Jog On: How Running Saved My Life

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You don't have to have fancy kit, you don't need to aim for personal bests, you don't need to run marathons and you can be clumsy (as I am).

I’ll admit, the past few years have been mentally tough for me, with a serious health problem, the heightened stresses of work, the insecurity I’ve felt around my position at work and not to mention the pressure of lockdown, both as a parent and as a worker. If, like me, you're a runner (ew, but Bella made me feel okay about saying this), or struggle with your mental health in some way, I'd really recommend this book. It is just about a woman who just loves running, she loves it a lot, and she appreciates all the benefits it's brought to her life.And it gives you this sense of independence, which for someone like me, with agoraphobia,I found to be the most mesmerising, intoxicating thing in the whole world.

The tips for beginner runners at the end of the book are sensible and realistic for complete beginners and/or those with little confidence in their abilities.Now six years later I run 20-25 miles every week without fail and I don’t know where I’d be without it. Mackie explores how running improves your self esteem, quells anxiety and generally improves every aspect of life. Bella’s brilliant love letter to running turns into an extraordinarily brave and frank account of her battle with anxiety. Apart from that, have I learned more about anxiety and other mental illnesses and what physical exercise does to help that.

I'd recommend you give it a read, whether it's to delve into your own mental health or if you want to try to better understand the struggles of someone you know. But through her inspiring personal story and realistic approach she's already inspired thousands of men and women to manage their mental health through exercise.At first it’s a painful experience, but eventually she finds beauty and joy in the process and is subsequently able to cope with her surroundings and emotions a little bit better. She is great at promoting that running is really accessible to anyone who is able bodied to take up, the problems with how exercise is advertised and yet how important it is and the need to get help for mental health.

Full details of your rights under the Distance Selling Regulations are available in the UK from your local Citizens' Advice Bureau or your Local Authority's Trading Standards Office.Based on the description, I thought this book was going to be more of a memoir about a woman who used running to overcome a tough time in her life. Payments made using National Book Tokens are processed by National Book Tokens Ltd, and you can read their Terms and Conditions here. At the end of the book, Mackie has supplied a multitude of web links, resources and references for further reading and additional support both for running and for mental health.