WE are now less than two calendar months to my marathon race.

I am up to 15 miles for the week's long run and my knees are holding up.

It is still cold, dark, wet and 'orrible running at night through the South Side.

The last few miles are sore and relentless, and my thighs seize up pretty well completely the following morning.

But I'm getting there. One particular effect of the running is that my weight is coming down - I've lost nearly two stones so far.

Not that I will be fading away - these are pounds built up over years that are excess to my proper dimensions. The tummy is reducing, my jaw line is reappearing, and I genuinely feel springier on my feet.

And that ultimately is why I am doing all this.

Yes, the hospice charity element is important, but is not the starting-off point.

I didn't lack fitness - weekly high-level karate helps maintain a strong core and flexible limbs - but that does not shift weight. Indeed having a bit of heft is an advantage in martial arts, as you can pack more behind punches if you are heavier than the other guy.

Look at sumo wrestlers - supremely fit, but not a body shape most aspire to.

Don't get me wrong, I am not a born-again body fascist. We are all different, and apple and pear bodies needn't suffer from comparison with a catwalk physique.

But fat is fat. Easy to take on, but difficult to shift - "a second on the lips and a lifetime on the hips".

And we now know that obesity is one of the worst plagues in the UK, with Glasgow lurking in the wrong bit of the league table.

For years I have tried to reduce food intake.

While I never put myself on a formal diet, there was a period when a calorie diary was kept, but then missed and forgotten. I even once tried hypnotherapy. Nothing worked for me, even my wife's deserved criticism and verbalised disappointment.

It is easy to kid yourself, forgive yourself and reward yourself, and then promise yourself that tomorrow things will change. But no more.

So that's the genesis of this marathon and the training for it. I remember in the 80s when I ran three Glasgow Marathons and lots of half marathons and 10Ks - the regular training was a strong control on my love of food and drink.

OK, I am older now, but the gamble is paying off. Nothing is completed, but the progress is definite and substantial.

It looks more likely that I will finish the race - though in what time remains to be seen - and will be ready to be photographed in a few sharp suits and not disgrace the newspaper.

I can only write about my own experience and don't presume to know all the answers.

But if an overweight, middle-aged, office jockey like me can carve out a better body by running, I hope lots of Glaswegians can look in the mirror with honest eyes and resolve to walk, run, swim, cycle or do whatever they can to improve health.

Remember my charity page for the hospice movement www.justgiving.com/AustinLafferty