Alice Burch is one day away from finishing her record- breaking challenge of 60 marathons in 60 days.

The single mum has had to fight against the constant ache in her body, the mental torture of powering through the pain and pushing on when her legs are ready to stop even finished one marathon on crutches after an injury in the first week.

By the end of the challenge tomorrow, the 34-year-old will have run 572 miles more than ex-Saints star Franny Benali, who ran 1,000 miles to raise money for Cancer Research UK.

But Alice says it will all be worth it if she can make a difference.

Tomorrow Alice’s marathon effort will come to an end as she runs her last marathon to raise money for working animal charity Spana and it’s been a year of gruelling physical challenges for the business woman.

Alice, who lives in Woodlands with her three-year-old daughter, Lois, said: “I want to look back at 2015 and think, that year was epic and I really did my best. I started this purely because I said I would and I’m that stubborn that I had to carry on going, I just had this determination to see it through to the end.

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“People don’t realise just what their bodies are capable of, I can’t believe what mine has done these past months and it’s been a real journey. You’re taking yourself on this challenge, you have support but ultimately it’s down to your thoughts and your body to get through it.

“It feels like I have been doing this for years and it hasn’t really sunk in that it’s almost over but I really hope that it inspires people to get out there and be active. I’ve always been a bit sporty and a tomboy so I’m used to running but I still think anyone that can complete any kind of physical feat for themselves is amazing and I would love to encourage that.

“What I’ve been through, agony in my ankles, calves, hips, I’ve cried and honestly come to the brink of not being able to lift myself to do it again – this is nothing compared to what working animals have to do and at times when I’ve been struggling during my runs I’ve thought of that and it’s spurred me on.”

Alice, who runs her own marine recruitment firm Seamariner, has been running every day since October 1 and tomorrow from 9.30am she will be running her 60th marathon.

The challenge has seen her race 150 laps around the Southampton Outdoor Sports Centre, complete the Bournemouth marathon and themed marathon days like Halloween, her birthday and bonfire-night.

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Three weeks into the challenge Alice decided to move away from the track and start exploring the New Forest, dropping her daughter off at school before racing through the woods at an average time of five hours and a close-knit team of runners have stayed by her side to cheer her on or keep up the pace.

This challenge could also see Alice beat the current official Guinness World Records, which stand at 17 marathons in consecutive days by a female runner and 52 marathons by a male runner.

By the end of the challenge she will have clocked up a total of 1,572 miles and she was first inspired to fundraise by the death of a close friend in January last year, he was a supporter of the charity and when Alice said she wanted to complete a selection of physical challenges his mum asked if she would do it in his memory for the charity.

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Other challenges Alice has completed this year for Spana include the Barcelona Ironman and the North Pole marathon.

Alice added: “It has honestly been the hardest and most emotionally draining thing I’ve ever done, and hopefully will ever do.

“Thank you to everyone who has supported me throughout this journey.

“I’m very much looking forward to finishing on Sunday.”