Nurse Amy leads ‘burpee’ challenge across Humber Bridge
TRAINING HARD: Nurse Amy Carberry. Picture by 1432 Photography
An A&E nurse from Hull is leading a fundraising challenge set to get anyone’s heart thumping.
Amy Carberry, a staff nurse in emergency care, will be among a 16-strong team of CrossFit fanatics crossing the Humber Bridge this weekend simply by doing burpees.
The team, all members of CrossFit Hull & Humber (Anlaby and Sutton Fields), will be helping Amy to raise money for the mental health charity, MIND.
On Saturday morning they will warm up by walking from the Humber Bridge car park in Hessle to Barton, and then make the return journey - some 1.4 miles - in “burpees”.
Burpees are a high intensity cardio exercise which involve a squat thrust with an additional stand and jump in between repetitions.
Amy said: “We’re living in really difficult times right now and a lot of people seem to be struggling or finding that their mental health is suffering.
Emergency care nurse Amy Carberry
“As a nurse, I often come into contact with people who are experiencing mental health problems of varying degrees, and it can be heart-breaking to see at times.
“While it is a subject which I think is becoming easier to talk about, I do think some people still feel there’s a stigma attached and so don’t always reach out for the help they need.
“I myself have struggled with my mental health in the past and MIND were a great support, not only to me at the time, but also to my friends and family in enabling them to understand my issues and help me through.”
Amy is now the mental health and wellbeing champion for the Emergency Department at Hull Royal Infirmary, where she works.
She also takes part in CrossFit three to four times a week, and competes locally in the sport.
UP FOR THE CHALLENGE: Members of the Hull & Humber CrossFit team
“Exercise and keeping fit really helped to give me a focus during some of my most difficult times, so it’s probably fitting that CrossFit should be a way for me to raise money for MIND to say thank you, and enable them to help other people with mental health difficulties,” Amy said.
“MIND estimate that one in four people will experience a mental health problem of some kind in England every year, so the team and I would love people to support our efforts this Saturday as you really never know when you might need their help.”
The team estimate each person will need to complete around 2,000 burpees to make the one-way journey over the bridge, racking up some 32,000 burpees for the team in total.
Come rain or shine, they will begin their walk over to Barton at 11am on Saturday, armed with a ready supply of elbow and knee pads to keep them protected.
To support the team with a donation, visit Amy’s Just Giving page.
Click on this link for more information on MIND.