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Lesley's 8 hours bike-a-thon for FMA UK

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Published on Friday, 24 March 2017 12:30

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Lesley Bratty will ride a spin bike in her local gym for 8 hours to raise funds for FMA UK. Lesley told us her inspiring story: ‘’I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia just over 2 years ago, after several years searching for a diagnosis to explain all my weird and wonderful symptoms. Adjusting to the diagnosis has been tough in many ways, but finding the Fibromyalgia UK webpage, as well as various Facebook groups, has been fantastic. I’ve been able to view a wealth of information and tips on coping with the illness.

I’ve been lucky in a lot of ways, to have the support of my husband and friends, to have 20 years of yoga practise and a yoga teaching qualification under my belt to help me manage my pain, stiffness, and down days. Unfortunately, others aren’t so lucky, and I have seen how the work done by Fibromyalgia UK has helped those not as blessed as I am.

I try to do something for charity every year, and I usually raise money for a charity that has helped a friend or family member in some way, such as Marie Curie or Chest Heart and Stroke. This year my husband suggested that since I’m in a lot more pain than previous years I skip the charity event. I really didn’t want to skip doing some good, so compromised by deciding to raise money for a charity that benefits me!

I ran through a lot of ideas, trying to find something my body could cope with, and eventually decided on 8 hours on a spin bike, on 8^th April at a local gym. I figured I can put the resistance as low as possible, and pedal extremely slowly if necessary to get through it. I also have an encouraging playlist setup and lots of people are planning to pop in and cheer me on.

My main challenges in training are working around my own body – some days I’m too sore or fatigued to do much training.  This does mean I’m probably going into this challenge woefully unprepared but I guess there’s no point getting a person to sponsor me for something that’s too easy!  Might as well give them some bang for their buck!

I set a target of £300 and have met it and more already – I’m totally overwhelmed with the support I’ve received, both in terms of sponsorship and in terms of well-wishes from people.  I’ve received more support from people who I thought were less close friends, which has really surprised me and shows that people can think more of you than you realise!.’’

To donate visit Lesley’s JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Lesley-Bratty3