Run 6 Miles Ambassador - Kwee Huey!!

Our first Run 6 Miles Ambassador feature is an ever smiling young lady that her friends call the “Gazelle”. Quick and graceful, she’s gone like the wind once you blink! Welcome Kwee Huey to the Run 6 Miles family!!

Congratulations Kwee Huey! How are you feeling today?
Thanks! A little sore from training but otherwise I’m great!

What was your first reaction when you found out that you are going to be a Run 6 Miles Ambassador?

I was really surprise because I wasn’t expecting to be chosen judging by the response the Run 6 Miles Ambassador post have garnered from FB/IG. I was at work when I found out about it, needless to say, I was struggling to keep a straight face while seated at my work station.

Can you tell us a little bit about your yourself? 

I’m born and bred in KL and my dad refers me as the ‘crazy daughter’ out his 3 girls while my mum just wish that I come home ‘unscathed’ after all my races. I’ve clocked some ungodly hours working as an external auditor but have since moved on to commercial and I’m just about 1 year into my role in the internal audit function.

Have you always been an active girl when you were younger? School sports?

I wish I was more active during my school days but on the contrary, I was a bit of a nerd and sport just didn’t interest me at that point in time. Shy to say that whatever sports activities I took part in was merely to meet the cocurricular requirement, I guess I’m sort of a late bloomer when it comes to sports.

What made you dip your toe into running / multisports? And how and when did that happen?

2 of my close family members had always been actively participating in running events so right before joining the corporate world, I decided that I wanted to sign up for a fun run. The first run I signed up for was the 2011 NTV 7 Feel Good Run. And I pretty much went on a running rampage joining every run under the sun after that. 

As for triathlon, it was totally a “YOLO” moment in 2014 that made me sign up for it even though the idea of swimming in the open water intimidates the hell out of me (I’ve almost drown once in the pool). I didn’t own a bike so I had to loan my guy friend’s bike that was way too big for my height & I completed the entire bike course in a “fixie-mode” because I couldn’t figure out how to shift the gear.

Fortunately, I crossed path with a like-minded mentor at my previous work place who was willing to coach and guide me and that was how everything started.

From what we can see, you have definitely come a long way since then. Did you set goals to achieve, or was it all just going with the flow?

I initially started off with the mentality of just going with the flow but after realizing that I could actually excel, my mentor started setting more specific goals for me to work on which worked out pretty well.

What’s the longest distance you’ve raced in, both running and multisports? Any plans to take it further? Or will you be focusing on a particular distance?

For running, I’ve completed 2 full marathons during my early running days but the timing was not worth mentioning. As for multisports the longest distance currently would be Silverman Duathlon (11km-61km-11km) and Desaru 113 (1.9km, 90km, 21km) which is a half ironman distance triathlon. While I would love to complete a full Ironman distance triathlon one day, I’m still trying to convince myself to come to terms with the distance & the volume of training I would need to commit to. Till then, I’m contented to focus on improving my half ironman distance timing in my upcoming races.

 I don’t intend to focus on a particular distance just yet as I personally feel that each distance has its own merits. Sprint distance races are shorter but that would just mean that I need go twice as fast throughout the race course with minimal room for error. Endurance distance races on the other hand challenges not just physical fitness but also the mind and it is also extremely fulfilling upon completing such races.

We like that! How does a typical training week look like? Early morning sessions before work? Or crazy long weekend sessions to make up for the work days?

Some 5:30am session may be inevitable if I am a little behind with the number of sessions I intended to achieve for a particular week due to work. Otherwise, I normally train about 5 days (approximately 8 hours weekly) a week. This includes going for swim class, indoor workout on the bike trainers and short runs on my own during the weekdays. During the weekend, I’ll head out for longer distance run & rides in a group. When time permits, I occasionally join the local night rides in my neighbourhood.

Is it tough to fit training and racing into working life? How do you deal with recovery?

Juggling between work and training is never easy, but I believe that if you are passionate about something you love, you will find time for it. Along the way I just learn to prioritize what is important and be discipline about things. If I have only 30 minutes to spare, then I’ll just slot in a 30 quality minutes workout even though it means waking up at 5:30am.

As for recovery, I’ve learned to listen to my body, if I feel like I need to take a day off to just chill and do nothing, I will do so because overtraining or trying to go too hard to quickly will just risk injuries which is every athlete’s worst nightmare.

Ok, toughest moment ever. Tell us about it.

That would be agreeing to a 195km ride with a 2,000m elevation in Kota Kinabalu late last year. It was definitely another one of my “YOLO” moments because my longest ride at that point in time was only about 135km and with minimal elevation so that ride seriously put my mental & physical capabilities to the test. It was also the first ride which I had to push my bike because the climbs were simply too long and steep for me. But lucky for supportive team members, I managed to complete the ride within cut of time and with all that being said, I can’t deny that the view that came with it was worth all the pain and the entire experience was priceless!

Haha. That’s amazing! Big climbs and killer views, nothing like that to flood the senses!
If you weren’t training or racing, what would you do? What are your other favourite activities?

I love the outdoor and scenic places therefore if I’m don’t have to train for any races I would ideally love to travel and explore new things. I’ve gone hiking at Mount Rinjani as well as Ranu Kumbolo, anything with a view, I am in!

Oraites! Before we close this up, tell us; what motivates you, both in life and in sports?

I stumbled upon the quote “Not Today” a while ago, I know it sounds quite negative but what it really means is that I’ll not let anything get in my way today and what needs to be done will be done. I love the idea of this quote and when things get tough during training or race day I’ll motivate myself with that line.

Love that one! Thank you so much for your time today, Kwee!

Follow Run 6 Miles Ambassador Kwee Huey on her Instagram account @kweehuey