As a means to drop a few kilos and become more healthy, there’s no doubt running is one of the most accessible forms of exercise in existence. But let’s be honest running has a reputation for requiring a certain level of intensity from its participants and it can soon turn into a pain fest when you’re trying to run up a hill and each breath intake burns your chest. I’m full of admiration for runners, especially the ladies, they look like warriors as they take on a steep incline. But that’s as far as it goes for me…watching other people run. So without a doubt I’m keen to learn how one gets hooked onto this lifestyle.

As Told By Nyakwesi Keregero-Motsa

“I started running in 2008. I have always done sports; in primary school I was in the athletics team, in high school I played netball and volleyball and in varsity I played volleyball and squash. So one way or the other I was always active and fit without having to think about it. After varsity I started going to gym and enjoyed it very much, then sometime around 2008 I stopped going to gym because of transport challenges and suddenly I gained a lot of weight. In late 2008 I took up running and it seems I haven’t looked back since. Back then running 10kms was such a big deal, our idea of a long run was 15-18kms. Running wasn’t big back then like it is now, there were very few runners but I was lucky to associate with the right clique of runners who took me from strength to strength in my running. My parents never quite understood this new habit I had picked up, but were quite supportive of it, they probably thought it was a phase and I would get over it after some time.

In February 2011 I ran my first marathon (42.2kms) in Piet Retief, under the mentorship of a fellow runner who had run her first Comrades during the previous year. I trained with her during her runs, yet never did I think I’d ever attempt a marathon in a race setup. I think she was smart in terms of how she dealt with me and my mental state at that time. I was once one of those who rubbished the idea of doing anything resembling a marathon, so the Comrades was totally out of the question. Thankfully, she made sure my first marathon wasn’t one of those with a scary terrain. My husband was shocked at this attempt and even accompanied me to this first marathon…he probably thought I was going to die out there. Somehow I got through it.

My next marathon was an ultra-marathon (50kms) in April in Middleburg, at the Loskop marathon. My mentor was going for her 2nd Comrades that year, and yes, I was training with her as she slowly got me hooked on this running thing. In September 2011 when registration for Comrades 2012 came, I secretly registered myself for it because I didn’t want unnecessary pressure from outside forces (very few people knew I had registered until days just before the race when it became public knowledge to those around me). In June 2012 I ran and finished my first comrades, you can read more on this particular experience in my once active blog, Kwesi’s Corner.

To date I’ve run three Comrades, and have finished all three (the last one I finished after cutoff). Running resembles one’s life in general; there are ups and downs during any run, there are moments of introspection, there are moments where you want to give up, there are moments when you want to cry, there are moments when you want to throw insults at everyone around you. Every run is different and holds a special and different memory. Each time I complete a marathon it is a confirmation that I can do anything I put my mind to. I am NOT a fast runner, I’m a fun runner. Back in the day I was a faster runner than I am today, by faster I mean average, now I just run because I know I can…however long it takes me, so long as I get to the finish line.

In 2015 I ran the Comrades with my training partner Lungile Dlamini. This was the 2nd Comrades we ran together. We met through running back in 2014, somehow we found ourselves training together and ended up running together by total chance when she attempted her first Comrades. To date, we remain training partners. Running has given us a means to stabilise our mental wellness. When everything else seems chaotic, running has provided that breather — a way to vent out whatever the heart wants to release. In 2015 we finished our first Comrades up-run, in the toughest conditions life could have possibly thrown at us. We hadn’t properly trained but with determination we went and told ourselves we will reach the end of that 87kms race even if it is after cutoff.

It was a difficult run, generally there is a special level of mental strength ones needs in order to run a marathon, and then beyond that there is another level of mental strength one needs to run the Comrades, beyond that to run the Comrades and finish within the 11-12hrs category, and then beyond that there is a certain level of mental strength/insanity one needs to continue to run that race, even when one sees that they will NOT make it to the finish within the prescribed time. It is that strength that keeps me going in my day to day life. In 2015 I finished the Comrades 7 minutes after the 12hrs cutoff. Yet I celebrated as if I had won the race, because any race is like a personal battle where you compare yourself to yourself and not to the world’s standards of what they think your performance should be like, because if the latter applies you will ALWAYS fall short.

My craziest/funniest running experience would have to be in 2015, the Thursday before Good Friday. My partner and I were both in dire need of a longish training run but couldn’t quite train because of the various responsibilities we have to deal with as adults. So because that Thursday was a half day at work we decided that when we knock off we’d go to a shopping complex in Ezulwini at noon, change into running gears in our cars and then head off for a run, we also decided to carry bus fare money. We left our cars at the complex, ran some 25kms or thereabout to Mahhala, got to Mahhala and boarded a kombi back to Ezulwini.

In between my running years I’ve had two babies and I’ve had to somehow try to bounce back after each baby, that in itself requires a certain level of discipline and mental strength because the pace at which you bounce back differs each time.

In January 2018 I lost my mother, probably the greatest life challenge I’ve ever faced. The grieving process takes you on an emotional journey everyday where you consciously have to make a decision to choose happiness over all the other feelings you find yourself faced with. When going through such an experience you don’t need an excuse to cry, anything can make you cry. You have a perfect excuse to be miserable every second of the day but you have to choose happiness in order to keep your sanity. My training this year has NOT been anywhere near consistent.

Regardless of this, I also realise that running is the one happy pill I can NOT afford to lose or slack on, because it provides me with that breeze – that breath of fresh air, that platform to just appreciate life, to breathe new life each and every morning I choose to wake up and go for that run. It helps me appreciate nature, the people around me, the unnoticeable laughter between friends, the insignificant stories told during a run, the advice, the mentorship in other areas of life, the sisterhood, and the fellowship. For me all these reasons have kept me glued to running way beyond my need to keep fit or lose/maintain weight.

I’m thankful for a husband who supports my running and who if two days in a row pass without seeing me prepare for a run will ask me, “Why are you not running?”. I’m thankful for my helper who takes care of my kids when I’m out there chasing air. I’m thankful for my inner circle who understand me well enough not to judge me when they hear about my crazy running adventures.”