Paul Youd, from Taunton, is a man on a mission. In fact, he's on more than one mission. He's well on his way to completing 100 ultramarathons before his 100th birthday, and in his spare time plans to smash out one million press-ups between the ages of 80 and 90!

The Vegan Runners legend is raising funds for Viva!, the UK's leading vegan campaigning and animal rights charity, based in Bristol. Paul's fundraising efforts began before his 80th birthday, when he had already embarked upon a later-life fitness regime. As he explains: "Someone suggested that I try and raise some money by doing 1,000 press-ups in an hour – so I did! I raised £800 for the YMCA and a local homeless charity."

The press-ups have got a bit out of hand since then, as Paul said in this Vegan Society profile: "I thought, what if I aim to do one million press-ups between the ages of 80 and 90? That would keep me on task and make sure I don’t slip back. Plus, I can show people that vegans can be fit, healthy, and strong".

By all accounts, it’s going well! Paul now completes about 10,000 press-ups a month at a rate of around three sets of 1,000 every week. It takes him 40 minutes to do 1,000 press-ups. Yet, Paul used to dislike press-ups, and for good reason, as he reveals: "It’s funny to think that I used to hate press-ups. When I was in the forces, it would be a punishment. Now it’s a normal part of my everyday life. My goal is to live healthily until I kick the bucket. I don’t want to end up in a care home. That’s a motivation as well."

Now nearing his 88th birthday, this indefatigable Somerset vegan claims his diet, adopted more than 40 years ago, facilitated his recovery from arthritis and enabled him to pursue his love of running, and the further the better. He is often accompanied by friends from Running on Plants as he tackles long-distance events such as the 58K Jurassic Coast Challenge and the 61K Thames Path Challenge.

Paul says he fell in love with running ultramarathons after completing the South West Coast to Coast 50K in July 2021, and he hasn't looked back since. By the end of 2023, he was already well into double figures, so don't bet against him achieving his target of 100 ultras before he's a centurion in years!

Photo of Paul Youd by Laura Briggs