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Women take part in lockdown squat challenge to raise money for Highland mental health charity Mikeysline


By Alasdair Fraser

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Clare Gordon.
Clare Gordon.

Mental health charity Mikeysline needs every bit of generosity it can muster during these difficult times – and two friends have risen, and dipped, to the challenge.

Clare Gordon and friend Fiona Murray proved they had just ‘squat’ it takes to meet 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 dynamic duo had successfully racked up an eye-watering 6000 squats, raising more than £430 in the process.

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 while her pal is a teacher in Easter Ross.

“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.”

Clare Gordon's friend Fiona Murray.
Clare Gordon's friend Fiona Murray.

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 Ross-shire Journal news here.


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