Former national athlete Melinder Kaur has achieved the 'crazy feat" of becoming the first Malaysian woman to run 25 hours non-stop on a treadmill.

In the process, the 34-year-old also covered a whopping 123.85km, thus sealing a spot in the Malaysia Book of Records for recording the longest distance covered within 24 hours.

According to the New Straits Times (NST), Melinder began her feat at the Arte by Thomas in Mont Kiara at 10am on Saturday, before breaking down in tears of joy upon completion of the challenge the following day.

For the record, Melinder is a retired army liutenant and former national steeplechase runner.

Recalling the "mind over body" challenge, Melinder said it was not easy to start running again 10 years after she quit the national team.

"Just after a few hours on the treadmill, my legs were already in pain, my muscles started to cramp, while my feet swelled up and sustained multiple blisters.

"As tough as it was, I didn't stop. It took me two months of solid training to prepare for this record attempt, and I did it without guidance from any coaches or personal trainers," she told the portal, adding that every milestone she achieved on the treadmill gave her a sense of accomplishment and pride.

Aside from sore legs, another huge challenge the mother of one had to face was sleepiness.

According to her, she was so sleepy between 3am and 4am on Sunday, but luckily, she had a group of amazing friends who talked her through the challenge to ensure she stayed alert.

She also thanked her family, especially her husband, who cheered her on throughout her journey.

Although Melinder has accomplished what she set out to do, the only grievance she has is not being able to raise RM10,000 funds for underprivileged children that she had initially wanted to.

This is not Melinder's first national record. Last April, she clocked in just 52.40 seconds to perform 100-metre forward roll - sealing a spot on the Malaysia Book of Records in doing so. She is also the holder of the fastest 3,000m steeplechase (10:55.31) at the 2010 Malaysia Games in Melaka, which is yet to be surpassed.

Despite these achievements, Melinder is not yet ready to throw in the towel.

"This will not be my last. I will target other fitness records after this," she told the portal.

An extremely impressive achievement indeed. Melinder has proven that age, marital status, nor one's physical build is barrier to great achievements.

Congratulations, and best wishes for you to make, or break more records soon!


Source: NST
Photos source: NST, Facebook