WE TOOK DECADES TO START OUR FITNESS JOURNEYS – NOW RUNNING HAS US HOOKED
As Team GB long-distance runners Charlotte Purdue, Philip Sesemann, Rose Harvey and Emile Cairess gear up to take on the marathon at the Paris Olympics 2024, thousands of Brits are lacing up their training shoes to experience the physical and mental benefits of running.
Studies show that running can extend life expectancy, lower cancer risk, and enhance mental well-being.
Remember, fitness is for everyone, and every journey begins with a single step.
Here, three runners share their path to fitness and the profound impact running has had on their lives.
‘Running was a way to cope’
Marcia Bartholomew, 55, from Hounslow, London, juggles her job as a senior lecturer in midwifery at The University of West London with being a mum to four children. She started running in 2015. She says:
I find running very spiritual and it always amazes me what the human body can do. We underestimate ourselves but running is very empowering.
I came to running late, just as I was about to turn 50. I grew up in Trinidad where sport was a part of family life but when I moved to the UK aged 20 to study as a nurse I stopped running.
Then I discovered parkrun in 2015. I realised how accessible it was and I started going a few times. But it wasn’t until I had my daughter aged 43 that I started running regularly. My blood pressure was going up and I was diagnosed with diabetes and I realised I needed to be healthy for my young daughter, who is autistic.
Running was also a way to cope with the situation. I got so much joy from finishing a run – and I got the bug.
During the pandemic I got a treadmill and running kept me going. It was the only escape I had when I went out for that hour of exercise. I did the virtual London Marathon in 2020 and since then I’ve done six marathons and three ultras. I recently did the Paris Marathon, my first international marathon.
But I really love the half-marathon distance and I’ve done 43 races. I am hoping to get to 50 this year and 100 in total. I love the feeling afterwards, which is the buzz and the joy.
Four apps to get you started
Hugely popular, this app has got millions of people in the UK running. It is designed to gradually ease you into running across nine weeks. The plan involves three runs a week with rest days in between. Each session is voiced by one of eight familiar celebrities including comic Sarah Millican, BBC Radio 2 presenter Jo Whiley and Olympic champion Denise Lewis.
This community platform is a mixture of a performance tracker and a social network. Record your runs and pore over your stats while viewing the progress of other users and gaining ideas for routes and training sessions.
View routes plotted by other users or plot your own road and trail runs before sending them to your smart watch or downloading them to use offline. Also provides live position data, so you’ll never get lost again.
This training app will create a personalised plan tailored to your goal, whether that’s a 5k or an ultra marathon. It also gives advice on running form, nutrition, and strength training, a vital element for long-distance runners.
‘I felt trapped in my body’
Dean Cox, 32, from Churchdown, Gloucestershire fits his running around managing a shoe shop. He started as a way to gain control over his life and now runs fives times a week and recently completed a 100km race. He says:
I was always the biggest kid in school, I was never any good at PE and sport was never a world for me. When I got older I had partners that did Ironman triathlon races but I was 26-stone in weight, standing on the sidelines. I felt trapped in my body.
My dad was diabetic and had amputations and heart attacks. He was very ill and I thought, ‘I’m going to end up like him.’ Before the pandemic my dad died and I had a terrible break-up and was left heartbroken. During lockdown I was in the depths of despair and decided something needed to change. I started walking ten miles a day and eating less. I lost ten stone in a year.
Then on January 1, 2022, I decided to start running. I was turning 30 and decided I needed to do the Couch To 5k programme. At midnight on New Year’s Day I went for a run in the snow as I wanted no one to see me. I ran for 90 seconds without stopping and was so pleased.
Over the next year I did the programme twice and ran a couple of 10ks. At the end of the year I did a half-marathon and I have never been so nervous in my life. I was hysterically shaking and crying at the start line.
I knew I needed to keep adding goals to keep me motivated so before the half-marathon I had already booked Amsterdam Marathon in April 2023. By the time I did the marathon I had booked the London 2 Brighton 100k race in May this year.
In the space of two years, I have now done nine marathons and ultras including London and Copenhagen. I am so proud of myself. It has been a journey of self-discovery, and I often can’t believe it. I feel like I’m proving myself to the school bullies but, more importantly, I have learned about self-love. I can’t describe the feeling of finishing a race, it’s like a fever dream. I never thought my body could run a marathon.
It’s also helped my mental health. Aged 32, I own my own home, and I’m currently training to become a personal trainer and wellness coach. I have become the person I always wanted to be.
‘I had clear goals’
Jess Dent, 44, from Market Harborough, Leicestershire, is a key account manager for a sock firm. Her work involves a lot of time on the road so running is her way of staying healthy. She has run on and off for a decade but things got serious when she won a place in London Marathon 2024. She says:
My best friend bought me a ticket to the Great North Run for my 40th birthday. I bought her a spa day. Mine was definitely the tougher day out but it proved to be a life-changing gift.
About ten years ago I ran parkruns but the 2019 Great North Run took it up a notch. I then started doing more half-marathons and joined a running club. I had been applying for London Marathon every year since 2019 and I finally got a place in 2024. By then I hadn’t run for at least six months, so it was like going from couch to marathon. But I was really keen to challenge myself.
Live your best life with Metro's parkrun partnership
This year Metro has partnered with the iconic charity parkrun to bring you a thriving new content series.
In a coming together of two game-changing powerhouses, Metro has been chosen as the first official media partner for parkrun as it celebrates its 20th birthday in 2024.
It's not just for the runners, though - it's for everyone.
Come with us as we embark on a series of boundary-pushing wellbeing content designed to elevate and champion, but also to support mental health and societal cohesion. Whether you run, walk, jog or strut...
Read the stories of those who have found their calling, their community or had their lives changed through the simple act of lacing up their trainers (not that you have to do parkrun in trainers...as we'll show you later on).
Get ready to be empowered, inspired, and energised!
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I got myself a running coach and a strength and nutrition coach, and I found I really enjoyed the consistency of the training. I could see I was progressing every week and I enjoyed long runs on my own listening to Desert Island Discs.
Fitting the training in was hard because I travel a lot with my work in sales but I was able to structure my week to fit in three runs and two gym sessions. I am not an athletic type with a slim build, but I had clear goals. I wanted to finish the marathon, enjoy it and not get injured. I achieved all of them.
The marathon itself was the best street party I have ever attended. I was so pleased to finish in under six hours and wanted to experience the runner’s high again.
I was shocked to find out I won a place in the London Marathon ballot for 2025. Now I want to go back and see if I can improve my time.
I have been on and off with running over the years but through marathon running I have realised that I am healthier and now I want running to be a consistent part of my life.
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