Balbriggan natives Sarah and Natalie McCormack have set themselves the challenge of competing in TRYKA - a hybrid race that includes both strength and endurance based exercises as a personal challenge and to raise funds for Arthritis Ireland, a cause that is close to Sarah’s heart who has lived with Rheumatoid Arthritis since the age of 14.

Speaking about the event Sarah said, ‘This is a challenge that means a lot to us personally. At 14 I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis- an autoimmune disease that affects the joints in painful flares. It had felt like growing pains at first, spiralling into a full body flare that resulted in me missing almost 8 months of school, damaging joints in my hands and feet from the aggressive flare, and having to depend on family for simple daily tasks, like brushing my hair, or walking more than a few feet.

Natalie from a young age has always been a strong advocate for physical exercise, health, and in believing people are more capable than they realize. When she first got her personal trainer degree, her first client (target) was Sarah and Natalie helped her to reclaim the physical abilities Sarah had thought would be for ‘regular’ people

‘We’re doing it for everyone in Ireland affected by the disease, Sarah continued, ‘Arthritis is a disease that affects the body and mind, and that can be really lonely for a lot of people. Constant chronic pain, fatigue, restlessness, discomfort, uncertainty, depression, feeling misunderstood, feeling ‘less than’, and sometimes feeling treated that way, can impact people in all sorts of ways, and Arthritis Ireland does tons of brilliant stuff to help. But, we are also aware that they aren’t the only people that suffer. The families of those diagnosed can feel a lot of those things too. Unwell people (speaking from some personal experience here) can be hard on the people around them.’

‘Our parents took the brunt of the worries away from me and quietly hid their sleepless nights over doctor appointments and fears for my future, while they also made sure that I was as comfortable as I could have been, even when I couldn’t say thank you for that. I was fortunate to have sisters that never treated me differently (even when I wished they would sometimes), and I think anyone like that deserves to be recognized when it comes to coping with arthritis as well,’ she added

Donations close on 6th November and to do so readers can visit: https://www.idonate.ie/fundraiser/natalieandsarahmccormack.