Author: Modern Athlete

If I wasn’t living in Cape Town, I would be living in New York, that’s for sure! And if you had said to me a year ago that I would be racing the New York City Triathlon, just one year after I had started training seriously to do triathlons with just my arms, I probably would have thought no, maybe give it another year, say 2017, then I could consider New York. But within the span of 12 months I had raced nine triathlons, and then it all came together for me to stretch my limits and take on my first international race, in a city that definitely doesn’t sleep, and where dreams are made for sure! – BY CATHERINE VAN STADEN

The week leading up to the race, I got to do some amazing training rides, one around Central Park in my wheelchair and another along the Hudson River on my hand cycle. No swimming yet in the Hudson River… I was saving that treat for race day! The weekend of the race was filled with the expo, registration, parathlete briefing meetings, and social breakfasts with the other 30-odd parathletes with various forms of disabilities, all coming together to see how far we could dream!

My dad and my friend Joanne were my handlers (or ‘slaves’) for race day, but also the day before, because getting all my equipment down to transition is no small task, and all hands that can work are pulled in! Both of them earned their weight in gold coming to support me, and they did it without ever complaining once! It was a very real moment finding my name on the board, amongst all the other athletes, and Joanne thought so too!

THIS IS THE DAY…
Waking up on race morning was strange, because for the first time in all the races I have done I did not feel nervous or anxious, or wonder will I finish this one. There was a definite sense that this is the dream, this is the goal and this is the day, so let’s go get it! The swim was 1.5km down the Hudson River, which meant we first had to walk about 2km up to the start. They had predicted a very hot day, and it was already getting hot, so they shortened the run route by 2km due to heat even before the start of the race.

Just after 7am, the PT1 hand cyclist/wheelchair athletes jumped into the river and off we went. I came out with a time of 29 minutes, and mud all over my face! Then it was run the 500 metres to transition and onto my hand-cycle. So they had said the 40km ride was rolling hills, and let’s just say they didn’t lie. This was a long ride, and there was not one flat piece of road. On one hill, my watch said I was going down it at a speed of 85km/hour. I wasn’t concerned about the speed – that was fun – but what I was concerned about is that what goes down must come up, and I would have to come back up this hill!

One one stretch of road I got to, it was quiet, no-one else, all alone with my hills and my thoughts. Then in the distance I saw a policeman get out of his car and walk towards the centre of the road. As I got close to him, he stood to attention and saluted me as I rode past him. I was totally taken aback, it gave me tears, but an added motivation to just keep going for some more hills!

FEELING DEFLATED
I came into transition after three hours of being on the road and it was straight into my racing wheelchair to tackle the run, but as I was about to take off, something felt strange when I pushed my chair. It wasn’t smooth as it usually is, and suddenly I realised my front wheel was as flat as a pancake. In my head I thought I can’t believe this, to have come all the way to New York and I won’t finish because of a flat tyre. At this point most of the athletes were finished, already making their way back to get their equipment in transition, and here I was stuck. My dad ran off to go find a pump, while Joanne stood waiting with me, and I thought, but what if it’s a puncture, a hole, and therefore having a pump won’t make a difference? I turned, looked at Joanne and said, “I am going, flat wheel and all. Just tell my dad,” and off I went.

The first section of the run is three blocks of four lanes, going up 72nd Street towards Central Park. I got into the centre of the road and started pushing my way up the blocks. This was the moment that was so unexpected for me, because as I did this, I had athletes, spectators and anyone around suddenly start cheering for me and clapping, and that’s when I realised this was the moment, this was the time in life when we can decide to keep going, no matter what, or stop. I pushed the 4km on a flat wheel, I have no idea how, but I just did it.

Due to the heat and because I was just too late, I was cut short on the run and marshalled straight to the finish line, so I didn’t get to finish the entire run course, but I did go through that finish line with a total time of four hours 11 minutes, collect my medal, and with a determined mind, tell myself this is only the beginning!

THROUGH THE DOOR
New York was real, although at the moment it feels like I just woke up from a dream. It’s the reality versus the dream, and the reality of the dream that is a journey on its own. And so, after 12 months, 10 races, bigger arms, bigger heart, and a determined mind, I have to say that I haven’t arrived yet. Instead, what I have done is open a door that will lead me to many other doors. A door that wasn’t locked, a door that was waiting to be opened, and in the midst of all that was trying to keep it shut, I pushed it open and rolled right through!

Ed’s Note: We first wrote about 36-year-old capetonian Catherine van Staden in our February 2016 edition. She suffers from Hereditary Spastic Paralysis, a degenerative condition also suffered by her late mother and her aunt, and in December last year she achieved her goal of becoming the first South African female para-triathlete to complete a long distance triathlon event using just her arms.

We always hear that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Simply put, breakfast is “breaking the fast,” because after sleeping and being without food during the night, our brain and muscles need energy to function. Skipping breakfast is therefore like starting on a long road trip with your fuel gauge almost on empty – you're bound to run out of gas halfway through your busy morning. In fact, there are a number of healthy benefits from eating breakfast.

Increased Metabolism: Eating a healthy breakfast helps kick-start your metabolism. If we do not eat for long periods of time, our bodies store energy as fat rather than burning it. People who skip breakfast and do not eat until lunch time risk fat storage as the body is not sure when it will next receive fuel in the form of food. For the entire morning, instead of working at peak rates and burning off more calories, your body will be trying to conserve everything it can, which in turn decreases your metabolism.

Higher Energy Levels: The longer you go without eating, the more your body starts to slow and shut down. Studies have shown that adults who eat breakfast in the morning are less tired and irritable during the day and have longer attention spans. Eating breakfast will allow you to be more active during the day, increase your energy levels and help you burn calories. You're more likely to go for a run if you don't feel exhausted all day.

Better Memory: More than one study done on adults found those who had nothing for breakfast underperformed on short-term memory tests compared to those who'd had their first meal. Eating breakfast provides fuel for the brain, which can help to improve memory and brain function.

Weight Control: Many studies have shown that breakfast eaters tend to weigh less than breakfast skippers. One theory suggests that eating a healthy breakfast can reduce hunger throughout the day and helps people make better food choices at other meals. Hunger gets the best of breakfast-skippers, and they eat more throughout the day. A high-fibre and protein breakfast can keep you fuller for longer and prevent unhealthy snacking throughout the day.

HEALTHY BREAKFAST GUIDELINES

An ideal breakfast should be high in fibre and protein, as this will keep you fuller for longer. Fibre is one of the easiest nutrients to incorporate into your diet, and one of the most important. However, many South Africans don’t get the much-needed 25 to 30g recommended daily intake. A healthy breakfast should also be low in sugar and fat. Try to avoid empty-calorie choices that provide a lot of calories and very little nutritional benefit, like donuts, pastries, high-sugar cereals and high-fat meats like bacon.

Remember these rules at breakfast:

?         Opt for fibre: Check the ingredients list and make sure the first ingredient is preceded by the word “whole,” e.g. whole wheat, whole grain, etc. Look for: Dietary fibre ≥ 5g per serving.

?         Save on sugar: Look for sugar toward the end of the ingredient list, which means it has less of it. Also, watch out for multiple forms of sugar. Many cereals use dried fruit that’s been coated with sugar. Better to add fresh fruit for natural sweetness. Look for: Sugar ≤ 7g per serving.

The Modern Athlete DARE TO TRI Programme has helped many athletes get a start in the diverse world of triathlon, with many going on to complete the Ironman, and this month we hear from one of them, Russell Bunnell.

In July 2012 I had broken my ankle in a motorbike mishap and just after I got the cast off, I was diagnosed with testicular cancer. After two months of chemo, I had lost a lot of weight and was physically at my worst. It was a slow road to recovery the following year, but I managed to gain back all the weight, and then some. I was planning to get married in December and a few months before that I decided to start running to get back into shape. I could barely run 3km at the start, but I joined a local running group and kept at it for the next year and a half.

I managed to finish the Vaal Marathon in 2014 and tried to complete the Two Oceans a month later, but bailed out halfway through with severe ITB pain. My Comrades dreams were dashed, but a short while later we went out to lunch at some friends, where I picked up a Modern Athlete, and as I was flipping through the magazine I saw an advert for the DareToTri training programme. I thought this was how I was going to redeem myself, so I contacted coach Derick, bought a bike and started training with them.

I struggled with the biking at first, but I kept at it, and after a few months of training I signed up for my first triathlon, an Olympic distance race, the 2015 Ironman 5150 at Bela Bela. I was totally hooked and followed the Derick’s programme and advice, eventually completing another 5150 later that year in Germiston, and then the Midlands Ultra, a half Ironman distance race, in March 2016.

At this point I had fully committed to the long hours of training to get me to the full Ironman race in Port Elizabeth in April, and it was an amazing event. Almost 15 hours of pain, elation, cheering crowds and fantastic scenery along the way, and I will never forget the moment of turning the final corner to the red carpet and hearing the announcer shout into the microphone, “Russell Bunnell from the USA, YOU… ARE… AN IRONMAN!”

Thanks to Coach Derick for organising this programme, which turns normal people like me into Ironmen, and to my wife Jabu for all her patience and understanding during the long hours of training. See you all on the road!

Being disabled is just a label that people give you, but you are more than just a label – and you capable of anything, as long as you apply your mind and go at it with a can-do attitude. That’s the message that Samantha Stander sends out to the world every day, including when she gets onto her mountain bike. Especially since she mastered the gears… – BY ROXANNE MARTIN

When Sam was born in 1993 with Congenital Developmental Dysplasia of both her hips, the doctors told her parents Wessel and Beverley that she would probably never walk. The condition means that her hip joints are out of place, so with each movement grinding of bone on bone occurs. As a baby the outlook for the rest of Sam’s life looked bleak, but her parents were determined to give her a fighting chance, so she was put into a Spica Cast in the hope that it would force her joints into a position that would make walking possible.

After 15 months, however, having seen no improvement, the doctors said there was nothing more they could do. But then on 23 December 1994, Sam took her first steps and began a journey of defying the odds, which today sees her not only walking, but also running, participating in obstacle course races, and more recently even taking part in mountain biking races. Sam is a remarkable young woman with an incredible attitude towards life, but she has had to overcome many hurdles to get where she is today.

In the Shadows
Growing up, Sam found herself on the sidelines because her condition prevented her from participating in any sport until she was 16, as she had to wait for her bones to grow fully. “I wasn’t a very social person, and I would shy away from going out. I played chess and would do first aid, but nothing else,” she says. But that all changed after her 16th birthday, when she could finally take up sport. The first sport she tried was hockey and she played goalie, since running wasn’t much of an option for her, but she was ecstatic just to be on the field. “I was part of a team, and for the first time in my life it felt like people knew who I was,” says Sam.

It lit a spark in her that propelled her out of the shadows and she quickly transformed from someone who shied away to someone who loved being involved, and loved being a team player, with a vibrant, bubbly personality. “I started wanting to interact more with people. I had been overweight my entire life, and I was a victim of bullying, and then suddenly that was over. I felt like finally I belong somewhere, that these guys accepted me for who I am,” she says.

Suddenly Sports Mad
Free to experiment at last, Sam was determined to try everything, and that saw her take up Modern Dancing, but she soon realised she just didn’t have the flexibility it required. That didn’t hold her back, though, because she quickly changed to hip hop dancing instead. “I don’t really have limits,” is Sam’s response when asked about her sport and activity choices. “I am prepared to try everything once, even if I find I can’t carry on with it. I’m just happy to try, and give it my all.”

Settling on hockey, squash and hip hop, Sam remained incredibly active while she was still at school, but when she began studying medicine at Stellenbosch University, she found the academic demands left her less time for sport. That saw the weight started piling on again, but this time Sam was determined not to go down the same path and so she decided to find a way to keep active and healthy… by taking up trail running. Well, more a very slow walk/run, as Sam puts it. “Walking and running affect my hips a lot. I am much slower than other people, and I run 100m, walk 200m, because of the pain. Also, I sometimes have to take muscle relaxants just to help me do what I need to,” she says.

Not deterred by the pain, Sam kept at it, taking part in some form of sporting event every weekend, and taking note of all the sporting activity going on around her at her campus dorm. Then one Saturday afternoon she was intrigued when once again her friend Jano Venter returned to the dorm covered in mud. Driven by her curiosity, she asked him what he had been doing, and he replied, “Mountain biking.” Typically, Sam’s immediate reaction was “Well, I have to try this,” and soon she had delved into the money she had saved for a ‘rainy day’ and put it to good use to buy a Scott Aspect 910 29er. The bike was in a box for two days before she could put it together with Jano’s help, and the comedy that ensued once the bike had been built had everyone in fits of laughter.

Riding Lessons
Getting on to the bike was the first hurdle, because of her condition, and it required lying the bike down flat, stepping over it and then lifting it up. With that problem solved, Sam looked at all the components and switches on her bike and that had her in a mild panic. “I had never ridden a bike with gears, I had only ever ridden single speed hand-me-downs where you were scraping off the rust,” she explains.

The ever-patient Jano just said, “No problem,” and the two of them went round and round the dorm quad, with Jano jogging next to Sam on the bike, trying to explain how the gears worked. “I had no idea what he meant when he said go up in the front, down in the back, and I wish someone had recorded it,” laughs Sam. Nevertheless, with her trademark determination, Sam persevered and eventually was able to ride and change gears at the same time… and naturally, her next thought was “Okay, great, I should do a race now!”

Racing Debut
Starting small, Sam headed to the PPA Tread Lightly 5km mountain bike race, where she would ride with Jano’s seven-year-old brother, Rikis. Arriving at the race, she waited in the car for Jano to get there, as she hadn’t learnt how to reassemble her bike yet, and it was here that her nerves went through the roof! “Before the race, I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep, I was so nervous, and when the MC saw me and recognised me, he tried to talk to me, but I couldn’t. My nerves were shot,” says Sam.

With the bike assembled, she lined up at the start, the gun went off and everything seemed to be okay… until they got to the first incline. “I still didn’t understand my gears, and when I got to the climb, I didn’t know what to do,” says Sam, adding that a mild panic ensued. “I just kept telling myself to keep smiling,” she says, and when she finished the race, that smile became uncontrollable euphoria. Of course, Rikis beat her in that race, but it just made her more determined, because the bug had bitten. This, Sam had decided, was the sport for her!

Less than three weeks later Sam completed a 10km race – by then she had figured out the gears, which made things much easier – and then she decided it was time to up the ante, so she entered the Die Burger MTB Challenge 30km race at the end of July. In the week leading up to the race, Sam’s nerves kicked into overdrive: Sleep was non-existent, her appetite was nowhere, and she stressed about what would be the furthest she had ever ridden on a mountain bike. Then on race day Sam woke up to wet, rainy conditions, but her determination to make the race cut-off was undiminished as she started. “The trail was wet, with long climbs, but I was determined not to get off my bike, so I went into my granny gear, and I didn’t get off!” And when her quads screamed in pain, she screamed right back at them, “I’ll give you something to cry about!” Two hours, 30 minutes and 10 seconds later an ecstatic Sam finished, with another big smile.

Many More to Come
With that 30km ride under her belt, Sam says it was just another step in an exciting journey, with many more races to come, and she is already thinking about taking on the Cape Town Cycle Tour. That said, her condition is never far from her mind, even though cycling is a lot easier on her hips than other sports she has tried. A double hip replacement is unavoidable eventually, and the only small amount of control Sam has is exactly when the operation will take place. She says she would like to wait as long as possible, as after she has the first replacement, she will have to have repeat the operation every eight to 10 years.

“While the op will help me, I will need a lot of rehab, which will mean a lot of time away from my studies, or my work,” says Sam. She adds that her studies are incredibly important to her: “I want to specialise and become an orthopaedic paediatric surgeon, so that I can help children that have the same condition as I do. I don’t want anyone to have to suffer like I did.” And it’s this attitude towards her work that really sets her apart, just as it does in her mountain biking, where she has challenged herself to complete 30 events. She has already done 19, and she says, “I just want people to realise that if they really want to do it, that they can!”

When Team SA heads over to Canada in October for the Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) World Champs, the most excited member of the team may well be Carina Marx, since it will not only be the first time she is representing her country, but also the first time she travels abroad! – BY SEAN FALCONER

Unsurprisingly, Carina Marx can’t wait to get on the plane that will take the South African OCR World Champs team to the Blue Mountain Ski Resort in Ontario, Canada, as she has never left South African shores before. The 33-year-old will be part of a strong team featuring a host of athletes who medalled at last year’s World Champs in Cincinnati in the USA, and she says she is really looking forward to seeing what she can do on the world stage. “I actually qualified for last year’s World Champs in Cincinnati, but decided not to go as I didn’t feel ready to compete against the best in the world, having only started with OCR in 2014. But this year I feel ready to give it a go, and I have chosen to compete in the elite race so that I can go up against the best in the world. That’s because I’m an all or nothing type of person,” says Carina.

The SA team will attend a training camp at Afriski in the Drakensberg in September, to train at altitude in cold conditions to better prepare for the cold conditions of Canada, especially after last year’s brutally freezing conditions in Cincinnati that had many a competitor reaching for warmer clothing and hot drinks. “Hopefully the training up there will prepare us for World Champs, and my aim for my first World Champs is to finish in the top five,” says Carina.

“I’ll be the only South African woman doing the elite race, because the other girls will be competing in their age categories, while Hanneke Dannhauser was going to race elites with me, but can only do the sprint and team events on the Sunday due to being a Seventh Day Adventist and not being able to compete on Saturdays. I’m just going to give it everything, because it will be my first time representing my country and I’ve never felt as good about something as I do with OCR. It will also be my birthday while we are at World Champs, so I am hoping for a great trip!”

Sporty and Active
Born in Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal, Carina has worked as a personal trainer since finishing school, currently working out of the Melrose Arch Virgin Active in Johannesburg. She was known for her swimming while at school, going to SA Champs a number of times, and says she also played tennis, did athletics and rowing, and pretty much everything else. “I never went to the upper level of any sport after school, but I did try adventure racing, mountain biking and later trail running, and now my focus is on OCR.’

Carina is engaged to former SA under-21 and Western Province rugby player Jeremy Reingold, who also broke the swimming world record for the 200m individual medley in 1980, and they plan to tie the knot next January. “He is super proud of me, to the extent that I sometimes get a bit embarrassed, but if not for him I would not have believed I could do this. He has played a major role in my success, and also manages our Jeep OCR team as well as my PR, so he is a man of many talents.”

Jeremy has two kids from a previous marriage, Sienna (10) and Max (5), and he says “they look up to Carina in so many ways and I can only say that she is treasured by them and I, with an uncanny ability to care for all of us regardless of her work and training schedule. They also love OCR and do the kiddies races at all the events Carina and I go to. I suppose it’s evident that I am a huge supporter of Carina, but its hard for me not to value the balance she has in humility, family, work and achievement. I suppose as manager of the OCR team I live vicariously through Carina and the athletes’ achievements, and I love the sport for its inclusiveness and the hard work it belies.”

Overcoming Obstacles
Carina stepped into the OCR elite sphere in October 2014 when she took on the Black Ops level at a Warrior event for the first time, and finished a highly creditable fifth. The Black Ops level is so tough that many competitors, men and women, often cannot finish officially, having failed at a certain obstacle, accepted a penalty of burpees and then proceeding with the race, although no longer in the overall classification. “I wanted to qualify for the Warrior finals that year, so I really pushed myself in that first race, and I was really happy just to finish,” says Carina.

“Then in 2015 I did all eight of the Warrior races, as well as all four of the Impi races, plus the Beast and a few others, and I am very proud of the fact that I am now up there challenging the best girls in the sport.” Typically humble, she has to be prodded to add that she won the Beast last year, and had three third place podium finishes in Warrior, followed by two second places so far this year. And one of the keys to her success has been the improvement in her running. “In OCR, my strength is my upper body strength, while running is my weakness, so to say, but I have improved a lot in the last 18 months. I have never been a super runner, but I have worked hard at it and now I can compete with the top trail runners in OCR, like Trish Bahlman and Dominique De Oliveira, who are phenomenal athletes. Two years ago I would not have even thought of competing with girls with so much running experience.”

Challenges and Camaraderie
Naturally, regular podium finishes, an increasing number of sponsors coming on board and an upcoming overseas trip for World Champs means that Carina is really enjoying OCR, but she adds that there is more to it than just success. “I love the fact that you can’t get bored with OCR, because it challenges you and makes you grow as an athlete after every race. It always has a surprise or five to challenge you, not only your physical ability, but also your mind. It’s a versatile sport that always encourages you to become the best athlete you can be. There is also a lovely spirit in the sport – we’re all friends that get along very well. We’re competitive, but do it in good fun, and even help each other in races if we see a rival going wrong, because I think we all want to develop the sport and lift the standards to be up there with the best in the world. So let’s see how we go at World Champs!”