Guess What? Zoraya Perucha

Guess What? Zoraya Perucha

Former national athlete and film star Zoraya Perucha has to
slow down these days. The dynamic woman can no longer walk fast.
No, she even has to use a crutch as she strained her muscles
during exercise about three weeks ago.

As usual, on that Saturday morning she went jogging at the
Klub Rasuna sports center in Kuningan, South Jakarta, running
around the field 10 times. Which was not enough for Zoraya, who
won a gold medal during the Asian swimming championships when she
was 17. For 30 minutes, she worked out on an exercise machine,
burning off some 400 calories, followed by more exercises for
another two hours. By that stage, she was feeling good.

"But on Sunday night, I could barely move my right leg," she
said last week. The next morning, things were even worse: she
could not move at all.

Zoraya, an ANteve executive who is also a spokeswoman for the
Indonesian National Olympic Committee (KONI), had to undergo
physiotherapy and ultrasonic treatment. It hurt, but it worked.
And she could walk again with the aid of a crutch.

"On Thursday, I felt quite well, so I left the crutch and
walked up and down the stairs. I even went shopping at Hero," she
said.

As a result, she strained her muscles again, but this time it
was much worse. A doctor at the Metropolitan Medical Center
ordered her to stay in bed for two weeks.

"I felt like I was being punished," said Zoraya, who spent the
"punishment" by watching VCDs and playing with her only son.

Now she can walk without the crutch but she cannot run, let
alone practice on the exercise machines. "I have to go back to
basics: swimming," she said. But please, Ma'am, watch your
speed... (sim)