This year adidas has invited a group of 11 women to come together, to go beyond their impossible and run their first-ever marathon – The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon in October.
Adidas will guide these incredible and inspiring women from all walks of life through a holistic program leading up to the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon 2022. Along their journey, we are documenting their experience, capturing what brought them to the table, and sharing HER stories.
Zoe describes herself as an “ordinary girl with an extraordinary job”. She is a radio presenter for The Flash Drive show on KFM 94.5 and a TV presenter on the Expresso Show on SABC 3. Zoe decided to challenge herself by committing to take up the marathon and prove that no matter how busy she is, she accomplishes anything she puts her mind to.
Zoe is known as a private person, and looking forward to sharing her journey with her audience from the onset has added a lot of accountability. Zoe considers herself as a people pleaser and has enjoyed learning how to make time for herself. She is putting in the hard work ahead of the marathon by taking it one day at a time, kilometer by kilometer to avoid being overwhelmed.
It is important for Zoe to use her platform to inspire others despite the fears of running alone or in the dark, there is always a community to join according to style, pace, time, or location to reach your goals.
How would you describe yourself?
I’m an ordinary girl with an extraordinary job. I surprise myself by often saying yes top tough things, but somehow, I find a way to see it through.
What are your success habits and what are you proud of?
Some of my success habits are:
- Wake-up early every morning
- Plan my week on a Sunday (meals and meetings)
- Make and constantly check-in on my To-Do list
- Listen to audiobooks/podcasts on the road
- Hardly watch any TV
I’m most proud of the fact that despite my crazy work schedule, I can still find time to see my friends and family (albeit not as much as I would like to), do activities that make me happy, and meet deadlines. When I was a student at the University of Stellenbosch, during my undergrad year I had a full-time radio show (Monday to Fridays) and during my Honours year, I started working at KFM while being a fulltime student, and still managed to have a social life and not miss any deadlines.
How far do you think you are from achieving your big dreams?
I think I’m on track. I have big dreams but realistic goals. It was always a dream of mine to be a Miss South Africa, but that dream changed when I realised through radio and TV I can create my own platforms to be able to have a meaningful impacton the community.
What would you like to be the experience you want to share your mentees or children with?
Despite the many things on our “to do lists”… taking on something new and exciting is possible. If you’ve always wanted to try run a marathon (a half or even a 5km) just start. If running isn’t your thing, start off by running 1 minute walk 3 minutes. Then the next day you can do 2minutes of running followed by 2 minutes of walking. You can increase your time of running and decrease your time walking and build up the love for the activity as well as build up your own strength and endurance. Everyone adjusts differently to running, this is your journey and yours alone.
What advice would you give to your past self-5 years ago?
Be selective with what you say YES to. Some “opportunity” will take more from you than it should. Your time and energy is valuable. Choose how you spend it wisely.
What advice do you have for female runners?
It’s not always possible to run in groups (I often run by myself). Choose a busy route, be aware of your surroundings and when you’re running in a new area for the first time, rather run without earphones so that you can be hyper-alert. Share your location/route with a trusted friend or partner and always trust your gut.
What is your time prediction for the Cape Town Marathon?
I’m being super ambitious, but I would like to see if I can complete the marathon in under 5 hours.
See Zoe’s YouTube video here.
