A fitness fanatic from Great Barr has hit a new fundraising personal best after taking on a 24-hour workout and raising over £1,200 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity.

Twenty-four-year-old gym lover, Mary Delaney, took on a 66-day challenge to create new, positive habits that last a lifetime including staying hydrated and stretching well before and after workouts. As Mary’s new life-changing habits began to stick, she decided to use the last six days of her challenge to change someone else’s life.

Mary chose to push her fitness with a 24-hour workout-a-thon in support of Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, a charity she’d raised funds for before, as thanks for the treatment of a family friend.

After gaining the support of JD Gyms, where Mary is a member, she set up a fundraising page to collect donations and sponsorship and as the clock struck 3pm on the big day, she knuckled down to begin her 24-hour gym stint.

As Mary completed various workouts and tried for new personal bests, she was overwhelmed not only by the support of other gym-goers but by a message of encouragement from fitness influencer, Whitney Simmons, who spotted Mary’s challenge updates on social media.

That wasn’t the only surprise for Mary though. After over 12-hours of exercise, Mary was stunned to see four members of the Gymshark team, the brand behind the 66-day challenge, enter the gym. They had been following Mary’s progress on social media and decided to pay her a visit to show their support. The brand, who is also a big supporter of the Children’s Hospital, donated a huge £1,000 to boost Mary’s total.

Mary said: “I couldn’t believe my ears when the guys from Gymshark told me they’d been following my journey and I was absolutely gobsmacked by their generous donation. It was all the motivation I needed to keep going and complete my challenge and even though I was exhausted, the excitement and adrenaline kept me going.

“Birmingham Children’s Hospital is such a worthy cause and I’m over the moon with the amount I raised to keep supporting its brave children.”

Miranda Williams, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “This isn’t the first fundraising challenge Mary’s taken on for our hospital but it’s certainly one of the toughest! We can’t thank Mary enough for her sheer determination and will power to make it through the 24-hours. The incredible amount she’s raised will go towards helping us do more for our sick kids.”