“The running project was one of the best highlights for many of us. Not only was it good for improving our health but it also brought new people into our lives. Our trainings were very hard but it taught us to keep pushing ourselves and stay focused on finishing the race. To see the progress we were making every week was amazing. We traveled to so many places to participate in marathons. Although it was really tough and exhausting trying to finish the race, I always had my team who I’d trained with waiting at the finish line to cheer me through. Being a part of the running project has really encouraged me to live a healthy lifestyle and stay active. It has also taught us something really important not only for running but everything in life and it’s something we call “CCPC”. Which stands for Courage, Commitment, Perseverance and Celebration. One thing I’ve learnt is that when you’ve trained 100% for something and succeeded to the best of your ability, then it’s totally worth being celebrated!”

Zascha (now 20)

“When i started at the running project i found it really hard to run, i wasn't much of a runner it was difficult running 1km without stopping but i had to push myself to be stronger to achieve my goals I had, so i trained 4x a week starting just with 2km and every week. My legs were getting stronger increasing my kms every week; and once i ran a 10km i was shocked and proud of what i accomplished! After months of training with Swerve Fitness I completed the 21km half marathon in Queenstown which happened in 2017. It was amazing tbh because all this hard work paid off at the end. I also entered another event in Taupo, some of the young people ran 10km and some others and I ran 21km, and it was hard for me. What i got out of training with Swerve Fitness was that we never gave up pushing each other, encouraging everyone to be the better you, and commitment, courage, persistence was a major thing with the training. I’m aiming to run a full marathon in 2020.”

Ihaka  (now 24)

“What was good about the running trainings? It helped with pacing ourselves, also it made us become fit, and everyone was encouraging towards each other. The races? It was cool because there would be a team of us doing it and we supported each other ​throughout the whole thing, the vibes and everything was fun. What I got out of it? It taught me a lot but one thing that I got out of it was pacing myself to the right speed for each distance. It helped because I could run for ages and not get tired. How it impacted me? It has impacted me so much with my fitness level like before I started I didn’t know much about running & now it’s boosted up my confidence and it made me more passionate about running and training. I’ve sent a goal to run a full marathon in 2020.”

Jayken (now 18)

“The running project was, and is, a really successful program that helped with your endurance and getting fitter. I got to participate in races like the Queenstown Marathon and the Taupo one too. What I got out of the running project was how to pace myself, and supporting others to achieve their goals. I’m one to always try to stay in the front but while doing Swerve Fitness I realised it’s not always about trying to stay in the front but to finish strong and enjoy it. So I made a time target to try beat and that was running 10km under 1 hour. With the weeks of trying, putting in 100% and going hard, I got a time of 54 minutes. Achieving my goal made me even more excited about my next race which was the half marathon, 21km. I finished it in under 2 hours. I’m aiming to complete a full marathon, 42km, in 2020.

Nephi (now 18)