My first full-Marathon

I am a finisher of 42.195 KM in 4 hours 48 minutes. Yikes. My month long preparation culminates into an amazing run. It was not perfect per se. Nevertheless, I feel I did really well for the training I went through.

As I reported here I continued my training till Nov 30^th. Unlike my training in 2009 this training was shorter and less painful. There were no swollen shins and blackened toe nails, probably because of the shorter duration. If it were for a 3 month duration I am sure I would have cracked the 4.30 mark.

The marathon started at 5am. Never before had I run at that time of the day and it was refreshing and pulsating to run with a sea of fellow marathoners. I finished the first 10km by 57 min and the next 10km by 1 hr 57 min. Impressed by my performance I continued with much more determination and reached the 30K mark by 3 hours 10min. Realizing that the sun is not yet out I smiled for myself. Suddenly 42 K in 4 hr 30 min seems very much possible. Then as I continued to take strides my very old problem resurfaced ( This and this ). I am still not sure why exactly this problem is happening. The only trouble I face during a long distance run is the calf muscle cramp: my right calf muscle. The only answer can be lack of training. For this and this my calf muscle gave up at about 18km. Fortunately, for the full marathon it gave up after 30 probably because of the better training. And having my lessons learnt during those two runs I immediately stopped and stretched whenever I felt the cramp in my calf muscle. But eventually with some muscle rub I crossed the finish line with a big grin on my face. I can’t wait for my next marathon in May.

Happy New Year 2011!!

Happy New Year and Happy New Decade. Hope this New Year brings all the happiness, peace, good health, and prosperity. Leave the negativity and embrace 2011 with optimism coupled with greater courage to face the new challenges ahead. God bless!

Singapore Marathon 2010

The much awaited half marathon is finally over and with a disappointing result. Finished the race in 2hr 20 min approx. But it was a hard fought finish that I didn't expect to happen in the first place.

Unlike for last year, this year I didn't train much. My weekend long runs are the only ones I did. Those runs gave the enough confidence to face this year’s marathon. But that proved to be little. My target this year was the same as last year; to finish the race below 2hrs. And the weekend long runs consistently proved that 2hrs is within my reach. And except for a few minor injuries I felt relatively fit.

Started the marathon at about 6.30 am and the climate is already too humid. My knee started to show signs of trouble when it started paining after 2km but the pain was not too intimidating. I reached the 11k mark after 1 hr 3 min which is satisfying I thought. So the 2hrs target is still on. After sometime legs didn't hurt but the stomach started growling. I was sapped of my energy and the hunger coupled with the thirst made me feel dizzy. My energy levels almost dropped to near zero.

And then the final blow came @ around the 18k mark. My calf muscle became so stiff that I couldn't even lift my leg and place it down. It was swollen and drove me nuts .Both the calf muscles started to hurt and I applied the pain relief and started my stride again when suddenly the pain became excruciating. I never had this condition before and I didn't know how to get rid of this. So I tried to relax my muscle little by folding my leg. Someone just hit a nail on my head or I felt so. The pain was unbearable and thus effectively ended my 2 hrs target. I started telling myself to just finish the race. I stretched the leg little and began to walk, limping. Tried to cheat my leg by running after sometime but then it didn't fall for it. Pain was consistent. So kept walking the last 3km and to save my dignity started running the last 200 mts thus ending a gruesome fight with my leg.

One thing I didn't like this year is the water station positions. They were well 5 km apart and the sun is blazing to say the least. Also the promised banana station was missing at the 13.8km mark. Overall the race was kind of a lesson on what not to do and what I should have done in those circumstances. I should have had better running shoes. And next time I better know exact water station locations. Hopefully can register for a full marathon next time. Lots of training should be done for that. And I shall overcome.

2 years!!

Today marks the second year of completion at my company. Yeaaah. Much has changed since this. More importantly time just flew by filled with both joyful and doleful moments. Working @ my company has been great and I definitely learnt more (albeit a more customized) than what my schools taught.

I have become a better professional (considering how bad I was when I started working). If I were asked a question 2 years back about where would you see yourself in 2 yrs my answer would have nearly matched my current status. I say nearly but not exactly. Well mostly because the naive in me could have listed some unreasonable things.

Getting a 2 year work ex is a big milestone to me considering my future ambitions. Overall it’s good to be here and will try to be a better professional. All iz well

Youth Olympics

Thanks to the youth Olympics I have experienced many firsts in the last fortnight and of course enjoyed it to the core with a tinge of disappointment here and there. Firstly , I got to be a Liaison Officer in the first ever Youth Olympics(screams YAY). Secondly given my love for tennis it's a shame that I have never seen a live match. No more guilt and shame. I had seen not one but four live Olympic matches :)(double YAY). Lastly but definitely the least, the five star hotel treatment was awesome.

When I signed in as a LO I didn't know what is expected from me. Neither did I know what I am expecting from the games. All I knew was that I need to have the Olympic logo on my resume and it got stamped hard and clear;A certificate of appreciation from the Olympic committee appreciating my work. After all tiresome sessions of training and numerous warnings of expect Murphy kind of things I should say it was really a smooth flow. Murphy was miles away from me. Enjoyed being a LO to Rwanda National Olympic Committee President with no hiccups whatsoever. Initially there was kinda fretting but once the ice broke things were super normal.

It was my president who wanted to see the Tennis match and I was more than glad that finally I got to see a tennis match LIVE. I always used to laugh at the sight of people in the stands swaying their necks to catch the ball in action. This time it was my turn to sway the neck and boy didn't I enjoy and laugh at myself!! It was kinda funny to follow the ball.

During the grand slams except for the finals I don't follow the juniors progress. So occasionally Bhambri used to show up on the screen. And guess what I met Bhambri:) and seen him play the finals. Unfortunately due to the cramps he got to pull out but glad India won a silver in Tennis. The shouts of Yuki Yuki didn't help my goose bumps to subside. Seeing the sports persons made me wish to be in their shoes. Sport is such a glory.

Finally shameless me but absolutely love the freebies. Watching big shots at the big hotels and the feeling of being in a real swanky place is indescribable. Having a SMRT pass was nothing less than owing the whole train/bus. Ahhh such a luxury.I miss the free SMRT service :(. Also met so many wonderful people in the course of this journey and wish we can work for something big again. Time to get back to the normal life and be real serious in starting something which has been in deferment for quite sometime