For a lot of people running is definitely not the most appealing sport; panting and sweating around Selly Oak in the cold is not always what you fancy doing after a long day. Emma Dutton, a third year medical science student, would agree with this. It is fair to say running never came naturally to her despite success in other sports like swimming: ‘I have just never been a runner, running around one lap of the astroturf would kill me!’ Despite this, last Sunday Emma joined the 20,000 plus people running the Birmingham half marathon and smashed her target time, raising nearly £600 for charity in the process.
Emma’s initial inspiration came from watching friends run the half marathon the year before, ‘I just wanted to join in and be part of it!’ Anyone who has watched this race may have experienced a similar feeling, there is something really special about the Birmingham half marathon which shows what a special place Birmingham is and there is definitely a buzz of excitement and the most amazing atmosphere despite being a chilly Sunday morning in October!
From this point last year it was a lot of hard training to go from struggling with one mile to do the big 13.1! ‘It wasn’t until the end of last term that I really committed and entered and it all became a lot more real! I started training in the summer and it was a tough few months but I was so determined about that I would finish the half marathon it kept me going.’ Following advice from running friends Emma slowly built up her miles up: ‘I think just starting extremely slowly and increasing your distance and speed gradually is the only way to do it, I did it over four months and can’t believe how much I improved.’ During the training Emma began to see the attraction of running and actually enjoyed it all, especially due to using an application on her phone to record her distances and times.
Last week all this hard work paid off and on Sunday 20th October she ran the half marathon in 2 hours 7 minutes, when her goal had been under 2 hours 30 minutes. On top of this raising money for a fantastic charity Universal Chance. She is one of many non runners to pull off this amazing achievement and it really does show anyone can run if you put your mind to it. We wanted to make Emma our campus celebrity as her achievement really is amazing and she is a great example of what you can achieve with a determined, positive attitude. ‘I hope more people who hate running would consider giving it a go because I honestly was in your position last year! I am now hooked and want to do more!’ So why not give it a go? Start steady and don’t lose heart, there is a whole year to get ready for the next Birmingham half marathon!