Heidi Paul’s passion for road running was ignited just over a decade ago, yet this month she completed her 10th Comrades Marathon and looks forward to the ‘social’ SPAR Women’s 10km this Sunday.
The Kloof mother of two is currently a full-time music teacher at St Mary’s DSG, where she is responsible for the Junior Primary Choir and Primary School Orchestra.
Heidi said her first love was definitely music and, as a child, she had only participated in compulsory school sport like high jump, shot put and netball, although she did cycle to varsity every day.
Running the Comrades had always been a dream but she didn’t pursue it till after her children had grown old enough to take care of themselves.
“I joined Forest Hills Athletics Club and have never looked back. We are a wonderful group of runners that encourage each other to get out of bed and meet regularly for runs.
“On completing my 10th Comrades this year (8 consecutive), a friend facebooked and said he still remembers us trying to run around two blocks in our area. Seems like a lifetime ago that we started our walking programme!”
Heidi says she has always been healthy but now a bit more health conscious because she knows what benefits there are to doing something active.
“Running clears my mind of everyday stresses and strains, and balances out the odd eating binge I have! I run to slow down my life, look at gardens, houses, sceneries that you don’t usually see in a car and our hectic lifestyles.”
“My provisional goal was to run 10 Comrades and put a plague on the Comrades Wall, but I just go out and enjoy my running and if you have a bad run or race, who cares? Tomorrow will be better! I’m keen to help other runners with my experiences and tips I’ve picked up on the road.”
In her ‘spare’ time, Heidi can be found with a good book, listening to music, visiting friends or more likely, driving her kids.
With a few SPAR Ladies races under her belt, the marathon runner looks forward to keeping her average time of an hour for the 10km social race.
“It is amazing to see ladies (and cross-dressers) from all walks of life, abilities, fitness-levels join together, and it is also nice to see some sights and sounds of Durban. As a runner, it is especially rewarding to see those people that emerge from this race and are motivated to ‘stay on the road’ and progress with more regular running,” Heidi added.
For more information about the Spar Women’s 10km, click here