my running story
Louelle Blanchard
Trying to be everything to everybody all the ...

I am trying my absolute best to be the coach I want to be, the mother I need to be, the wife I should be, the friend I strive to be and somewhere in there the runner I need to be to help me be everything else. After losing my way with my own running journey and struggling to battle the demons of mental illness, I decided it was time to set some running goals for me again. The Gold Coast Marathon has taught me that I can overcome the barriers that mental illness has put on me and that I am strong enough to keep moving forward. Here is my story…

Trying to be everything to everybody all the time just doesn’t work….sometimes you just have to do something for yourself….this is my Gold Coast Marathon journey

your running stories

The only way is up! 👆🏃‍♀️🏃🏻‍♂️ Hitting up a few hills for our RUNFIT Long session today. ⛰ Hill running helps build strength, speed and mental resilience. Well done to the run legends who took on a couple of big ones today. 💗 3 weeks to go until @melbmara and one more BIG run to go!! 👊
Want to be part of this great local event that is raising money for the local Ballarat community? On November 18th @theballaratfoundation will be leading the charge to Run for a Cause as the local Ballarat community run together to raise money for food security in Ballarat. @theathletesfootballarat and @evolution.runners are joining together to support this event, raise funds for this great cause and we would love you to be a part of our team. Over the next 8 weeks we will be offering a free 0-5km and 5-10km training plan to our TAF run club and Evolution Runners club members. Those who take up the free training will also receive a goodie bag from us, which includes a $30 The Athlete’s Foot voucher and a free group training session with Evolution Runners. Head to the link in our profile to register for the Run For A Cause event as part of the ‘TAF run club & Evolution Runners Run For A Cause’ Team and join us each Tuesday night at 6pm for your free training at TAF run club. Training starts this Tuesday 25th September.
THANK YOU!! Late last year I decided to give back to those who do so much to help others and as I had built a ‘little’ social media platform that gave me the opportunity to do so. I have been very open about my personal struggles with my mental health so the choice was obvious who I wanted to support and that was @beyondblueofficial. I set what I thought was a very ambitious goal of $1,000 and initially worried that I had set the goal too high. But less than 12 months later and with the support of my wonderful @evolution.runners family, not only have we been able to open up the conversation about mental illness, we have also raised over $10,000!! I am truly humbled by the support of everyone who got involved and especially to all of you who made donations. This money will go to help someone’s mother, sister, brother, father, uncle, aunt, friend, neighbour, work colleague or a complete stranger. It may even save a life which would be incredible. Despite the success and my desire to keep going with our fundraising campaign, I have made the difficult decision to finish our fundraising efforts for now as I need to shift my focus closer to home and care for someone very special in my life who is suffering and also to look after my own mental health, as I can’t care for anyone else if I don’t look after me. I will keep spreading the word about the great work beyondblue do and I will keep talking about my own battle because I want us all to keep talking about it as it doesn’t go away! We may not talk about it all the time, but it is still there!! I want to normalise these conversations, raise awareness, reduce the stigma and show others they are not alone. Let’s keep asking people if they are ok...I mean REALLY ok! And let’s be there to really listen and support them when they’re not and let them know that is ok. Finally, I would like to invite you all to support the ones you love and those you don’t even know by making a donation. Head to the link in our profile 👉 and make a donation to our fundraising campaign which will stay open until the end of September. Let’s take the pledge to keep the conversation going...I HAVE!! Coach Louie 💙
It takes a special kind of crazy to run in this mornings wintery conditions for our RUNFIT Long session on the Skipton Rail Trail😜🏃‍♀️💨🌧👍 and it’s nice to have some crazy friends to share it with. Another long run ticked off ✅ and 29 days to @melbmara 👊
Spring is here and with warmer conditions at @theathletesfootballarat run club tonight it was all just a bit to much for club mascot Coby. Having a well deserved rest after 7km, including Black Hill...well done Coby! 🐶🏃‍♀️❤️
Medal Monday and a huge congratulations to the Evolution Runners Legends who took part in @solemotive Sandy Point half marathon yesterday. Gutsy effort by everyone and some PB’s smashed! I’m so proud of you all! Coach Louie 💗