After getting back from our holiday this summer in France we have admittedly - gasp, horror!!! - put on a few pounds. Well, drinking wine and lounging on the beach for two weeks does eventually come at a price.

It was not all relaxation though - us busy Mums on the Run can never quite sit still. We were also teaching some cooking lessons at the family holiday sit - Siblu. Check it out (www.siblu.com) and also our own website (www.howtocookinhighheels.co.uk).

So as soon as we got back home we signed ourselves up for a Cancer Research UK10K run. We thought we would pip Lee to the post - although it was not quite as challenging as preparing for the full London Marathon! Hopefully he will pick up a few hints and tips as he starts to prepare for the big race next year!

We have both supported Cancer Research for a few years. Getting involved in charity runs is a fantastic way to work towards a fitness goal and also help a worthy cause.

The race that we did took place on the 18th October in Victoria Park, but there are 43 events throughout September and October across England, Scotland and Wales. Visit (www.run10k.org).

The great thing is that anyone can do it with a little training. We were complete novices until a few years back when we both met at a Cancer Research UK Race For Life which is just 5k.

Here are some hints and tips to get you started on training.

To start training, invest in some good quality, well fitted running shoes. This is an absolutely necessity in order to avoid injuries and blisters. Adidas kindly kitted us out head to toe and gave us some super comfy trainers (www.adidas.co.uk)

If you’ve never run before, try this little routine over a few weeks to build up your fitness level.

Weeks 1-2 Walk for four minutes, jog for one minute. Repeat six times.

Weeks 3-4 Walk for three minutes, jog for two minutes. Repeat six times.

Weeks 5-6 Walk for one minute, jog for four minutes. Repeat six times.

Weeks 7-8 Jog for eight minutes, walk for two minutes. Repeat three times.

Weeks 9-10 Jog for 13 minutes, walk for walk for two minutes. Repeat twice.

Weeks 11-12 Aim to jog for 30 minutes and only walk when you feel you need to.

Increase your jogging time to 45 minutes and start interval training. This is the same as weeks one to six, but instead of walking you have to jog, and where it says jog you have to run faster than your normal speed.

We did this and I managed to complete 10k in exactly 1 hour and Sasha in 1 hour 10, which we were very proud of - big pats on the back for us!

So why not grab your friends, family, work colleagues and form a team for the next event? If you’ve never done a charity run before, you’ll love the atmosphere and encouragement from the crowd. It really spurs you on and makes it so much easier.

Here are a few tips our friend and top athlete Du’aine Ladajo gave us to help with our race.

 Wear the right shoes.
 Eat carbohydrates before you run.
 Make sure you are well hydrated.
 Run at a comfortable pace, especially at the beginning of the race.

Good luck to you and good luck to Lee!