‘I want to encourage others to fight for their ambitions’

The amazing Carol Hall achieved her 1000-mile goal in May, and has lost seven stone and completed marathons in the process

‘I can’t walk, and for at least 17 years believed I was incapable of using a manual wheelchair. Then in August last year I had a heart scare and needed to improve my diet and lose weight. So I bought a second-hand manual wheelchair and by the end of September I’d done 50 miles.

I started to push myself to go further on ever-increasingly challenging terrain. Pre-disability I loved to walk the fells. The Lake District and Yorkshire Dales were always my playground and it felt amazing to be back, under my own power, exploring again. But in February attempting a marathon I strained my shoulder. The physio told me it was highly unlikely I would recover to complete any of the challenges I had planned, and that I needed more realistic expectations of my body given my age (50) and disability. I did the rehab, introduced stretches and warmups, and went back to gradually building up strength and endurance.

In April I attempted a marathon going from Carlisle towards Keswick. I thought I would stop at 26 miles, but in the end I carried on to Keswick – 32 miles in 11½ hours! Now my motivation is no longer just to get a bit fitter. Now I want to encourage others to enjoy the outdoors and fight for their ambitions. #walk1000miles has made me fitter and stronger, so day-to-day things are more achievable such as wheelchair transfers or being able to pop to the shop independently, which has a significantly positive effect on my mental health.’