From Marathon to Mountain Trails: Lindsay's Inspiring Triple Challenge Raises Over £700 

From completing a marathon in Seville to conquering a 50km ultramarathon and an arduous 55km Lakeland trail ultra, Lindsay pushed herself to the limit in support of Juvenile Arthritis Research. Her remarkable fundraising journey raised more than £700 for the charity while highlighting the resilience shown every day by children and young people living with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis.

We caught up with Lindsay after each of her incredible challenges to hear about how she got on.  Back in February, Lindsay took on the Seville marathon and told us "It actually went really well. My favourite ever marathon and a personal best just sneaking under 4 hours." The weather was sunny but not too hot and starting before 9am meant that it was much cooler at first. 

Just a few weeks later in March, Lindsay took part in the Amersham Ultramarathon. This was a 50km run that proved to be a tough muddy trail. Lindsay was cheered on by her running club, Chiltern Harriers AC, throughout. Lindsay explained: 

"The 50km ultra went well! We made it! It was tougher than I thought it would be.  I had hoped for an easier run than the recent marathon thinking the trail paths would allow for softer cushioning underfoot and that we’d take on an easier pace to cover the distance… BUT the very sticky mud and a few hills definitely made it challenging to get all the way around.  Good views had been promised and, although the cloudy, foggy day may have stolen them a little, it still felt really good to be out in my beautiful local countryside enjoying the great outdoors, especially cheered on by many kind volunteers and supporters from my running club.  I am trying to keep reminding myself what an accomplishment it is to complete a 50km course. It certainly tests the body and mind and I take for granted all the fitness I have had to build up to be able to do it, and only 3 weeks after my road marathon!  All in all, despite feeling pretty broken at the end, as I write this on Sunday night, I am feeling surprisingly good!" 

Completing a 50km run certainly is an accomplishment but Lindsay's trio of epic challenges didn't end there. There was still another to go; the Lakeland trails 55k ultra. So last Friday, whilst much of the UK was experiencing a heatwave, Lindsay took on the third of these incredible challenges. 

Here's Lindsay's write up of the day: 

"The Lakeland trails ultra was quite eventful! It started well. We managed to transfer to the earlier start time at 8.30am instead of 9.30am which we’re thankful for as the sun was already so hot at 8am!

The climbs went on and on and on and the scenery was so beautiful. We had to be careful not to overdo it when in the blazing sun for very long stretches and we dipped our caps into streams to cool off at every chance.

Unfortunately, at about 23km in something started feeling gradually more and more painful in my leg/knee and the descents had to be so slow as I was getting shooting pains up my leg. I think it was my IT band  - The iliotibial (IT) band is a thick, fibrous band of tissue running down the outside of your thigh, from your pelvis to the outer side of your shinbone. My friend had brought poles so I leaned on those and I could still jog on the flats but I ended up just having to walk about the last 25km so we were very slow.

The course is a big loop, then a small loop, then a straight section about 7.5km to the finish. So when we got to the crossover point after the big loop it was a really difficult decision whether to continue or to cut back early. I decided that, because I could still move ok on uphill and flat sections, and we had made good time until that point, we should just go for it and see if we could get to the finish before the 10pm cut-off point.

It was very tough at times. There were tears and doubts. Blisters underfoot, chafing and heat rash. One thing we did seem to get right was nutrition. I drank gallons of water, energy drinks and electrolytes. Ate gels, bars, sandwiches, fruit, crisps, cheese and flapjacks!!

My friend, Rhiannon, was amazing. She was an absolute rock and looked after me every step of the way. She was a star.

In the end we walked into the finishers field at 9.50pm and managed a few token steps of jogging as we crossed the finish line.

It would have been nice to run more of the course and to not have had so much pain. But I still feel proud and so pleased to have finished it in the circumstances we ended up in on the day. We kept going when things were tough and we pushed through our challenges together.

I thought so much about how this was just one day of pain for me and how people with JIA can battle joint pain and symptoms all throughout their lives. And I thought a lot about the BSR's pain guideline that Richard and Rebecca (JAR's co-founders) have helped us to develop. I was trying very hard not to cry as I didn’t want to let the pain get to me. But eventually it broke me and we had to stop and breathe. But once I reached that point of acceptance and had made that decision to continue it changed things a bit. I used deep breaths and tried to relax my body and we stopped to rest and paced ourselves when it was getting bad. The pain is mentally tiring as much as it is physically and we had to take account of that. And I was able to get into a more positive and optimistic headspace.

Today I’ve felt happy but a bit weak and nauseous and very tearful. I think the exhaustion and held-in-emotions all just catching up with me a bit. But I’ve rested and my legs and feet thankfully don’t feel too bad. So I’m sure a few more days rest and I’ll be feeling back to normal. No running for a few weeks though perhaps!

I’m so pleased to have been able to raise some funds and hopefully some awareness for JAR and I really appreciate all the kindness and support from JAR's wonderful volunteer Selma throughout."

Lindsay works with the British Society for Rheumatology as their Clinical Guidelines Programme Manager. As such, she has a good insight into rheumatic conditions making her approach to overcoming the challenges she faced with pain particularly poignant. 

You can find Lindsay's JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/page/lindsay-turner-3

We are so grateful to Lindsay for taking on these extraordinary challenges in support of Juvenile Arthritis Research. By pushing herself through months of training, three demanding endurance events and some incredibly difficult moments, she has not only raised more than £700 but has also helped shine a light on the daily realities faced by children and young people living with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis. Every donation to Lindsay's fundraiser helps us transform the lives of children with JIA through our research, awareness, advocacy and family support work. Thank you, Lindsay, for your determination, compassion and unwavering commitment to making a difference. 

Press coverage of Lindsay's challenge can be found at https://www.bucksherald.co.uk/your-world/chilterns-woman-goes-the-extra-mile-with-three-endurance-races-for-childhood-arthritis-8802132