Cyan is running in the London Landmarks Half Marathon to raise money for Young Women’s Trust. In this blog she shares what motivated her to take on the challenge and how she is progressing with her training programme.
When I heard about the opportunity to run in the London Landmarks Half Marathon for the Young Women’s Trust, I had already been unemployed for over a year. Unfortunately I was made redundant as soon as the Covid pandemic hit and as a result I had been struggling both mentally and emotionally.
I have been telling myself for about 5 years that I would do a half marathon one day, but I kept making excuses for myself year after year. ‘I do not have time, I am not dedicated enough, I hate cardio’. So, after a year of having nothing else to do, I had zero excuses left. If anything, a sense of purpose and aiming toward a goal was exactly what I needed to get me out of my rut.
Using Work It Out
I had turned to the Work It Out service during a particularly difficult time during the pandemic. Speaking to my coach Samuel was an uplifting experience that I needed even more than I realised. He helped support me emotionally in a way that somebody I knew just would not have been able to do. I have a great support system of friends and family around me, but his objective and unbiased insights into my situation were invaluable. He validated my feelings and made me reconsider my options at a time when I was not feeling strong enough or sure enough of myself to do it.
Running for Young Women’s Trust
After personally finding the service so useful, I wanted to get involved and raise awareness for Young Women’s Trust. So I applied for a place to run the London Landmarks Half Marathon for the charity.
I did laugh out loud when I found out that I had won the place! As somebody who is quite fit but hates running, avoids cardio at all costs and with less than 12 weeks before the date of the race, I found the idea of actually having to run it fairly terrifying. But I have had great support and managed to tie a couple friends into training with me. My boyfriend even signed up to run it with me! This has helped massively with my motivation.
I’ve been doing a short run and a long run each week, loosely based on a 12 week plan that I found online. I have really surprised myself with how well my training is going. With 4 weeks left to go, I have run 8.5 miles continuously and am steadily finding the runs easier. I do not even dread them anymore. If I can do that, anybody can.
Do not let where you are now stop you from progressing to where you want to be. I am really looking forward to crossing that finishing line on the day and proving to myself that if I put my mind to it, I can achieve my goals.
If you would like to follow in Cyan’s footsteps, sign up to run for us today!
We’ll support you every step of the way with one-to-one training support and regular training tips.
