Danny Mills makes no secret of his reasons for his marathon exertions - first and foremost, it's about vanity.
The 45-year-old is an experienced ex-footballer, playing in a Champions League semi-final for Leeds and a World Cup quarter-final for England, and his sons are also carrying the family name forward. George is an accomplished middle-distance athlete, the British champion over 1500 metres, while younger sibling Stanley made his senior debut for Everton under Frank Lampard.
Their father is not slowing down, though, even if his days as a right-back are behind him. He will be running the TCS London Marathon this year, raising funds for Cancer Research, Bowel Cancer and the Bobby Moore Fund, and his commitment to the cause helps him lead by example.
"I always keep myself fit and people ask why - is it because of mental health, or this, that or the other. No, it's because of vanity," Mills exclusively tells Mirror Sport.
"I have no issue saying that whatsoever. A huge part of my fitness regime is about keeping the way that I look.
"Obviously that's eating healthily as well and those types of things. And then it gives me a freedom, it does clear my head, it's a way to switch off and relax, and I do find that a bit bizarre."
There's a sense of practicing what he preaches, too. He admits with a smile to not being quite as fast as George, while Stanley is an attacking midfielder rather than a defender, but there are ways in which he can show them the value of hard work.
"I just say to them 'look, you've just got to work hard, commit to what you do, believe in what you do, enjoy what you do, and just give it everything you've got," he says. "Because you won't have half a chance to getting anywhere close to what you need to achieve unless you go all in and make sacrifices.
"It doesn't matter what walk of life you're in - whether that's in sport, in business, whatever it is - you have to go all in and you have to commit 100 per cent to what you're doing and be focused, because if you're not then I guarantee somebody else will be."
Who will you be cheering on in this year's marathon? Have your say in the comments section
For a while, Mills had his fellow ex-pros playing catch-up when it came to marathon times. That was until Arjen Robben - a man whose entire career has been about terrorising full-backs - got the better of another one.
Mills' three previous London Marathon times have been between three hours and 14 minutes and three hours and 17 minutes, and the former Leeds and Manchester City man is pleased with the consistency. Robben, though, had already gone quicker even before the 2023 Rotterdam Marathon, when he broke the three-hour barrier.
It looks unlikely that Mills will reclaim his crown as the fastest ex-footballer - even he admits "those days are gone" when asked about overtaking Robben, and that was when the time to beat stood at around 3:10. That's not to say his competitive streak has gone, though - far from it.
" Every year I say 'I'm just going to run this one for fun', and then I turn up and someone says 'shall we go for this time?' and I go YES!" he says. "My hand goes up immediately - there's no arm twisting, I get sucked in every single time.
"It's bizarrely addictive. I think it's the buzz of seeing people together, the crowd, the runners, people raising money, different outfits, different vests, different charities, all these types of things.
"I think it's brilliant to be part of such an amazing event with so many people all wanting everybody to do well. There aren't many sporting events where, maybe apart from the front 10 runners, everybody wants you to finish in a good time.
"No one cares about the person in front of you, no one cares what anyone else's time is, it's all about you. And if you see someone struggling, you're encouraging somebody else."
Mills makes no secret of the enjoyment he takes from seeing charity runners out in their numbers on the London course. His own involvement in the race came after a phone call from Bobby Moore's widow Stephanie, someone to whom he says it was impossible to say no.
He had already done other work for the Bobby Moore Fund, from charity football matches to dinners and auctions. In 2016, though, he added 26.2 miles to that total - running with the number '1966' to mark the 50th anniversary of the England captain lifting the World Cup.
"I'd done one [marathon] previously and thought I'd never do another, but then I thought 'Bobby Moore... Stephanie Moore has asked me to do this - I can't really say no can I?' So I did that in 2016 and this will be my fourth for Cancer Research and the Bobby Moore fund.
"London's amazing - it's a fantastic event, it really is. I did London last year, did New York last year - equally as good but different - and [they're] just fantastic experiences. And I get a chance to raise awareness and raise some money for two very good charities."
He is also hoping to follow this year's TCS London Marathon by participating in Rob Burrow's marathon in Yorkshire later in the year. The event will raise money for Motor Neurone Disease charities - rugby league star Burrow was diagnosed with the condition in 2019 - and comes after Burrow's former team-mate Kevin Sinfield has raised significant money through his own running.
" Being local as well, part of me feels I should do it on that basis alone," says Mills, who spent five years on Leeds United's books during his playing days. "Rob's an absolute inspiration, obviously Kevin Sinfield as well - what they've done is absolutely sensational."
A number of runners in London this year will be taking part in the event for the first time. Some will even be running their first ever competitive marathon, having put in the long hours to get themselves ready.
More than 40,000 competitors crossed the finish line at The Mall in 2022, with recent events seeing more than 95% of the starters making it all the way around the 26.2-mile course. The event is returning to its traditional April date this time around, after being moved to October for the last two years, but Mills doesn't expect that to change the mood around the capital as thousands put their training efforts to use on the day itself.
"If you wake up and go 'I want to go for a run', it's easy," he says. "It's when you wake up and go 'I'm a bit tired, I'm a bit sore, I've got a bit of a cold, I don't feel it, but I'm still going to get up and grind out that run and it's raining and it's windy'. That mental strength, that fortitude, that's what I admire most.
"That's why I say race day is the easy part, really. People forget that it's not only 26.2 miles. That sounds a bit crass, but it's the build-up to that - it's the hundreds of miles to get to that point, to make sure you can get round. The pinnacle is the one day or the one morning, but it's that focus, that discipline, that dedication to get to that point that's the hardest bit.
"When people ask me about training for marathons, I say the hardest thing is getting to the start line. Once you've got to the start line, you've done it."
