Welcome to my blog :)

Hi!

Thanks for coming to see me and read my blog. I'm a novice at this web-logging so please bear with me as I get to grips with writing things which are slightly (I'm hoping) more involved than my average status update.

My name is Sam and the secondary reason for starting this blog is to encourage me to get up out of an incredibly comfortable reclining armchair, turn off the computer and get out into the world to clear my head. And do a little running as well, albeit slow and plodding.

I'm 31 years old, 6' 2" and don't usually do much cardio-vascular exercise, preferring instead to lift weights and then 'treat' myself to some form of meat-filled pie (because it's packed with protein obviously!) followed by an evening of video games or amusing television.

I say secondary because the primary reason is a little less light-hearted.

Late last year, around September I had a phone call which started "don't worry but..." and ended "mum's had a stroke".

I'm sure you can imagine I achieved nothing but a glorious state of anxiety.

She was fine as it turned out. She'd had a little 'fall down' as she put it. She was absolutely fuming at my dad who had assumed the worst though and was trying to get her to communicate through an increasingly complex series of clicks and whistles.

No more television for that man.

Well after the first the next was less of a worry. Except this time I was in sunnier climes and couldn't get in touch for several days.

The time after that I was visiting mum when she had another 'funny turn' and was hospitalised for a week.

Each time the doctors carried out an enormous battery of tests to try to determine what exactly was causing the mini-strokes or transient ischemic attacks (TIA) but came up empty-handed every time.

Only with the greatest of luck did mum display the true symptoms of her condition for a test quite recently. She has now been diagnosed as suffering from atrial fibrillation which explains her previously unexplainable mini-strokes as sufferers of this condition have an increased risk of stroke.

So now she is on a different course of blood thinners and other marvellous miracles of modern medicine. Her speech is vastly improved and she is back to her feisty not-so-old self much to my dad's chagrin.

And so it was that I made myself a little promise to do some good and raise a little money and awareness.

In a moment of madness which some may claim as lucidity I entered a half marathon. Not due to be run until October I feel this will give me ample opportunity to 'get-myself-fit' as well as raise bucket loads of cash for The Stroke Association.

It's called the Royal Parks Half-Marathon and will be held across the green spaces of London town this autumn. I'll be wearing a very fetching singlet provided by my charity so I'll post a photo of me training in it in the near future.

Till next time, jog on.

Oh in case you were wondering about the title it basically means you should focus on the task at hand and not give in to distraction.