the aftermath

Post marathon, i felt like i have dutifully finished the second round of examinations, that with its completion my holidays can finally be said to begin proper. Just like the school exams that i've had, the run on Sunday was an anticipated event, one that awaited to be finished with the full knowledge that once it's over all suffering would end. I make it sounds like i've been put through great misery that is of my own doing, but this is not true. Yes, my legs have been aching since after the run yesterday and, yes, the run was painful indeed. But as others who have taken part and who did their best would have you know, nothing beats the euphoria of having accomplished a marathon. It's not everyday that one takes the effort (which is considerable in extent) to run such distance, especially when one is neither an athlete nor a runner by profession. What i want to say is that as the marathon is over now, this brings to a close a chapter of my life in year 2005, so to speak. My schedule for the remaining days of the year, as it is, is now free from events and appointments that invariably inundate our personal calender. Which is why while one is still a student, the school vacation is always a delightful prospect. It provides an important respite that allows the human body to rest and refuel, the human mind to reflect.

Training
Training for the marathon started in earnest in August, although this little fact gives a completely lopsided picture of the truth. Twice a week Jon, EY and I would run 8km round campus, and this culminated in our running the army half-marathon in September. After that, as school work caught up with all of us, the frequency of training inevitably took a plunge, especially the weeks just before the marathon. Our training was very inconsistently maintained, to say the least. If one were aiming for a personal best timing in the marathon, there's no doubt that a training regime has to be adhered to diligently. To that end, Jon and I were hardly harsh on ourselves because we didn't set out to run the fastest that we could - we had neither the drive nor the wish to achieve that.

Gungho EY
On the other hand, EY, who has run the Philadelphia marathon the year before, had great aspirations. I knew him through cycling but it was through our training for the marathon that i got to know him better. A focused, imaginative, confident and often humourous guy, he pursues his interests with great passion. So much so that it was in fact his enthusiasm and discipline that pushed Jon and i to keep up with the weekly training. Without his participation, i can safely say for myself and Jon that we would be taking things easy and would most certainly not have trained as diligently as we had. For he's the one who takes note of how fast or slow we run, whether our timing has deteriorated, makes plan for running progressively longer distance, etc. etc. This was a far cry from two years ago, when Jon and I ran the same marathon without any proper training.

Race Day morning: Deja Vu
430am - i reached the stadium just in time before the chartered bus was about to leave. I wasn't feeling excited, nor was i worried. I got on the bus and was greeted by a scene reminiscent of army days. It was the wee hours of the morning, passengers on the bus were mostly - overwhelmingly - young males, and what's more, a quick scan on the bus registers the unmistakable observation that most of the fellow marathoners have very short and neat hair, not unlike that of a typcial soldier. Perhaps i shouldn't be surprised, since i've noticed that most people who do sports regularly tend to prefer to keep their hair short.

The Run
For the majority of us, when we attempt a difficult, unfamiliar or new task, especially one that challenges our comfort zone and mental strength, we are bound to feel jittery, excitement perhaps, a keen sense of anticipation definitely. I felt none of that before the race started nor during the race itself. I hadn't expected to. This being not the first marathon that i'm running, i had no mental barrier to overcome. I knew that with a comfortable pace the first 21km was going to be easy-going, even enjoyable. The sun's not out yet at 6am and you run in the early hours amid a city that gradually emerges from darkness to daylight, though in the midst of running you probably wouldn't bother to appreciate or notice the change. As the day slowly approaches noon the heat is acutely felt and makes every minute of your run increasingly unbearable. After the 30km mark every kilometer seems such a neverending stretch - there's a signboard showing the distance covered at every kilometer interval - that you begin to wonder whether the authorities have made a mistake with the measurement of distance. All this i had expected to face during the run, and all this i did experience on the actual run.

As EY so titled his blog post, 'doing it for the second time does not make it any easier', this is certainly true of my second attempt. Yet on hindsight, having done the marathon before makes you mentally prepared for the challenge. When every part of your leg aches terribly in protest while the scorching sun (the heat this year was exceptionally excruciating) hangs resolutely above throughout the morning, this calls for perseverance and self-motivation to work against conditions of adversity. It is when you merely have to grit your teeth and run on, resisting the constant urge to quit running and walk mostly for the remaining distance. Of course this is provided one has done sufficient training, for it would be utterly foolish to persist running and risk self-afflicted injuries if one wasn't prepared.

Why run a marathon then?
Firstly, i never aspire to run a marathon. Running certainly isn't my cup of tea. I find it a fairly monotonous activity and, besides, in the long term it does damage to your knees. i signed up because Jon wanted to, because two silly young men wanted to prove their worth while they still are able to do so. Secondly, because i need motivation to run regularly, which the marathon provided me with. It is a goal whose fufilment requires commitment and purposeful planning; it forces me to make a concious effort to run regularly. As someone who has to take the IPPT every year, it's important that i keep up with running, yet the problem is that i am not motivated to do so. Signing up to run a marathon helps in that sense. Above all, i run with my friends, something which is important because i just can't bring myself to run on my own. Having company is definitely essential for someone who lacks self-discipline.

In the end, i reckon i've never before clocked so much running mileage in a few months. Thanks to the company of Jon and EY, there was never a dull moment during our training.
Now, the third day after the marathon, i am quite fortunate and surprised that my legs have taken a shorter time to recover than the last time. I'm not sure if i would do it again next year, but if i were to, this time i would aim for a personal best timing - before my knees give way and age catches up.