7TH THAI HEALTH SONGKHLA INTERNATIONAL MARATHON – 28 AUGUST 2005 by LIM FANG HAU @ PM 23

This was my third marathon. I did not have much training for the race. After my Malacca marathon, I stopped running for two weeks. I went for mountain climbing in Nuang (a disastrous hiking trip where I injured my toes when descending from the mountain) and swimming. I only started running on 31 July 2005 on the request of Ronnie to replace Howard who decided not to run in the Klang race. For the next three weeks, I only managed to do normal weekend running of 20km+ for two out of the three weeks. I was out for running in mid August as I was attending a compulsory team building camp in Bangi, organised by the company.

In this race, I just wanted to test how effective my body system can adapt due to insufficient mileage. The race started at 4.00 am, Thailand time. I did not bother to notice my timing while I was running. I just ran at an average pace of 6 minutes + per km, which is quite a relaxed pace for me in the marathon. I covered 21 km distance in 2 hr 11 min+. By 30 km mark, my timing split was 3 hr 13 min+. At 33.2 km mark, my timing split was 3 hr 36 min +. When I reached 37.2 km mark, my timing split was 4 hr 3 min+. At this point, I was telling myself am I running too fast or I had improved with my cross training ? I knew that I was going to improve my personal best and there was a possibility of achieving sub 5-hour timing. I still did not experience any muscle cramp at this point of time. At the 40.2 km mark, my timing split was 4 hr 30 min+. At 41.2 km mark, my timing split was 4 hr 36 min+. From this point onwards, I started hitting the wall and I had to walk and run for about 500 metres. My whole body was shivering and this indicated that I was going to experience muscle cramp. After that, I just continued running at a slower pace. With less than 100 metres, I sprinted towards the finishing line. My finishing time was 4 hr 46 min 37.58 sec.

This was the best race for me and the longest distance I could go before hitting the wall. Overall, the race was well organised with proper traffic control. The route was flat throughout the race. Although there was not any isotonic drink station, the “magic” powder really helped me after 21 km mark.

Some interesting facts to share with you:
1. I lost 2 minutes of time after 34 km mark as I had to go to the toilet as a result of drinking too much water.
2. There was sufficient water station at every 2.5 km mark.
3. I started to use the plum powder after 22.5 km mark, as advised by Tey. Infect, I used 5 packets of plum powder after 22.5 km mark.
4. I like running on the Tisulanonda Bridge (distance 2km) (the Bridge”). This really motivated me and my pace was much faster on the bridge with music from my MP3 player.
5. The entire race route involve running along the seaside passing through the Samila Beach, Kao-Seng, Namkrachai Junction in the city and entering KorYoh Island via the Bridge. Upon entering the island, runners had to run for around 2 km+ before making a u-turn back to the original route. From there the route was running the same as running towards the mid point.
6. Running with music really motivated me especially with some love, rock and sentimental music.
7. This was my first time running a marathon without much training on my mileage. I discovered that, as long you have a good or average running base, you do not need much training with high mileage. You just need to train smart and not train hard. You can apply cross training as it helps.
8. The plum powder really helped me during the race. The best point to use it is after 22.5km. At every 4 to 5 km mark, you just consume the plum powder with water. Plum powder helps to replace the lost salt level in the body system. I only hit the wall at 41.2 km mark.
9. I carried a water bottle when running for the entire marathon as I was afraid of insufficient isotonic drink station. In the bottle, the isotonic drink was Gatorade.
10. In marathon, you do not need to speed. You have to control your pacing and try to run consistently throughout the race. By running consistently, it will reduce the chances of hitting the wall at 30 to 33 km mark.

Finally, I would like to thank Tey for his useful advice on plum powder and kindness in giving out the plum powder to the marathon runners before the race. I do hope that I can run my next marathon without hitting the wall.