For the month of February, I took part in the Starlight Super Swim Challenge to raise money for Starlight, a charity that provides fantastic emotional and mental support for children and young adults in hospital. They use play, creativity, and social connection to help children who are missing out on school, playing with friends, and family time.
Before this, I was averaging about 14k per month – I decided to go big and double that amount to 30k, and ended up doing 2k extra!
My stats:
- $767 raised through generous donations from my superstar family and friends
- 32k swam in total: that’s 32,000 meters/35,000 yards, or 640 laps of an Olympic 50m pool
- Average session swim: 2.5-3k
- Longest single-session swim: 4k
- Iced lattes purchased post-swim: 15+
It was a great way to push my swimming abilities, challenge myself, and raise money and awareness for a great cause. I’m so glad I did it.
However, it did have an unintended side effect: while my weight stayed exactly the same throughout this swimming bootcamp, it’s obviously changed my body in ways that aren’t measured on the scale. Recently, I went to put on a fitted crewneck sweatshirt I hadn’t worn in a few months – it fit everywhere except my upper arms, where it was uncomfortably tight. Bring on the Hulk jokes.
Katherine Allum 
I certainly admire your dedication to the task and the young ones. Congratulations! Love the comment about your shifting muscle mass. Hulk and Schwarzenegger does come to mind for a giggle.
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