Daily Lesson from Life 19 October 2008

The day I checked out the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon (SCCM) Route - 19 October 2008!!

The SCCM is on 7 December 2008. So, I do not have too much time left!! It is less than 2 more months to go!

I decided to check out the route and at least get through to the 1/2 way mark for the full marathon today. So, I woke up at 7am. Wash up and off I go by bus to the Esplanade, the starting point of SCCM! I was not early. There were already a few groups, albeit, some groups.

The route took me down Shenton Way, the financial street of Singapore, then through Robinson Road, down to Raffles Avenue, Republic Boulevard, etc to East Coast Road and turnaround at the National Sailing Center! I took about 3 hrs to reach the turning point! I felt I need to exert a lot of efforts to accomplish this so was not too thrilled as it meant I will be struggling for the return leg of the marathon! My original aim of completing it in 6hrs will have to be adjusted. I now believe at least 7hrs may be more realistic. Potential could even be an 8 hrs jog/walk on 7 Dec 2008!!

Lesson to learn:

1. if you do not plan, you plan to fail. I planned for the marathon. It is a one -year project! The holistic health routine of eating right and exercising regular DO NOT means I get off easy! Despite the regular 10- to 15km jog/walk over the last 4 months or more, I still feel the pain this morning! I stopped a few times and resorted to counting from 1to 50 or 100 while brisk walking and then 1 to 80 or 100 or 200 while running! This help keep the focus of walk and then job without too long a break!! Breaking the momentum too long may destroy your desire to continue with the physically painful job!!;

2. focus on mind is very important as it can overcome the physical pains for you! When I focus on counting, I am able to jog with reasonable speed for a long period. This is challenging as you keep going to it like I did this morning when I jog/walk/job/walk for a good part of the trip after the 10km!!;

3. I was glad I brought my cap and towel and a small bottle of mixed sugar-and-salt solution! Dehydration that caused crams can be devastating! Keeping hydrated is key! So, it shows that using the right tools and the right techniques can go a long way!!

I will be resting for the next 3 days before jogging and walking a 15-km stint again.

I believe I can finish the SCCM now. Just that the timing will not be a optimistic as I thought! ;-)