Gym owner completes 24 hour challenge for Grantham mental health charity

A Grantham man has almost tripled his fundraiser target after completing a gruelling 24 hour fitness challenge.

Curtis Gardner, owner of Frontline Fitness, finished a 24 hour endurance challenge at 11am on Saturday morning and has so far raised £596, surpassing his initial target of £200.

The challenge, which raised money for Unlock Your You, saw Curtis run two miles short of a full marathon over the 24 hours, completing 12 sets which included, a one mile run, 100 calories on an air bike, 100 calories on a skierg, 100 calories on a rower, followed by another one mile run.

Unlock Your You, a mental health response charity, operates in Grantham and provides support for those who suffer from mental health issues.

Susan Fish, the charity's head coordinator in Grantham, supported Curtis during his challenge, and explained that the money would help to keep support lines open and train more responders.

Curtis set out on the challenge at 11am on Friday morning in his gym, which is based in Lime Square Business Park off Alma Park Road.

Members of Frontline Fitness joined Curtis for different sets throughout the challenge, with his partner, Rachel Podesta also offering support.

Curtis said: “I’m really proud of what I did. It was crazy.”

“I feel fine now. The day after, I felt really sore. I really went for it at the end, because it was my last round."

Curtis had set out to complete 10 rounds of activity, but managed to complete 12 in total, leaving three minutes to spare.

He explained that things were particularly difficult on the eighth and ninth rounds, at around 4am on Saturday.

Curtis continued: “I hit the wall a little bit. It was getting to about four or five am. I was feeling my left knee a bit, but I can walk on it fine now.

"I wasn’t really used to that much running, because I basically ran a marathon. It was 24 miles in total that I did."

Curtis said that he is now feeling fine and wouldn't be against doing a similar challenge somewhere down the line.

Members of the gym and Unlock Your You helped out by bringing food to keep Curtis going, with plenty of carbohydrates, such as pasta and rice, but also a couple of treats, including a pork pie and a bottle cider near the end.

He added: “I’d like to thank everybody that came to support.

“I was never left on my own. I don’t think I could’ve done that on my own, it would have just been really boring.

“I was just really happy to get so much support from the gym. I couldn’t ask for more from my members.

“On my last round, I really went for it. It was the hardest one and I had to get it done before 11am. I had three minutes left."

To donate, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/24-hour-cardio-challenge