Katy's 500k To Christmas for Alzheimer's Research UK

Lessons learnt from my first week in Bari? green man does definitely not mean go in fact it probably means you're more likely to get run over if you do decide to run the gauntlet of crossing the road, run like your life depends on it because it probably does you can definitely have too much of Nonna's pasta indicators, lanes and one way streets are overrated the pizza here is truly something else 4 thousand Italians packed onto tarmac in 30C heat makes for one sweaty running race I cycle as slow as I run English heatwave temperature still means jeans and leather jackets for Italians - you get seriously odd looks wandering around in shorts and T shirt I have survived an Italian birthday feast, the southern Italian way of driving and a huge feed at la casa dei Nonni. But most of all I have been so warmly welcomed into a family like I am one of their own and have been able to run in beautiful weather in a gorgeous city. Roll on week two, more running and more pasta.....

A few of you may know that earlier this year my dad was diagnosed with Early Onset Alzheimer's, which affects around 5% of people who have the disease. Many know that Alzheimer's is a progressive disease of the brain, causing loss of memory, but it also causes loss of coordination, speech and personality to name a few. This year, 1 in 3 people born in the UK will develop some form of dementia at some point, and currently there is no cure. I have decided to run 500km, with a bit of cycling to make up some miles, between my birthday (25th October) and Christmas - 62 days, averaging just under 57km a week - to raise money for Alzheimer's Research UK. I'll be posting regular updates here along with a running tally of my kilometers on Strava so you can see how I'm doing. If you can spare a few pennies, share this page or even be a running buddy for a few km you would be much welcomed and appreciated! Food donations very much welcomed too ;) https://www.justgivin...