Riley Smith- 'Heart racer'

Won't be racing like this, but I think you get the gist…

So the other day I was sitting pondering the best way to fight this 'fresher five', after numerous gym workouts it didn't seem to be going anywhere- frustratingly! I decided I needed to have something to work towards, not just a general goal to get back to how I was when Uni started.

Why not a half marathon? This way I can train anywhere and don't need gym machines. You could also ask, why the hell do you want to do a half marathon…but why not? And what better way to motivate me than to raise money for a notable charity? So here I am, and help me out if you can!

Each day 16 New Zealanders die as a result of coronary heart disease. That's one person every 90 minutes. And many of these deaths are premature and preventable.

Cardiovascular disease (heart, stroke & blood vessel disease) is the single leading cause of death in New Zealand. It causes 40 percent of all deaths annually in our country - making it more deadly than all forms of cancer.

It doesn't just affect those with the old or faulty hearts either.ie. most grandads and grandmas. New research shows that young adults in their 20s and 30s are being admitted to hospital for heart attacks more than ever before, and that this age group is dying at a faster rate than people of the same age in previous generations. For most of you my age…that's just around the corner!! Much of this change is due to unhealthy lifestyles - poor eating habits, lack of physical activity and being a smoker…and maybe a teensy bit to do with large amount of alcohol that is consumed by the average Uni student?

But many risk factors for heart disease are preventable, if healthy lifestyle choices are made.

So, pretty pretty please could you sponsor me?

By donating through my webpage you will be helping the Heart Foundation continue its vital work in research, cardiac rehabilitation, education programmes and resources.

Select the "Make a donation" button below. It's simple, fast and totally secure and the money goes directly to the Heart Foundation's bank account.

So please help me today! And pass it on!

Thanks so much for your support guys! It's really appreciated ;)
I know that many of you reading this are Uni students so I don't expect you to fork out much or anything, just ask me how I'm going from time to time to help keep me motivated!!!