The women are raising money and awareness for the Weekend to End Women's Cancer - a 60-kilometre walk next month. 

Addy photographer Jim Aldersey checked on their progress at D Club 247 Fitness this morning.

The 14 group members are walking on the treadmills in shifts over 24 hours finishing at 9am Saturday. 

They will all do the last hour together and then go out for breakfast. 

THURSDAY: TO MOST people getting up at 3am for a three hour walk seems like a form of torture.

Shannon McMahon will do just that on Saturday morning as part of a 24-hour treadmill challenge with 13 other women. 

The Bendigo Bosom Buddies are training for the Weekend to End Women's Cancer which is a 60-kilometre walk to raise money for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. 

Over 24 hours each Bosom Buddy team member will complete a couple of shifts on the treadmills at Bendigo gym D Club 247 Fitness.

Shannon McMahon, who is a mother of four children, will walk at 10am Friday, 3am to 6am on Saturday morning and again from 8am to 9am on Saturday. 

For the graveyard shift Ms McMahon said she would go to bed early in her walking clothes.

She noted the bizarre time of day would guarantee her a coveted parking spot in Bath Lane. 

Team mate Kerry Turner will walk from 11am to 1pm on Friday, do a quick trip to Melbourne and then come back for a few hours on the treadmill at midnight. 

Ms Turner said she was raising money in support of friends who had fought cancer and "come through the other end". 

The treadmill challenge is the Bosom Buddies' way of drawing attention to their fundraising effort for breast cancer and to the struggles of women who suffer the illness.

None of the team members have personally suffered cancer, but they all have connections to women who have.

Each Bosom Buddy has raised more than $2000 each but they hope to raise more in the weeks leading up to the walk on February 28 and March 1. 

Their gym, D Club, has been a major sponsor, giving each of the women free membership, exercise clothing and personal training sessions to prepare for the 60-kilometre walk. 

Gym co-owner Brikitta Kool-Daniels said her company's sponsorship of the Bosom Buddies was a "perfect fit". 

She said the free gym membership helped prepare the team for the long walk. To support the Bosom Buddies, there are donation tins at D Club or give at ml15.endcancer.org.au