It might sound excessive when a recreational runner who claims not to like running decides to join one of the world’s major long-distance races, the Tokyo Marathon.

Former model and actress Zee Zee Shahab used to hate running, saying that she would only join the occasional Zumba class at her gym. But running was never at the top of her workout routine.

“One month after I gave birth to my second child, my husband asked me to join him on a run. He said that I just needed to run for 500 meters during Car Free Day,” she told a press conference in Jakarta on Wednesday.

“I said yes, but later I almost passed out when reaching the 500 m point!”

Though she considered her first attempt at running a failure, the 2010 Bandung Film Festival winner decided to try again — and failed once more.

However, when an offer to represent Indonesia in the Tokyo Marathon came from Japanese isotonic brand Pocari Sweat, without thinking twice Zee Zee agreed. The Tokyo event is an annual competition that is part of the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) Gold Label and one of the six Abbott World Marathon Majors.

“I remember thinking, ‘I almost passed out trying to run 500 m, what would happen if I ran for 42 km?’ But with the support of my husband, I decided to try it and met with the support team,” she said, adding that she had started preparing intensively for the race only two months after giving birth.

Pocari Sweat’s Born to Sweat program has chosen four Indonesian public figures to run in the Tokyo Marathon and Seoul Marathon this year.

In addition to Zee Zee, soap opera stars Sahila Hisyam and Soraya Larasati and former Putri Indonesia pageant winner Alya Rohali have received the opportunity to represent the brand in the competitions.

Zee Zee and Soraya will run in the Tokyo Marathon on March 3, while Alya and Sahila will compete in the Seoul Marathon on March 17.

Among the four, only Alya has run a full marathon before. Best known for hosting the Siapa Berani television game show, she has competed in three different marathons since 2014.

Fully aware that its new ambassadors are not professional athletes but recreational runners at best, Pocari Sweat will utilize the support of its sports science team — covering medicine, nutrition, psychology and physiology — that was established in 2016.

The four celebrities started practicing for their respective marathons last November, beginning with an assessment test in order to design a training program that best suits them.

Head coach Agung Mulyawan said programs for recreational runners were different to those of athletes.

“Designing a training program for sports enthusiasts is quite a challenge, because they have other activities other than just training. I have to know their schedule before creating a suitable program, including planning a compatible exercise load for each one of them,” he said.

The head coach must also be aware of past injuries in order to create a proper training program.

Physiotherapist Matias Ibo, who has treated the Indonesian national soccer team, said the treatment for each runner’s injuries was different, depending on his or her daily activity.

With their marathon fast approaching, the four amateur runners are entering the final stages of their training regimen.

“The last test showed that I can run for 14 km nonstop,” Zee Zee said.

Meanwhile, Alya said she could already feel the benefits of her training and was ready to compete. She hopes to finish below the cut-off time, which is 7 hours.

“This time, the training is far heavier than my previous experience. I think it could prevent me from getting exhausted after the race,” she added.

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