Ely Festive 5k – Santa boosted Mental Health:
This weekend marked the annual Ely Festive 5k, where a few hundred people (mostly) dress up in their finest festive gear and walk, jog and run around the streets of Ely.
And, in what is fast becoming a family tradition, I dusted off my white beard and red hat, reminded my daughter that yes, she really had said she wanted to do the Ely run again this year, and headed to the start line alongside the fabulous Ely Cathedral.
It’s always a fun occasion and there is always a lot of friendly chat and encouragement from fellow runners on the way around. All of which helped me to cope with over thirty minutes of continuous moaning from my daughter about how a) every part of her ached b) she couldn’t breathe and c) how she was never, ever, going to do this again (all of which are also fast becoming part of the annual tradition!!). But bless here she finished it and even managed a sprint finish over the last 50 metres AND she did it quicker than in any of the previous years.
I think the awesome chocolate orange brownie she tucked into at the end helped to ease some of the ‘suffering’ and her next day muscle soreness will soon pass too (although not before a rather achy PE lesson at school!). And, of course, she felt better after having done the run and a sense of satisfaction in telling others of her endeavours.
I’ve written many times about the mental health benefits of being active… and I’m sure there must be research that dressing as Santa boosts mental health too! Anyway, before the run we popped into the office to record a short video…although it got overtaken a bit by my daughter experiencing a bit of an issue behind me!!
