This is a guest blog from Fran Owen, who’s raising support in support of their London Triathlon.
In July, Sophie and I will be competing in our first Olympic distance triathlon. We got our first taste for the sport last summer, when we did a Sprint tri in Hemel Hempstead. We had no gear and no idea – I swam in a pink bikini amongst a sea of wetsuit clad athletes, while Sophie overtook MAMILs on my Dad’s old mountain bike!
Despite being underprepared, we loved the experience and instantly decided to sign up for a bigger challenge. We’re now feeling slightly nervous about the prospect of swimming 1.5km, cycling 40km, and running 10km at the UK’s biggest Tri event.
Sophie and I met while completing a Masters in Environmental Technology, so we’re both passionate about sustainability. After attending a talk by Hermione about Do Nation (now a good friend of ours), we were inspired to use our challenge as an opportunity to create a campaign for friends, family and colleagues to get involved in.
I’ve been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and commitment from our pledgees. I’ve witnessed my housemate checking the sugar content of his cereal, a colleague turn down a free coffee because it was in a disposable cup and, a friend in Malaysia bring her own tupperware on market day to avoid using plastic bags.
Living more sustainably doesn’t mean radically changing the way you live or spending more. Our supporters have proven this and shown that taking small actions collectively add up to a better world. And every time I feel reluctant to do one more loop of Regents Park, I’m motivated by our supporters to keep on going.
To drum up even more awareness, I led a ‘Do Nation’ themed session at Project Awesome, a free, fun badass workout class in London. As a warm up, we ran around London Bridge picking up litter. Again, I saw how small actions can make a huge difference if we all do them. The whole area was litter-free in minutes.
I can’t wait to do the triathlon, and given how much I talk about it, I’m sure my friends can’t wait either. But most of all, I hope our campaign inspires people to turn their pledges into lifelong habits. And if I win the year’s supply of ice-cream, I promise to share (some of it) with them!
Do Nation blog 