Hi there. I'm running the London marathon. 

It's going to be great. I know this. I've watched it on the telly loads of times. The cheering crowds. The runners dressed as cows. The sweaty granddads. The glorious finish on the Mall. Easy. Its going to be easy. What on earth can go wrong? 

Oh God, what have I signed up for? I can't do this. Who am I kidding? I'm going to be overtaken by a cow, a man dressed as a bleeding cow. Or worse yet, an octogenarian! It is literally miles. This is going to hard, VERY HARD. 

Oh heck, I'll just give it a go and see what happens. 

Why don't you sponsor me? I'm running for Toynbee Hall, a fantastic charity with a long history of improving the lives of deprived communities in the east end of London. Poverty is an issue that is all too easy to ignore in this great city. 44% of people in Tower Hamlets, one of the areas I run in, live in poverty. Toynbee Hall works to provide those in the borough and the surrounding areas, many of whom come from immigrant backgrounds, with free legal, financial and welfare advice. They also run a wellbeing centre for pensioners, work with local women to improve their english, run mentoring programmes for young people, give advice on tackling debt and.... well I could go on. 

I would be very grateful for your help, no matter how big or small, in reaching my target. Just to keep it interesting I'll be tweeting pictures of things I come across while training here: https://twitter.com/petehurt. If you want to find out more about Toynbee Hall you can do so here: http://www.toynbeehall.org.uk/.

Thanks!

Peter