The Reckoning
Before Hearts Across Australia, before the first marathon, and before running felt like mine, there was a public decision to change: one blog, one Facebook page, one weigh-in, and a set of numbers I could no longer dodge.
The early chapters from the no more mr fat guy years that made Hearts Across Australia possible.
Entries
15 entries
The First Small Steps
Running was not even a possibility yet, so the change began with early walks, Marble, water, food tracking, stairs, and the uncomfortable discovery that tiny choices could carry a frighteningly big goal.
The Lab Rat Starts Learning
The first walks had proved I could start. The next lessons were DJ Clubfit, Jetts, rowing, soreness, water, sleep, and Britt's feedback turning my body into something I had to listen to.
Twenty-One Kilometres Before Running
The rowing machine gave me a safer way to learn distance: two hours, eight minutes, twenty-eight seconds, one locked-up backside, and proof that endurance was becoming real.
The First Time I Ran In Public
The Fremantle 10km Fun Run took the work out of the gym and into public: a race bib, Steve beside me, no walking, 1:14:41, and the first finish-line proof that running might become mine.
The Boy Who Finally Finished
Four weeks before Perth Marathon, Joondalup Half Marathon stopped being just a training run. It became twenty-one kilometres with the old school cross-country voice, Kian near the finish, and proof that I could finish.
Six Hours, Forty-Seven Minutes
The Perth Marathon was supposed to be the impossible finish line. It became cold fog, Heartbreak Hill, help from Chris and Derryn, Kian near the finish, and 6:47 of proof that changed what I believed was possible.
42.2 km
The Longest Hangover Ever
The week after my first marathon was not a neat victory lap. It was sleep, flatness, itchy feet, a quiet identity shift, and the first clear feeling that no more mr fat guy needed to become something bigger than a running blog.
The Marathon Was Just A Vehicle
Five weeks after my first marathon, I sat down to write the post that scared me more than the race itself: the one where I admitted the marathon had only been the vehicle.
Running My Own Race
A year after my first public 10km, I went back to Fremantle with a sub-60 dream, friends around me, a Facebook community watching, and a lesson I still needed: run my own race.
10 km
A Dream With Other People In It
When Kate from Running In The Rain asked about my running dream, the answer was no longer just a marathon. It had become Uluru, London, other people's stories, and the first rough shape of something bigger.
Running For Those Who Can't
A loose, generous running club gave my running another direction: changing myself while running with other people, for people who would run if they could.
16 km
The Something That Clicked
Hearts Across Australia did not have a name, a route, a crew, or any sensible logistics yet, but three small sparks turned a restless mission into one ridiculous public idea: Perth to Brisbane on foot.
Where The Heart Belonged
People kept asking whether the Perth-to-Brisbane idea was for charity. The Heart Foundation gave that question an answer that fitted my own story: Grandpa, Dad, heart risk, London, and a cause that made sense.
The Course Had No Teeth
On Christmas Eve, back in Somerset, I ran the old school cross-country course with Steve. The fields were flooded, the old symbolism was heavy, and somehow the thing I had spent years turning into proof of quitting became wet, ridiculous, and fun.