MARLOW'S Mayor is putting herself through the pain barrier and pounding the streets despite saying she is the un-fittest person she knows.

Jocelyn Towns has recruited a personal trainer and begun a training regime to get fit for the 5km Santa's Fun Run on December 2.

Resisting the temptation to drop into a breakfast bar on the route, from where the smell of bacon wafts enticingly, is among the obstacles she has so far had to overcome.

Councillor Towns, who is writing a blog on her experiences said: "I am the un-fittest person I know, the idea of running for any reason -not even a bus - fills me with horror. "I don’t belong to a gym, I joined once and then left, I never really knew what to do when I was there.

"So for me to decide to train to run 5K, which you may think is not much, to me is daunting."

She described the first week as "very painful".

She said: "The hardest part though was running past the breakfast van in Fieldhouse Lane, the smell of bacon is just plain not fair to the running community, of whom there are quite a few pounding the streets in the early morning."

Cllr Towns, who has a full time day job as well as her Mayoral duties, apologised to anyone who fails to get a response when saying hello during the run.

She said: "It's because I am struggling to breathe and just can’t talk."

The Mayor decided to do the run to raise cash for her appeal this year, rather than the usual charity dinner.

Sponsoring her will aid Marlow Sea Cadets, The Lighthouse Charity and Marlow Youth Club.

The increasingly popular fun run is in its eighth year and run by the town's rotary clubs.

Read Cllr Town's blog HERE  Or for more information about the run and to enter visit HERE