When we are all running to keep fit and attain personal goals, Marie took running a step further to raise funds for rescue dogs. Meet Marie Choo, who was formerly a public relations professional who gave up her corporate life to become a dog behaviourist and trainer.
1. When did you start running?
I started running in April 2014. At that time, I couldn’t even run 2km to save my life. I started running for 2 main reasons - to get fit and to avoid falling into depression. I was feeling depressed about the conflict between the nature of my work as a public relations professional and my personal evolution as someone who prefers to live a simple life and work with dogs.
2. What is your daily routine like?
I like and need to be active every day. In addition to walking my dogs twice a day for about 30-40 minutes each time, I will also be engaged in some kind of fitness activities. I run 5 times a week as part of my marathon training. I do yoga about 2-4 times a week as a counter balance to my running. I also do indoor rock climbing and barre class at least once a week. If schedule permits, I also like to fit in swimming and strength training at home.
3. Any tips for beginners who want to kick start a fitness regime?
It is always intimidating to start something new so it is great to have friends to get you started. I started running more when my neighbour encouraged me. She was the one who offered to run with me when I first started and even signed me up for the first few races. Once you established a routine, you will then have the confidence and courage to train on your own. The same goes for going to the gym. I was intimidated at first but a friend brought me to the gym on a one week trial. She went to a spin class with me and showed me how to adjust the bike. I am now a member and I go to the gym alone these days. Regardless of your choice of fitness pursuit, it is important to enjoy the activities. Fitness is more sustainable if you actually enjoy doing it. Try as many new activities as you can to find what you enjoy doing. I have recently picked up indoor rock climbing again and I do it once or twice a week.
4. We know that you have been running to raise funds for needy dogs. Can you tell us more about it?
When I first started volunteering in dog welfare, I realised that there are a lot of less fortunate dogs in Singapore. I want to be the voice for the voiceless, so I run to raise funds to buy food for them in the shelters. I always believe that giving is a blessing. To be able to give is a gift in itself. I’ve been very fortunate in my life. I’ve met many nice people who helped me along the way, so it’s time for me to give back. I have been raising funds and awareness for rescue dogs for about 4 years but it is only last year that I started running to raise funds for rescue dogs. With my new found passion in running, I decided to incorporate it with fundraising for rescue dogs. I raise funds through Facebook mainly. Using my network and reputation, I have managed to raise over $40,000 over the past few years. Last year, I raised over $21,960 to buy one year of food for over 100 dogs at Oasis Second Chance Animal Shelter.
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5. When are your upcoming fund-raising runs scheduled?
For this year, I am running 2 full marathons (42.195km for a full marathon) and I am combining my love of running and dogs to do a special fundraising campaign named ‘
I RUN FOR RESCUE DOGS’. I just did the Gold Coast marathon in July, and I’ll be doing New York marathon in November. I hope to raise S$20,000 to S$30,000, if possible, to buy food for three different dog shelters. I raised over S$14,000 for the Gold Coast Marathon. For the New York Marathon fundraising, I only just started two months ago, and I’ve raised over S$7,000 now. I’m still halfway away from it but hopefully, I can meet my target.
6. How can the public help in your fund-raising?
The public can help me create awareness by sharing this poster on their social media or contact me directly if they would like to make a donation. :)
