Female soldier's sudden achievements in one month

At 4:15 a.m. on September 10, like thousands of other runners, Ms. Cam Anh was present at the starting line of MetaSports Amazing Ha Long 2023. Working in a military environment, waking up early every day has become a habit for the 47-year-old runner. This time, she woke up earlier, with reminders from her running watch instead of the gong at work.

"I am a person who values ​​principles, has high demands on time, and has a specific plan for everything I do," she shared. "Maybe it's because of living in a military environment. People often tease me that I'm difficult. But I think military style has something in common with jogging training. If you're not strict about time, it's difficult to succeed." .

Working as a physician at a military hospital in Gia Lai, Ms. Cam Anh is not required to exercise physically like combat units. However, she clearly understands the importance of exercise. Therefore, when her sister invited her four years ago, she quickly found joy in running. Up to now, she has spread this habit to her husband and two children.

Because she had worked out at the gym before, Ms. Cam Anh had no difficulty in the early stages of learning to run. The first time she raced in 2019, she easily conquered the distance of 10km and then 21km. To date, she has participated in 16 running events, including seven events under the MetaSports system. Ms. Cam Anh participated in MetaSports Amazing Ha Long 2023 with her husband and two younger siblings.

"I really like racing, like the feeling of conquering bridges and slopes in new lands. I also like family travel combined with sports. This time, if my two children are not busy with school, I will also "The kids haven't gone yet. The most difficult thing for me is to arrange my time so as not to affect my work. If I take it easy, I will definitely go racing more often," she said.

According to Cam Anh, in addition to the habit of planning detailed time, working as a physician in the military also helps her gain more knowledge about tendons, muscles and joints as well as how to recover the body after exercise. This is an advantage that helps her avoid injuries and learn running training methods more easily.

MetaSports Amazing Ha Long 2023 witnessed a breakthrough in achievement with Ms. Cam Anh completing 21km in 2 hours and 2 minutes, nearly 30 minutes faster than the race she participated in a month earlier. The 47-year-old runner believes that the reason that helps him achieve good results is nothing other than accumulated training.

"A few months ago, a fellow runner and I registered to participate in an online running race. We challenged each other, whoever completed 840 km first would win. Within a month and a half, I ran continuously with an average distance of 8 miles. km. Because Gia Lai is in the rainy season, not every day has good weather, so some days I have to run 20 to 25 km to make up for it. After three months, I see my heart rate, endurance and stamina. My body has improved significantly. Previously, I felt discouraged at the thought of running 21 km. By the 17th or 18th km, my legs were tired. But this time, I ran very comfortably. Therefore, I thought positively. Accumulating distance over a fixed period of time is the most important factor to improve performance in this subject," she shared.

Cam Anh's most memorable memory since she started running is when she won fifth place in the age group at MetaSports Marathon Imperial 2020. "I didn't expect to win the prize. When I heard the news, I jumped up like a child. Going home , I showed it off to everyone. To this day, I am still proud when talking about that achievement," she recounted.

Ms. Cam Anh is also one of the founders of Gia Lai marathon, a running club with about 70 members who live together regularly in Pleiku. Launched in 2021, Gia Lai Marathon maintains long runs together every Sunday. In December 2022, club members together created a memorable milestone when organizing a charity run in their hometown.

To date, Ms. Cam Anh has not participated in a full marathon and this will be her next goal in her journey with running. The 47-year-old runner wants to save this milestone for when she turns 50. She is confident that she can conquer the 42km distance, but believes that everyone needs to practice hard if they want to succeed.