JENNY Empson has lost 20kg since she started running with her baby daughter’s pram two years ago.
What began as a technique to soothe her daughter to sleep became a regular habit, taking the Geelong woman from non-athlete to half-marathon runner.
Ms Empson’s two-year-old has recently been diagnosed with autism, giving her even greater reason to complete February’s 10km Target Foreshore Fun Run, supporting Give Where You Live.
“Running was the best way to get my daughter to sleep. If you do things out of routine she’ll get really distressed and upset,” Ms Empson said.
“I also realised we could run in some events and raise some money.”
Ms Empson said she chose the fun run out of Geelong Multisport Festival’s variety of events because Give Where You Live supported Gateways Support Services, which had provided support for her two autistic children.
Early intervention and strong support were key to ensuring quality of life for children with autism, Ms Empson said.
“We’re lucky we caught my daughter really early and she’s already started speech therapy. But when children get missed, speech and behaviour can be really delayed and they have more trouble with integration into kinder and schools.”
Ms Empson’s 14-year-old son has benefitted from Gateways Support Services throughout his childhood and still attends social and recreation programs.
“Bullying in school is huge for him. He does really well academically but people pick on anyone who’s different,” Ms Empson said.
“The programs help him go out in the community with a group of peers and learn some social skills.”
Geelong Multisport Festival offers a variety of events for all ages and fitness levels, including a Geelong Independent SuperKidz Triathlon for children.
Entries are open online at geelongmultisport.com.au, by phoning 8698 2000 or emailing multisport@usmevents.com.au.
