This story may be a little embarrassing, but I’ll share it anyway. Having walked the path I have, I know there are others still on it, and if that means you, perhaps you’ll see that most things are possible with a dash of determination.
We’ll rewind to a glamorous night in mid 2018, when a group of colleagues sat down to a steaming blue Nasi Kerabu and succulent soft shelled crab ‘buka puasa’ at Serai restaurant somewhere in PJ. Amid the ‘thank you’s to the waiter passing plates of dessert, our ‘determined heroine’, listened in on the conversation of a group of young men discussing their weekend plans, while her smiling husband patted his stomach beside her.
The words came punctuated by tinkling crockery from surrounding tables, “lari… 21km…”, “pacer…. hydration..”.
The last time she had run anywhere was when she was in primary school. She still remembered the dull ache in her upper abdomen that came barely five minutes into the run, forcing her to plop down on the grass beside the track, wiggling her toes as her friends pushed on by.
Fork dissecting the crumbled slice of chocolate pleasure before her, a growing desire welled up inside her. This conversation started it:
Determined Heroine : “ I need to start running. Guys, how long is a marathon?”
Co-worker A: It’s 42km.
Determined Heroine: Oh….That’s too challenging!Do they have a quarter marathon or something?
Co-worker B: Doc, maybe you can start with a 5km run. (Breaks into peals of laughter).
I imagine the thought of this dress wrapped heroine - whom he had only seen barking from behind a desk - running anywhere must have been rather amusing.
Determined Heroine:Alright, give me 6 months.. and I’ll go for my first run.
Co-workers A, B, C and D nearly choke on mouthfuls of cake.
I know six months seems long, but our determined heroine (DH) is also a realistic heroine (RH). What with travel and work commitments (and all the other excuses the world has to offer, including that of being realistic), six month seemed a safe bet.
Our heroine’s plan was simple: Run half a kilometre each time the first week and check her progress. If it was all good, then each week would mean adding another half a kilometre to her run. She found running alone to be sterile, mechanical work, and so her stomach-patting husband was recruited kicking and screaming as a running partner. In fact he turned out to be supportive and never failed to be there for her ‘mini’ training sessions.
The first half kilometre runs were the hardest - two clowns moving in circles, one with her hair in a bun- trying to catch their breaths, feeling like their souls were being sucked out of them. But finally, (maybe a little more than) six months later, she crossed the finish line with a smile.
So, it started with a trigger, followed by a good support system and a little bit of work, and in the end, a milestone was achieved. A baby step. And you know what, the next step is in a few weeks’ time.
#MWM2019 #MalaysiaWomensMarathon#RunSistersRun #MalaysiaWomenMarathon #health #determination #support #milestone #running #sport #fitness #training #motivation
コメント