Huge thanks to REDJanuary supporters - you've smashed the target!

RED January
DAY 31: 200 miles reached

A MASSIVE thanks to everyone who supported the REDJanuary challenge in support of Mind, the mental health charity. You've been awesome!

My goal was £200 for 200 miles - and both have been reached (actually exceeding the fund-raising goal!).

I planned to complete my 200th mile at Coventry War Memorial, and didn't expect to feel the elation as I ran those few final yards to 'hit the spot' on mile 200 (ok, so perhaps it took a few extra steps around the memorial itself!).

LAST LEG: The final yards to Coventry
War Memorial to hit my 200-mile goal.

Because of injury, I was unable to run at the beginning of January, so it's been a case of walking, cycling and a gradual increase in running over the month.

Work commitments during the day meant that many 'excursions' have been after dark, giving my home city a whole new, sometimes eerie, dimension.

One thing REDJanuary has done is get me back on to a bike - after literally decades of no cycling whatsoever.

It has also put me in touch with an amazing online community, which bubbled with encouragement and support - and was testament to how 'being active' can benefit mental as well as physical wellbeing.

And, importantly, it has raised awareness and funds - thanks to your generous donations - which have gone directly to Mind.

The support and encouragement I have received from family, friends and well-wishers has been tremendous, and helped push my rattling bones to the very last mile. A huge thanks, once again, to you all.

ALL DONE: At Coventry War Memorial
after finishing the REDJanuary challenge.

Following REDJanuary, I'm taking part in the NHS1000 Miles. This is a challenge marking the 70th anniversary of the NHS, and where you 'donate' miles of physical activity - it could be running, walking, cycling, swimming, whatever - during 2018.

It's a brilliant idea, dreamed up by Kath Evans (@kathevans2) a children's nurse who leads on improving experiences of care at NHS England, Nichola Jackson (@NicolaJackson13), a commissioner in Cumbria, and Catherine Wilson (@WilsonCat), a mental health nurse working at NHS England.   

The challenge provides the incentive of an individual goal to aim for, but also generally raises the 'health of the nation.'

Click here for further details on the NHS1000 Miles challenge.

Also see the Twitter hashtag:

#NHS1000miles

FANTASTIC SUPPORT: My REDJanuary JustGiving page (below). The £200 goal has been exceeded, and donations are still coming in.

Clocking up the miles for REDJanuary

There's a special atmosphere in the twilight hours.

RED January
DAY 17: 10k (6.3m)

JUST  over half way through the REDJanuary challenge now, and it's surprising how quickly the days are passing.

REDJanuary is about getting out every single day of the month and engaging in some physical activity (running, walking etc) to raise funds for Mind, the mental health charity.

Initially the task seemed daunting - and committing to some activity every day seemed almost impossible.

You can't escape the fact that there are difficulties fitting the time in around work commitments.

But, it seems, it can be done.

Love the shapes in low light.

Despite the aches and pains, it's become a daily habit.

In order to reach my 150-mile goal at the weekend, I have to complete eight miles a day for the next four days (including today). Not quite sure how that will be achieved - but am working on it!

Of course, this goal is self-inflicted! There's no set mileage to complete for REDJanuary, but it's good to have something to strive for.

I'm intending to extend the REDJanuary 'habit' and participate in the wonderful NHS1000 miles for 2018, where you 'donate' 1000 miles of activity to the NHS.

You can walk it, run it, cycle it, swim it - even hop or crawl it, I suppose, if you felt so inclined.

It's to celebrate the 70th anniversary of our amazing NHS - and you make a 'gift' of your health by committing to 1,000 miles of activity over the course of the year. What a great idea!

Not only will it benefit the individual, but collectively it will be a massive health boost! Imagine how much cost and stress on the NHS could be eased if people were generally healthier.

So, yep, you can count me in on that!

In the meantime, however, there's the small task of fitting in a few miles each day to reach my current REDJanuary goal for this weekend.

Quick! Where did I put those running shoes?

A massive thanks to those who have already donated.

If you'd also like to donate to Mind as part of the REDJanuary, please visit my JustGiving page HERE.

Thank you

Beautiful trees in the park.

Delicate patterns in the mist.

100 miles for REDJanuary - now just 100 to go

RED January
DAY 14: 10k (6.3m)

100 miles completed

GLAD to say I hit the 100-mile point on my walk today - so am on target for 200 miles by the end of the month.

I'm taking part in the REDJanuary campaign to raise funds in support of Mind, the mental health charity. My goal is to raise £200 for 200 miles - ie £1 a mile!

Today's route.

The challenge is enjoyable, but I must admit, it's sometimes difficult fitting in a walk or cycle ride. Many of my 'excursions' have been in the dark, either before or after work - sometimes literally at the 11th

hour (or later)!

It has opened up a whole new 'noctural' world, sometimes eerie (a park shrouded in fog makes tree shapes even more lurking and mysterious); sometimes exciting (I loved seeing a shooting star streak across the clear sky the other morning). But always beautifully transformed by the darkness.

Distances have ranged from a couple of kilometers squeezed in just before midnight to nearly 29k on a cycle ride down a greenway.

Part of  today's walk - parkrun 

also follows this course.

I'm unable to run at present, because of a hamstring injury (compounded by further injury on the same leg following infection from an insect bite! Annoying, or what?).  I've attempted the occasional gentle jog, but don't want to jeopardize the recovery. Will just have to be patient!

I haven't ridden for decades - and am wearing my first ever cycle helmet!

An unexpected benefit has been making new REDder friends, mainly via Twitter - like PC Tyler O'Hare @TylerOHare, from London, 'pounding the beat' in a different way by clocking up an impressive number of  miles with his running (even when under the weather!); or linking with double Olympic Champion Dame Kelly Holmes @damekellyholmes, who's also taking part and is a great motivational figure. Because everyone is going through the same experience, for the same cause, there's a lot of mutual support and encouragement. It's great seeing how others are doing, and receiving positive feedback on your own efforts.

Although 200 miles by the end of the month may not sound that much, it's proving more challenging to keep up the pace than it might seem, simply because of time constraints.

A tempting park bench - that just 

happened to be at the 100-mile point.

But hitting the 100-mile point today, roughly half way through the month, is a good omen. Though I'm not sure how to interpret the fact that it just happened to coincide with a nearby park bench. Does this mean: 'Well done, you deserve a rest' or 'Steady, old boy, your rattling bones won't take much more of this'? 

My first cycle helmet!

I think I'll ignore the 'rattling bones,' and push on regardless. As with all the other REDders, it's now a case of keeping up the momentum until the end of the month.

The campaign is for a good cause. Mental health issues do not discriminate, and can happen to people of any age and from all walks of life. According to Mind, mental health problems affect one in four people in any given year. They range from experiences such as stress, anxiety and  depression, to rarer conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. 

If you'd like to donate to Mind - and keep my bones rattling for the rest of the month - you can do so via my JustGiving page here.

Fallen tree en route.

Any amount, no matter how small, will be greatly appreciated and put to good use.

Many thanks!

Scroll down to see a selection of pictures from my walks.

The first three are of a dog who was playing in the park today. It was a joy to see him dashing around the field - and then leaping over hurdles. So much energy!

Managed to snap a few shots of the hurdling - despite freezing fingers!

ONE . . .

TWO . . .

THREE . . . and over we go!

BELOW: A selection of pictures from walks since the beginning of the month

Time for thinking in an alien landscape

RED January
DAY 2: 6k (3.7m)

ALIEN LANDSCAPE: Frost on a cold car roof.

FLOATING lights, shadowy figures and the panting of invisible dogs.

These were some of the delights encountered on my second walk for RED January, the campaign to get people active and raise funds for Mind, the mental health charity.

MYSTERIOUS SHADOWS: Sculpture in the park.

I decided this morning to follow my usual parkrun course in Coventry’s War Memorial Park.

It was a strange experience. I’m usually either running around the route or marshalling on it. As I passed each marshal location in darkness – it was around 6.30am – I could imagine people there, like ghostly figures in some flickering old movie.

There were plenty of dog walkers. Some, along with their dogs, wore ‘safety lights’ for visibility: white, green, red, yellow.

From a distance, you could see neither people nor animals – just the coloured lights, appearing to float mysteriously in the air, moving in sometimes calm, sometimes erratic ways.

As you drew closer, there were chirpy ‘Good Morning, Happy New Year’ greetings, but they emanated from the looming shapes. There were still no faces visible. And then they were gone; brief encounters with shadows in the night.

TO THE FALLEN: Part of the Beech
 Leaves sculpture in the Coventry park.

Occasionally, the dogs would run ahead of their owners, or follow other walkers for a short distance, still barely visible, but filling the air with their excitable, disembodied panting. (Or was that just me?).

Later, one or two runners entered the scene, the steady soft rhythm of their steps heralding their approach, before fading again as they passed and disappeared back into the twilight surroundings.

Darkness turns the familiar into an alien, sometimes eerie and unsettling, landscape – yet there’s also something comforting and magical about it. The thin blanket of this morning’s sparkling frost added to the effect.

As I offered a cheery ‘good morning’ to one walker, she replied: ‘Sorry, I was deep in thought.’

Her comment raised a good point.

For many, running or walking can be, as one runner put it, their ‘secret weapon’ beyond simply physical health and wellness.

You can clear your head, sort out ideas, work on problems, make plans.

TWILIGHT ZONE: Memorial in early morning
light at Coventry War Memorial park.

The steady, natural, rhythm of your body as you move forward seems to assist the process, as if you’ve been transported into some sort of meditative state.

Your mind can wander wherever it likes, of course, with no particular direction or coherence. It can simply 'roam!'

Wherever your thoughts go, the darkness enhances the experience.

You can, almost literally, shut off from the familiar, everyday world and, for a short while at least, enjoy some quiet ‘me time,’ with no additional demands, lost in your own musings, completely free from other distractions – apart, that is, from looming shadowy figures and the occasional playful canine!

FUND NOTE: If you would like to donate to Mind, you can access my JustGiving page here.

Thank you.

QUIET SEAT: Bench under the lamp-light.

NIGHT LIGHT: Above and below - Visitor Centre at Coventry War Memorial Park.

RED JANUARY: Sun rises on a new day.

First steps for RED January

RED January
DAY 1: 5.7k (3.5m)

MORNING LIGHT: Early morning street scene
near the start of my first RED January walk.

WELL, if nothing else I've achieved one goal this morning - to be out 'doing something' on Day One of the New Year. I've taken my first steps in the RED January project.

Last year, on January 1, I was staring at a cold wet uphill road in Coventry about to begin training for the city's Half Marathon.

HI VIZ: Seen in the dark!

I was hoping to have done the same this year, but a hamstring injury followed by an insect bite behind my right knee on the same leg, which became infected, have scuppered all running and walking for several weeks.

I've become more couch potato than runner bean! (Groan!)

SEEING THE LIGHT: Street lamp
shines on the starting point.

One thing I wanted to do, though, was to walk, run - crawl if necessary - on the first day of the year.

I'm still having treatment for both hamstring and insect bite. The hamstring physio has been put on hold until the bite wound has fully healed. So there'll be no running any time soon! And I have to be 'sensible' - however challenging that might be! I can't afford to overdo it, and risk creating even longer-term problems.

However, the RED January project provides an ideal opportunity to ease back into physical activity and raise money for Mind, the Mental Health Charity, at the same time.

I must confess, I signed up to RED January with a more optimistic than realistic assessment of how the healing would be progressing. Inevitably, although doing well and going in the right direction, it's not happening as quickly as I was hoping. You can't rush these things!

ALL SET: Lamp post marks the start of the walk.

For a while after signing up, I did think: 'Oh heck, what have I done?' as I weighed up the reality -and feasibility - of actually honoring the commitment. Yet at the same time, it's an opportunity to build exercise into what I'm regarding as my 'fitness rehab,' and support a good cause at the same time.

I also learned last night that a very dear, lifelong friend has passed away. He's around the same age as me. His passing was unexpected and has been a shock. It gave me even more incentive to get out and get moving this morning.

My RED January, which I had inwardly dedicated to a late brother, has now also become a tribute to my friend.

So, my goal is to complete a minimum of 200 miles by the end of the month. Most will probably be walking, although I hope to be back into running at least later in the project. An additional twist is the cycling! I haven't ridden a bike for decades, but my son has given me his (very nice) old one after investing in a newer model.

I don't yet possess a helmet, and as for understanding the gears, I might as well be trying to crochet with tinned spaghetti!

But that's the point. RED January is about getting out and being active each day. It's a new project, for a new year, and an opportunity to take on new challenges.

For me that will be mostly walking, hopefully some running - and, with luck, re-learning how to push those pedals (and change those gears!).

ON COURSE: Don't think I'll try for London on this occasion.

So Day 1 activity is completed, now just 30 left to do!

If you would like to donate to Mind, and support my 200-mile challenge, then please visit my (Just Giving page (here) and hit the donate button.

Thank you - and Happy New Year!

Now then, where can I buy a good helmet . . . and do you push those levers down to go uphill or up to go downhill . . . oh, and where's the brake?

SAFE CROSSING; Keeping an eye on the road.

FEELING GOOD: Click here to donate to

Mind, the Mental Health Charity.

DAY 1: First walk of the RED January project.

Running hurts more than walking - but I'm hooked!

Reflected walkers in the mist

THE Route Walk blog has taken a bit of a back seat lately, partly because I’ve started running.

I joined the Massey Ferguson RaceFit running course in Coventry 10 weeks ago, and will be signing up to their main club (Massey Ferguson Runners) tomorrow.

I’ll be starting a companion blog – Can Run Will Run – shortly.

The question over walking/running injury has cropped up, and painfully! In his book Walking, Casey Meyers, argues that ‘. . . the only thing running can give you that walking doesn’t is injury!’

So far, in my case, he’s been proved absolutely right! In all the walking I've done, I haven’t suffered so much as a single blister. In less than 10 weeks of running, I’ve already sported a black eye and knee/muscle problems that have reduced me to a hobble. To be fair, the black eye wasn’t a result of the running as such, but a slight ‘connection’ with someone’s head during an exercise. Ouch!

But Meyers also says that although he was an exercise runner for nearly three years, there was ‘not one time’ that he ‘truly enjoyed’ running as much as he does his daily walks.

That’s where we differ. I like walking, but also thoroughly enjoy running. My 10-week course has been fantastic. For motivation and mutual support, a walking or running club can't be beaten. It's a great way to share experience with like-minded enthusiasts, and improve your performance.

But you have to be sensible with whatever physical activity you do.

Preparation and prevention are better than pain and enforced immobility. In my case, I'll have to see how things go . . .

In the meantime, I had an enforced walk last week when my car broke down one evening at traffic lights on a dual carriageway. I managed to push it across the highway on to an island.

My broken-down car after I'd pushed it off the highway. Above, traffic whizzes
behind it. Below, light trails from vehicles passing in front of it. Yikes!

The walk came the following morning. The car had been towed to the dealer’s. To get there, and to avoid hanging around at bus stops etc, I walked.

I'd imagined short cuts and alleyways. How wrong can you be? There weren’t any, so it took a wee bit longer than anticipated.

But, despite a hot and sweaty arrival at the dealer's, it was good to take a 'different' route. There’ll be more walking to come, though  – as the car’s not quite ready for collecting yet!

Here are pictures from recent, more 'scenic,' walks in Coventry War Memorial Park:

Looks like this dog's happy to go for walkies all by himself!

Climbing frame silhouetted against the evening sky.

Beautiful delicacy of branches in the mist.

Silhouetted trees on a misty morning.

Children's playground after a touch of frost.

Shapes and structures - the tree and the climbing frame!