You’re receiving this email because you signed up to the What Counts newsletter. We send weekly emails about the science of self-improvement—if you haven’t already, please move this email to your ‘primary’ folder to help ensure you get future editions.

On June 1st I set off from John O’Groats in Scotland, intending to run a marathon a day until I hit Land’s End at the bottom of England. I’m doing it to raise money for my Mum and awareness of MS.

Here are a few pictures and updates from the journey so far.

Day 1:

Long story short: Usually these things never go quite how you expect but honestly today was somehow so much better than I imagined. Beautiful scenes, beautiful company, beautiful time to be alive and alone on the Scottish roads. What a day, man. Loved every second. Wish you all could have been there. Even if my heart rate was all over the shop. Let’s just call it nerves.

Day 2:

Didn’t check the weather forecast this morning but if I did it would have said torrential rain with a chance of your best mate SENDING A MARATHON WITH YOU.

Can’t thank Isaac enough - he caught a 13 hour train to the top to the country just to rawdog his first marathon, on borrowed shoes. Smashed his goal of sub 5. Even if we did pause watches for lunch. Today would have been miserable without him, with him it was one of the most memorable days of my life. Love you bro ❤️

Can now say I’ve done a back to back marathon. Which is a long way from 42, but better than one.

Quote of the day: “I may not be as strong as I think I am…but I know lots of tricks, and I have resolution.” - The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway.

Day 3:

Was on the edge of tears in the car this morning looking at the rain and fog and picturing the whole day spent dodging puddles and lorries. But we had a job to do. And I’ve found that just getting a job done regardless of the circumstance is as rewarding as anything in life.

Decided to hop on a trail to get off the roads for a bit while weather was so crap. Loved the views hated how it made my feet feel.

Got back on road and felt amazing out of nowhere, ripped it for about 10k. Then remembered I have another 40 of these to run so reined it in a bit.

Day 4:

Saw some crazy sights. To most people on the road I think I was one of those crazy sites. Shoutout to Karen who biked past me and then came back and asked me about the sign on my back 🤝

Thanks to everyone for all the donations and well wishes. Keep em coming they really do help! Full details on why I’m doing this in the bio.

Weirdly I think because I’m so wrecked, when I start running and feel mildly good I take that as a huge win and feel like I’m floating. Whereas on day 1, because I knew I should feel fresh I was stressing about not feeling 100%. Funny how that works.

Day 5:

Hardest day yet probably. Floating for the first half marathon but as soon as I sat down for lunch and got back to it my left knee had locked up. Took about 5k to warm back up and that was right when we hit the hills. Anyway it was nice to come face to face with a real challenge today. That’s what it’s about, after all.

Still not sleeping great but I reckon tonight’s the night 🤞

Day 6:

What an elite day. Ran a marathon along the edge of Loch Ness with some new faces. Can’t say I had that on my bucket list but maybe I should have because it was so peak.

Joined by Tildy from California and two of her cousins living in Scotland. Fair play to the boys they showed up to run 10 miles and sent the full half marathon once we got going. Not an ounce of quit in them. And Tildy is mad quick tbf I don’t think her heart rate got over 120 that whole run. Thanks for the company!!

Body report? Still not sleeping well. Second day my left knee has been giving me issues - getting some rumblings of resistance from the body. But it’s gonna have to shout a bit louder if it wants to be heard.

Day 7:

Thanks for all the messages and support. There’s nothing nice about MS but it’s sure nice hearing how many are also making efforts to spread awareness, raise money, and generally stick it to the disease. Keep smashing it.

Today had some up and downs. Literally. Guess that’s why they call it the Highlands. Should have seen that coming. Ended by running 7 miles down a road that turns out is blocked halfway for construction so we start again tomorrow somewhere else.

Knee suffered on the downhills so we jogged them backward. That was a new experience. Hopefully they don’t patch this method.

Every night I finish a marathon, all I ask myself is this: can I go again tomorrow? The answer has been yes every day so far. I reckon that’s the secret - the answer will always be yes, I can do at least one more - all the way until it’s done. The only step you need to take is the one in front of you. The rest will take care of themselves.

Week one done!

Day 8:

Spent a lot of time feeling angry today - at the weather, at Google maps, at my body for not being as strong as my mind - all sorts really.

Realised I was starting to feel sorry for myself so tried to stamp that crap out asap. Yeah, I run for four hours or so and sometimes it sucks, but it’s my choice to be out here. I think about people affected by MS - it might take them hours of discomfort to do simple tasks like showering or getting dressed. I’ve never heard Mum complain or get bitter about things like this - even though, unlike in my case, this suffering is not by choice. Complaining about circumstances doesn’t change them, but meeting them with dignity and equanimity can definitely change you.

Anyway, just a thought 🙏

Quote of the day - “It can only ruin your life if it ruins your character.” - Marcus Aurelius

Day 9:

Looong one today. But beautiful. Saw some deer at the end of the day and that felt like the reward for getting it done.

Thanks to Jacob and Nadia for helping get today done. This would be impossible without them. And special thanks to Jacob for joining me for the last 3k and playing his classical music so loud it actually made me reach speed I didn’t know I still had in me.

Body report - I’ve been waking up each day thinking ‘crap, my body feels wrecked.’ But then the next day I’ve been like ‘you know what, I would take how I felt yesterday right now over this 😅’. I reckon that pattern’s about to change 🤞, but it does remind me of the nature of MS and other progressive diseases. You don’t realise what you have until it’s taken from you. Don’t take your body’s capacity for granted, even if that capacity isn’t what it once was.

Quote of the day: “When you can’t keep going, go faster.” - Emil Zátopek

Day 10:

Day 10 - double digit marathons, let’s goooo.

First of all can I just say - yes, I brought out the anime schoolgirl socks, desperate times call for desperate measures. Calves have been going crazy, we went comfort over self esteem today.

Some days running you feel awful, like every step is an effort. Some days you feel amazing, like you’re floating. It’s very hard to know which day you’re gonna get when you wake up. Today happened to be one of the good days.

Roads were awful but the company couldn’t have been better. My brother Jonathan has always been someone I’ve looked up to and is an incredible athlete, he showed up and we managed to send the first sub-4 of the trip. (With the occasional snack break.) I was honestly suffering yesterday and was dreading today but the company made all the difference - and somehow my body also decided to join in with the good vibes.

Day 11:

Today’s marathon was by far the longest yet, which was fortunate because I also chose today to listen to Funkytown from Shrek 2 on repeat until I finished. (The people voted and this song won.) I was worried I would only get 4 hours with it but thankfully it was much more 🙏

Anyway the reason it took so long was I hit some crazy trails along the West Highland Way around Loch Lomond (the A Road was too sketchy looking). Very technical, muddy and lots of climbing up and down rocks. Ended up with 834m of elevation gain across the marathon which I think is technically high enough to be called a mountain.

Dusted Loch Lomond and still had 11 miles to go back on normal roads, with Funkytown still blasting. My AirPods had long since ran out of charge so everyone around me knew exactly what I was listening to. Wrapped up the running in 6 hours and change, but the day as a whole was more like 9 or 10, what a mad one.

Not gonna lie, listening to Funkytown on loop approximately 142.5 times while running a marathon and climbing a mountain was pretty rough. If you respect the graft, consider sharing or supporting the cause. Much love!

Day 12:

Highlight of the day was being joined by Gregor (@trossachs_trails) who recently completed his own adventure of running across Scotland. He did it in memory of his Mum and is raising money for Strathcarron Hospice. Go check him out!

Credit to @greggtakesphotos for all the trail photos! Thank you for taking them!

Loved getting into Glasgow and seeing civilisation again. Something about being around people gives me energy while running. I think it’s mostly because I don’t want them seeing me running slow. But happy to be in the city nonetheless.

During the day Gregor asked me where I developed my capacity for endurance. I told him that a lot of it came from watching Mum deal with the challenges of MS every day with seemingly endless patience, dignity and grit. I reckon if she can do that every day, I can run a marathon every day.

Day 13:

Great to have some company today from Levi and John! Drove four hours to come run for four hours - legends! Both of them ticked off their first marathon. Not an ounce of quit in them. And thanks to Adam and Beth for driving all the way up and supporting us all day! Also thanks to Ellie, Daniel and Elijah for stopping by and saying hello!

It’s so cool to see how good people are when you give them the chance. Gestures of support like this mean a ton.

Another special moment of the day - couple of strangers approached me while we were paused outside Asda and said they’d read the sign and gone to the site and wanted to donate in person. ❤️

Day 14:

What a day. Woke up to see that Boy George had reposted one of our videos, so you know we had Karma Chameleon blasting all day. Vibes were good from the get go and I could tell my body was down to get with the program and send it today.

Held back a little because I know we’re still only on day 14 and I have a whole lot more of these to go, but didn’t hold back enough not to send it up and down a hill at the end playing tig with Jacob. Just one of those days. Scotland even blessed us with sun.

When we had some family come support us yesterday, they mentioned that it’s hard to tell from the outside just how much work and effort Jacob and Nadia (@jacob_daniels0 and @nadiammair) are putting in behind the scenes to help make this mission possible. So just wanted to say they have been an amazing team, literally working around the clock, and this would not be happening without them.

Day 15:

Cruising for first 10k, thought I was on track for a pb or something major, then back of right leg started seizing up. Felt like something was about to go bang. Switched shoes and got back to it and seemed to settle down. Not as fun a day as yesterday but we’re not doing this to have fun. Although fun is nice to have along the way.

On that note, thanks to everyone who sends messages asking after my health and body - but please don’t worry, I have the best coach (@samharvey_cloudlander) and physio (@alexwallace.physio, @proflex.therapy) in my corner so I’m not just winging this 😂

Day 16:

Today we officially crossed the English border which means I can now say I’ve ran the length of Scotland. Pretty mad eh.

It definitely made me work for it today. Dodged the main roads by taking the country roads but I guess the main roads are main roads for a reason, was up and down hills all day it felt like. Ended the marathon but we were 5k from the border so I said let’s just do it. Unfortunately the last 5k was up a mountain. But only a small one all things considered so I’ll not complain too much.

Random highlight of the day - bumped into the Jed Joggers Ladies Running Club and spent a few k together. Not a lady myself but they kindly let that slide. Lovely group of people and I got a free tour of Jedburgh too! They mentioned that some of their run club members had recently been diagnosed with MS so they were all for the cause.

Day 17:

Every time I finish a marathon I get a bit of a post-marathon brain fog. So writing these posts gets about 30% harder than it should be.

I wanted to mention that I often think those of us who can run, walk or move freely owe it to those who can’t to make the most of that gift. I was reminded of that this morning and carried it in mind throughout the whole day. It’s hard to realise how much of a privilege movement is until you realise how much life is changes when it’s restricted.

Picture - Mum, me, Uncle Sam and Aunty Anna. (And maybe Aunty Beth and a cousin?) Uncle Sam was always a brilliant example to me of making the most of the gift of movement - running some of his fastest times while battling cancer. 🤍

Day 18:

Long story short - these boys showed up without telling me they were coming and turned a pretty miserable looking day on its head. Don’t get me wrong - the running was still pretty miserable today, but at least it was the fun kind with company. Not sure common it is to be able to say that your brothers will show up on a whim and run a marathon with you on a random Thursday but I’m proud as anything that I can.

Hit around 1000m of elevation gain today which is pretty nuts. Crazy day for Simeon to show up and run a marathon without training. I think when we planned the route we figured the Pennines would be cool to drive through and get good pictures of. Kinda forgot I have to actually run through them too. Today I realised I’ve now climbed over the height of Everest so far, which is pretty funny. Especially considering I didn’t even make it to base camp last year…

I think I can speak for all three of us when we say that we wouldn’t be the men we are without our parents’ influence and upbringing. Now we’re just trying to pay it back. As usual support is appreciated and check out the link in bio to learn how to!!

Day 19:

Tired today. Put a brick on the accelerator and set cruise control. Got the job done. Consider donating or sharing if you can’t. See you tomorrow 💪

Day 20:

What a beautiful day. Had a whole gang turn up and surprise me in style. Thank you so much to John, Emma, Tobyn and Harry (and everyone else involved behind the scenes.) One of the coolest things anyone’s ever done for me. The boys ran in jorts to channel @amglaze which was also mad.

Powered through some trails and hills. Pretty brutal day to join for - clocked another near 1000m elevation today through some of the boggiest fields in the North. Not sure there’s many runners out there who wouldn’t have found it some tough going. So a huge one to just send on a random Saturday to support a friend/cousin. But as tough as it was with company, it would have been tougher without.

Surely all this elevation means a nice downhill day soon. But honestly I think I’m getting used to it as this point. Sub 3 as soon as we hit some flat??

Hills aside, I thought a lot today about what a privilege it is to be able to explore and get out to places like this. It’s something that MS can really affect people’s ability to do - whether because of physical limitations, accessibility, or even just how MS affects the body’s ability to deal with heat. Not something to take it for granted. I know it’s not the same but hoping these postcards can help those who aren’t able feel like they were there today too.

Day 21:

I’ve now ran half of Great Britain! Let’s goooooo. The fundraiser has also now hit 50%, so that’s some pretty crazy timing if you ask me.

I remember when we planned this part of the route we thought it would be nice to run through the Yorkshire dales because…I guess, the views? Or something? Honestly after you’ve ran up the first hill you’d happily trade the views for just some flat roads. But then again there were moments today that were some of the most beautiful running I’ve ever experienced. So maybe we knew what we were doing.

Legs felt good until about 20k when the wheels fell off a bit. Gritted through another 17k and then things magically came back online for the last 5k. So weird how that works - feeling good comes in waves, you usually just need to hold on long enough to let the next wave come. That’s true for individual runs but it’s also been true for this challenge as a whole.

Also - Happy Father’s Day. My Dad has been one of my biggest supporters on this run. Thank you for everything, Dad!

Day 22:

Felt pretty rough when I woke up today. I think in my head I had been so anticipating hitting the halfway point that a little part of me thought the hard part was over. Unfortunately, or fortunately, it’s still a challenge and there’s plenty more work to be done.

Took my body a second to get back on the program - felt awful for first few k but warmed up nicely after. Battled through some dodgy roads for another 20k and then was surprised by Joe and Sophie and the last 15k floated by. Company genuinely makes such a difference. Thank you ❤️

Also thank you to Sarah Mae for helping out for the day. Plenty of people have ran with me and realised first hand how tough it is out here, but not many people have seen firsthand how hard it also is to be the ones behind the scenes making sure all this happens and goes to plan. Thanks to Jacob and Nadia for that!

Day 23:

I have now ran all the way from the top of Scotland to my home of Chorley. The word surreal doesn’t even begin to describe it.

All I can say is today was one of the best days of my life and it’s all thanks to the people you see in these pictures (along with Jacob and Nadia behind the camera). Nothing like the home crowd coming out to support ❤️

To all my friends who wanted to show up but couldn’t make it - you were there in spirit. But also feel free to run some miles wherever you are in solidarity if you fancy it.

One of the coolest things about doing this is watching other people get motivated to push themselves too. A lot of people ask where the discipline comes from. Like anything I think it comes from just repeatedly being willing to get back in the ring no matter how bad it beats you up. Ernest Hemingway said it well in my now perhaps favorite book The Old Man and The Sea - ‘A man can be destroyed but never defeated.’ I’ve seen that in Mum, and maybe some people have now seen that in me as a result. Personally I saw a fair bit of that today in other people 🫡

Amazing to see Mum today too! This was day 23 of running the length of Great Britain to raise money for her and awareness of MS. Hopefully I can speak for all the family when I say we’ve been blown away by the outpouring of support and love. All donations and shares have been appreciated.

And there we go - 23 marathons done. 19 more to go in the biggest adventure of my life.

Consider donating at this link if you want to support the cause. Or if you can’t donate, share this with a friend!

Thanks for reading!

Benji and Jacob

If you enjoyed today’s newsletter, feel free to share it with a friend!

If someone shared this with you, go to whatcounts.io to subscribe and receive weekly emails like this.