Members and coaches at a Bedfordshire gym have been busy taking on and preparing for two incredible fitness challenges to raise thousands of pounds for Children’s Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG) and two other cancer charities.
Firstly, on October 17, a contingent from GWD Performance, in Marston Moretaine, travelled to London to compete in the Battle Cancer functional fitness competition, which sees teams battle it out while simultaneously raising funds for their charity of choice.
GWD took down three teams made up of nine members and three coaches, all of whom were pushed to their limits by four nine-minute workouts, which included punishing running and rowing tasks.
Each team picked a different charity to fundraise for, with the GWD Titans - comprised of Cherrelle Emanuel, Dean Pates, Gavin Denning and Gary Denning - choosing CCLG.
They were joined by GWD DOMS, consisting of David Watling, Ryan Healy, Joe Murphy and Carli Watt-Roy and raising funds for Eve Appeal, and the team of Natalie Murphy, David Lane, Harry Watling and Vijay Mistry, representing GWD Warriors and fundraising for Orchid Cancer.
After months of training, the team were eager to see how they fared, with the GWD DOMS finishing 42nd out of 248 teams, and the Titans and Warriors 67th and 183rd respectively.
Cherelle Emanuel said:
“In the days leading up to the event, excitement took over us all.
“We couldn’t wait, we were about to put all our hard work to the test and on the day we didn’t disappoint.
“It was amazing, working together in our teams, and having other GWD members there to support and cheer you through it, was brilliant.
“It was tough, but there’s nothing like the rush of excitement when you compete.
“Each floor was a different challenge and when your lungs were burning and your body was tiring, nine minutes sometimes felt longer, but once you finished, there was no beating that feeling of accomplishment, knowing you gave all that you could and feeling that sense of achievement.”
Cherelle said there is a close-knit community at the gym, which was evident during the event and throughout their fundraising.
She said: “The support provided and encouragement during the workouts was unbelievable.
“This was most definitely a team effort and we all take pride in each other’s achievements.
“None of us will forget how we worked together and pushed each other to be the best we could be.
“Everyone’s been talking about how much they enjoyed the event and the experience. We’ll be hopefully be doing it again with more teams next time.”
Speaking on why her team chose CCLG to fundraise for, Cherelle said: “I have known people who have children and siblings go through these illnesses and have seen how valuable the support from charities such as CCLG has been.
“Hearing the difficult stories and journeys families are going through, or have been through, made me want to do my best.”
In addition to the Battle Cancer event, Joe Murphy, Head Coach at GWD, and gym member Harry McGrory, are fundraising for CCLG as they get set to tackle a huge test of endurance.
Between Friday, 5 November and Sunday, 7 November, they take on the 4x4 x 48 Challenge – running an incredible four miles, every four hours, for a full 48 hours.
Joe, who also took part in the Battle Cancer event, said: “Harry and I wanted to do something challenging for the cause, while helping each other out and pushing each other on a bit.
“It’s as much of a mental challenge as a physical one.
“Although 48 miles in 48 hours is going to be tough, it’s the mental side of getting yourself up to do it over and over again, all through the night, in the cold, barely able to sleep between runs.
“We only decided to do it a couple of weeks ago, so it’s all hands-on-deck at the minute trying to get ready for it and get the miles in.
“We’ve set some goals each week to try and get used to running and doing things at times when you’re not in ideal conditions.
“It’s been part of the training to get used to an early morning run, a late evening run, running in bad weather, things like that, ticking off all these obstacles as we go and then bringing them together as one, doing a couple of runs in the same day, trying to get used to it all.”
The pair will complete their first and last runs together, starting and finishing at the gym, while completing the other 10 from their own homes, via their own routes.
However, they hope to be joined on the final leg by members of the gym, before celebrating with a social event.
Joe explained: “The first one will probably be just Harry and me, but the last one will be on Sunday afternoon and we will try and get everyone down there and do a bit of fundraising on the day as well.
“If people want to join us on our last run, then they can jump in, or if they just want to come and support and see us finish, then they can do that.”
GWD’s efforts have so far raised more than £3,300 for CCLG and more than £9,000 for the three charities combined.