Daniel Garner was a sporty child, but his life was turned upside down when his mum sadly died from cancer when he was just eight years old.

His parents had already been in the process of a divorce, and Daniels' father left not long afterwards. Although he was able to grow up in a loving family, with his sister and her partner bringing him up, Daniel's loss changed him.

He felt he was missing part of his identity and that he was different to other children. It was something he took into adulthood, and as he reached his early-40s Daniel had become slightly lost.

Having fallen into something of a rut, he was overweight, drinking too much and spent his time finding any excuse to sit around doing nothing.

That all changed when he found running. Happier and healthier, Daniel has become a parkrun regular, joined a running club and last weekend he took on his second ultra marathon in as many weeks.

Running Tales spoke to Daniel about how the sport has changed his life, why it can be hard to take those first vital steps towards trying something new, and how he hopes his mum is proud of what he has done...

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