ONLINE running community Start Running Stay Running is highlighting the benefits of moving for better mental health during Mental Health Awareness Week starting on Monday.

It is launching virtual run challenges to get everyone moving for medals to better their mental and physical health - while raising money for charity.

Since the start of the pandemic, mental health has been affected.

Linda Meek co-founder of Start Running Stay Running has struggled with her own mental health having suffered with anxiety and depression when she was 19 and navigating a rollercoaster of mental illness for most of her adult life.

She said: “For me, running was life-changing physically and mentally.

"After suffering from anxiety and depression, I found great solace in running when my mum passed away.

"I would do a lot of thinking and soul searching on those runs, going through a rollercoaster of emotions.

"Just to be away from everyone, just me and the road, helped me to deal with my loss.

“I’ve had an on-off relationship with running, mainly because of my haphazard approach to it and often getting injured.

"Since doing strength work and realising that not every run is a race, I’m now able to continue to run without injury.

"This is a big part of what our coaches teach in our membership.

"The running community is a supportive and motivating place to be and is very much what Start Running Stay Running is all about – it’s celebrating that everyone is a runner.

“We have chosen to use this campaign to not only raise awareness but to also improve people’s physical and mental health, give them something to strive for and also raise money for a wonderful charity that is very close to my heart following the loss of my mum – Cancer Research.

"For individuals signing up to Seasoned Runner, £3 of every season sign up will be donated to Cancer Research. For businesses and clubs signing up, they can choose a charity of their choice to make a donation towards."

Linda, co-founder Simon Evans and their coaching team are on a mission to motivate people to move to better their physical and mental health.

With the motivation to ‘move for medals’ they have developed a concept to help make regular movement part of the daily/weekly routine with ‘Seasoned Runner Virtual Run Challenges’ - the term ‘Seasoned’ is used because the challenge is set across each season of the year to give you 90 days to develop the habit of increasing your movement.

If you are a business or club looking to take on a running/walking challenge and raise money for your chosen charity, e-mail Linda at info@startrunningstayrunning.co.uk for more information.