Bury St Edmunds 5k Your Way at Nowton Park supports those living with and beyond cancer
A group of runners and walkers in Bury St Edmunds are encouraging more participants to come along and try their monthly 5k.
On the last Saturday of each month, 5k Your Way takes place at Nowton Park - supporting those ‘living with and beyond cancer’.
Jill Mayhew, 75, is a regular at 5k Your Way, which runs alongside the weekly parkrun, and said it helps her physical and mental wellbeing.
Mrs Mayhew, who lives in Fornham All Saints, was first told she had breast cancer when she was in her early fifties, after going for a routine mammogram. She was then diagnosed again in her sixties.
The former nurse said: “5k Your Way is really about what you are able to do, you can run, walk, jog, or talk.”
When Mrs Mayhew finished her cancer treatment she felt like she was coming out ‘of a bubble’ and believes that those feeling similarly would benefit from the monthly meet up.
She said: “It is a chance for people to get out back in the fresh air and meeting others - getting out of ‘the bubble’, because when you are in it, it is a horrible place to be.
“It can be very hard to get up and get out there, but once you’ve finished the 5k it is an amazing feeling and sets you up for the weekend - and if we help one person it is worth it.”
Anna Clayton and Hayley Jarvill from Bury Physio take part in the 5K alongside Macmillan physiotherapist Angela Jiggins.
All three women are on hand to offer support, and signpost the participants to other types of activity they might be interested in.
Anna Clayton, who is one of the directors of Bury Physio, said 5k Your Way is a ‘great way of gradually getting back into exercise’.
Benefits of activity include, helping reduce cancer related fatigue and aiding recovering after operations.
Miss Clayton added: “It is not only a way for people to maintain or improve fitness, but is also a key form of support.
“It really is a bit of a network, a way of trying to encourage people back into a routine, or even to start a new one.”
The next 5k Your Way will take place at Nowton Park at 9am on Saturday, March 25.
Following the 5k the group often celebrate with cup of tea, slice of cake and a chat.
