Inkymole Is Running For Cash: Part One.

I've been running recreationally for two years and intend to carry on doing so. It's just that I've decided to throw in something which is a bit of a stretch. Having read Haruki Murakami's book 'What I Talk About When I Talk About Running' and how it is inexorably connected with his creative process, I realised that having found running, it was very unlikely I would ever stop.

Thus, I'm intending to run my first half-marathon on October 10th in London to raise money for Mind. It took me about five days to decide, because a half marathon needs proper training, which means commitment to regular runs at certain times. Clients would have to be ignored to get them done. Jobs might have to be finished early to accommodate them. I might have to (gasp) go out running in the rain. But I get to RUN further than I've ever gone. It's the Royal Parks Half Marathon through the parks of London, and should be a lovely route.

When I run, particularly on the long ones, my mind clears, calms and refreshes. I come back ready to tackle anything. I want to feel like that all the time, but am in a pressured industry where such spells are rare and precious. I also know how close I've come on occasion to 'losing it'. At least, I thought I did, until I started to discover friends who really had 'lost it', and learned just how commonplace and misunderstood, and how devastating, a poorly brain can be. The unfortunate popular figurehead for mental illness in recent years, Stuart Goddard (aka Adam Ant) describes it as 'a fist in the skull'. And 1 in 4 people will suffer from mental illness at some point in their lives. 1 in FOUR. Mind has therefore been my charity of choice for many years, and I'm honoured to be on their running team. More on Mind here: http://www.mind.org.uk/about

I've committed to raising £1000 minimum as part of my agreement with the charity. That's 200 people flinging a fiver my way. There are 600+ people in my address book and at least 50 people read this blog. Should be easy, right...?

Here's the page which makes donation a whole lot easier than going round your neighbours' houses with your Dad carrying a pen and a sponsor form from school:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/inkymole

- I do the sweating, they rattle the tin!

I really appreciate all your support, and I thank you in advance from the bottom of my weary trainers.

Status report: Currently running 7.25 miles. Speed needs to improve and I need to watch my knees! More leg presses and abs required. And don't bother with the Go energy gels again - they taste like Satan's wrung-out socks.