This article is from page 81 of the 2008-07-29 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 81 JPG
CLARECASTLE woman bBreige Scanlan is getting into shape as she prepares for the New York City Mar- athon.
61-year-old Breige will run 26 miles through the streets of New York in November.
She is taking on the gruelling chal- lenge to raise money for Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin.
In the meantime, Breige has em- barked on a strict training regime.
Breige explained, “I wanted to do something and I thought running a marathon would be a lovely way to start my sixties. I’m really starting to think seriously about it now. I go for arun in Raheen Woods three times a week and every day I do a jog from
Clarecastle to the roundabout down by the Clare Inn”.
Unsurprisingly, Breige believes in the importance of a healthy lifestyle. She worked in health care for over 35 years, first as a registered gener- al nurse and then as a public health TOS aSoR
She puts her own high fitness levels down to Chi Running, a technique that stimulates immense mental focus to combat the wear and tear caused by running.
Breige’s life changed dramatically when, in 1979, she moved to Bang- ladesh to work with the aid agency Sonteoue
It was there, in the slums and vil- lages, working with the sick and the poor that Breige first became aware of the healing potential of the body.
“IT was there for two years and it was where I first came in contact with natural healing. Here there was all these people who were very sick and who didn’t have access to differ- ent medicines but were still surviv- ing’. She adds, “I really believe that people need to be more committed to staying healthy. People should have a greater reasonability for looking after themselves. We can’t be relying on the HSE and all these big institu- tions or taking injections for every- thing. Its down to the individual.”
In 1985 Breige moved to New York where she lived for 20 years. She is familiar with the sights and sounds of the Big Apple and her training regime was based around one of the city’s most famous landmarks.
“Ttis a totally different place. I used
to do my training in Central Park. A circle of that 1s six miles and I con- vinced myself that if I could do three of them, I could definitely do a mara- ste) s a
Breige returned to live in Ireland in 2005. She now practices reflexology at her home in Clarecastle. Refelxol- ogy is a gentle preventative health care measure that relies on the body’s own healing ability.
Before hitting New York Breige must raise €5,000. In order reach that goal, Breige is offering reflexol- ogy sessions in return for donations. For further information contact Breige at 065 6847255.