Lisa gears up for Muddy challenge
LISA Ndogaj is used to overcoming obstacles.
The Glasgow strategy and development manager has come through treatment for breast cancer, which turned her world upside down two years ago.
So a few tricky climbs, jumps and crawls through some sticky, wet mud is unlikely to stop her in her tracks, is it?
“I’m really looking forward to it,” she laughs, explaining her decision to take part in Cancer Research UK’s Pretty Muddy event in September.
“I was all geared up to take part in Pretty Muddy back in 2015 but, after my diagnosis and starting my treatment, my doctor advised against it as I was in the middle of chemotherapy.
“I feel so lucky that two years on, I’m getting together with my friends and fellow ScottishPower employees to take on the obstacle course – completing the race will feel like such a huge achievement.”
Lisa, from Clarkston, was one of six ScottishPower employees put through their paces at Whitelee Windfarm recently by California personal trainer and TV star Jessie Pavelka, best known for his role on American telly hit The Biggest Loser.
Since losing out two years ago, when she discovered she had breast cancer, Lisa has been determined to take part in the event, which is a 5k course, with around eight to 10 obstacles (and lots of mud) along the way.
She admits her diagnosis came as a shock.
“Nothing prepares you for that moment when you are told ‘it’s cancer’,” she says.
“I was devastated but I found strength in the support from my family and friends.”
She adds: “I also had a 20month-old baby boy, Lewis, who I knew needed his mummy to be fit and well.”
Lisa is keen to support Cancer Research UK because she has benefited from its work.
“Research is so important,” she says.
“I know the work of Cancer Research UK has helped shape my ongoing treatment.
“It’s great to work for a company like ScottishPower that’s supportive of such a worthwhile cause.”
Under Jessie’s guidance, Lisa, who has worked for ScottishPower for 17 years, has spent the last two months taking his advice on fitness tips and how to maintain a healthy diet to prepare her for the mud-filled event.
JESSIE swaps his natural habitat – the sun-soaked beaches of California – for the windswept wilds of Whitelee for the exhiliarating training session and he was impressed by Lisa’s determination.
He says: “It’s been really inspiring to work with Lisa and hear her story.
“She has worked so hard in the last couple of months to up her fitness levels, make healthy diet choices and increase her confidence.”
He adds: “It’s great to see her looking and feeling her best and so excited to take on the Pretty Muddy challenge.”
Jessie put the women through their paces as he challenged them
print, jump, squat and plank r way to help beat cancer ner. e adds: “It’s a real achievet ScottishPower has already ed an incredible £15 million Cancer Research UK and was zing to meet the ScottishPowmployees who are set to take his year’s race to raise even more money for life-saving research.”
Around 350 employees from ScottishPower will take on Cancer Research UK’s Pretty Muddy event being held in Bellahouston Park in Glasgow, on September 16.
The company has already raised more than £15 million as part of its wider partnership with the charity, which has invested around £34m in Scotland on some of the UK’s leading scientific and clinical research.
The charity has been at the heart of progress that has already seen survival rates from cancer in the UK double in the last 40 years.
Today, two in four people survive their cancer for at least 10 years and Cancer Research UK’s ambition is to accelerate progress so that by 2034, that will rise to three in four.
Mark Bowen, UK marketing director of ScottishPower said: “We’re thrilled to be once again supporting another great Cancer Research UK event as part of our longstanding relationship with the charity.
“Our employees, like Lisa and her power squad, are committed to going the extra mile when it comes to their fundraising efforts and I am confident the 350 employees taking part will not only have a great time, but will raise even more money to help bring forward the day when all cancers are cured.”
Susan Johnstone, Cancer Research UK’s national event manager in Scotland, said: “It’s brilliant to have such a huge surge of support from ScottishPower employees and we are looking forward to welcoming them all at Pretty Muddy in Glasgow on September 16.
“There is an incredible power and strength that comes from women joining together – having fun and getting covered in mud – to confront cancer.”
There’s still time to sign up for Pretty Muddy, which is a woman-only, non-competitive course, with events in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Ayr this September.