Running Preparation for the Brighton Marathon for Stephanie

I don't know how this works for others but I sort of feel the novelty has worn off, not for me but for everyone else and I'm hoping it'll pick up again as I feel I really am doing this all on my own.

I signed up to run the Brighton Marathon to raise funds and awareness for Bowel research UK and for our daughter Stephanie who died in October 2024 from an Ischemic Bowel which causes the death of around 3000 people a year in the UK.

I've no training plan, no personal trainer, no special diet, no training buddy, no special gear.

Just a desire to raise awareness and to run in Stephanie's memory. 

I'm moving out of running leggings this week into skorts and I'm trialling a camel pack.

I had a free trial with Apple Music that has come to an end, but I found listening to just music boring and I prefer to listen to the radio and have a variety of chat, news and music. I have the free version of strava that I just hit 'record' on and don't check until I get home. 

My wireless ear pods are a little temperamental with my ear piercings and if I tap them more than once when I adjust them they need putting back in the pot to reset. So I'm going back to wired ones and I've been threading them through a hook on my bra strap. 

I also hook my glasses through my bra when I'm running as I need them to set my phone and watch at the start and end.

I've been doing park runs and going to the gym, but most of my training has been endurance training with a mixture of walking and running up and down the Malvern Hills. The furthest I've actually run is 10k which I did this week and it took me 90 mins. 

My 5k times are improving.

I also did a half marathon walk/run around Malvern a couple of weeks ago in 3 and half hours with an elevation of 493ms. 

Next weekend I'm taking part in my 3rd Ultra Challenge in 6 months. I started with a 25k hike in the Chilterns which I completed in 5 hours 30 mins. A 42k walk in London in January completed in 7 hours 44 mins and next weekend I'll be in Bath attempting to run/walk 25k with an elevation of 600ms in under 3 hours.

Winter Walk - Marathon Training with Ultra Challenges and Bowel Research UK

I've entered the Brighton Marathon on April 12th 2026. It has a cut off point of 8 hours for a medal. So I wanted to see if that was possible for me to complete in under 8 hours and check that not also did I have the stamina for it but I also had the mental capacity to complete 26 miles.

I'm not in it for a fast time, I'm in it to complete the marathon, that's all and to raise awareness of Bowel Research UK, fundraise any amount where possible and create a legacy and keep Stephanie's memory alive.

Stephanie is one of our 5 adult children in a blended family who died at the age of 36 on the 7th of October 2024, without warning from Bowel ischaemia, which is the cause of death of around 3000 in the UK every year. It is almost impossible to diagnose.

We also have a 4 year old grandson who was born with Hirchsprung's disease and spent most of the first year in and out of hospital and had several major surgeries and had a stoma bag which was successfully reversed.

The Winter Walk was not a stroll around London. It was a 26 mile trek around the City and I completed it in 7 hours and 44 minutes according to Strava, although the Ultra Challenge site gave me a different time. I set Strava off as I set off walking and only stopped it as I crossed the line and collected my medal. I didn't stop it or pause it at the rest stops as I wanted it to reflect my time out on the course.

Peter and I booked a hotel in Wandsworth and drove down on the Friday night. I got everything ready the night before as I had to get up at 6am to catch the train at 6.30am on the Saturday morning.

I missed the train and ended up sitting on the platform in Wandsworth Town in the dark on my own for 20 minutes as I'd gone to platform 3 that only ran to Vauxhall on a Sunday, and watched the train leave platform 4 without me.

Well signposted and lots of people heading the same way as me and only a short walk to The Oval and getting light.

I still had time to grab a coffee and a photo.

A warm up session after registration and a briefing and we were off.

I headed off on my own at a brisk pace and the sightss of London kept me focused.

There were plenty of things to see on route.

And it wasn't long before I met up with two women who I walked with to the first rest stop.

The first rest stop and I just used the toilets, picked up some fruit and a drink and was straight back on the route with one of the women.

Now on the opposite side of the river.

Peter was waiting for me at this point as he'd been tracking me on the app, but it said I'd walked past so he'd headed back to The Oval on the train to wait there, we came past a few minutes later. the app was ahead of itself.

The half way point. I checked in, then sat outside with Peter for a quick lunch. Peter headed back into London for the afternoon.

I headed back out on my own and my pace slowed. It took a while before I picked up with anyone and it was a bit lonely.

There was less to see and the distances between the sites felt a lot longer.

I was tempted to detour when I walked past our hotel.

Around this point I developed a boot malfunction and some grit under the insole in my boot came free and was rubbing me. As soon as I took my boot off to investigate I knew I'd made a big mistake and I started to struggle with my walking.

At the third rest stop, I was able to sort my boots out properly, adjust the insole and my sock and put some plasters on, someone offered to get me a drink and some food. I had 8kms to go and I literally just put one foot in front of the other and got on with it.

It was around this point at 22 miles I think, that I hit the wall, where I felt I couldn't go on any more and started to cry. I almost came to a stop. But I kept thinking about Stephanie and how she was unable to complain and how resilient she was and how determined she was to do something if she really wanted to do it.

There was a time when all 5 children were at home and Peter was away working and Stephanie decided she was having the loaf of bread out the kitchen, she spent all day trying to get at it. I'd wrapped it up, put it in the bread bin and put the bread bin in the far corner of the work surface. I'd moved the kitchen table up against the work surface to stop her getting to it.

She kept coming into the kitchen, trying to get past me. She'd had lunch, had snacks, had plenty to drink, there was no need for her to have the bread. I have no idea how it happened but the next thing I knew was she was sitting there on the sofa, loaf of bread in hand, all squashed by now, corner of plastic bag in her mouth, ripping at it with her teeth getting that bread out the bag, with a sheer look of determination on her face, laughing and me just shaking my head and just laughing back at her, knowing that as well as having to make dinner for 5 kids that evening, getting uniforms and school bags ready, I'd now have to add going to the shops for a loaf of bread for sandwiches as well as doing bath and bedtime.

And that memory is what kept me going, it is what lifted the bad mood and the tiredness and what helped me pick up my feet for the next mile as slow as I was.

And as I walked round the last bend towards the final mile, there sat Peter on a wall, waiting for the past 45 minutes and I cried again as he said 'come on, you've got this'

And do you know what?

I have got this. I'm very PROUD of my achievement.

I've got my medal for walking a marathon.

I've got the ability to run one in April.

And I've got the most wonderful daughter who continues to walk by my side whenever and wherever I go reminding me I can do whatever I want in life if I'm determined enough to do it and I start by just putting one foot in front of the other.

You can make a donation here if you'd like to sponsor me.

From 15 cigarettes a day to 5k and my first parkrun

My couch to 5k training and a parkrun in 4 weeks.

So I decided I needed something to do for myself. Our daughter died in October 2024 from an ischemic bowel. She was disabled and the one thing she could do with total independence was to walk. She never complained because she couldn't verbalise or express herself and she has been my motivation to keep going when I hit a brick wall. 

I love walking and I completed the Ultimate 50 Challenge in the Chilterns in September, raising £850 and awareness for Bowel Research UK in memory of Stephanie. What I didn't consider when I signed up were the words 'Ultimate' and 'Challenge' and what they actually meant and I walked 25km/15 miles in 5 and a half hours with an elevation gain of 486ms. 

I decided to challenge myself further and to take up running and I started the couch to 5k on World Mental Health Day October 10th giving myself just 4 weeks to complete the 9 week program and be ready for my first 5k, a park run by November 8th.

I've not run since I was in school (1986) and I won the victrix ludorum where I competed in the 1500m and 800m in year 4 (now year 10) I ran in flip flops over the dunes in Durban in 2012 chasing the dog who was chasing a monkey, but I was over taken very quickly by the 13 year old who caught up with the dog, before I was half was up the first sand dune and more recently I ran for a train that had already left the station before I started running for it.

I committed to the parkrun with a friend before I started training, she is a volunteer and I knew once I told her I was going to do it, she wouldn't let me back out.

I know there are many of you who have been doing this for a long time, running marathons and thinking 'so what?' just remember, you started somewhere and I'm just sharing my journey.

I'm 54, I smoke 15 cigarettes a day and previous to starting this, I couldn't cough, sneeze or laugh without the risk of wetting myself, I've got a dodgy achilles, bad posture, nerve damage in my neck, suffer with chronic migraines and have a B12 and Vitamin D deficiency. Diagnosed with PTSD, grieving and mental health not good.

Each session is for 30 minutes and I each time I've been walking/running my distance has increased the time spent running.

Week 1 - 10th October 

• Walk 5 mins 
• Run 60 secs was so out of breath it hurt
• Walk 90 secs struggled to get my breathing back
• Repeat x 7
• Walk 5 mins

I need to buy a sports bra. The only part of me that hurts is across my shoulder blades which is apparently due to poor posture.

I also injured myself moving bricks around the garden when the wheelbarrow fell on me taking a chunk out of my right ankle.

Week Two - 17th October 

A 6 mile walk up the Malvern Hills with an incline of just over 1000ft in the first 45 minutes 

• Walk 5 mins
• Run 90 Seconds
• Walk 2 mins
• Repeat 6 times
• Walk 5 mins

I didn't quite get my timings/distance right and had an extra walk home

Wore leggings (I can understand now why women wear their active wear all day even for shopping, so comfy) I'd bought them when I worked with the European Golf and was 10kg heavier, spent the whole run/walk hoiking them up.

Ran to 'Eye of the Tiger' in my mind Sly and the cast were running behind me cheering me on, but at my speed, it was the cast at the age they are now.

• 45 mins swimming.

• Walk 5 mins
• Run 90 Seconds
• Walk 90 secs
• Run 3 mins
• Walk 3 mins
• Run 3 mins
• Walk 3 mins
• Run 90 sec
• Walk 90 secs
• Walk 5 mins

Felt like day 1, out of breath, gasping to get breath back. Resisited the urge not to 'Walk like an Egyptian'

Now running as far as I'm walking each time, but my running speed is the same as my walking speed currently.

Week 3 24th October

• Walk 5 mins
• run 5 mins
• walk 3 mins
• run 5 mins
• walk 3 mins
• run 5 mins
• walk 5 mins

I just couldn't run the 3rd full 5 minutes. I'm now running/walking in a straight line to the retail park where Peter is joining me for a coffee at the end of the session. However it has meant I haven't been doing the stretching exercises until I've got home about an hour later.

I bought a new sports bra. I took advice from an 80 year old on a sports bra in M&S she told me which had the best hold. I asked if ran much and she said no but any sudden movements and she could knock a small child over within 5ft if her boobs weren’t supported.

I repeated the run again on the Sunday and managed the third 5 minute run.

 

The runs are now getting longer and surprisingly I'm finding it getting easier and feeling so much more relaxed.

• walk 5 mins
• run 8 mins
• walk 5 mins
• run 8 mins
• walk 5 mins

• walk 5 mins
• run 20 mins
• walk 5 mins

I was absolutely shattered after the two 8 minute runs, so when faced with the 20 minute run I wasn't convinced I'd manage it. Not only did I manage the 20 minute run, but I also ran for 10 minutes then turned round and got back to my starting point in the 2nd 10 minutes. I felt really good after the run, not tired or out of breath. My pace hasn't improved even though I ran for 20 minutes and walked for 10, compared to when I started in week 1 when I was only running for 8 minutes during the 30 minute session.

Week 4 - 31st October

This week is a mixture of the above with a couple of 10 minute runs with 3 minute walks in between as well as longer runs of 20 and 25 minutes. I've run on Saturday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.

I had a bad run this week with a 5 minute warm up walk and a 12 minute run which was mostly uphill which I abandoned after getting out of breath so I returned to walking.

Week 5 - 8th November

Still on week 4 I did my longest run of distance and time on Thursday morning. 3.5k and 25mins of running. All on the flat and all on pavements. I've yet to test myself on grass/mud.

Friday night I drove to Monmouth after work to stay at my friends who has supported me via messaging and calls and love and laughter to get this far so I thought my first parkrun should be where she volunteers at. The parkrun on Saturday went really well. I managed to run the whole distance. I was really pleased with myself and proud of my achievement.

I really enjoyed the parkrun experience. I was apprehensive that I wouldn't as although I'm happy to mix and talk to other people, I don't really like joining in with things I've never done before. That's why I've enjoyed the couch to 5k. I hate the idea of having to drive somewhere, stress over parking, be somewhere at a set time, then worry I won't be able to grasp what I'm supposed to be doing or there are cliquey groups and I find myself alone not knowing what's going on. But my experience at parkrun couldn't have been different, although I was early and I hated the hanging around part.

The briefing was really good and instructions clear. I was introduced as a first timer and throughout the run not only did Kath, cheer me on, but there were volunteers on check points to keep us on route who were clapping, thumbs up and yelling words of encouragement. When I was lapped the other runners were great, with 'you've got this, you can do it' and several people stopped to chat to me afterwards, many who had come on their own, to say I'd done really well and for once I accepted the praise and said 'thank you'

My recovery went well also, with a walk around the town and a coffee to warm down, then I broke my 90 minute drive home up with visiting a couple of friends who have also started running recently for health benefits and home to a hot bath and an early night.

The following day was a rest day, but I did walk 1.5 miles home from the shops as advised online and I'm off for my next run on Monday as I start training for a 10k and another parkrun in Swindon next weekend.

Post Comment Love 26th-28th September 2025 - Bowel Research UK

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

We'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter, tag us and we'll RT. You can find us on twitter here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby 

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

I started a new job this week at a secondary school about a 25-35 minute drive away. I've a choice of several routes, all of which are on country roads with some quite narrow passing points.

It's a much smaller school than my previous one and I'm quickly learning the staff and the students names.

I'm on my way to Henley Show Ground this weekend for the #chiltern50challenge raising funds for Bowel Research UK in memory of our daughter Stephanie, who died on October 7th 2024 from an Ischemic Bowel which claims the lives of 3000 people each year and is almost impossible to diagnose.

I'd really appreciate it if you could share this post and hope spread awareness and raise funds.

You can sponsor me here and read more about why I'm fundraising.

Want to find out more about Post Comment Love #PoCoLo? 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Word of the week - Motion

My word of the week is Motion. It has many meanings and there are 4 meanings that relate to my week.

Motion - To begin. I started a new job this week.

Motion - To awaken suddenly. I acknowledged how angry I was with Stephanie dying this week. 

Motion - Beginning point of a race. On Saturday I am completing my sponsored walk in memory of Stephanie for Bowel Research.

Motion - Bowel Movements. Much improvement since a change in my medication. Which should relieve the diverticulitis I was diagnosed with after a colonoscopy. 

I'm off to Henley Show Ground this weekend for the #chiltern50challenge raising funds for Bowel Research UK in memory of our daughter Stephanie, who died on October 7th 2024 from an Ischemic Bowel which claims the lives of 3000 people each year and is almost impossible to diagnose.

I've hit 70% of my target by walking an average of 10 miles a day while we were visiting our son in Australia and on our stop over in Dubai. 

Please consider a donation to Bowel Research UK by clicking on this link and share this post to help raise awareness.

Stephanie's death has left a massive hole in our lives and if I help prevent another family going through this then every step I step I take in her memory will be worth it.

Walking in Australia - Part Two

This is the second part of our Australian walks. There is a separate post for our time spent in Tasmania

Tasmania

4th September. 6.6. miles

We climbed Mount Wellington.

5th September. 5.8 miles

A visit to a museum, a walk on the beach and a nature reserve.

6th September. 4 miles

Bruny Island.

7th September.

Shopping in Hobart and the harbour. 8.1 miles

8th September.7.9 miles

Only 3 days back in Sydney. Monday saw temperatures of 28c and after such a wet winter, it seems that everyone pulled a sickie and pilled down to the beach. 

We planned a circular walking route from North Bondi to Rose Bay, with lots of stops for drinks, food, ice cream and reading as well as a swim in the sea (for me).

9th September. 8.1 miles.  

A day in Sydney and Darling Harbour.

10th September. 6.9 miles.

A day in Sydney, the Australian Museum and Botanical Gardens.

11th September. 8.1 miles.

Just a day of travelling.

We've walked a total of 168.1 miles. With all the walking being mainly coastal we've also climbed the equivalent of 523 flights of stairs.

I've got just over a week until my sponsored walk for Bowel Research in memory of Stephanie. I'm clocking up the miles in Dubai also. I'm just under 3/4s of the way to my target goal and I'd appreciate it if you would share this link on our socials.