Well, when we all heard about the heatwave that would be hitting London this weekend, I have to say that I was one of the few people who wasn't entirely happy! But, along with thousands of other women, I braved the heat and turned up to run.

I completed the course in 23 minutes, which is a very respectable time for the distance, and even more so in the heat! I have to admit to only running 4 km of it though, for the first km of the course it was really difficult to run, as there were narrow paths and lots of women walking, but I did my best and ran about half, I then ran the next 2km with out stopping, and then hit the 3km mark! It felt fantastic to know I was over halfway, but I turned a corner and saw there was a long stretch of about 500m with absolutely no shade! I have to say I decided at that point to do the sensible thing, and walk it. As soon as that was over we were into a shady strectch for another 500m, so I started running again, the crowd cheering us on really kept me going, and just as I thought I might stop and walk again, I heard "Come on, only 500m to go, you're doing brilliantly!" so I kept going, and arms in the air I crossed the finishing line!

The next battle was to fight through the people giving out medals (got mine to prove I did it!) and goody bags (why does anyone want a packet of persil ater running?) through to the people giving out cranberry juice (the most welcome person I'd seen all day!).

On the way to the station I bought a big bottle of water and emptied it over my head, and it was great to have locals outside cleaning their cars congratulating me on the acheivment!

Thank you to everybody who has sponsored me, I've raised nearly £400 in aid of cancer research, and there are very few people I still need to collect from, so I'll be getting that off to them really soon.

On another note, my father started his treatment today, and the outlook is looking really good for him, he's in fantastic shape, which is a real help, but the most inspiring thing is the amazingly positive attitude he has, which I know will help him in his fight. Thank you too to all of you who have offered kind words of support, it means alot.

Amanda. x