\n<\/p>\n
\u201cMy family is back in Indonesia, so I\u2019m the only one my two kids have here,\u201d said the 53-year-old Indonesian-born Singapore citizen. \u201cThey need me, so there\u2019s no way I can show weakness to them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n In fact, her running journey began in 2015 during her year-long divorce. Then, her son and daughter were just nine and seven, and she was a marketing manager. Life as a single parent and working mum going through a divorce was \u201chectic and stressful\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAt that point, I had quite a negative outlook. I was looking after every single aspect of family life, and I wasn\u2019t looking after my health. I was losing myself,\u201d she recalled.<\/span><\/p>\n Wanting to lose some weight, she chose running because it was convenient and cheap. She decided to jog 20 minutes, three times a week around her estate.<\/span><\/p>\n For someone who had never run before, \u201cit often felt like the longest 20 minutes\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n A long-time friend invited her for a 10km run at MacRitchie Reservoir. Hie said no but decided to try 5km instead. It was horrible, but she kept trying, and each time, it got a little easier.<\/span><\/p>\n Shortly after, the same friend invited her for a 50km hospice charity run at MacRitchie Reservoir. <\/span>Somehow, Hie said yes.<\/span><\/p>\n