Women take part in squat challenge to raise money for Inverness charity Mikeysline
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Mental health charity Mikeysline needs every bit of generosity it can muster during these difficult times.
And Inverness mum Clare Gordon and friend Fiona Murray proved they had just ‘squat’ it takes to rise to the challenge.
The pair teamed up remotely throughout April to complete a gruelling leg and glute strengthening test, completing 100 squats a day for 30 consecutive days.
By the end of April, the pair had successfully racked up an eye-watering 6000 squats, raising more than £430.
Mrs Gordon (47), from Drakies, works full-time for a scaffolding firm while volunteering for Mikeysline and the Hive drop-in centre in Academy Street, Inverness.
“It was just something I started for fun,” she said. “I saw a challenge on Facebook where you worked up to 100 a day gradually, but thought I might as well start as I mean to go on and it just got easier as it went along – although for the first few days I was walking about like a new-born giraffe!
“I stuck it up online and then my crazy friend Fiona, a primary teacher at Craighill Primary in Tain, said she would join me. It kept us both going. We always texted each other at night to make sure we’d done them all.”
Mikeysline has been facing increased demands amid the Covid-19 crisis, with an upturn in callers experiencing suicidal thoughts.
The increased contact comes just as the charity faces a downturn in income because of cancelled fundraising events.
Mrs Gordon added: “We’ve had a couple of meetings at Mikeysline to discuss fundraising and that gave me all the motivation I needed to give it a go. The support we receive from the public is fantastic, but we’ve had to look at different ways of keeping at least some money coming in.
“It is a difficult time. There are a lot of people out there who suffer from anxiety and loneliness but it has escalated. People who never felt anxious before but are really feeling it amid all this uncertainty.”
Mrs Gordon is recommending others give the squats challenge a try.
She added: “I saw a real improvement in my body shape, so I’ve decided to keep it up!”
To donate, visit www.mikeysline.co.uk/donations
Read more Inverness Courier news here.
