I ran 42.195km !

A Marathon!
That's what I did for fun over the weekend! It was a definitely a sense of joy and achievement I felt running to the finishing point. It was great hearing my name being announced 20 metres to the end point.

My summary for the Singapore Standard Chartered Marathon
I slept at midnight and woke up at 5am. Not as much sleep as I should get but I so used to sleeping past midnight that it's difficult adjusting my sleep pattern. Jumped out of bed and walloped 2 bananas and head to the event start. Managed to offload twice in the toilet, which is a good thing... rather than in the middle of the run.

The event started a few minutes delay about 6:05 when it was scheduled for 6am. The first 10mins was a slow walk as it takes time for the crowd to just start moving. Bear in mind that slightly more than 30,000 signed up for the event but almost 10,000 are doing the full marathon and the rest are scheduled for the 21km and 10km run.

I felt strong in the 1st 30km going at about 4:30hr pace. I wasnt even running fast. just comfortable pace. I had a end-goal of completing my 1st marathon in 5hrs. Plus-minus since this is my 1st time attempting such a long run. I've only managed to run 25km 4 weeks prior to the marathon and was scheduled to increase the mileage to 32km but work commitments have been tough and I was struggling to juggle training with work.

I didnt experience a physical wall during the marathon but at the 37km mark, my legs just started slowing down tremendously. I had to stretch every kilometer after that so that my calves, thighs or hamstring wouldnt cram up and the reace would be over for me. I decided to slow down and jog/walk the rest of the way.

I maanage to complete the marathon in 5:15hr. Not a fantastic time but i'm happy I achieved what I managed to set out.... which is to complete the marathon before the ironman race on 3rd March 2007.

I have to complete another run which is at least marathon distance... preferbly at least 45-48km.

It's one day after the marathon and my legs are aching badly. I'm having difficultl walking up stairs. I should be fine by mid-week. My focus has to get back on track and into the training for the ironman. I will be focusing more on the bike and swim components since I've just completed the distance required for the ironman.

Wish me luck!

IronmanBernard