We still can’t believe it! 48 hours ago, we ran a marathon. This year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Virgin Money London Marathon’s 40th race was postponed from April 2020 to October 2020. However, this was not going to be like any other London Marathon. This one was to be run virtually. This meant that 45,000 runners from around the world had 24 hours to run 26.2 miles nearer home. So, as well as months of training, we also had to plan our own route, taking into consideration road surface, elevation (i.e. avoid all hills), water stations and pit stops.
We decided as this race was like no other, we would get 26 of our friends and family to each come run one mile with us. This was a stroke of genius – having the support and encouragement of close family and friends gave us the extra surge of energy to keep going, plus someone new to talk too as we battled tired legs and low motivation as well as a constant downpour of rain. Little did we know, our 26 one mile runners would enjoy the run and keep running with us for longer… and maybe even be inspired to sign up for a run themselves!
We are by no means the fittest people. We’ve always been keen netball players but as shooters we wouldn’t exactly be called the best runners on the team. Running a marathon is a high task that required putting in the miles around other commitments - Rina is a teacher (and mum to two teenagers!) and Pallvi is a trainee solicitor. This meant going out for a run whenever we could, doing extra strength exercises and resistance training and also making sure we were eating healthily. There were times during training when morale was low but we had to remind ourselves why we were doing this. Whether it was for our own self-belief or for charity, we knew we had a goal and to achieve it meant persevering through.
The cherry on the top was that Rina and her sister Jyoti have managed to raise over £10,100 for the charity Children with Cancer UK.
Pallvi Gami (age 29) and Rina Siyani (age 40) are active voluntary members of Shree Kutchi Leval Patel Community (SKLPC UK) from Gaam Samatra and continuously inspire the younger generation to better themselves through their SEWA work.
