Hello lovely people!
How are we all enjoying this cooler weather? Are you an autumn lover?
I am hating it. I am a summer lover, and absolutely hate the cold and rain with a passion. I have a wonderful collection of winter jumpers helping me through, and I do love a cup of hot chocolate, but ultimately the cold, dark and wet makes me miserable, and I always struggle to stay positive and motivated when it hits every year. Give me sunshine and a beach over a hot choc by a fire ANY day.
Anyway, with that aside, I am very happy to announce today that I have officially completed my 500km virtual runner challenge! In fact, I completed the 500km distance quite a few months ago but wasn't properly keeping track (whoops), and now have finally received my medal.
If you weren't aware, at the start of this year I took on the 500km virtual runner challenge in aid of Sarcoma UK. The challenge involved completing 500km over the year, in whatever way you like - running, swimming, cycling. Pretty simple, right? So, to create more of a challenge for myself I decided to also take on an extra challenge each month this year, which has included a variety of fitness and health and other random things! All of this has not just been for fun though, it's all to raise money for Sarcoma UK, the only national UK charity that provides research and support for every type of sarcoma.
I have already reached my initial fundraising goal of £1000 due to some very generous donations (thank you thank you!), so have raised my goal to £1500. I will leave the donation link at the end of this blog if you have any pennies or pounds to donate, if you haven't already.
This month I am taking on the 20 for 20 challenge. What's that you ask? Well, Sarcoma UK have united with 19 other small, rare cancer charities in attempt to raise awareness for them and to give them an extra boost in what has been a tough year for all charities, and particularly smaller ones. The idea is to take on 20 challenges over 20 days for these 20 cancer charities. You can decide which charity to support (if not all!), and can decide on your own challenges if you like. It's not too late to join in -
Why not beat the October slump and take on 20 challenges this month??
I have decided to do 20 fitness challenges, and so far have made a fool of myself doing a 20 minute zumba session, attempting 20 keepie uppies, and doing 20 squats and lunges on the common in the rain and the dark to fit them in... And way more is to come this month. If you would like to see me making a fool of myself, follow me on Instagram where I post most of it on my stories!
This month is October, which means it is Breast Cancer Awareness month. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, with around 30% of cases thought to be preventable. Therefore, yes, it does need more awareness around it. However, breast cancer receives an inordinate amount of attention, and is made out to be pretty and pink and marketable. Companies literally make money out of breast cancer this month by selling pink and frilly products. If we're going to devote a month to the cause, we should at least bring attention to the realities of it and how it can be prevented, rather than merely sell/buy a pink ribbon and think we're helping out.
Moreover, I believe all cancers deserve the same attention as breast cancer. For instance, brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of people under 40 in the UK. Yet, brain tumour research makes up just 3% of cancer research in the UK. When was the last brain tumour awareness month you remember? Similarly, lung cancer is one of the most common cancers, and also one of the least survivable - and it is practically ignored by the community and by researchers.
Funnily enough, there are 6 cancers in the UK that together cause 51% of all cancer deaths - and none of them are breast cancer. They are called the 'less survivable cancers' and are lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic and stomach cancer, "all with a five-year survival rate of less than 30% due to a legacy of neglect and underfunding." (When compared to breast cancer's ten-year survival rate of 76%...) Not to be a downer on the lovely pinkness of October's Breast Cancer Awareness month, but if we used more of our energy on some of these more dangerous cancers, then maybe we could make a massive difference.
As I said, I am not saying breast cancer doesn't deserve attention, but I am saying we need to continue to give attention to other cancers, the massive ones that are massive killers too.
This month, like every other month, I am raising money for Sarcoma UK. Research into sarcoma is severely lacking due to its rarity, and patients are therefore diagnosed extremely late, have a poor prognosis, and few treatment options. I vow to make a change to this stark reality.
There's something for you to think about this month. I hope you got something out of this read and I'm sending each and every one of you a big warm hug.
Finally, if you do anything this October, check all your bits, not just your balls and tits.
Thanks for reading,
Until next time!
M x
Donate to my fundraising page here - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/m-cowey
More information on the 20For20 challenge - https://www.20for20.org.uk/
For how to check your boobs or pecs - Coppafeel