The world’s largest one-day annual fundraising event, the London Marathon, was cancelled due to COVID-19. In the absence of the marathon, Dave was just one of the many home heroes who took on a challenge to support Everyturn Mental Health!
The 2.6 Challenge kicked off on Sunday 26 April, the day the London Marathon should have taken place. 2.6 kilometres were run, 260 flights of stairs were climbed, 26 miles were cycled! One of our challengers, Dave, took on the task of running as many lots of 2.6 miles as possible in 2.6 hours. Dave managed to run the distance a whopping 5 times, the equivalent of 13 miles!
Despite the aches, Dave said the challenge was absolutely worth it:
“The personal enjoyment of the run (it was a beautiful sunny day!), connecting with friends and family in a different way in these strange times, and also the fact that some money was raised for such a great cause, all made it worthwhile.”
Dave is a counsellor for our sister organisation, Everyturn Mental Health. He helps people with common mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, so Dave has an insight into the benefits exercise can have on our wellbeing, especially in the current circumstances. He spoke to us about this:
“It is all too easy to be consumed by the headline news about lockdowns and restrictions and lose sight of our ability as human beings to do something positive and kind for others. However small an act, trusting this will make a difference to someone else’s life. What comes from this is joy and a sense of being alive and connected to others.”
Dave decided to do his challenge for us because:
“The Everyturn Mental Health team are working hard every day and I’m sure their service users appreciate it too. The 2.6 Challenge was just a great opportunity to do something to contribute and recognise the work the charity does.”
We would like to echo Dave’s comments and thank the Everyturn Mental Health team, Dave, and his colleagues at Insight Healthcare, for their incredibly hard work during this time.
There’s still time to complete a 2.6 Challenge to help us to support those who are struggling most. Please visit twopointsixchallenge.co.uk to start your challenge for Everyturn Mental Health!