With the start of registration for the 2008 Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, there was a flurry of interest in the online running community. I read with great interest a number of posts by a seasoned SGrunner Ultraman.
With his permission, I am reproducing them here (posts were put up on SGRunners Forum on July 22/23) so that we may all learn and be inspired:
To complete a marathon is not that difficult. You just need to overcome your own mental fear. Some SG runners lacked confidence years ago before they did their 1st marathon; nevertheless, once they have completed the 1st one (slow jog and walk approach etc), thereafter they became addicted and in fact even ended up doing Ultra marathons (including the recent Sundown 84km).
My student who was an "auntie level" (nearly 50) did her 1st marathon within 6 hours in 2007 after 4 months of training and tips given. The art in completing a marathon is just “go for it” and never look back but always listen to your body during the training and also in the actual event. If you slow jog a little and walk a few minutes and repeating the same flow….almost anyone with some jogging background can complete a marathon. We are lucky that there is no real cut off timing like 5 hours in some countries, therefore to complete SCM within 6 hours for the 1st timer is definitely quite a high probability as long as they have a minimum 30-40km/weekly mileage. You need not wait for 2 years later to run your marathon.
Once you have the "heart" set for it, marathon is just 10.5km run split into 4 sections, and you just need to cope with 10.5km separately instead of 42.195km in a go. To run this marathon, some tactics and strategy is a must and not just pure physical. Slow jog and walking will deliver the result. And you must sip at all the water stations without fail. If you really need to stop to recover for a few minutes, by all means do so. In fact female has a better endurance and will power over many males when come to such an event.
Everyone said “train hard”...I would use the word "train smart". Nothing is short cut for sure, but if you want to feel how a marathon is like this year, you need to pay a price too even if you can complete it with a mere 3-4 months of training. The 1st requirement is always the mental fear of unknown. Once you set in the “I can do it”, the unknown X-element in you will make the possibility. If you can clock your weekly mileage of about 40km, it is a starter. You don’t need speed as speed kills unless you have the foundation, do all the slow yet longer distances during the weekend would help.
My friend (that auntie) was no super lady; she was just a neighborhood “tai tai” who was willing to spend extra few hours a week to train for it. She did not mind the timing and just want a completion for herself, so she knew what she wants. If that is what you hope for, I can assure you that you will be able to complete SCM 42.195km on 7th December 2008.
I am no gifted runner but I am who I am today through years of regular training and listening to my body all the time. I started with walking and eventually picking up the pace and obtaining tips from all the seniors (sifus) I could find from either MR25 to Safra running club/Animiles etc and even from a common layman. One must understand what he/she wants in this arena. We are no professional but rather “passion runner” longing for self actualization during the process, seizing the day whenever we can and while we can.
A gifted runner is heavenly blessed if he/she is granted with such a talent. Nevertheless I would always believe in more humble approach to build up the foundation through regular exercise + desire to learn new techniques to improve running posture and change in the lifestyle as a runner.
Nothing is impossible as long as you have the free time to do so. If someone is faster than you, chase after their smoke and believing in yourself. We may not be the elites, we can still enjoy the realistic process.
Quality training + Quality resting + Quality attires + Quality diet => Quality Runner
Ultra
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