Photo: Amy Hughes/53.53Marathons
By Alison Ryan
As the New Year begins, many people find themselves inspired to lace up their trainers and recommit to their fitness. The commitment can wane, however, if inspiration dwindles amid everyday life’s demands. Many find success by beginning with small goals like completing a 5k run and working up to eventually completing a half, or full marathon. Even with discipline and commitment, let’s face it, there are days that just getting out and hitting the pavement can be rough.
Can you imagine waking up and running a marathon for 53 days in a row?
From August 6th to September 27th in 2014, Amy Hughes did just that: 53 marathons in 53 days.
Now Hughes is back in training after a well-deserved holiday break. The plucky 26-year-old sports therapist from Shropshire, England is prepping for a new challenge in 2015 after crushing both the women’s and men’s world records for daily consecutive marathons last year.
When asked about how the idea to set a world record materialized, Hughes said, “That was last on my list really.”
There Has to be a Starting Point
A self-described, “fitness freak and health junkie,” Hughes recalled the day she gathered with friends to brainstorm a running challenge. She had always wanted to do an ultra run and was inspired by Dean Karnazes, who had run 50 marathons in 50 days across the United States. While discussing the logistics of running a similar challenge through various cities in the United Kingdom, she learned about Parvaneh Moayedi of Texas, who set the previous women’s record with 17 consecutive marathons. The world record was held by Akinori Kusuda from Japan after he ran 52 consecutive marathons in 2009.
That is when Hughes decided, “You may as well go for the 53.”
In total, Hughes logged just over 1,388 miles. Each mile, she says, was a means to an inspirational end. By breaking the world record for consecutive marathons, Hughes’ goal was to help fund and raise the profile of a small charity in her hometown, the Isabelle Lottie Foundation.
Hughes has a personal connection to the family of little Izzy Wynne, who at the age of 2, was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor. The foundation, established in February 2014, aims to increase awareness for the early diagnosis of brain tumors in children and young adults, and to also provide support to the children and families affected by the diagnosis.
Photo: Amy Hughes/53.53Marathons
To date Hughes has met her goal of raising £53,000.00 (just over $81,000) for the foundation.
In addition to supporting the Isabelle Lottie Foundation, Hughes said she is passionate about encouraging and inspiring health and fitness. She hopes that the 53 marathon project will inspire as many people as possible to live more active and healthy lives. Her message to young people in particular is that, “Running can be fun!”
Determined from the start, while still in the preparation stage for the fundraising project, the optimistic Hughes had posted, “As crazy as this challenge sounds, it’s one I’m ready to embark on!”
One at a Time
Besides bringing grit, willpower and confidence to the table, how does someone train for an ultra run, you may wonder?
An accomplished runner with several marathons under her belt, Hughes said, “I didn’t really do an awful lot more than I would to train for just one marathon.”
Leading up to the grueling challenge she felt it was especially important to avoid over-training to minimize the possibility of injury. She was grateful, she said, that no injuries occurred during the marathons.
“You can’t really train for 53 marathons.” Hughes laughed, “Where would you even start?”
Her solo challenge was made possible, in part by great teamwork. She had support from friends, family, and even strangers throughout the challenge, which she said helped immensely. Her boyfriend was with her almost all the way and a friend’s mother helped set up the behind-the scenes details like hotels and meals in each city. Hughes described the support she received with gratitude and humility, seemingly surprised that her accomplishment had created such big waves.
Of course it wasn’t all rainbows.
Hughes said the first week was the most difficult, but after about ten days she found herself feeling stronger. Every run was different, she said, and while hard days came in waves, they always got better. A particularly trying set of days came when a stomach bug forced Hughes to slow to a walking pace on her 35th marathon in Taunton. The fatigue resulted in her slowest marathon time of eight hours.
When asked if she ever considered quitting, Hughes said, “I always thought I could do it. Even when I was ill, the thought of quitting never entered my head. I just knew it was going to be a lot harder.”
Hughes was right to stay positive. To her pleasant surprise, her fastest marathon time was during the last week of the challenge in Cambridge, where she completed the run in only four hours and 50 minutes.
Her average time throughout the challenge was about five hours and 20 minutes.
Hughes said she had considered continuing on to a 54th marathon and knew she had the strength to continue, but as the end of the challenge neared, she realized it was time to change the goal.
When she saw the finish of the 53rd marathon, she anticipated being emotional, but in the end, it just felt surreal.
“As weird as it sounds, I was quite sad that it was all over,” Hughes said.
In retrospect, Hughes still felt that sense of surrealism and joked that she felt as if she had not even done 53 consecutive marathons herself. She also said that even if she had to go back and do it again, she wouldn’t change anything about the experience.
A New Year Brings New Challenges
Photo: Amy Hughes/53.53Marathons
Looking forward in 2015, there is a new challenge in mind. As a six-time veteran of the London Marathon, Hughes thinks it would be fun to run it again, but change it up a tad. Her new plan is to run from her hometown in Shropshire to London, run the marathon, and then run back home. The roundtrip distance of about 450 miles only seems to inspire Hughes’ sense of adventure.
The London Marathon is scheduled for April 26th.
After five pairs of shoes and 53 marathons in 53 days, Hughes says her advice to someone looking to beat the new record would be the same as her advice for someone running one marathon: “Try to enjoy it.”
There are many different ways running can be fun, she happily explained. Running in a group, running for a time in a race, or running simply for the joy of it are all great ways to encourage yourself in the sport. For beginners and accomplished runners alike, she cautioned people to remember not to beat themselves up about the small things.
In addition to giving some well-timed advice for the New Year, Hughes is a gracious figure, well worth admiration. She said she intends to keep inspiring people.
Hughes’ suggestion for success in running and fitness is sweet and simple.
“Find what you do like. Try and find your reason for running and just stick with it.”
That sounds like something we can all try.
To keep up with Amy Hughes, visit 53Marathons, or follow her on Twitter: @53marathons.
