A determined Liverpool Hope University academic has completed a charity fitness challenge, raising £300 in the process.
Mark Wood is Senior Professional Tutor in Graphic Design at Hope, and he’ll be familiar to lots of students at Hope’s Creative Campus.
At the start of January Mark set himself the goal of not just running 26.2 miles - the length of a marathon - over the course of the month, but to also complete no less than 2,022 press ups.
With 31 days in January, that equates to more than 65 press ups every single day.
Mark, a keen martial artist but who hasn’t run since contracting COVID last October, is delighted to announce that he smashed his goals with a few days to spare.
And he’d be extremely thankful if anyone from the Hope community might like to donate to the twin causes he put his body through the ringer for - Prostate Cancer UK and the Alzheimer's Society.
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Mark says: “It was tough, but I’m really proud to have been able to achieve the goals I set at the start of the year.
“For 2022, I wanted to get back to running - something that has never been my first love - and to also gain some conditioning for martial arts.
“Social media channels suggested taking on challenges for charity - so I chose two.
“I ran 26.2 miles throughout January for Prostate Cancer UK. Prostate cancer now affects 1 in 8 men in the UK and the money raised will help fund lifesaving research and support for men and their families affected by prostate cancer.”
And Mark also adds: “I've reached an age where many of my friends are now caring for their parents. And so I completed the ‘January Press Up Challenge’ for the Alzheimer's Society.”
Mark leads Hope’s BA in Graphic Design and has enjoyed years working in industry, including as a former mentor trainer with tech giants Apple.
And, just like his commitment to the charity challenge this month, Mark has previously spoken about the need for Graphic Design students to also have ‘resilience’.
In a previous interview for the Hope news pages, he said: “No one benefits from being wrapped up in cotton wool. We help students to understand what really comes next in their careers and we prepare them for the pace of work as a graphic designer.
“And resilience is key, something we work with students to develop. If things go wrong, and it may not be your fault, how do you cope? Most of all, it’s about encouraging students to think about graphics in the broadest sense of what a portfolio career really is.”
Mark will continue running a marathon distance along with doing 2022 press-ups every month this year. He’s open to suggestions for further fundraising causes.
Contact him with your thoughts - but Mark retains the right to veto any overtly bizarre challenges!