31^st October. Under the motto ‘Nobody Left Behind’, Tammie Farley and I have vowed to go as slow as the slowest member of our team; our aim being to encourage staff of all abilities to get involved, without feeling they need to be elite athletes. (We’ll be the ones right at the back, talking and giggling like naughty schoolgirls!)