Group running
MICHELÉ STUURMAN, NICOLENE VAN NIEKERK, RENÉ BROWNROSSOUW, MICHELLE DU PREEZ, & VANESSA MOL
When Michelé Stuurman started running, she shed an astonishing 29kg, and wanted to keep the momentum going. So she and fellow runner René Brown-Rossouw uploaded some images on Facebook to see if anyone would be interested in joining them.
That’s how they met Michelle, Nicolene and Vanessa. ‘Michelle cycles, too,’ says Michelé, ‘so we’ve added that to our repertoire – we’ve done triathlons and duathlons. We set challenges for ourselves and keep trying to smash them. It seems to have become what keeps us sane!’
Fitness is the goal, but friendship, loyalty and dedication are at the heart of their ritual. They meet at 5am every day to run 10km, or cycle anything between 30 and 50km. Over time, others have joined and left the team, but the core group has remained constant for six years.
‘It’s really all about being in the company of like-minded women,’ says Michelé. ‘We have the same goals in different aspects of our lives. We get together and have dinner every second month, where we can talk about anything, too. Sometimes we cry, often we laugh, but once we’ve completed our daily run, we feel like we can face life again.’
René found a safe haven in the group after an attempted mugging while running alone. ‘I swore I would never run alone again,’ she says. ‘It’s so worth it to rise early and run together. We talk a load of nonsense sometimes, but there’s always fun and laughter. Personally,
I hash out all my problems and issues during the run, and it’s really freeing.’
They’re happy to share their space with newcomers, but there’s one thing they won’t compromise on: loyalty. The group relies on an unwavering commitment to keeping the ritual going and making every effort to show up. The rules are simple: stay committed and bring your good vibe. Any negative energy in their safe space will not be tolerated.
‘We’re passionate about women supporting women,’ says Michelé. ‘We want to be there for one another and, in the process, we’re keeping fit and healthy and smashing our goals. We discuss the next day’s meet the night before, so once you’ve agreed to 5am the following day, you have to show. That’s important, because we can’t let anyone in the group run alone or let one another down.’
When Vanessa rediscovered her love of running a few years back through boot camp, she joined the group and has been there ever since. ‘It’s a real stress reliever for me. It’s the one time, every day, when I get a minute to free up my mind and just exhale.’
Nicolene joined when she quit smoking. ‘I picked up a lot of weight, so I started running, usually about 3-5km. Since joining the group, I’ve run half-marathons, and we do the 10km every morning. It wasn’t an easy start; I used to swear loudly when we ran up hills – but now I swear only internally,’ she says with a laugh.
‘For me it’s about the friendship, the laughter, and the fact that I can bitch and moan on the run without being judged,’ says Michelle, the newest member. ‘They’re always game for something. They get me up and out of bed; they keep me grounded and committed – and that’s so important to me. It’s not always easy to get up so early, but what we all get out of this daily ritual makes it worth it every time.’