Cheltenham runner wants to encourage people to talk with marathons

A man has set himself the goal of running a marathon every day in September.

Jacob Burnham, a personal trainer in Bristol, will be raising money for charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM).

Mr Burnham, from Cheltenham, has faced his own mental health battles, and is also running in memory of men he knew who took their own lives.

He wants to show how one conversation can help change a person's life.

Mr Burnham will run 26.2 miles (42.1km) a day while talking to people in Bristol, Cheltenham, Gloucester and other areas of the south west of England.

He is inviting anyone to walk or jog a mile with him and discuss their mental health, which he will share as videos online with information on how people can seek support.

"I can't really give a reason why I landed on marathons, but it feels like a pilgrimage and sort of a purpose," he said.

Although Mr Burnham has always had "an affinity with sport", having completed a degree in sports coaching in 2012, he then worked in hospitality for a decade.

When lockdown hit and he was furloughed, he took it as "an opportunity to get [his] life together".

As well as encouraging donations for CALM, Mr Burnham aims to raise awareness of different mental health conditions and challenges.

"Charities report that suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 45; a devastating statistic that highlights how much more needs to be done to support men's mental health," he said.

"I think the biggest stigma around it is most men don't actually feel like they can speak up.

"There's this whole idea that we need to be tough and strong," he said.

Mr Burnham added: "Awareness truly is the key. We need to shift the focus from just solely donating and focus on providing support to one another".

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