Want to look 10 years younger or go down a dress size? Try fundraising for Age Concern Isle of Man. It works for Mark Hempsall and Catherine Ashton. Personal trainer Mark volunteered to part with the ponytail he’d worn for seven years and in just a few days has raised more than ?500 while his client Catherine, who’s in training for the Dublin marathon in October, has not only dropped a dress size but also now regularly uses the words ‘exercise’ and ‘pleasure’ in the same sentence. Mark is also personal trainer to Catherine’s daughter Leila Ashton, whom he’s been working with for three years and who will be running with her mother in the Dublin marathon. He said: ‘After seven years with a ponytail I’d been toying with the idea of a new look. I mentioned this to Leila and that’s how I decided on a sponsored haircut to raise money for Age Concern. I’ve raised money for charity in the past so after seeing how determined Cath and Leila had become in helping to raise funds for Age Concern I wanted to support them as well and response from clients has been fantastic.’ Unsurprisingly Mark was very attached to his ponytail but since going under the scissors expertly wielded during a ‘nerve-racking’ 45 minutes by his regular stylist Denise Peters of The Vanilla Room in Onchan he’s received mostly positive comments. ‘Positive, that is, apart from my children, who call me “hedgehog” now,’ said the newly sleek Mark, adding, ‘but my wife tells me I look 10 years younger.’ Catherine, from Albany Street in Douglas said: ‘Mark’s a great trainer. He’s really motivating and thanks to him in just a few months I’ve gone from zero “proper” exercise to actually looking forward to going on runs - even with hills on the route - and I’m working towards a 22-mile run just before the marathon. ‘People have been so supportive of what Leila and I are doing. I’ve had total strangers coming up to me in shops and pressing ?5 and ?10 notes into my hand in aid of Age Concern. Sponsorship and pledges are coming in all the time; we’ve placed sponsorship forms on the counter at The Vanilla Room, there are forms in The Saddle and The Albert pubs in Douglas and my son Lee and husband John are helping with sponsorship too. John’s even said that after the Dublin marathon he’s planning to get a couple of bikes so we can go cycling together. ‘Since I’ve been training I’ve come to understand what “an endorphin rush” is all about. I’m feeling so much fitter, I’ve dropped a dress size and can’t wait to get to Dublin.’ Being the soignee woman she is Catherine may well find the prospect of being wrapped in a foil rather than a four-ply cashmere blanket at the end of the marathon almost too much to bear. Forget the shiny space blankets (they’re derived from NASA technology) all she really wants, she said, is ‘a stretcher and a straw’, (for the vodka). The Dublin marathon is on Monday October 25. To sponsor Leila and Catherine, contact them at: meandmymumdublinmarathon@hotmail.co.uk. Follow their progress on: twitter.com/meandmum2010