Category: Features

From walking my first marathon through the dusty streets of Soweto in 2011, I continued what for me was my ‘Long Walk to Freedom,’ and completed the Ultimate Human Race, the Comrades Marathon in 2014. That same year I achieved another big goal, the New York City Marathon! Here is my story – BY ASTRID THOLE

I stood alongside 2000 other runners on a blisteringly hot day in Soweto on the 6th of November 2011, ready to take on the big challenge of walking my first marathon. Just to put you in the picture, I wasn’t a runner, I was a social, casual walker who had walked a few 30km races for fun. On the start line I had no idea what the race would entail, all I knew was that I planned to walk very fast, because I wanted to finish before the cut-off time of 6h30.

As the gun went bang, I set off, hundreds of runners sprinted past me. I felt scared and excited at the same time, and I was a mixed bag of emotions. I had no idea how hard it would be to walk 42km, and as I went through the tough route I discovered how hard it actually is! To say I was naïve was an understatement, yet, at the time I believed I could complete the race within the cut-off time.

So I walked and walked and walked. I had no idea about pacing, gels, hydration, splits, and all the other lingo that runners spoke and understood so well. I stopped and drank water at every table and soaked up the amazing vibe that is so well known at the Soweto Marathon, the ‘People’s Race.’ The friendliness that the people of Soweto show to each and every participant is overwhelming, making the race a special one.

ELATION IN SOWETO
I completed the race in a time of 6:15:48! I was absolutely elated when I received my beautiful medal, I felt such pride and excitement, I had done it. I was reminded of a quote from Fred Lebow, the founder of the New York City Marathon, “It doesn’t matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say, ‘I have finished.’ There is a lot of satisfaction in that.” The whole experience proved to me that the body achieves what the mind believes and that I was not too old to set another goal and dream another dream.

That afternoon, inspired by my achievement, I watched the live broadcast of the 2011 New York City Marathon. I was glued to my TV, fascinated by the number of people who were participating – over 50,000 people! During the broadcast I decided that I would be setting some personal goals and dreams into action: I would do my first Comrades and NYC marathon in 2014, the year I turned 50, a milestone birthday for me, and what better gift than two medals, from Comrades and NYC.

So with that my running journey began, I joined a running club and started doing the hard work. In the beginning the transition from social walker to runner was a hard one, especially since I had never run a kilometre before the age of 48. I soon realised that to qualify for Comrades I would have to run/walk faster. I was lucky to be supported by another Comrades Runner at my club, Mike, and he pushed me and guided me to my goal. I always remember what he said to me, “Astrid, never give up. Give every part of the training your all. You can do it. Comrades is not for the faint-hearted, it’s tough, but you can do it. You will get your first medal in 2014, but you have to work for it and want it.”

THE ULTIMATE RACE
A lot of blood, sweat, tears and sacrifices later, I made it to the start in Pietermaritzburg on 1 June 2014. I lined up in my seeding pen with 18,500 runners around me. The pressure was on, this was not just any marathon, it was The Ultimate Human Race, a long and gruelling 89.2km awaited me. I prayed fervently before the start to finish in under 12 hours, to have the strength, faith, guts and determination to keep going…

My incredible journey from Pietermaritzburg to Durban began, and while running, I just kept saying to myself, “You were strong enough to get this far. You are strong enough to keep going. It doesn’t matter how fast or slow you are. As long as you keep moving.” I ran, I walked, I never stopped, and I had a wonderful first Comrades. No nausea, blisters, vomiting, dehydration or over-hydration, I was on a high from the first to the last kilometre.

I had written many positive affirmations which I took with me and I read and repeated these to myself all 90km. I needed to believe that I could and would finish, and I had to dig deep many times. Comrades tests your mental toughness, but I kept running despite the fatigue, pain and discomfort, and all around me runners kept motivating me, and that got me to the finish. I received my first Vic Clapham medal in a time of 11:40:03. To this day I cannot describe the emotions that I felt on that day!

A BITE OF THE BIG APPLE
Five months later, on Sunday 2 November 2014, I stood on the start line of the iconic and famous New York City Marathon. It was bitterly cold, three degrees with a head wind, and I was nervous as I was not used to running in such cold conditions, but I didn’t let it dampen my spirits. It was an out of this world experience, lining up alongside 50,869 runners, some of whom were elite international marathon runners, was amazing and surreal, and to participate in one of the world’s five major marathons was a dream come true. I was about to sight-see and experience the famous ‘city that never sleeps’ on foot, what an amazing adventure.

Donned in warm winter running gear with a South African running vest displaying my name, I set off to the sound of Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York, and it was magical, just as I watched on TV all those years ago, only now I was one of the 50,000-plus runners streaming across the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. Running the NYC marathon was everything and more than I dreamt it would be. I was overcome with emotion as the crowds shouted out my name and told me to keep going – they love South African runners and kept saying, “Astrid, you come from Mandela’s beautiful country, you must be so proud!” I did indeed feel proud and humbled to be representing my country, and the support I got from the American crowd was extra special. Then finishing in 5:15:45 in the world famous Central Park was something that I will never forget. I was so proud when they handed me that medal.

The experiences I had were extraordinary and so memorable, and to this day the NYC Marathon remains one of my all-time favourite marathons. What started with walking the Soweto Marathon ended three years later with Comrades and NYC Marathon medals! It just goes to show that if you can dream it, you can achieve it! And I am still dreaming… I have a few more goals to reach, including the Berlin Marathon, and aiming for my green number at Comrades before I hit 60.

Now that winter has come to an end and summer is approaching, it’s not just our clothing layers we need to shed as the days get warmer, we also need to shed our excess winter weight. – By Esmé Maré, Registered Dietician at Christine Peters & Associates

We gain or lose weight when energy intake and expenditure are out of balance. For example, when we consume a small amount of food and expend a high amount of energy, such as with running, we will promote weight-loss. When we consume a large amount of food and expend a small amount of energy, such as when we stay warm indoors, not wanting to exercise, then we will promote weight-gain. If we consume a moderate amount of food and expend a moderate amount of energy, then we will maintain our current weight.

Achieving a healthy body weight should be the aim of any weight-loss goal. A healthy body weight is a weight that promotes good eating habits, allows you to participate in regular physical activity such as running, and a weight that is acceptable to you and for your age. Here then are some tips on how to lose the weight you gained during winter, including how to do it healthily and how to keep it off whilst benefiting your running.

1. Set realistic Goals: An important part of any weight-loss plan is to set realistic goals. It can be frustrating making gradual changes to the body, but slower changes are much more effective in maintaining weight-loss over a longer period of time. This will also preserve your lean muscle mass needed for running. Remember, it takes time to adopt new eating habits. Aim for a weight loss of 0.5 to 1kg per week.
2. Never go shopping hungry: Plan your meals a week in advance. It’s easier to stick to a plan when you only have healthy food and drinks in your house.
3. Don’t starve yourself: Eat small, frequent meals every 2-3 hours to avoid feelings of food deprivation and to keep your metabolism going, and this will also ensure sustained energy levels. Starving yourself will slow down your metabolism and you will find it difficult to run on low energy levels.
4. Have Breakfast: Eat a healthy breakfast within an hour of waking up to jumpstart your metabolism and to promote weight-loss.
5. Plan your meals: Eat your meals and snacks only at set times in one location. Do not eat while studying, working, driving or when watching television. Don’t eat out of packets or take food straight from the fridge, rather dish up food onto a plate and eat with utensils. This will help you to keep track of how much you are eating and when you are feeling full.
6. Use smaller dishes: Eat your meals out of smaller dishes so they appear larger and you will eat less. The same can be done for drinks. Use a slender glass for all drinks except water.
7. Chew your food slowly: Aim to take at least 20 minutes to complete a full meal and stop immediately when you start feeling full. Store leftovers for your next meal.
8. Go for colour: To ensure that a variety of nutrients needed for a healthy body are consumed, half of your plate should be colourful vegetables or salad.
9. Choose good quality carbohydrates: Brown basmati rice, sweet potato, baby potatoes, quinoa, whole-wheat pasta, etc, should fill a quarter of your plate.
10. Choose good quality lean protein: Lean pork, beef, ostrich, chicken, legumes or fish should fill another quarter of your plate.
11. Cook with as little fat as possible: Remove excess skin and fat off meat and chicken before cooking.
12. Drink six to eight glasses of water daily: If you struggle to make this a habit, try drinking a glass of water before each meal and snack.
13. Get enough sleep: Remember to sleep at least seven to eight hours per night.
14. Reward yourself: When you do well with your nutritional programme, get a massage or buy yourself new clothes.
15. Prepare meals: Avoid purchasing high-fat, high-sugar foods by preparing healthy meals and snacks in advance.
16. Participate in regular physical activity: This will decrease body fat and help maintain or increase lean body mass.

When he started riding at the age of 14, Louis Meintjes never knew his cycling would take him across the world, but today he is considered the Golden Boy of South African cycling, a mere six years after turning pro, having already competed in the world’s biggest cycling tours as well as representing South Africa in the recent Olympics Games. – BY RACHEL PIENAAR AND ROXANNE MARTIN

As a young boy, Louis looked up to his father and saw himself following in his footsteps to become an engineer, but that all changed when he got on the bike. “I started cycling when I was in high school and at first it was just to enjoy riding, but I started racing soon afterwards, and it got more and more serious,” he says, adding that while growing up in Rustenberg, his family was supportive, but they were not avid cyclists themselves. “My brother also cycled a bit, but my family weren’t very sport-orientated.”

Entering races in those early days gave Louis a mark he could measure himself against, and that marker became higher and higher with each passing year, until eventually in 2010 he placed first in the National Junior Time Trial Championships, then added the Under-23 SA Road Champs title. That made him realise the time had come to take his cycling to the next level, and he decided to go pro.

The Road to Success
The next three years saw Louis competing all over Africa, setting the base for his future career. He enjoyed success at the African Continental Championships in 2011, placing second in the team and individual Time Trial, but it was in 2013 that the world really started taking
notice as he placed second in the World Under-23 Road Championships. It marked
him as someone to watch, and so began his road to international success.

In 2014, riding for MTN Qhubeka, Louis took part in his first Grand Tour, the Vuelta a Espana. It was a steep learning experience for the youngster, seeing how he could do against the world’s best. “It was definitely an eye-opener. A Grand Tour is tougher than anything else. You really need to be mentally strong and save energy all the time, because three weeks on the road is a long time. So, getting a fifth place on one of the toughest, and I think highest points, of the race was very encouraging,” says Louis.

It seems the international experience was just what Louis needed, and in 2015 he started his season off by winning the 30th edition of the Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali. “It was my first stage race win, which felt great and showed my progression year on year was improving. There were some really good climbers in the race, and I just tried something and was a little surprised to get away, but it felt very good,” says Louis. He also competed in his first Tour de France the same year, but had to retire due to illness. However, he didn’t allow that setback to affect him and bounced back to finish 10th overall at the next Vuelta a Espana. It was during this Tour that he also announced that he would be moving to Team Lampre-Merida for the 2016 season.

Slow Start to a Great Year
At the beginning of this year Louis set to work to make it a big year, and he says being based in Lucca, Italy with Lampre-Merida suited his training and lifestyle. “There are plenty of mountains around if I want to do a training camp, and the beach isn’t too far away if I want a break,” he explains. However, his initial results were doffed by bad luck, and Louis says he would rather forget the first few months of 2016.

After crashing out of the Volta a Catalunya on the third stage, his bad luck continued into the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, where he again had to pull out of the race and was unable to finish, but he says he moved beyond the disappointment by motivating himself to stay positive and believe in himself. “The start of the season was a tough one. I was affected by illness and cold weather, but my training remained good and was still better year on year, so I just stayed positive and kept believing. It was a good move, even though the season didn’t start off the best for me, because the team kept believing in me,” says Louis.

That belief paid off, because at this year’s Tour de France Louis really showed what he is made of as he became the first South African to place in the top 10 in the general classification of the race. He also placed second in the White Jersey competition, for the best young rider classification, finishing just behind Adam Yates. What was truly remarkable about Louis’ performance during the Tour was that he managed to stay with the lead group of contenders, featuring the worlds best in cycling, during the mountain stages.

When asked how he feels about his performance at the Tour, Louis says he actually hasn’t had time to process it all yet. “It took a few days after the race to sink in, but my racing schedule with the Olympics and the Vuelta a Espana has been hectic, so it hasn’t fully set in yet. I think I will be able to reflect on it properly when I am back home in South Africa at the end of the season.”

Rio Takes Centre Stage
Less than two weeks after the Tour, Louis found himself at the Rio Olympic Games, ready to compete with the best in the world in the hope that he could win a medal for South Africa. The 237km Road Race course was brutal, including an 8.9km climb with treacherous descents and a cobblestone section. That put paid to the hopes of many of the pre-race favourites, including Vincenco Nibili and Richie Porte, but Louis once again displayed his growing strength and experience to stay clear and post another top 10 finish.

“The course suited me and I wanted to use the form I had coming out of the Tour. I wanted to go there and be part of the action, so I am happy,” says Louis. In fact, he says that he enjoyed the experience so much that he is hoping to be able to go to the next Olympics in 2020. “It was a great experience and it is really a big occasion, like everyone talks about. I’d love to experience another Olympic Games.”

No Time to Catch a Breath
Once again there was barely time to take in this achievement as Louis made his way straight from Rio to Spain to take part in the Vuelta a Espana Tour. While this tour didn’t see him take another high general classification spot, Louis still saw the race as good preparation for the coming year. “It has been a very long season, so I felt some fatigue, and the heat also played a role, but it’s good to get the mileage in the legs as a base for the next season. My job is to ride my bike and deliver, so it’s important to stay focused on doing that,” says Louis.

Unsurprisingly, many a South African cycling pundit is now talking about the possibility of Louis becoming the first South African to win the coveted Tour de France title, given his rapid rise to cycling stardom this past year and his top 10 finish in this year’s Tour. When asked if he thinks he can live up to that expectation, Louis is typically humble but still shows his determination to succeed. “That would be nice, but that’s a very difficult task. It is certainly something I will keep working towards.”

Louis says he is also aware of the impact his success on the world stage will have on cycling in South Africa, and the inspiration it will provide to those wanting to follow him into a pro career in cycling, but he warns aspiring young riders to be realistic about their dreams. “It’s not easy to get into Europe from South Africa, which is where you need to be if you want to turn professional, but you need to believe in yourself.” That has clearly worked for him, and all South African eyes will be on him in the coming years, hoping to see him claim a podium finish in the Tour as well as many other titles and accolades.

For most athletes in a race, arriving at a refreshment station means grabbing some water and quenching their thirst, unless you’re Miné Swart… and you don’t drink water during races. Or fizzy drinks. Or sports drinks. Instead, she keeps an eye out for her trusted bottles of milk. Yes, you heard right. Milk! – BY SEAN FALCONER

It was day one of the inaugural Cape Odyssey five-day trail run in 2007 and Miné Swart was taking huge strain. She was an experienced ultra-marathon runner, but had never done any trail running before, and it was showing as she and teammate Yusuf Abrahams hit the final 11km beach section of the 29km first day. “I was surrounded by trail fundies, whereas Yusi and I didn’t have trail shoes, or fancy hydration packs, or any knowledge of trail running. And then when we got to the water points, where they had water and an energy supplement, I just kept thinking to myself, I’m so thirsty, I could do with some milk.”

Having grown up on a dairy farm in the Natal Midlands, Miné says she was brought up on fresh milk. “There was always milk in the house, and when you were thirsty, you drank milk instead of water. Our household drank 10 litres of milk each day! As a result, milk had always been my recovery drink after races, the only thing that quenches my thirst, and I decided to try it during the race as well. We had only just made it before the cut-off on day one, while day two was 60km long, and I didn’t think I would make it unless I could have milk on the route, so I went to ask for some help. Luckily, race volunteer Hano Maree agreed to take a few frozen bottles of milk out on the route for me, as he was driving the lead vehicle and could drop them off along the way, while Yusuf had two bottles rolling about in the backpack he was carrying.”

“The milk really worked for me and since then I have run all my races on milk, and converted quite a few people along the way. I cannot eat while running, and cannot handle anything sweet, because it just makes me nauseous. Also, I find that that too much water jiggles around in my stomach, but I can drink a litre of milk without any problems, and it just feels like it goes straight into my muscles. In my first few Comrades runs I ended up in the medical tent, dehydrated and throwing up, but since I started to run with milk, I have never finished ended up on a drip again, not even at the Washie 100 Miler.”

Time to Start Running
Miné hails from a sporty family – her mother played SA hockey, and she and her three brothers regularly joined her parents at the Midmar Mile swim – but running would only come later. At school she focused on hockey and swimming, continuing with hockey while studying music and drama at Stellenbosch University, followed by a teaching diploma. While at varsity she met her husband, Francois ‘Pikkie’ Swart, and they have been married for 22 years. After graduating she taught music at primary school level, but after 10 years she decided to change career path, becoming a medical rep. It was around the same time that Miné decided to take up running.

“I grew up with the Comrades Marathon and had joked for years that I would run it when I was 30… and then I realised in January 2000 that I was turning 30 later that year, so this was it. I had never even run 5km before, but I entered, chose the cheapest neutral shoes off the rack, and started doing three 8km runs a week for training. People said I must qualify, so on the fifth of March I ran my first ever race, the old Cape Town Marathon, which I finished in 4 hours and 27 minutes. My next race was the Two Oceans ultra, followed by the Comrades… and then I did nothing for the next six months!”

That became her regime for a long time: Start training in January, run till Comrades, then take six months off… “Until I started running the Washie, which meant I had to keep going for another few months. But looking back on 16 years of running, with 15 Two Oceans and 15 Comrades medals, I have had no injuries or issues, and I think it is because I’ve never been overtrained and had enough time to recover. And because the milk gives me the power to go further!”

The Milky Way
Of course, there are some logistical challenges to getting bottles of milk out on to the course at races, and here Miné says she needs to thank all the people who have helped her over the years. “In particular, I really want to salute the Western Province Athletics referees, because one day I took a chance to ask them before a marathon to take four bottles of frozen milk out on route for me. After explaining my story, they said yes, and since then it has become so standard for them to take my milk out for me that one year at the West Coast Marathon, they actually announced that the ‘Milk Lady’ must please come hand in her milk so that they can start the race!”

She says people at the big races are often helpful as well. “At Comrades, besides having my parents along the route to give me my milk at four different spots, I also look for people with picnics beside the road and ask for a sip of milk. But I always run with some money, so that I can pop into a shop to buy milk, and one year at the Durbanville Marathon, I had no milk on the route, so I actually went into a dairy that we ran past and they dished me up some lovely ice cold milk straight from the tank!”

Unsurprisingly, Miné sometimes gets interesting reactions from fellow runners regarding her milk strategy. “In one of my Two Oceans runs, Dr Hans Neethling, a physician that runs for AAC, saw me running with milk and said he was going to run all the way with me if he could share some milk. But other people often tell me that the milk will react with my stomach and give me problems, but my answer is always the same: Do you think I would drink it if it gave me problems? Since changing to just drinking milk, I have not had one single race with stomach problems. That said, I can’t do flavoured milk, because it’s too sweet. I just want ice cold cow’s milk!”

Looking ahead, Miné says she still has a few bucket list ultras she would like to do, including the Skyrun in the Drakensberg and the Augrabies in the Kalahari, as well as some of the big trail races overseas. “I also still want to tackle the Ultra Mont Blanc in France, the Western States in USA and the Marathon Des Sables in Morocco, or the Amazon race… but then I will not only need to find somebody to train with, since I’m too lazy to train by myself, but I will also need to find an alternative to milk, since I doubt I will be able to get it along the route in the Sahara or the Amazon! Still working on that problem…”

When the men’s Olympic 100m sprint final takes place every four years, millions of people all over the world literally stop whatever they’re doing for 10 seconds and sit spellbound by the spectacle of the world’s fastest men hurtling down the home straight of the athletics track. But for years, South Africans had just watched the race as passive spectators, because the last time a South African had made the final was 1932! Then along came Akani Simbine and everything changed in 9.94 seconds. – BY SEAN FALCONER

South Africa actually has an interesting history in the 100m Olympic final. Reggie Walker won the gold medal in 1908, Herbert Patching was fourth in 1912, Billy Legg finished fifth in 1928, and then Danie Joubert also finished fifth in 1932. But since then no South African had made it to the final. Until 22-year-old Pretoria University student Akani Simbine went to Rio this year. Not only did he make the final, but he ran a sub-10 second time in the semi-final to qualify, then ran another sub-10 time just 90 minutes later in the final to cross the line fifth in 9.94 seconds, finishing a mere three hundredths of a second off the podium. “I’m really happy to have made the final, and proud to be the first South African to run two sub-10s in one day, but I’m disappointed I tensed up at the end and lost that bronze medal. I watched the video and I was actually in third spot. I just tightened up in the last five metres and that’s where I lost it. But I am still very proud of my fifth place!”

Added to the excitement of the night, the 100m final took place directly after the 400m final, where South Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk blitzed a new World Record of 43.03 to claim the gold medal, which really gave Akani a boost as he prepared for his final. “I didn’t actually see Wayde run, because we were still walking into the call room after warming up, but as I was walking through towards the track with Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake, we were actually talking about Wayde. We had all trained together in Jamaica earlier in the year, and we were asking each other what we think he’s going to run… then we looked on the screen and saw Wayde lying on the ground and then saw the time, and we just thought wow, what just happened? Usain immediately said he knew Wayde was going to do it, and it was really crazy standing there thinking my friend just won Olympic gold, and that inspired me to go out there and to do the best I could too.”

What makes Akani’s 9.94 and fifth place in the final all the more remarkable is that Johan Rossouw’s SA record had stood at 10.06 since 1988 until Simon Magakwe finally equalled it in 2012. He then shattered it at the 2014 SA Champs as he became the first South African to go sub-10, clocking 9.98. In 2015 and into 2016, a sudden flurry of fast times saw Akani, Henricho Bruintjies and Wayde van Niekerk also go sub-10, and suddenly SA had four sub-10 sprinters! Akani and Henricho then traded the record a few times until Akani took it outright, then lowered it to a scintillating 9.89 in Hungary in July, just a few weeks before the Olympics… and now the country has an Olympic finalist as well. Heady times for SA sprinting indeed!

Built for Speed
Nicknamed ‘Mr Chill’ because he always seems so calm and relaxed, Akani’s speed was first spotted when he was in high school in Kempton Park, Johannesburg. “I used to play soccer and used to run as well, but only because the principal at our school forced us to run. Because I had the speed, I played wing in soccer, and they would just kick the ball and expect me to run. But then I started doing well in athletics and the principal said he had found me a coach in Germiston and asked me to go meet him. I decided it was a bit too far to travel from Kempton Park for training, but luckily my father found an article in the newspaper about my current coach, Werner Prinsloo, advertising his services. He was based very close to my home, so I started training with him.”

In that first year Akani finished second-fastest youth athlete in SA, and the next year he broke the SA Junior Record with a time of 10.19. From there he worked his way up the rankings, until he was the second-fastest ever SA sprinter with a 10.02, but a sub-10 eluded him. “When I ran 10.02, everybody said I’m so close to nine seconds that it got into my head, and every race I told myself today I’m going to push hard to try run nine seconds, but every time I failed, clocking 10.5, 10.04, 10.02, 10.01. Then in July last year in Slovenia, I ran a 9.99. It was also the first time Henricho and I raced, before we became training partners, and I just wanted to beat him. He was running 10.06 at that time, and everybody kept putting us head to head and comparing us. When I crossed the line, the clock stopped on 10.0 seconds dead, but when I turned around they had rounded it down to 9.99 and I just thought wow, I can’t believe it’s actually happened.”

Two weeks later Akani ran a 9.98, and he says from then onwards it just got easier, and to date he has run seven sub-10 times. “I told myself to stop chasing the time and just focus on my phases, and now when I get onto the track I feel the nine seconds will just come. Still, Getting into that elite sub-9.9 group is something special, and for me, jumping so much in a year is a bit crazy.” Unsurprisingly, the speedster is now also hot property in the media, being flooded with interview requests, appearing on television and magazine covers, and being recognised when he goes out. “A lot has changed… the other day I walked into a mall and I saw a couple of guys staring at me, and I wasn’t sure what to do, so I just smiled, said hi and walked on. It’s great to get recognition and to know that the people of SA are backing us. That’s why I always enjoy signing autographs or taking a pic with a fan, to say thank you for their support.”

Friends and Rivals
Akani is based at the High Performance Centre (HPC) at the University of Pretoria, and says it really helps being in a competitive but healthy sport environment, especially since he gets to train with many of the country’s top sprinters and gets to interact with other top sportsmen and women. “It really helps being in an environment with fellow athletes with the same goals and same drive. We’re all trying to be the best, and faster than the day before, so it’s always beneficial having guys around you that are pushing you.”

“But it’s not just about rivalry and competition… it is also beneficial to have someone that you can be friends with and talk to, and share a laugh with. That’s one of the things I picked up earlier this year when I trained with Usain Bolt in Jamaica. He told me he is enjoying racing more now because he doesn’t stress and doesn’t put pressure on himself. He just goes out there to have fun, and he’s winning with that mentality and game-plan. Usain and I talk often nowadays on social media. He’s one guy I really look up to, because he’s done so much for the sport and brought it up to another level – and he’s done all the stuff that I want to do. He’s the greatest in the game, and we all aspire to be the best.”

Naturally, Akani is very excited about the future of sprinting in this country, and he says the world needs to watch out for our sprinters. “I believe that we can become a dominant nation in the sprinting world, because we have the talent here in SA. I think it’s just a matter of time before we become a country like Jamaica or the United States, where you have to run a sub-10 just to get into the final at national champs. I think we’re going to see more guys breaking 10 seconds, and 20 seconds for 200m or 44 seconds for 400m… We have the potential to dominate, and not just in sprinting, but also in middle distance. We just need to keep working hard and make sure we reach our potential.”

Setting Targets
Now that the Rio Olympics and the 2016 athletics season are done, Akani is taking a well deserved rest, although he does still have his studies to complete. “I’m nearly done with my studies, but as I keep telling people, I’m going to get my degree and then just give it to my mother – here, this is yours – and then I’m going to go run full-time and focus on that. My goal is simple, to be the best that I can, and having run 9.89, now I want to go faster. It’s about wanting more and doing more, and knowing that I have potential still to reach. I have stepped up a level, but I know there is another level to aim for. I don’t know where it will end, but I know I am most definitely going to get faster. And I want to be there in 2020 for another shot at gold!”

Detox diets can give people a false sense of security, a feeling that they are being protective of their health, but then they tend to just go back to their usual way of eating. When people get to the stage of wanting to ‘detox,’ they are usually willing to participate in extreme measures, or find a quick fix, in order to feel more energetic or thinner. This extreme behaviour is generally unsustainable and bad habits come sneaking back in, and often in an exaggerated way because you are starving and you feel low. This ‘binging’ behaviour can then actually cause more damage in the long run.

People don’t always realise that the body already has multiple systems in place, including the liver, kidneys and gastrointestinal tract, that do a perfectly good job of eliminating toxins from the body within hours of consumption. By just adopting a healthy eating plan, one actually causes a natural detox, but in a much safer way. Now let’s explore some commonly asked detoxing questions.

Is it healthy to detox?
It all depends what you call a detox. A healthy eating plan, cutting out stimulants like caffeine, sugar and things like salt, artificial products and heavy fatty foods, but not eliminating entire food groups, would be a very positive change and promote health. Extreme changes in diet, like just eating one food group, can be very limited in essential nutrients, which could be damaging.

Does fasting clean the body of toxins?
Your liver and kidneys detox your body constantly. Fasting doesn't do that; on the contrary, ketones build up when carbohydrates aren't available for energy.

Do things like enemas, ‘flushing’ and detoxing help with losing weight?
There is no credible scientific evidence proving enemas, ‘flushing’ and detoxing the liver and lymphatic system result in weight-loss. There is also no scientific evidence that there is even a need to ‘flush’ the liver, much less any benefit from doing so. Like other fad diets, detox regimens promise quick weight-losses that are ultimately unsustainable.

How come people say they feel better when detoxing?
Detox dieters may report a variety of benefits, but none can be traced to the idea of detoxification. Fewer headaches can be traced to other lifestyle changes such as reduction in alcohol and caffeine intake. Clearer skin can result from improved hydration, and less bloating could be a result of eating less food. Some detox dieters report a boost in energy and even a sense of euphoria. This feeling, also commonly reported by people who are fasting, is actually a reaction to starvation. It likely evolved as a way to help a person evade threats and locate food.

LAST WORD
Finally, the burning question remains whether there is anything positive about detoxing? Well, there is something to be gained from avoiding large quantities of alcohol, junk food, smoke or anything to excess. Always remember, moderation is best, but these regimens are anything but moderate. You can achieve the same beneficial effect by following a healthy eating plan, exercising and drinking plenty of water!

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!”