Marathon Run - a race with your legs, head and heart.
Peter, my tennis friend, has always been athletic all his life. He jogs his 5km 3 times each week and play tennis each weekend. Last year he told me he wanted to participate in the Singapore Marathon. It was in late November and the run was only a week away. I asked why? He wanted to complete a marathon all his life. He thought he was fit enough to last the distance by jogging and walking. He wanted to impress his friends and family and more importantly to show himself that he can. I strongly advised against his plan.
These were my reasons-
1. He needs to get clearance from his doctor first as he was past 55 year old. 2. He has never run longer than 15 km. 3. He is not prepared - he thinks that running alone is enough to get him past the finishing line. 4. He needs support from the friends and experts or experienced runners. 5. He needs a running plan or strategy. 6. He needs to feed his body and mind to prepare for the rigorous physical race. I was a marathoner and I should know.
Preparation - He listened and heeded my advice. He did not run. I recommended him to listen and learn from Angie and Steve in their delightful and enlightening podcast Marathon Training Academy during his gym practice four days a week. Peter increased his run from 5km to 15km each time for 2 hours, 4 times a week. His startegy was to have a 3 mins break each hour for refueling. He has not set any PR (personal record) as this was his first run and he just wanted to complete it. He took care of his body fueling well (in fact his appetite became bigger and his tummy became smaller thru this regular burning of his body fat). He hydrated himself well each day and drink occassionally when he feel thisty. No carbonated drink or oily food.Ate lots of fruits. He made sure he slept and rested well and avoided alcohol. The training has increased his alertness and his self-confidence increased too, besides other things...
Race Day - Peter worked in China and flew back to Singapore 4 days before the event. In the last few days earlier he had tapered down his training to conserve his energy for the big one and to recover from any muscle fatique. He did a light 5km run the next day and just rested for the next two days and avoided any injury by not joining his friends for his tennis. He was excited and could not wait for the race day. He ate more rice (carbohydrate) and drank more to hydrate and flood his body. The night before the event he slept early at 10.00pm.
December 4, 2011, the day of the marathon - Peter woke up at 4am. He had his usual light breakfast of milk with flake wheat. No heavy meal. Put on his tested Merrel running shoes (not as popular compared to the many branded Marathon-specific shoes). Had his usual thigh-splitted shorts with inner lining (no underwear - to prevent chaffing/ excessive rubbing of cloth on groin). He had his light belt pouch from Zinc to contain his iPhone and earpiece and a few dollar notes. He set his RunKeeper to track his running performance. All was ready. His wife ferried him to the starting point at Ngee Ann City. He joined the big crowd of about 10,000 at 4.45am. It was quite chaotic. He had to climb a low fence to join the runners. The starting time is 5.00am. The VIPs flagged us off and we started with a loud cheer.
The Run Experience. Peter did not rush into the race and he ran his normal pace at about 7 kph. He was way behind the queue and had to cover an extra kilometre. When they reached near the Istana, along Orchard Road, many runners broke off to head for the garden bushes to pee. The ladies did not seem to have any problem with their bladder control or else...difficult. Everyone was pacing well. The dawn was still dark like it was night. The air was fresh and the weather was cool and wonderful. The road was damped from the previous nights rain. It well cleared of traffic and well-managed to run safely. Directional signs were there with officials and cheer teams directing runners at every turn.
Going strong on a steady pace. The training and fueling helped. As he turned into Fort Road (about 12km mark) and on the way to East Coast Park, he had gotten his rhythm. He said he was feelin good and hi-fives a couples of cheer teams along the way and shouting, I feel great! He only stopped at the second water station to sip his half cup drink slowly and threw his paper cup on the grass verge. Two minutes later he continued as he had planned.
The young volunteers did a great jobs as runners lunged for their liquid. When he reached the BWW cooling fan mist blowing station, he was still going strong. The cooling fan was a good relief although the morning was very cool and not sunny after the few days of rain. Some paths were still wet with puddles. He avoided soaking his dry shoes. By that time the weight of the run was beginning to weigh down on the legs. He was longing for the U-turn point after Bedok. The sight of runners turning ahead gave some immediate respite as he felt that the next many steps were home run. He made the turn at the 23 km marker and was tired but still plodded on. The mind now took over. He said he wanted to finished the race to show his friends and family who encouraged to just complete the Half Marathon which he already did momemnts ago. He mental training daily on the treadmill now paid dividends. He had the mental will to go on.
The legs refused to bend well. One hour after the U-turn at the 23km back, the legs just failed to bend well. He started walking fast. Peter is known to be a very fast walker and this healthy habit now come into play. He jogged slowly and walked briskly. The tireness of the runners were very apparent by the 30km mark. Some had crump and some just quietly stopped. Many just sat on the benches. He said he tried to encourage them to move on but the agony on their faces said it all. Pain lah!! Some took off their shoes. A bad sign as they probably did not test and use the footwear before the race. New apparels or shoes is a big NO, NO.
The sight along the Marina area was beautiful. many of these stretches are closed to public on normal day except for this event. Peter could not help but stopped occasionally to snap photos with his iPhone. The RunKeeper App is really good. It audio-lly reported his progress in km every hour. It showed his route and speed too. The music also kept the spirit high and he sang along to some of his fav tunes. The legs were beginning to weigh heavily and the muscles refused to stretch. He hydrated himself at every station and took Shotz Energy Gel to refuel his depleted glycogen, the petroleum for body propulsion. We passed the Garden st the Bay. It was shady and beautifully green. Peter thought he had to visit the botanic again when ready.
The Climb. By the time we reached the bottom of the highway near Sheare Bridge many runners were spent. The sight of the slope was formidable. How?? Climbing the bridge to Rochor Road was torturous. Each step a muscle straining agony. One lady sat on the roadside head shaking sideways repeatedly, clutching her thighs and massaging her legs, aided by a few concerned teen first aiders. The efficient first aiders there had a field day. Many runners (including some young, fitter-looking and well-dressed ones) were either injured or on the verge of giving up. Peter used all he had to slowly climbed the slope. The sun was up and runners were faced with another obstacle - heat. It was about 1045 am. Runners were running, resting and shielding in the shade. Peter plodded on slowly, telling himself not to stop or give up. He did not stop at any point except for water break. The thought of giving up never cross his mind.
On the way down the highway, Peter opened his strides and soon he was at Rochore Road where he made a U-turn to the direction of the Fullerton Hotel. At this point the Full Marathoners merged with the Half Marathoners. Suddenly there were more runners. Peter was wondering if he had taken the wrong route. Four km more!! 4km left. Go, go, you can do it... the young cheer teams urged them on. It seemed so near yet it was painfully slow. As they were near the Fullerton Hotel, there were more photographers from the official photo team snapping photos furiously. The Marathon Official Photographers Team has a wonderful web where one can view photos by just submitting the BIB numbers or name. The database is good. The photos you see here were all taken by Peter. The photos from them are copyrighted and I cannot publish.
The Finishing Line. After making a turn at the Hotel, the runner were heading for the Padang, there was music and the announcer was making loud remarks, like Com on, Com on!! The sight of the beautiful Finish banner gave Peter a second wind and he was somehow able to flex his knees and make a dash to the finishing line among the younger athletes. The moment frozen. It was unbelievable for him. I did it, I did it, the phrase kept repaeting in his head. He stopped for a moment and rest both his numbed arms and fingers on his hip. He took a deep breathe to savour the moment. A moment of personal victory - for his unyielding fighting spirit at such an over-ripe age, for his friends, relatives and family. His daughter said it was inspirational for her and his eldest son was proud to tweet to his friends and office colleagues. His youngest son, an serious athlete himself said, Good job! and recover properly with some very sound advice. His wife who thought he was crazy when he told her that he was running a marathon didnt think so anymore. When he made the call to her to tell her that he had completed the race, she was overjoyed and amazed. Peter was not crazy afterall. Peter dedicate his run to his good friend, Tom, who just had a heart by-pass in January. Tom was elated and will get well soon and join him next year. Peter learned that he had to put in some long distance training of 20 to 25 km to increase his endurance. This he realised was lacking in his past preparattion. His dieting, hydration, rest, fueling was fine as he did not suffer any cramp, dizziness or hit-the-wall in his run. He also recovered well after the race. Three days later, he was on the road again completing his 5km run.
The race is not just for Peter. It is a race for all his loved ones to show that that the physical race is just a small part of the game. The larger impact is to inspire all that with dedicated discipline and will-power, running can be a life changer. That behaviour can be applied in every aspects of our life, besides keeping one alert and healthy and happy. Running is itself tough but the difficult part is to get up early, hit the road each day, eat and drink right, sleep well and stick to your training plan. Proscrastination is the daily enemy. When conquered, it becomes a good habit. It is life changing in many uncountable ways. You get your high and stay happier and healtheir ! Try it, invest in your health and happiness for all your loved ones too. I will .))
“Fitness is pushing through your workout when you don’t feel like it, because you know what you do today will make you stronger tomorrow.”
