Stride magazine - Winter 2022

Inside

We did a triathlon in our 70s!

Body image – it can be challenging for men, too

From walking a parkrun to running an ultra – Eileen’s story

Our #MenopauseFriendly campaign wins at Scottish Women in Sport Awards

the jog scotland magazine | Winter 2022

Our fun, friendly jogging groups are perfect for people who want to get active for the first time, or more experienced runners. Nobody is “too slow” to join jogscotland –total beginners welcome!

Mums on the Run helps mums enjoy the physical, social & psychological benefits of being active outdoors. You can take your wee one to class with you in the buggy too!

Running has never been so easy! Whatever your age, whatever your ability Morning, noon and night • Towns, cities, villages Parks, pavements, trails, woodlands, beaches, schools and workplaces

For more information visit www.jogscotland.org.uk or call 0131 539 7341 www.facebook.com/JogScotty • www.twitter.com/jogscotland

jogworks

Our Junior jogscotland resource pack is full of games to help you show primary school age children that physical activity is fun!

stride jogscotland magazine | Spring 2016

Encouraging employees to be more active makes good business sense. Jogworks can help avoid some of the physical and mental health issues affecting the workplace.

Welcome!

by Sue Gyford

Welcome to the Winter 2022 edition of Stride magazine. In this edition, we’ve all the news and pictures from the 4J scottishathletics and jogscotland Annual Awards – always one of the highlights of our calendar! It’s such an uplifting event – not only do we get to celebrate our nominees and award winners, but having the chance to meet so many jogscotties in person is brilliant too. There are always new friendships and connections made around those glittering dinner tables, and we all leave with the warm glow of feeling like we’re part of something bigger. We were also delighted this year to pick up an award of our own at the Scottish Women in Sport Awards, in recognition of our #MenopauseFriendly campaign – turn to p21 to find out more. International Men’s Day falls on 19 November each year, and while it’s not as well-recognised as International Women’s Day, there are certainly topics that are worth focusing on, particularly around men’s mental health. We marked the day by publishing a moving article online from Craig Wilson of jogscotland Bridge of Don (p14), about male body image. It’s a topic we talk about more frequently from a female perspective, but it can be just as difficult for men to deal with, so we decided to share Craig’s story in Stride, too. We’re delighted to feature the “Golden Girls” on page 18 – a team of triathletes from Jog Scotland North Knapdale who between them have a combined age of 221! Louise, Fiona and Anne are still going strong in their 70s and great role models for enjoying a long, active life.

Also leading by great example is Eileen Stewart (p24) who has completely turned her life around by taking up running. From walking her first parkrun to running her first ultramarathon, she’s found strength and courage to deal with both the mundane and the difficult moments of life, from social situations to family illness. We’ve also lots of your event and medal photos – including the picture on the front cover, which features members of three different jogscotland groups – Killie Striders, Fenwick Striders and Monkton Milers, who met up at the Great Scottish Run!

Stride magazine | Winter 2022 p24

p14

Sue Gyford, Editor

p18 Golden Girls

Eileen Stewart

Craig Wilson

News and events

Jed Joggers 10th birthday

Congratulations to Jed Joggers, who turned 10 this year! They celebrated with a huge birthday party for members old and new on 10 September. As well as partying, they raised £425 for the Margaret Kerr Unit, which provides palliative care for people in the Borders. They even had new T-shirts made to mark the occasion – happy birthday Jed Joggers!

Anster raise defibrillator awareness

Anster Allsorts decided to use this year’s summer runs to raise awareness of the location of defibrillators in the East Neuk of Fife. They ran “defibrillator hunts” to locate, photograph and publish their locations on local social media outlets. It began in Anstruther and Cellardyke, where groups of Allsorts were given 40 minutes to find as many as possible, some managing all 13! Through the summer, they located more than 40. They then organised a 5K/10K event, raising £660 for East Neuk First Responders (ENFR), and a defibrillator and CPR training session was held after an Allsorts run. They’ll close 2022 with the delivery of lunches to the elderly on Christmas Day by several Allsorts, led by the ENFR. Congratulations to all in the Allsorts for a fantastic project.

• Anster Allsorts also joined Jed Joggers in turning 10 this year – happy birthday!

World Menopause Day

We were delighted to have several groups signing up to host World Menopause Day activities at their sessions around 18 October.

They were invited to chat about the symptoms of menopause, and write as many as they could think of onto our specially-designed frames, which they then photographed and posted onto social media. They could then also check out the Menopause and Running pages of our website https://jogscotland.org.uk/activeliving/menopause-and-running/ to find just how many different symptoms can be tied to this stage of life. Thanks to all who raised awareness by taking part.

• Award winning! Our #MenopauseFriendly campaign won the Inspiration in Sport Award at the Scottish Women in Sport Awards – turn to p21 for more.

Festive Road Runners

With the festive season underway, lots of jogscotland groups are organising fancy dress runs, and also thinking of ways to support those who might struggle at this time of year. Arbroath Road Runners did both – they enjoyed a Santa run through the town and en route popped into their local supermarket to donate 16 selection boxes – Moira Sutherland and Stephen Stewart are pictured.

Train as a jog leader in 2023

Would you like to share your passion for running with others, and inspire them to follow in your footsteps? Our Leadership in Running Fitness course will teach you all you need to know to become a jogscotland jog leader, so you can set up your own group, or lead with an existing group.

You don’t have to be fast to be a jog leader – some of the best jog leaders are those who remember well what it was like to be a beginner, and can really relate to those taking their own first steps.

We have dates now available for booking through to April 2023, in Glasgow, Livingston, Aberdeen, Grangemouth, Inverness and Meadowmill.

For more information, see https://jogscotland.org.uk/jog-leaders/jog-leader-courses/

4J Studios Awards 2022

We gathered at the Glasgow Hilton on 29 October for the 4J Studios scottishathletics and jogscotland Awards, celebrating the heroes of our community!

Host for the night was Bryan Burnett, and special guests were Geoff Wightman – coach and dad to 1500m World Champion Jake, and Olympian Katharine Merry. The duo have been a stadium-announcing partnership at countless major athletics events and had lots of entertaining tales to share. It was a fantastic night to reflect on a special year for athletics and running in Scotland.

But the true stars of the show were our award winners – the joggers, jog leaders and groups who have gone above and beyond to make the jogscotland community such a special place. The winners were:

Group of the Year - Killie Striders

Killie Striders have been operating for 10 years, but since leader Rosie McGrane took over a year ago, membership has gone from 30 joggers to 100+. The group is welcoming, encouraging and friendly, with new members put at ease within moments. Joggers wait by the finish for the final runner to cross the line no matter how long it takes. The group fundraise for two charities each year.

jogscotland 20th Anniversary Achiever - Jim Glennie (On The Run Cumbernauld)

Jim has been an inspiration to runners in Cumbernauld since the early days of jogscotland, initially leading a group with North Lanarkshire Leisure, then setting up the independent OTR Cumbernauld 10 years ago. His quiet, unassuming manner is very supportive and encouraging to the hundreds of joggers he has led over the years. A runner himself since the early ‘80s, Jim has decades of experience and shares it generously.

Jog Leader of the Year - Rachel Cox (Monkton Milers)

One Monkton Miler said Rachel’s ”enthusiasm and energy is electric”. She is a dedicated jog leader who supports her group members and gets involved in a wide range of jogscotland initiatives. On top of being a mum and working full-time for the NHS, Rachel is a selfless jog leader who can challenge and encourage every member of her group, regardless of their background or ability.

SAMH Mental Wellbeing Award - Catriona Whitelaw (Milestones jogscotland)

Cat is a popular jog leader who has supported joggers through beginners’ nerves and anxiety to build their confidence and reach significant milestones in their running. She has helped members through difficulties such as illness and bereavement and always takes the time to listen. She and the group regularly fundraise for charity, most recently raising over £2000 for the hospital ward where a group member has received treatment.

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4J Studios Awards 2022

One of the greatest things about the 4J Annual Awards is the chance for new friends to be made, as our nominees meet on the night – and we love getting to see so many people in person! Congratulations to all our shortlisted nominees – with more than 170 nominations received across all the jogscotland categories this year, it was a great achievement to be one of the finalists. They were:

jogscotland 20th Anniversary Achiever - George Findlay, who has grown Anster Allsorts to more than 90 members over the past 10 years, and gets involved in many jogscotland initiatives, as well as innovative events of his own devising. Toni McIntosh, who was one of the first jog leaders trained when jogscotland launched 20 years ago and remains a great supporter of the jogscotland ethos.

Jog Leader of the Year - Tony Beacom, who has remained a dedicated jog leader at jogscotland Hatton despite facing his own health issues. Sheila Johnston, who with infectious enthusiasm has created a fantastic group - Callander Saturday Morning 5K – which brings together people of all ages and abilities.

Group of the Year - Buggy Fitness Group Dunfermline, a friendly welcoming group which supports the parents, carers and children who attend, with a variety of activities. jogscotland Aquithie, which started during lockdown and gathered in person as soon as regulations allowed, with members training for a half marathon and raising £3000 for charity.

SAMH Mental Wellbeing Award - Irvine Running Club, where jog leaders encourage members to chat about mental health as much as they feel able, and offer support in a non-judgemental setting. Gavin Matthew, who has gained greatly in confidence since joining jogscotland Hatton, and is now open with fellow joggers about his mental health, talking about his journey to inspire others.

A big weekend!

The weekend of 1 and 2 October was a huge one in the running calendar. The Great Scottish Run, Loch Ness Marathon Festival and London Marathon all took place, with large numbers of jogscotland members taking to the roads and coming home with medals round their necks. Here’s just a few of them…

Words are powerful things

I recently walked up to a guy I knew whom I had not seen in three years. As I walked up to him, I thought: “Wow, he has lost a ton of weight, good on him.” We shook hands, we exchanged pleasantries, I said to him: “Hey man, you are looking really well” and he replied: “Hey, what happened to you? I got thin and you got fat.”

I cannot tell you how much that hurt. How much those few words, perhaps innocently meant, possibly said in jest, truly ripped right to the bone of my soul. As someone who has struggled with body image since I was young, to have someone say that to me was truly horrible.

Perhaps it is true. Perhaps, as I look back on where I was in 2019, when we last met up, that is true reflection of how I looked then and how I look now. Perhaps all the running I have done since – three more marathons, multiple half marathons and 10k races and distance challenges – has been for nothing and I am fat and unfit, or at least that is how I am perceived by that one person. And maybe that should not bother me. But in that short phrase, it felt like they defined me.

It made me question all the things I have done since I decided to change my lifestyle and get healthy back at the start of 2016. I took to walking to at least do something healthy, as I knew at that point I would not be able to run.

After losing weight and returning to running on my own – I had done some running in my early thirties – another way of motivating myself to continue being healthy

Craig Wilson, a jog leader with jogscotland Bridge of Don, reflects on the power of a few thoughtless words, and the not-oft-discussed topic of male body image.

was to join my local jogscotland club in Bridge of Don in Aberdeen. A few years on, and I have done the Leadership in Running Fitness course and am one of the Jog Leaders, regularly taking out groups from Couch to 5K all the way up to 10K distances. The supportive nature of the group and the joy of group running is now an essential part of my life. But these comments really made me think. Perhaps I should be starving myself to get back to my lowest weight. Perhaps by not being as thin as I was, I am losing respect from my peers. Perhaps I should abandon the work that I do to attempt to stay thin and healthy and just go back to being the fat old guy that I was six years ago.

Now I know that there is only one opinion that truly counts here, and that should be my opinion, but when my own view of my own body image is so distorted by outside influences – how I looked in the past when I was much younger, how I looked at my thinnest, how I feel that my weight has yo yo’d a bit in recent times, how I think I would look if I stopped running – it is very hard to disconnect the opinion of others.

Body image is key. It is about how you feel about yourself. As the person who talks most to yourself, then trying to be positive about yourself should be paramount.

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Others might have whatever opinion about you, but you should at least be kind to yourself.

So when I feel negative about myself, then all of these things can come in to play. Self-worth is all relative. Feeling positive about yourself is not a given. Something so small as this one throwaway comment can have a major impact on that sense of self-worth.

I have no idea how to change this perception. Give up running and perhaps go back to how I was? Give up eating healthily and go back to how I was? Change my mindset which I have had since I was a child about my relationship with my weight? (this one is frankly unlikely….) Or just keep doing what I am doing?

The truth is, the last one is the only realistic prospect. In my brain (and my heart), I know I am doing the right things. I do wonder why I do not look as thin as a rake given all the running I am doing, but I guess my metabolism has simply slowed down as I get older and so it has just got used to my training regime.

I am not writing this as a plea for help. I am writing this as an illustration of how one comment, one throwaway set of words, can have such a significant impact on the opinion of someone else. I am sure the guy who said it has not even given it one more thought. But I have given it much more thought. In many respects it will dominate my thoughts. And as I run in the future, I will likely think about it a lot more. Words are powerful things. Perhaps they should not be, but they are. And those few words really cut to the core.

But what I do know is that my friends in jogscotland will help keep me motivated, will help me to continue running, and will also see me for the guy who I am, not as someone defined by the comments of others.

The Golden Girls

By Louise Logue of Jog Scotland North Knapdale

With a combined age of 221, the Golden Girls from Tayvallich completed the Mid Argyll Sprint Triathlon on 25 September, in an amazing display of fitness. Our swimmer Fiona was denied her swim because of a problem at the pool but she courageously walked the two mile running route that was introduced in its place.

I completed the cycle in well under an hour, and our runner, Anne, completed the run in just over 50 minutes. Thank you to the Mid Argyll Triathlon and Cycle Club for organising such a welcoming event for all ages and abilities. It was so much fun.

It was just the latest adventure for us all after several years of getting active together.

I’m 70, and started running with the Lochgilphead jogscotland group in 2013 to get fit for retirement. When I was told: “If you can’t chat and run at the same time, you’re running too hard” I was hooked!

Anne and I live in the same village, though we didn’t know each other well until we started running together. She had seen me practising during the week and had been inspired to try it herself, she says “in order to stay out of the nursing home”.

After I retired I was much less inclined to travel to Lochgilphead to run in the dark so I didn’t do as much. Anne, now 78, then started running past my house during the day and called out to me to join her. Eventually, I’m so glad I did and we have been firm friends ever since. Fiona, 73, lives in Edinburgh and has a caravan on one of our village sites - Anne encouraged her to join us - she’s very persuasive. Fiona has been cycling and swimming from childhood, and started running with the group in order to train for the Tarbert 5K in 2017.

At the Tarbert 5K in 2017, we were so impressed by ourselves - we ran all the way, no walking, and crossed the line hand in hand. What a buzz!

We then became the inaugural members of Jog Scotland North Knapdale, where I’m now the jog leader - beginners always welcome!

We went on to complete the Great Scottish Run 10K in Glasgow in 2018 and the Taynish 10K in 2019.

Looking for another challenge, Fiona and I entered the 2019 individual Mid Argyll sprint triathlon, where Fiona won the super vintage category. Fiona suggested we enter this year’s triathlon as a septuagenarian team and the “Golden Girls” were born. We were delighted to come in 5th in our category. We look forward to next year’s event!

We are a small village of about 200 residents so a club with 10 runners is quite a high percentage of the population. There are currently about six regulars, the majority of whom are in their seventies. Our youngest member is in her fifties. We love to run together, catch up on each others’ news and chew over concerns about our various family members. It helps to have time to talk in a “side by side” setting - so good for our mental health. To know we are heard.

We often have an inspirational phrase to meditate on and as a topic for chatting about. We started with Bible verses (eg Hebrews 12v1 - And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us”) and widened out to include more general phrases such as “A goal without a plan is just a wish” Everyone is invited to contribute.

We usually do about 4K walk/run, always with some hilly bits and the occasional steep challenge. We enjoy the fresh air, even when it rains, the company, and the chat. We always feel better mentally and invigorated physically. When we chat we don’t notice if our bodies complain. We’ve come to realise that age is no impediment, the only limits are those you place on yourself.

Jog Leader Conference 2022

Jog leaders gathered in Stirling on 15 October for a day of sharing and learning –our first in-person event since our Aberdeen conference in 2019. Our guest speaker was international ultrarunner James Stewart, who talked about his own journey in the sport. He also inspired us by talking about ways of getting our joggers motivated and engaged, and sticking with their jogging journeys. We discussed challenges we face in our leading, and also held a focus group with scottishathletics Head of Development, David Fallon, where we discussed possibilities for the future evolution of jogscotland

There was even some playdoh modelling and a giant plastic brick wall to build, to keep us entertained!

Huge thanks to everyone who joined us – it was a very useful day for the jogscotland and scottishathletics team, and we hope you found it fruitful too. We were especially delighted to have both Anne Douglas and Laura Wall at the conference - Anne was on our first ever jog leader course 20 years ago, and Laura had been on our most recent course two weeks before the conference - the full span of Jog Leader experience!

Anne and Laura

Our Menopause Friendly Campaign is launched

Inspiration in Sport Award

for our #MenopauseFriendly campaign

We are delighted to have launched the new jogscotland #MenopauseFriendly campaign, to help our joggers learn about running through menopause, and help our jogging groups become as menopause friendly as possible.

Our work to support joggers going through menopause was recognised at this year’s Scottish Women in Sport (SWiS) Awards, with the Inspiration in Sport Award.

We want to change the script around menopause. We can’t alter the physical facts of it, but we can help those going through it. We want to create a world where jogscotland members going through menopause:

The #MenopauseFriendly campaign encourages our groups to make simple changes to their sessions, so that they’re easier for joggers to stick with as they go through menopause.

• Can feel strong, confident and proud of themselves, even when they’re facing difficult physical and mental challenges.

• Feel free to talk about their experiences without shame or embarrassment.

• Are informed and empowered, so that they can get the support they need from medical practitioners, friends and family.

• As a result of those things, stay active through menopause and beyond, at whatever level suits them.

The award was presented at the Radisson Blu hotel in Glasgow on 18 November. It was collected by jogscotland’s Jo Stevens and Sue Gyford, who spoke on stage about the campaign’s aims and achievements.

As our #MenopauseFriendly campaign launched on 22 November, we published on our website three pages full of useful information for joggers and jog leaders:

• Running and Menopause – introduction

• Menopause – advice for joggers

• Menopause – advice for jog leaders

For those reading the print edition, just visit https://jogscotland.org.uk/active-living/menopause-and-running/ and follow the links.

Groups can sign up to use our #MenopauseFriendly branding if the jog leaders register with us and pledge to:

The resources we are launching have been put together with the help of a small focus group of jog leaders with lived experience of running through menopause, our partners SAMH, and sharing information from the NHS Inform pages on menopause

• Educate themselves about the symptoms of menopause and how they can affect runners, by reading our web pages on the topic.

• Make some simple changes to their sessions, such as flexible sessions for those experiencing physical challenges like fatigue or joint aches.

• Commit to talking openly about menopause so that joggers feel supported.

Sign your group up for the campaign

Huge thanks to all the jog leaders and groups which have supported the campaign, and thanks to all at Scottish Women in Sport for the recognition.

Also among the winners on the night were Pitreavie AAC (right), who won the MG Alba Sporting Champion award for their work, including their jogscotland section.

stride jogscotland magazine | Issue three 2021

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Photos: Jeff Holmes

Book corner

Jog leader with Anster Allsorts, George Findlay, dips into the ever-growing genre of ‘books about running’ and reviews some of his favourites.

This Mum Runs by Jo Pavey

This is an inspirational book by an inspirational lady. Jo Pavey is best known as the GB athlete who won gold in the 10000m at the European Championships in 2014, at the age of 40, just ten months after the birth of her second child, Emily. In doing so, Jo became the oldest European champion in history. She is also the only GB track runner to have competed in five Olympics.

With such credentials, her autobiography is well worth reading. Coached by her husband Gavin, Jo describes the highs and lows of her long running career.

There are many setbacks, injuries, disappointments and near misses for medals in championships. However, her determination, courage and resilience are evident throughout her story, with podium placings at international level over 5000m and 10000m. There is also the trauma of an emergency Caesarean section during the birth of her first child, Jacob, in a life-threatening situation. This adds to the astonishing comeback of Jo to maintain her athletic career at the highest level.

Gavin led training sessions, with the children present at a very early age with Jo breaking from the track to breastfeed when required. Jo’s life is a balance between family and running to attain her goals as an athlete and her role as a mother in a happy family. As the back cover states “It’s an inspiring yet everyday story of a mum that runs and a runner that mums”

Jo shows that age and being a mum is no barrier to achieve. This is a book for everyone, not just mums that run.

Running the Smoke by Michael McEwan

This year I ran my fifth London marathon, but first for 25 years, so I sought out this book for added incentive. It is introduced by Michael McEwan, a sportswriter, who ran London in 2014. As with all good marathon books it has 26 chapters along with a brief history of the London marathon, as well as marathon running and fundraising tips.

The 26 chapters are written by 26 different people describing their own London marathon experience and their journeys to get to the start line. There are accounts from winners such as Liz McColgan and Dick Beardsley to extraordinary people who have overcome incredible adversities in their lives to complete the marathon. It is the stories of these people who make this book so inspirational and heart-warming.

Here are just three to give a flavour of their remarkable stories and their fantastic achievements:

Claude Umuhire escaped the Rwandan genocide as a child before coming to London. On the streets and homeless, he discovered The Running Charity which transformed his life and led to the marathon of 2015.

Sadie Phillips who twice defeated cervical cancer in 2012 and 2014 to run London on behalf on Cancer Research UK in 2015.

Jamie Andrew who had all four limbs amputated following a climbing accident and ran the marathon in 2002.

There are many more amazing accounts of people overcoming life-changing illnesses, injuries and family bereavements to complete the 26.2 miles. All I had to do was train for four months which seemed trivial in comparison! If you need inspiration to run a marathon this is definitely the book for you.

• This Mum Runs by Jo Pavey is published by Yellow Jersey Press

• Running the Smoke by Michael McEwan is published by Arena Sport Books

Transforming Lives

Athletics Trust Scotland is a charity that aims to support the development of athletics and running in Scotland through fundraising activities. This summer, ATS launched the Transforming Lives project to increase participation in areas of higher deprivation and within underrepresented groups in Scotland. The charity hopes to access grant, corporate and legacy funding support. It is sharing inspiring stories of people whose lives were transformed by running, including Eileen Stewart, who has made a complete transformation by taking up running with Run Livingston and is 12 stone lighter, recently taking part in her first ultra. Here, she talks to Athletics Trust Scotland about her successes and what triggered her to make such an amazing life transformation.

How and when did you initially get involved in running or athletics?

On 31 March 2018, aged 37, I went to my first parkrun. I had heard of parkrun but did not know what to expect but I knew I needed to make changes in my life and I thought maybe something like this would help.

What made you want to change?

I was nearing 24 stone, despite numerous attempts to lose it over the years. I have two children and I knew I was not being a role model to them. I was scared that they might turn out like me. So I went to parkrun and that day changed my life forever.

Has it helped you?

Yes! I run for fitness and to maintain a healthy weight, but they aren’t what drags me out of bed on a cold winter’s morning. I run for strength, both physical and mental. Running makes me feel powerful, capable, and confident.

How has it helped?

In January 2021, my then 10 year old son was unexpectedly diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. As we were in the middle of a national lockdown, I had to attend appointments with him on my own, gathering information, passing this on to those that needed to know, organising appointments and treatments, all while comforting my child.

The day after his diagnosis. I went for a run with my head in turmoil. I felt angry at the world and the injustice of it all. As I ran I became so overwhelmed, I stood on the path and sobbed, then shook myself off and started running. It was one of the hardest and equally one of the best runs I have done. The run didn’t fix the situation with my son, but it helped me process what I felt so that when I walked back through that door I could be strong for my family.

How would you describe the running and athletics community?

In one word… amazing! I have met so many people who have encouraged and supported me. Those I meet give a smile and a nod. Running past someone who smiles or cheers brings a smile to my face and keeps me going that little bit longer.

The running community is filled with runners and volunteers, event organisers and general public supporters. Whatever the role, these people are just wonderful and I know without that support I wouldn’t be where I am. This is one of the most inspirational, encouraging, supportive and non-judgemental communities you’ll ever come across.

What was your first parkrun experience like?

When I did my first parkrun, it took me 1 hour, 4 minutes and 22 seconds. The tail walker kept me going and never complained about the time it took me. The volunteers were there at the end cheering me over the line with such joy even though it was a miserable wet day and I made them wait so long. Those people helped change my life.

I managed to run a whole parkrun one week and almost cried as I crossed into the finish funnel. Of all the achievements I’ve managed since then, nothing will mean as much as the first time I ran the full 5k. My 5k PB now sits at 26:34.

How have you kept it up?

In January 2020 I finally plucked up the courage to join a running group – Run Livingston – and I am so glad I did. There are times when the group pushes me out of my comfort zone which is needed. I am one of the slower runners but the support from everyone in the group is amazing. We cheer each other’s successes and we push each other to be better.

Where are you now?

I am 12 stone lighter and I ran my first Ultra, Run the Blades 50K in July. I hope to do Race to the Stones 100K next year. It’s safe to say my life is not what it once was. I was morbidly obese for 20 years of my life. I hated myself, I tried not to look in mirrors and I avoided cameras whenever possible. I knew I needed to change but it can be so hard. I tried so many times but I was so scared of judgement that I couldn’t ask for help. I needed to find my own self belief.

Transformation

There is often a photographer at parkrun. I saved the pictures of me from my first couple of parkruns so I could see how I’ve changed. The obvious change is my size but there is another huge difference. In those first pictures I’m covered up, with a baseball cap on and my head tilted down. I’m trying to hide. Pictures now are so different. I still wear a cap but I hold my head up high and smile and wave as I run past the photographer in my bright clothing.

• To help people transform lives through athletics and running like Eileen, and to support our Transforming Lives initiative, please consider supporting ATS through legacy, partnerships, fundraising or donation: https://athleticstrustscotland. org.uk/support/

Jogging along

by David Syme

Race day loos

Lisbon was the worst race for me, closely followed by Leeds, while New York was easily the best - I’m talking about provision of loos at the start of a long running race. I remember fondly the sunny April morning in 2007 when I took part in London Marathon.

Advice to novice marathoners always includes: “Take lots of water.” All wellmeaning, but I wonder if the givers of such advice have ever queued in a long line before an inadequate row of portaloos? A runner should gather information about his or her individual need for hydration on pre-race training runs, and, with an eye on weather prediction, prepare accordingly.

Some need lots of water, but not all, and most races have water stops along the route.Nevertheless, as runners move to the start, cloaked in bin bags and frowning with nervous intent, many sip water or energy concoctions in the belief that this will help their performance. They arrive at the start, and realise that a loo visit would be desirable if not essential. This is not only because of the litres of liquid consumed, it is the product of pre-race nerves.The loo queue moves surprisingly slowly. What is he/she doing in there? Just like toilets in an aeroplane, loos at the start of a race seem to encourage users to relax, go over their post-race plans, consider their next career move… Who knows? They usually emerge in silence, but with a guilty look. We all shuffle forward, looking at watches to check how much time is left before the start.

If you are thinking of entering a race, ask the race organiser how many are expected to take part, and how many loos are available at the start and along the route. A good runner-to-loo ratio could help you decide which race to enter. At the London start in a vast park, provision was good, and runners chatted with plenty of nervous laughter as they moved forward, marshalled (as at passport control) by cheery volunteers.

My favourite memory of fluid intake in London 2007 is the three pots of tea I drank after a shower back in the hotel. Without a doubt, the finest tea I have ever drunk.