In December this year, I will take part in The World’s Toughest Row, a gruelling 3,000-mile row across the unforgiving Atlantic Ocean.

I am one of four women taking part in this amazing challenge as part of a team we’ve called The Mothership. We’re a team of working mums looking to test the boundaries of what we’re capable of, both physically and mentally, and show that anything is possible with the right mindset. Our mission is to inspire other women and children to row their own proverbial oceans, and not allow anyone or anything to stand in the way of their dreams.

The Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge is a test that will push us to the very extremes of what humans can accomplish. More people have been to space and climbed Everest than rowed an Ocean. The 3,000-mile journey will take us from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua and Barbuda. We'll be rowing for two hours, followed by two hours resting, day and night, for 40+ consecutive days at sea. We'll battle sleep deprivation, salt sores and sea sickness, facing storms, 40ft waves, possible capsize and marlin strikes. We’ll be entirely self-sufficient on the row, taking everything we need on our 26ft ocean rowing boat, Mrs Nelson.

Yet the challenge is a mental one as much as it will push us physically. We'll learn and develop so much as individuals during this challenge, understanding our limits, how we react in adversity, adapting to changing environments, teamwork, empathy and leadership. The list is endless, and they are all skills that we'll bring back to our everyday lives.  

Getting to the start line

Getting to the start line is as much a part of the experience as the row itself. As working mothers, we're juggling families, work, our sponsorship campaign, mandatory courses and physical training as well as home-schooling for a significant period of our preparation. Life is busy, but if there’s one thing I’ve learnt, it’s that having a shared goal, and being accountable to each other to achieve that goal, provides huge motivation to do everything possible to succeed.

Success is something we’ve been working hard to define as a team, and for us it’s not about how long the crossing takes or the position we finish in, it’s about being proud of the way we tackle the challenge and finishing as friends. Yes, we want to be competitive, and there’s the practical matter of getting across as quickly as we can to report for duty at home and at work, but our measure of success will be much more about the ‘how’ than the ‘what’.

Ocean rowing, like many sports, is dominated by men. Fewer than 100 British women have rowed an ocean as part of an all-female crew, yet women are ideally suited to endurance events like this, having proven time and time again that we are capable of enduring mental and physical extremes. Only a few weeks ago, the courageous Jasmine Harrison rowed into the record books, becoming the youngest female, at just 21, to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean. As mothers in our 40s and 50s we face different challenges to most crews, and leaving our children was probably the toughest decision for most of us. But being a mum shouldn’t mean an end to such adventures. Helen Glover, double Olympic champion is setting out to demonstrate that as she trains to become the first mother to make a British Olympic rowing team. 

Start giving reasons why you can

When my sister, Pip, first suggested doing this event I said I couldn’t leave the children for that long. Pip challenged me, asking me to 'stop giving reasons why you can't, and start giving me reasons why you can' and I quickly came to realise that the only person standing in my way was me.

Perhaps this is the same for many women and girls as they contemplate their life choices.  The barriers we put up ourselves, albeit influenced by society, can be equally as challenging as the barriers we encounter elsewhere. I know that being away from my children for a few weeks will be hard for them at times, but I also know how proud they’ll be of me. Ultimately, I hope it will have a positive and enduring influence on their lives.

International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of women in all walks of life, and I’m always inspired and encouraged by the ever-growing number and diversity of female role models. I hope that by rowing an ocean as The Mothership, we can do our bit to continue to champion change and progress for women.