About

In the past month I've only been to the gym once, I occasionally get breathless walking up the Tube escalator and I like wine, a lot. I'm a 29-year-old Londoner with bad knees who spends around 10 hours a day in front of a computer screen, finding reasons not to exercise (too tired/forgot my socks/work comes first) and not drinking enough water. About my only redeeming quality is that I eat healthily. Enough is enough. Time to get back in the game, stretch out my legs and raise some money for a truly fantastic cause. Maggie's has supported some of my friends through very, very difficult times in their lives. Periods when I've felt like a terrible friend because I didn't know what to say and how to support them (so I just did a lot of hugging). For that I cannot thank Maggie's enough. My friend Tor, who sadly lost her beautiful and brave sister Steph to the horrific disease that is cancer, has neatly summed up the work Maggies does Steph loved Maggie's. Their centres offer support to anyone affected by cancer be it patients or their family and friends. The staff can help with everything from counselling and finances to wigs and make-up. And there are classes in everything from therapeutic art to yoga. But most importantly it was a relaxing place Steph could go instead of having to spend hours in depressing waiting rooms. There was always someone there ready to welcome her with a cup of tea, some homemade cake and a shoulder to cry on. Cancer is a terrifying disease and I truly dont know where we would be without the love and kindness the Maggies staff have shown us all. I'm running this half marathon with my best pal Rosie (she's the blushing bride in my photo), whose lovely dad Graham (we miss him a lot), was helped immeasurably by Maggie's, and who is also aiming to raise 400. If we both reach our targets, I'll tip a couple of cans of baked beans over my head and Vine it. I would sit in a bathful, but I don't like wasting food.