My marathon fundraiser - with no tech!

Our Age-friendly coordinator Pippa will be running the Brighton Marathon in April to raise money for Age UK Barnet - and she will also be doing it the old-fashioned way, without using any gadgets! Follow her training journey here - and please do sponsor Pippa if you can. All money raised will help us run vital services and activities for older people in the borough.

‘In April, I will be running the marathon naked. By ‘naked’ I don’t mean naked of clothes, but naked of technology. You might think that this is not as scary, but coming from a generation that believes that ‘if it’s not online, it didn’t happen’ – it might be easier to ditch my shorts.

According to our Age-friendly Barnet survey, 62 per cent of Barnet residents over the age of 55 feel confident with using digital technology such as tablets and laptops. It also showed that being confident with using technology correlates with feeling safe and taking part in social groups.

The results made me think how I use technology. When I normally run, I use Google Maps on my phone, measure my speed with a digital watch, and upload details of every run to social media for people to ‘like’. Technology certainly made it easier to track my training, but I started to become concerned about my reliance on it. So, I decided to ditch technology and train for a marathon without it.

My training has refreshed my skills in map reading and long multiplication, have become less obsessive about statistics and more concerned about how I feel. It may sound silly, but I am surprised by how great my experience without technology has been. For me, it shows how much we can learn from other generations when we meaningfully engage and work together.

To sponsor Pippa please donate via her JustGiving page: