Are you drained from all this negativity during this unprecedented time? Or are you struggling to build up your motivation to run again after months of inactivity?
We have located these awe-inspiring ladies to share with you how they coped with running a marathon to help you gain back the confidence and motivate you to run again.
On the other hand, you can also read the inspiring stories of women marathoners from Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia.
1. Eni Rosita
Bio: 41-year-old, Engineer
Eni is a working mom with 2 kids who loves to run marathon, ultra-marathon and trail run.
RS: What gives you the willpower to pursue a marathon as your sport?
Eni: Running relatively is the easiest and cheapest sport. I don’t have much spare time as a working mother, but I can run anytime, anywhere. I find joy while running in long distance running, such as a marathon.
RS: Which kind of training suits you or has enhanced your running performance throughout your marathon journey?
Eni: My basic training is mileage per week, with 80% easy run and 20% speed work.
RS: When you hit rock bottom, how are you able to motivate yourself to stand strong again?
Eni: Usually, I do cross-training as a “get away” from my marathon training routine, such as yoga to calm my mind and to find joy in running again.
RS: How does running a marathon challenge you to the next level?
Eni: Marathon distance challenges me to run Ultra-marathon in a better performance. I find marathon distance trains not only my endurance but also my speed.
I find joy when I am running in a marathon.
RS: What are your short- and long-term goals?
Eni: My short-term goal is to have better timing, and my long-term goal is to maintain the performance and have better timing.
RS: What is the best technique or method you picked up so far?
Eni: Honestly, I haven’t met the best method yet. I am still trying.
RS: What traits do you think are important for a female marathoner?
Eni: Consistent, discipline, patience and strong will.
RS: What does running a marathon means to you?
Eni: Running a marathon is one of my get aways, my vacation, my therapy from my daily routine as a mother and an officer.
You can follow Eni on Instagram: @abangeni
2. Odekta Elvina Naibaho
Bio: 28-years-old, Athlete Athletic
Born in Dairi, Odekta is an Indonesian running athlete. She is a big fan of Triyaningsih, Indonesia’s famous athlete. She moved from Medan to Jakarta to achieve her dream of becoming an accomplished running athlete.
In 2012, she joined the Indonesian Youth Athletic Club (IM) and is the first competitor who won 9th in the run with a distance of 10K. With enthusiasm and high motivation, she won various running events, such as 2014, BII Maybank Bali Marathon 21K.
In 2016, she won a marathon bronze medal at PONJABAR. In 2017, the Overall 25 Age Group World Marathon Majors in the BMW Berlin Marathon.
In 2018, she became the 10km fastest Runner for Women in Jakarta International 10k, the Senior Women’s 5,000m gold medal at the 2018 National Athletics Championship, and the best 5000m Personal in the ASIAN GAMES.
In 2019, she joined SEA Games Philippines and won SEA game’s 10,000m athletic bronze medal.
RS: Why do you run a marathon?
Odekta: Challenge. Running in marathons is my hobby, it is easier for me to lose weight from 56kgs to 44kgs, as well as to help me to become a better person.
RS: Which kind of training suits you or has enhanced your running performance throughout your marathon journey?
Odekta: Long distance running. Everyday, I train for endurance and speed. So, approximately, I run about 100-180km a week.
RS: When you hit rock bottom, how are you able to motivate yourself to stand strong again?
Odekta: Self-control. When I am feeling down, I try not to drown in sadness. I will try my best to keep my spirits up and fight the feeling of disappointment and try my best to control myself. I believe the price that I have to pay now will be very rewarding for my future. This shall be an unforgettable experience.
RS: How does running a marathon challenge you to the next level?
Odekta: Get out of my comfort zone. To enhance my achievement, I always learn from my experience. I don’t want to repeat the same mistake.
Marathon is an achievement and lifestyle.
RS: What are your short- or long-term goals?
Odekta: My short goals are to go to National sport event in Papua 2020. As for long-term, it’s the Sea Games 2021 in Vietnam. I want to be a champion among champions.
RS: What is the best technique or method you picked up so far?
Odekta: Strategic running. By conducting strategic running, it shall result in a better possibility in strategically learning the correct method to win.
RS: What are the traits to become a successful marathoner?
Odekta: Strategy, patience and consciousness. If we don’t have any strategy in competing, then we will not have any means to control ourselves with step by step patience, so it will not end badly.
RS: What does running a marathon means to you?
Odekta: A marathon is an achievement and lifestyle. A marathon makes me better than before. I can challenge myself far from what I have now. I have a very good life and health. For example, the discipline of time management become my daily life.
You can follow Odekta on Instagram: @odekta_naibaho
3. Febrianie Melissa Rindengan
Bio: 34-years-old, Government Employee
Kinetic active woman, outgoing and self-motivated, eager to learn new things. Febrianie has loved sport since she was a kid. She was a bowling athlete.
Besides that, she loves running and travelling. She also likes to inspire others to keep on running and spread the healthy lifestyle.
RS: Why do you run a marathon?
Febrianie: The first time I ran in a marathon was in February 2016. After, I immediately fell in love with it. Doing running, I can be myself; it brought me a lot of happiness, freedom, and made me realise that I could be stronger than before.
Running challenges me to be better than I was, and I need that challenge in my life. Don’t forget that a supportive environment and/or community would certainly be my first milestone to know the marathon and then try to learn techniques in training to prepare for the marathon.
RS: How do you train for your marathon?
Febrianie: Easy long run is my favourite because it’s easy as you can do it while chatting with your friends. On the other hand, your endurance increases, which is very important for running in a marathon.
Slowing the pace down on my easy days leaves me physically and mentally refreshed and ready to tackle my next hard work out more effectively. But I never forget tempo and interval, as it is also needed to get my personal best time. I run 4-6 times a week.
As for strength training, I do that once or twice a week. I remember to have a healthy lifestyle so that I will eat healthily and make sure I get 8-9 hours sleep.
RS: When you hit rock bottom, how are you able to motivate yourself to stand strong again?n?
Febrianie: There are lessons that you learn when you hit rock bottom that no one else can teach you because life consists of ups and downs. So, to be motivated again, I usually watch some motivational videos and read a motivational story. And I tell myself, other people can do it, so can I.
RS: How does running a marathon challenge you to the next level?
Febrianie: There’s nothing more rewarding than accomplishing a big goal. Running a marathon is one of the largest physical challenges I set for myself. And from it, we, women can inspire others; you may not realise how much your life and actions impact others on a daily basis. Running in a marathon is a huge undertaking; in fact, it might even seem impossible.
It’s true that running a marathon is a challenge that requires commitment and perseverance. Running helps increase my endurance, makes my heart stronger, improves circulation, strengthens my muscles and mental improvement as well, such as feeling less stress and being a happier person.
For the next marathon, of course, I want to get another personal best time. And I will be joining an ultra-marathon race because it is far more challenging.
Running challenges me to be better than I was, and I need that challenge in my life.
Running challenge me to be better than I was and I need that challenge in my life.
RS: Being a female marathoner, what are your short- or long-term goals?
Febrianie: My short-term goal is beating myself to get a new personal best time and joining an ultra-marathon event. And my long-term goals are maybe to tell the story to my grandchild about the great lesson that I get from running in a marathon.
RS: What is the best technique or method you picked up so far?
Febrianie: Healthy lifestyle and also stick to the running training menu. Train smart, not hard. You have to maintain a regular exercise routine, be conscious of your diet, rest well, and surround yourself with positive energy.
RS: What are the traits to become a successful marathoner?
Febrianie: The traits are:
- Eat healthily; Separate your food choices from your self-image. Being a regular runner will keep you much fitter than being a chronic dieter. And to be a runner, you have to give your body enough to run on.
- Strong muscles; For one thing, a strong body is more resilient, helping you to fend off overuse injuries. It’s also more balanced, preventing turned ankles and falls. Finally, a stronger body creates a faster body. Make workouts non-negotiable. Exercise should be equally important.
- Having a supportive environment. Women are moody and must have someone who can motivate themselves on a daily basis.
- Get enough sleep; schedule your day to allow at least 8-9 hours of sleep. In short, training tears down your body. With rest, however, your body builds back stronger than before.
- Be consistent and focused. Females need to focus on the journey, not the destination. To enjoy the process as much as the weight loss and improved race times.
- Build your confidence constantly; the most important key to success is confidence.
- Be stubborn; successful runners are stubborn. Success is about keeping on keeping on. A little stubbornness can be a great attribute when you’re in the middle miles of a marathon.
- Be brave, take risks because nothing can substitute for experience.
RS: What does running a marathon means to you?
Febrianie: They say that if you want to experience a different life, run a marathon. For me, a marathon is a life-changer, showing that you are stronger than before, and anything is possible. It’s also pride. During the marathon, mental is no 1, and you run more with your heart.
Moreover, if you train well, you will run well and fast in a marathon, and it will achieve gender equality; it is about making a real difference in women’s lives.
You can follow Febrianie on Instagram: @febmels
4. Debby Meylia
Bio: 39-years-old, Housewife
Indonesian citizen of Chinese descent, who was born in Bandung. She grew up and pursued her formal education in the West Java region.
Debby also obtained a Chemical Engineering bachelor’s degree in Parahyangan University, Bandung. After, she got married in 2006 and raised two children.
RS: What gives you the willpower to pursue a marathon as your sport?
Debby: : My initial objective in running is just to live a healthy lifestyle as I’ve had asthma since I was born. Thus, I easily picked up weight. It was even more challenging to maintain a healthy body weight after delivering two babies within two years.
Commitment was initially made by performing regular run in track and gym. I was introduced to marathon distance after getting more exposure to running events in Bandung, Jakarta and Singapore. I fell in love with this sport because I was good at it, and I enjoyed every second that I spent while running alone or with friends.
RS: Which kind of training suits you or has enhanced your running performance throughout your marathon journey?
Debby: My training program aims for high weekly mileage. It consists of 80% easy runs and 20% speed sessions. Since my coach and I are into the scienctific approach, science parameters like Heart Rate (HR), VO2 max, Lactate Threshold (LT) and many others are used in monitoring the progress. The program starts with building the base.
At this stage, aerobic improvement is targeted by performing easy runs in high weekly mileage. Once the body accommodates, the next stage continues with LT training, hill and speed sessions. At the same time, core training is embedded into the program at each stage.
RS: When you hit rock bottom, how are you able to motivate yourself to stand strong again?
Debby: I always have a mantra to motivate myself on every occasion. “Training never lies.” Once we have trained properly, the body will pay back in the race.
RS: How does running a marathon challenge you to the next level?
Debby: The marathon has taught me so many lessons. We get what we train. It is really fair.
Running a marathon is a showcase of equality in all aspects of life, namely gender, social background, and professional role/occupation.
RS: What are your short- or long-term goals?
Debby: My long-term goal is to have a consistently healthy lifestyle, while the short-term goal is to have a continuous challenging target that always excites me to run regularly.
RS: What is the best technique or method you picked up so far?
Debby: Is it running strategy in the marathon? If yes, the best technique that I picked up so far is a stable pace strategy. It has been helping me in most running races that I have joined in the past.
However, I am currently being trained for a negative split strategy. I am not sure if I can perform it well in the upcoming Boston marathon.
RS: What are the traits to become a successful marathoner?
Debby: Becoming a female marathoner is not easy since the success parameter between male and female runner is different. There is always a perception that the achievement in the female category is not as challenging as the one in the male category.
This condition always motivates me to perform as well as male runners.
RS: What does running a marathon means to you?
Debby: Running a marathon is a showcase of equality in all aspects of life, namely gender, social background, professional role/occupation, and much more. As a wife and a mother of two children, I can still live my healthy lifestyle through running.
You can follow Debby on Instagram: @debbymeylia
5. Lisa Dewi
Bio: 41-years-old, Business Owner
An entrepreneur, a wife, a mother of one 11-year-old daughter and a recreational runner. Lisa has run since 2015, and ever since, running has been her lifestyle, which she does routinely and passionately.
She did her first ever race in January 2017 and completed a full marathon in Cebu, Philippines. Up till now, Lisa has done 5 full marathons, 4 of which are WMM.
RS: Why do you run a marathon?
Lisa: Running has been my lifestyle since 2015, and when my husband asked me to run together in the Cebu Marathon in 2017, I thought, why not. Crossing the finish line in that marathon changed my life and made me long to feel that sense of accomplishment again and again.
RS: How do you train for a marathon race?
Lisa: I am more comfortable with running at an easier pace than speed work. So, most of my training will be all about volume for endurance and a small amount of speed work. Maybe once a week, I would do a tempo run in the middle of my long run.
RS: When you hit rock bottom, how are you able to motivate yourself to stand strong again?
Lisa: There is always a point during the run/marathon that we want to stop and ask ourselves; why do we do this, we don’t have to. When that moment comes, I repeat this mantra in my head: “Just one foot in front of the other, my future self will thank me for this.”
RS: How does running a marathon challenge you to the next level?
Lisa: Running marathons make me believe that we are much stronger than we think we are, and no goals are impossible if you are willing to work for it.
A marathon is an excellent way to teach us about life.
RS: What are your short- or long-term goals?
Lisa: My short goals are completing all 6 WMM (I have 2 to go; New York and Boston), and the long-term goal is to be able to run for a very long time, injury free and healthy.
RS: What is the best technique or method you picked up so far?
Lisa: Listen to your body. I have tried to follow several different training programs and tried to stick to the schedule, and it led to overtraining and injury. Everybody is different and reacts differently to stimulus; it’s best to listen to your body and enjoy the process.
RS: What are the traits to become a successful marathoner?
Lisa: I somehow believe that women are much better at long distance running as we are able to endure more pain and are mentally stronger than men.
RS: What does running a marathon mean to you?
Lisa: : A marathon is an excellent way to teach us about life. There is nothing in this world that can help us to strive but ourselves. There is always a rough patch in it, but all you have to do is be strong and believe it will all pass. There is nothing that can beat that proud feeling when you cross the finish line.
You can follow Lisa on Instagram: @lisadewiwood
Want to start running now? If you do, join the Flora Women Online Race Series 2020 to create one of your most successful stories in your running journey. You will never know, your story might inspire someone to conquer a race.
