A pair of former school friends from Bristol are undertaking a 24-hour walk and talk across the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Their epic walkathon, inspired by their own experiences of mental health struggles, will run from 8am on November 30 to 8am December 1, and they plan to keep any breaks during that time to 10-minutes maximum.
Jacob Dimery and Matt Green, who have been friends since school, are no strangers to physical challenges, with the pair having undertaken numerous endurance runs in the past. Three years ago, they started doing their trials to raise money for Movember and this time is no different.
According to Jacob, they partly started their challenges as an incentive to keep themselves active during lockdown, especially when it felt like their own mental wellbeing was at stake. To reflect Movember’s evolution into a charity that focuses on both men's physical and mental wellbeing, this year they have decided to put themselves to the test with an activity that will demand a huge amount of psychological grit.
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Initially their idea was to try to walk 100,000 steps in a day, which then developed into a plan to walk for 24 hours instead because, as Matt said: “If you're doing something for 16 hours, you might as well do it for 24 hours.”
As a nutritionist and someone who values the positive influence physical wellbeing can have on the mind, Jacob hopes their challenge can encourage others who may be feeling low to get out and take a walk. He said: ”There’s plenty of research that shows being physically active helps support your mental wellbeing, but there's a misconception that it has to be excessive exercise, it can just be a walk and a talk.”
The friends are proponents of using a simple stroll as a way to connect and support others, with Jacob noting: “Men don’t talk in general, but many times, even during just a short walk, I’ve found people will share things they wouldn’t speak about in a normal sit down conversation. Because it's easier, there’s less pressure, and you open up.”
Matt agreed: “It's easier to speak to someone when you're looking ahead and not really concentrating; you're just talking into the stratosphere, and the information just floods out.”
Both Jacob and Matt shared that they have had experiences with mental health struggles that have had a significant impact on them and driven them to try and help others. Jacob sadly lost a friend to mental illness nine years ago and has used his endurance tests to raise money in honour of his memory.
Speaking about the passing of his friend, Jacob said: “His wellbeing was not in a great position, and I look back on it and think, if we were maybe able to impact him in some sort of way or maybe get him out to be more active, that could have maybe even changed the circumstance he was in at the time.”
Movember is a charity that’s also close to Matt's heart as he’s had his own battles with mental wellness in the past but says that setting himself demanding challenges has been a great aid. He said: “I’ve kept doing it because it does help, remembering the adversity I've been through before; it helps you keep pushing on.”
Asked how they are psyching themselves up for the task, Matt said, “We’re just going to take things on an hour-by-hour basis, keep little micro checkpoints in our head ticking over. We’re both quite fit, so I’m not worried about the physicality side of things. I think it’s going to take more of a mental toll, depending on how the weather is.”
The worst part of the challenge, Jacobs suspects, will come in the early hours of the morning. “I enjoy my sleep,” he said, “I’m a big believer in great sleep to perform well. So the early hours of the morning will be tough, especially if it’s windy; sideways rain will be horrific.
“We’ve obviously got each other to chat to, which I think is quite reflective of what we’re trying to do here. It’s about supporting each other through tough times.”
The pair have set a fundraising target of £2,880, and anyone interested in donating can do so via their Movember page. Jacob explained the significance of this figure, saying: “Every minute, a man commits suicide. There are 1,440 minutes in a day, and as we’re doing this challenge together, that’s 2,880 minutes, £2,880.”
For those that want to show their support, the pair are keen to encourage others to come out to walk alongside them. Jacob said: “We appreciate it's a Wednesday, it's not the most convenient day, but if people want to come and help lift our spirits, maybe not at 3am, we’d appreciate it.”
Matt is also looking forward to seeing other people during the challenge and hearing their stories. He said: ”I want people to know you're not alone, and if anyone wants to come and join us, they’re more than welcome, and we can lend an ear or advice if we have anything suitable to give them.”
For the duration of the 24 hours, Matt and Jacob will try to keep moving as much as possible and aren’t planning any regular breaks. If one of them does need to stop for any reason, they aim to keep the interlude to 10 minutes, during which time the other will keep going, so there's always one person on the go.
Remarkably neither one seems phased in the slightest by the strain the walk will put on their body. Matt explained: "We have no issue with having difficult challenges, and we’re quite grateful that both of us are in a pretty decent place in terms of our own mental and physical wellbeing.
"We’ve both very supportive good structures around us. It's just time to give back, we’ve only got one life to live, and I’d rather try and give back to the community in some way, and if it creates awareness, it's the least I can do."
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