{"id":4787,"date":"2020-07-26T08:19:14","date_gmt":"2020-07-26T05:19:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/urkod.com\/?p=4787"},"modified":"2026-05-24T12:43:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T09:43:18","slug":"%d8%b3%d8%a7%d9%85%d9%8a-%d9%82%d8%b7%d8%a7%d9%85%d9%8a-%d9%82%d8%b5%d8%aa%d9%8a-%d9%85%d8%b9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b1%d9%8a%d8%a7%d8%b6%d8%a9-%d9%88%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b1%d9%83%d8%b6-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%ac%d8%b2-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/%d8%b3%d8%a7%d9%85%d9%8a-%d9%82%d8%b7%d8%a7%d9%85%d9%8a-%d9%82%d8%b5%d8%aa%d9%8a-%d9%85%d8%b9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b1%d9%8a%d8%a7%d8%b6%d8%a9-%d9%88%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b1%d9%83%d8%b6-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%ac%d8%b2-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Sami Qatami \u2013 My Story with Sports and Running, Part 2\/2"},"content":{"rendered":"

In May 2019, I met an American woman who went running twice a week with two Jordanian runners; they would run at 5:30 a.m. before heading to work. I joined them and started running on the street. I loved running at dawn; the atmosphere was quiet, and the morning breeze was refreshing and encouraging for exercise. I learned from them the importance of warm-ups, stretching, and regular training to achieve the desired results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watching my foreign coworkers reinforced my feeling that I needed to stick with what I\u2019d started, and I always told myself that one day I\u2019d be just like them\u2014or maybe even better\u2014if I could stick to my workout routine the way I\u2019m doing it now, or perhaps add another day of the week to go running, so I started to Run<\/a> Three days a week instead of two\u2014I gradually began to be able to run for longer periods. The fifteen minutes that used to be the longest I could run became thirty, then forty-five, then a full hour. It\u2019s true that it was exhausting every time, but it made me feel overwhelmingly happy. I was delighted to see clear progress in my endurance and physical fitness. Only then did I start smiling when I saw my colleagues heading to the gym, and I\u2019d say to myself, \u201cYou\u2019re on the right track.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The American coach I used to run with had to leave suddenly, so I had to find a suitable replacement\u2014since I was certain I wouldn\u2019t run on my own. I quickly searched social media and found a group called the Amman Running Team (Running Amman<\/a>), they were running three times a week, which was exactly what I was looking for. I joined them and started running with them, and I quickly got to know the team members. My athletic performance improved significantly, as many of the team members were very knowledgeable about running, I benefited greatly from their advice on nutrition and training techniques, and I started running for more than an hour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About two months after I joined the team Running Amman<\/a> One day, while we were having breakfast after one of our Friday morning runs, some team members suggested participating in Marathon<\/a> In Malta, just as many of the team\u2019s runners began expressing their desire to participate and their support for the idea, I asked myself, \u201cWhy not go and run with them?\u201d I know I won\u2019t achieve spectacular results\u2014I\u2019m still new to this sport\u2014but participating could add a lot to my modest experience in running, and it might motivate me to keep going and put in more effort to achieve my goals. I found myself telling them, \u201cI\u2019ll participate in Race<\/a> half marathon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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First Race<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I went home, turned on my computer, and started looking up flight prices to Malta. The prices were reasonable and affordable, so I booked my ticket and began to think: \u201cWow, I\u2019m going to run a 21-kilometer race.\u201d My mind drifted back to that day when I saw my classmates heading to the gym, and I remembered how disappointed I\u2019d felt in myself. I smiled and said to myself, \u201cHere I am, getting closer to what I\u2019d hoped for that day.\u201d Yes, I\u2019ve become an athlete, and I\u2019ll be running a half-marathon soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

With only three weeks left until race day, I began training more intensely in preparation for the event. Some people around me thought what I was doing was pure madness, since just three months earlier I hadn\u2019t been able to run for more than 15 minutes, so how could I possibly run for more than two hours? But with the unparalleled support and encouragement of the Running Amman team\u2014who played a huge role in preparing me and supporting me mentally and emotionally\u2014I was able to finish the race in two hours and three minutes. My joy was indescribable as I crossed the finish line, that line that marked my transition from an overweight person to someone athletic, strong, and in excellent physical shape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Today I proved to myself that I am capable of achieving any goal, no matter what it is\u2014whether athletic, professional, or personal\u2014because if a person truly wants something, fate will surely respond, provided they put in the effort, commitment, and dedication required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I will continue running with the Running Amman team, and, God willing, the day will come when I run a full marathon. With this team of athletes, these kinds of friends, and this supportive environment, defining your path and goals in life brings you closer to achieving them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read The First part of Sami's story with running<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read also the story of \u201cThe Big Day\u201d at Urkod<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In May 2019, I met an American woman who went running twice a week with two Jordanian runners; they would run at 5:30 a.m. before heading to work. I joined them and started running on the street. I loved running at dawn; the atmosphere was quiet, and the morning breeze was refreshing and encouraging for exercise. I learned from them the importance of warm-ups, stretching, and regular training to achieve the desired results.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4789,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4787","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-11","category-12"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4787","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4787"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4787\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4975,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4787\/revisions\/4975"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4787"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4787"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/urkod.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4787"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}