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onelongpath-blog · 8 years ago

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Why the South West Coast Path?

Five years ago my brother and I set off on our first ever running event, London Run to the Beat Half Marathon, and roughly 95 minutes later I told everybody that would be the last running event i would ever take part in. 7 marathons, 2 half marathons, 1 triathlon and miles upon miles of training runs, i have now set myself the biggest challenge to date - 630 miles within 30 days.

Running a half/full marathon is what lots of amazing people do to raise money for charity all across the world. Watching the London Marathon always makes me incredibly proud, seeing thousands of people pushing themselves to the limit not just on race day but through all the training miles that nobody gives them credit for. I have massive respect for anybody that steps out of their comfort zone and takes on a challenge that tests them both physiologically and psychologically. Running is something that came naturally to me, once i began training regularly, and i have always enjoyed going out for a casual half marathon. By the time i finished my 7th marathon, the distance didn’t seem as though i was really pushing myself to the limits or stepping out into the unknown. To be honest, i started to get bored of them and wanted to push myself further.

Less than six months after finishing my 7th marathon, i unfortunately suffered a knee injury that would put me out of all sport for two years. Two years of frustration, pain and feeling seriously down at times was a tough period for me. Running has always been a way for me to clear my head and relax me should something get the better of me. Two years away from that really hit me hard and those closest to me will know the frustration of not being able to even run down the road.

Coming back from an injury like that, the majority of people would say to ease back into things and start by planning small little events. Common sense would be to follow that idea, however I’m not one of those people. I want to be pushed and tested out of my comfort zone. Why run a 10K when i have previously ran 5 marathons over straight weekends? Surely that isn’t a challenge anymore. It was then when i started looking at different events or challenges i could potentially do, long distance cycling, ultra marathons and running from Cardiff to Bournemouth were just a few of the ideas. But after a little bit of research i found the perfect challenge that would really push me to my limits, The Great South West Coast Path. 630 miles of beautiful picturesque views may sound quite a nice idea over a long period of time but when you try to complete the path within 30 days and then add the total elevation change of over four times the height of Mount Everest, this is something that my body is going to have to seriously prepare for both mentally and physically.

Doing this is something i know won’t be easy and i will certainly have times when i wonder why on earth i am doing this but pushing myself to the limit and also raising lots of money and awareness will certainly make the tough times worthwhile.

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