Training update

Last weekend I was in London supporting my sister Ruth who was running the London marathon for the CF trust. She put a lot of effort into her training to prepare for the big day and achieved a fantastic time of 4 hours 2 minutes for the gruelling 26.2 mile challenge. I was immensely proud of her and delighted to have been there. It drummed home to me however how vital preparation is for any challenge and has encouraged me to set out a realistic training schedule for my own charity challenge.

By improving my fitness level I will have a far better challenge of completing my goal, enjoy the experience more, hopefully lose some weight by burning more calories and reduce the likelihood of injury. This past week I have taken two 30 minute walks up and around Calton Hill and one 1 hour walk around town. This has been in addition to my daily walk to and from work. Each week I will build on this, adding an additional short walk and 2 proper hill walks each month.

My first proper hill walk lined up in May is Beinn a’ Ghlò, not far from Blair Atholl. It is a  complex hill with many ridges and summits, covering around 40 square kms with three Munros, reaching 3679 ft (1121m). I have recently joined a social group in Edinburgh called the Sunday Brunch Club and have signed up to this walk with some of the members from this club. I am really looking forward to it but hope the weather is kind to us! Apparently the walk is very exposed and can be quite demanding on a windy day!

Going through all my trekking gear yesterday morning, I made a list of the things I need to get, most importantly new hiking boots as my last pair let me down badly on the West Highland Way although they did serve me well on the Great Wall of China. I also realised I needed a new "platypus" (a simple hydration system - a 2 litre water container with a drinking tube) and was delighted to find one in the sale at "Mountain Warehouse" on Princes St. It was on a Mix n' Match BOGOF promotion, so I was able to get a handy head-torch too for the dark nights in the Andees! I explained to the assistant manager Dave all about my challenge and he very kindly gave me an additional 10% of my purchases! I really appreciated it and will definitely visit again soon! Thanks Dave & Mountain Warehouse!

In addition to my planned hill walking, I am trying to go to the gym three times a week, once to swim and twice for a gym session. Admittedly I find it a chore to go but once I am there I really enjoy it!

  

 

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www.justgiving.com/trekforwater2013/

Pub Quiz planned for 24th May

Continuing my fundraising endeavours for WaterAid I am hosting a Quiz Night at the Fiddler's Elbow on Picardy Place on Friday 24th May. Eggheads can put their knowledge to the test whilst raising money for a great cause!

Entry is £5 per person and includes your first strip of raffle tickets.

Teams are limited to 5 people, you are welcome to form a team in advance or just come along on the night and slot into a team.

The event will be held upstairs in the function room and will kick off at 7pm, although you are welcome to arrive early and buy drinks etc. There will be an interval during the Quiz to allow the raffle to take place and for you to revisit the bar if you wish. Additional raffle tickets can be purchased on the night for £2 a strip, fabulous prizes to be won including wine, chocolates, hampers, perfume, beauty products and family days out.

The winning team will win a bottle of Piper Heidsieck champagne to share and the losing team "the solid honours of the wooden spoon"!

With a brilliant venue, fun Quiz rounds including those all important tie-breaker questions, a great raffle, a licenced bar it promises to be a great night out for family and friends! So get your teams together, brush up on your knowledge and contact me asap to secure your ticket.

Tickets will be on sale from next week, really hope as many of you as possible can make it!

For more information about the venue, visit their website by clicking this link:
http://thefiddlers-elbow.co.uk/ 

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www.justgiving.com/trekforwater2013

Challenge yourself to make a difference!

WaterAid truly believes water is the beginning of a better world. Access to safe, clean water transforms people's lives: it can prevent disease, save time, empower women and keep children in school. Everyone, everywhere should have access to safe, clean water.

In a recent publication "Everyone, everywhere: A vision for water, sanitation and hygiene post-2015" WaterAid calls on governments worldwide to make a clear commitment to ensure that there is universal access to safe water and sanitation by 2030.

Water and sanitation should be at the heart of global efforts to tackle poverty and you too can get involved Please email your MP today and call for action > 

(Source: www.wateraid.org/uk)

 In addition there are a number of other things you can do to make a difference:

1. "Stop wasting food and drink; did you know that 30% of the food we produce is wasted? That’s 1.3 billion tonnes a year of food and packaging that could have been put to a better use.


2. Get a healthier diet; Did you know that an unhealthy diet is also a source of waste? Swapping to healthier, less processed and less packaged food you will be limiting waste packaging and reducing impacts on water.


3. Try to eat and drink sustainably; a sustainable diet with organic or locally produced food will usually have a smaller water foot print and tends to lead to a healthier diet anyway.


4. Get involved with protecting our forests; forests reduce the affects of flooding, droughts, prevent soil erosion, landslides and desertification. So if you know of a tree replanting project nearby or of a campaign to save a local forest – get involved!


5. Try to reuse and recycle water at home; pop left over drinking water back in the kettle for tea, collect rain water to water your indoor plants and make sure taps are always fully turned off – there are many things you can do to make sure you are using water effectively.


6. Don’t forget; there is also plenty you can do whilst you are away from home, making sure that you don’t have your towels changed each day, keeping showers to a minimum in countries where you know water supply is a real issue etc."

(Source: www.charitychallenge.com)

Challenge yourself to make these small changes and get your friends and family involved too! Remember you can donate online to WaterAid by sponsoring me to "trek for water", just click on the link: www.justgiving.com/trekforwater2013

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An update and letter of thanks

Good evening everyone!

Just a wee update on how things are progressing with my fundraising and training! I have completed one sponsorship form at work and collected in the pledged money from my generous colleagues with the help of my colleague Mei-Mei :-) My friends and family have also continued to visit my Just Giving page which is great! My current total stands at £1281  and I am hopeful to get to £1300 by the end of the week! In addition I have been planning my next couple of events - Bagpacking on 4th May and a Quiz night in a local pub the end of May or beginning of June, exact date TBC.

My friends Laura, Tracy & Christine and my sister Ruth have kindly agreed to help me with the bag-packing and I have just ordered them T-shirts from WaterAid to wear on the day. If anyone else would like to volunteer, please get in touch, it would be a great help!

In the mail yesterday I received this letter below from the Community Fundraiser, Rebecca Dallison at WaterAid and brings home the reasons I have embarked on this challenge. Every penny counts and this letter highlights how donations really make a difference but we have a long way to go! "Without safe water or sanitation, people are trapped in a cycle of poverty and disease. Across the developing world, millions of women are wasting precious time collecting dirty water, children are dying from preventable diseases, and communities have open sewers running through them" (Source- WaterAid website). Around 700,000 children die every year from diarrhoea caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation. Heartbreakingly, that's almost 2,000 children a day. This should not and must not continue, please help and sponsor me today: www.justgiving.com/trekforwater2013