Weekly Meeting - Britain's Most Over Active Pensioner (Phillip Howells)

Britains Most Over Active Pensioner (Phillip Howells)

A journey of determination

‘I just got fit to lose weight, when asked why I replied because I could’.
 
This was Phillip’s first statement after being introduced by John Barnes. This is his journey from ‘fat to fit’. His first target was to run a 100 marathons. It is important to set yourself targets, but equally important is to make them achievable. He has now run 255 and his target is 333. He helps run a business ‘Ed and Phil health and wellbeing. Through which he helps to motivate and inspire.

A bit of history, in his teens and twenties he was in the Army and was a keen cyclist and runner. In his thirties he continued cycling and running and did his first two marathons.
In his fifties he was a business consultant and unfortunately his wife died. He was four stone over weight and broke. He is now seventy one still broke but fit and healthy and has run 255 marathons, this does not include the many runs he has done that do not qualify as marathons.

So how did he get there?

Phillip has run so many marathons so I have chosen a few of what I found interesting. His first two marathons were in 1982 his times were 3hrs 51mins and 3hrs 26mins, it was going to be a long time before he bettered those times. His next marathon was in 2001 (Budapest) a time of 5hrs 28mins it was slow and painful. In 2003 he broke the 4hr barrier  (La Rochelle) went on to enter the Comrades marathon in South Africa this in an Ultramarathon (89k). One of many ultramarathons Philip went on to take part in.

He ran 13 marathons in 2004 and by 2010 had run 100. His hundredth was again the Comrades in South Africa. In this period the most unusual was the Arctic (Polar) Circle  Marathon in Greenland.

In 2012 he was diagnosed with Proximal Atrial Fibrillation and in 2014 with offset  vertebrae and had two ‘plates’ inserted in his back. He still continued to run marathons and in 2015 he won the title UK’s most Over Active Pensioner.  At this time he had run 167 marathons.

The competition was run by Railcard other contestants included a Himalayan mountain trekker, a transatlantic sailor, a Cornish triathlete and a scuba-diving supergran.
He continues to run marathons and will reach 250 this year.

Richard Allison