27-year-old Joburg native Erin Lazarus has always been active in sport, but “avoided cross country like it was the plague”. Her father was an avid long-distance runner, and the family often accompanied him to support his races. But long-distance running wasn’t exactly comfortable for Erin – until the loss of her left leg renewed her resolve. Here’s how she became a Comrades Marathon finisher: by starting running with a bladed prosthesis.
“I avoided cross country like it was the plague.”
Erin’s father was an avid marathon runner and the family grew up with a tradition. “[My sister and I] “For example, I had a gymnastics competition and we got in the car straight after the competition, drove to Durban, and my father ran the Comrades the next day,” she remembers. Although she couldn’t bear the thought of running long distances, she toyed with the idea of one day competing with the Comrades like her father.
But in 2021, illness would threaten her physical freedoms. It started with various symptoms that seemed unrelated: knee pain, brain fog, joint pain, hair loss. “I felt like I was living in a different body,” she remembers. Doctors diagnosed her with anxiety, but Erin had a gut feeling it was wrong. “I knew then that there was no option – I don’t suffer from anxiety… But there was also a part of me that tried so hard to convince myself that it was anxiety.”
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“I didn’t feel like I was in my own body.”
In late 2021, with symptoms still undiagnosed, Erin missed physical education classes that she had previously passed with flying colors. She also had constant migraines. “The symptoms kept getting worse,” she remembers. One day she had dipped her legs in a pool – and suddenly her leg turned horribly black and had blue blisters. “I didn’t feel like I was in my own body,” she recalls, as she watched her leg become unrecognizable in front of her. The pain was unbearable.
When she was rushed to the emergency room, Erin finally received a diagnosis: lupus. “It was a sigh of relief – I finally have something. I’m not going crazy thinking my body is giving up on me.” But with the sigh of relief came a sobering reality: her doctors recommended that she amputate her leg. They had done everything they could to keep her limb alive, but the foot was dead.
Erin made a quick decision to let go of her leg. “I would look at my foot and it wouldn’t feel like mine anymore,” she says. “At that moment I thought, ‘Okay, we’ll amputate. This will be my new life. I’ll get a running blade like those cool Paralympians on TV.’ After recovering in the hospital, Erin decided to finally achieve her long-standing goal. She looked at her father and promised him that they would run a marathon together.
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Running with a bladed prosthesis
With her prosthetic blade, Erin learned to walk; It was a long, painful process. “I completely underestimated how difficult it would be to walk on a blade,” she says, recalling how her leg hurt and she had difficulty controlling the blade. “At first I thought, ‘What have I gotten myself into?'” she remembers.
But she just kept going. Erin told herself that although running with the prosthetic blade was painful and even 2km was strenuous, she would at least have a coffee afterwards. Through the running community, post-run coffee, and her father’s companionship, Erin ensured consistency. The whole family was there: her father ran alongside her, her mother at every finish line, her sister and her boyfriend accompanied her to the races. It was a 10K charity run that fundamentally changed Erin’s mindset: from “This is painful, but at least there’s coffee” to “Suck it up, you’re doing it for someone else and for a greater cause.”
This sense of purpose – that her race was not only about proving something to herself but also about helping others – was what drove her to run further distances. “Up until then, I had told everyone, ‘I’m doing a marathon,’ but I didn’t feel worthy to call myself a runner,” she explains. “I ran eight and a half minutes per kilometer on a good day. I didn’t feel like I was up to it.”
After doing the 10km run proud, Erin decided to set her sights on the Gun Run, a 21km race in Cape Town. Through this training she discovered her love for running. She previously struggled with imposter syndrome and felt like she wasn’t a real runner. “I think social media is a really cool place, but also very dangerous,” she emphasizes. “Everyone’s posting on Strava and it looks like girls with sports bras and six pack abs, like two beautifully toned legs, are completely ripped.” She had also internalized other ideas: that a 5K run shouldn’t include any walking portions; that she wasn’t slim enough to run in just her sports bra.
Erin’s Mental Shift: From “I have to do this” to “I CAN do this”
However, in the run-up to her half marathon, her successes gave her new confidence: she realized that she didn’t have to run, but she could. “I think I’m so used to living with just a prosthetic that I don’t feel any different,” she says. “When I moved up to 21, I thought, ‘I can do that!’” she remembers.
“A few years ago I was laying in a hospital bed and couldn’t run 10 meters, and now I can run 100 meters, 200 meters, whatever, and I can do more than most without a leg. So just be proud to get out there and do it.” Erin doesn’t run for praise, a medal or a hot Insta post. “It’s about being active, being healthy,” she says, “because that’s what you can do with people you love.”
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Running tips from Erin
Find your motivation. For Erin, running with a prosthetic blade was far more challenging than she expected. Crossing the finish line of her first race was a constant motivation for her and her community. “I fell in love with the running community and running with my dad, so I was okay with going through that short period of pain.”
Change your mindset. “[For] the 10K [race]Funnily enough, I actually teamed up with a charity and that was crazy for me because doing that 10K I’m not thinking, “Erin’s in pain, Erin’s in pain, Erin’s tired.” It said, “Take it up – you’re doing it for someone else and for a greater purpose.” And mentally that was the best thing for me. It’s crazy how just by changing that mindset you can progress even further. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still hard, but this was truly amazing.”
They set the tone. This has been Erin’s life motto since she received her carbon fiber blade. “I’m just so proud when I look back,” she says. “The things I said I would do, I finally did. I put it off for so long.”
This story, told to Michelle October, was first published in the March/April 2026 issue of Women’s Health Magazine South Africa.