Full Marathon : Checked!

I was very ambitious enough to aim a sub-5 finish as i learned most newbies finish more than 5 hours on their 1st full marathon attempt. Despite that, instead of following the 5 hours pacer, i followed the 4 hours pacer so if i fall behind, it would be still within sub 5 hours time. It's more like a safety net mechanism for me to materialise my goal. But if it is more than  5 hours i would still be more than contented completing it. After all, it's my maiden full marathon, finishing it alone, regardless of time clocked,  would still make me feel like a million buck..

It rained for the 1st 10km. Quite hard but not torrential. Something that i have always wondered how does it feel like running in the rain on a race day. I found it very relaxing and chilling. At the initial phase of the course, i feel like i have run an indefinite eternity only to discover that i have only covered 5km! dang! It meant that i had to cover 8 more eternities to complete the whole course. Double dang!

1st half of the course was ran good. My limbs were doing great and energy level was still good (thanx to 5 bananas that i walloped before the race) and there were no signs of cramps as yet. I ran the normal pace that i used to run during LSDs. Not too pushing and not too laid back. 

The 21km marker was at Jalan Bukit Bintang where it came with a digital timer. It indicated 2hours and 8minutes the moment i passed the marker. I quickly made a mental calculation that if i could maintain current (at that time) stride and pace, i could clock a sub 4.30 hours timing. i restrategized. i made it a point that i must run between 4 hours pacers and 4.30 hours pacers in order to finish below 4.30 hours. Taking into accounts potential cramps, lethargy and time taken at every water station breaks, i had a leeway of 2 hours of 22 minutes to achieve my new target time.

It was at kilometer 27  that i felt presence of cramps on my both legs. It was mild ones on right limb and hard ones on my left achille's heel, calf and thigh. I never experienced cramps before, not even during LSDs, probably because my LSD never passed the 25km wall. The cramps were kinda throbbing and at the same time jolting and stretching the muscle hard. Thank god, they were not acute that i have to completely stop running and nurse them.

From there onwards, i ran cautiously. I couldnt stretch my legs for bigger stride to reduce the frequency of cramps. I made it mandatory to stop at every water station to replenish the lost electrolyte with 100 plus drinks and at medical aid team to apply ointments on my cramped limbs. It was indeed a run driven by mental strength the moment the cramps reared its ugly heads.

As my mental strength was at its lowest along the tijani stretch, the sight of julie wong, kash and rais at KM36 really gave me a mental boost. These people are  angels  in disguise. They cheered, they came out with motivational placards, they even distributed drinks and foods to runner friends. All in the name of love and passion for running. God bless them!

KM 35 till KM 40 is the playground of RBUs where we used to happily frolicking and gallivanting while exchanging anecdotes and jokes in our LSD session. But this time around, the stretch was passed by rather strugglingly with mental mantra i.e, u can do it, bring it on, sikit je lagi, relentless forward motion etc. By this time the sun has risen, the heat has depleted the energy level tremendously and occurrence of cramps has become more often. All i wanted at that time was to see the finishing arch.

But not so fast, it is not over until it is really over, the finishing arch would have to wait . At KM 40, runners were made to run uphill into Kementerian Kerja Raya only to do a u-turn at the mid-climb. It was totally a mental torture, why oh why must the organizer do this to us? why? jerit hati kecilku.LOL! i plodded on. i dared not to take walk-breaks as i was afraid that i would surpass 4.30hrs time. 

The turning to Jalan TAR was somehow a breath of fresh air. the  physical lethargy, the mental exhaustion and the cramps strangely disappeared. The turning converged all runner from all categories. Suddenly there was merriment in the air. An atmosphere so festive that triggered me to run with head held up high towards the finishing line as if my limbs were as good as new.

i lost my full marathon cherry the moment i crossed the finish line. I did it!. It was an epic run for me. Epic enough for a john doe like  me. It was indeed an episode to remember in my life. An achievement that i would never thought of earning before.

I thank Allah for giving me good health that has enabled me to complete this epic race injury free. I would like to attribute this personal achievement of mine to the  support systems (RBUs, FMVs, Kaki Lariks, AdiNation Runners) that has strengthened my belief that full marathon is doable. You guys are the coolest! I am also thankful to myself for having the bravado to take this marathon challenge as i badly need something to be proud of myself. Here's to many FM races to come, insyaAllah!

verdict : 42.195km - 4 hours and 27 mins (PB @ PW)
ranking : 344

Apakah Perasaan Ini?

While I should be peaking in gathering mileages 2 weeks back, I was bogged down with injury which resulted myself not being able to run for two weeks. That’s TWO FREAKING WEEKS! Considering myself a 4-days-a-week-with-minimum-10km-per-session runner, that was a massive blow to me! I knew that I was gonna miss the adrenaline rush, my endorphine dose, and the highs that I got from sweats trickling down my face. During the first few days of resting, I twitched madly to run, and did run once only to find that the injury would have to stay at the back of my right knee joint for quite a while. So a running hiatus I took instead of going full swing with the mileage.

I am now 90% recovered and have done two 11km runs and 2 LSDs since I first resumed running after recovering. The pain is still there though its presence is faint. During the runs, I discovered that my body could not accustom to my usual running tempo, stride and speed. I’ve to be cautious with my running gait in fear of further worsening the pain. Apart from that, i easily pant and grasp for air. While breathing is laborious and sluggishness is evident, the ever irritating side twitch is felt too. In short, I am not the runner I used to be.

Somehow or rather, this has only waned the pre-race jitters that I normally experience in other big races for I know I am not gonna fare well and as I don’t prepare well.

Unlike Kak June, Yim, FMVs, RBU, GBS, Kaki Lariks who are now being taunted by pre-race jitter bugs or the thumping of Kompang that Diket keeps hearing as SCKLM is inching nearer, I don’t feel the same gung-ho-ness when I am about to embark into an epic chapter in my running book. Ironically, i feel emotionless when I should feel giddy and zesty. IT'S MY FIRST FULL MARATHON, FOR GOD SAKE! I know I am gonna get the zest back, but not before the big day. :(

Whatever it is, I am gonna run and finish the race nevertheless, but not as my normal runner-self.

p/s: Good Luck, folks! Run within safe limits. More importantly have fun running. Lets blaze the streets of KL!

The Knee Injuries Club

What’s with knee injuries that have been plaguing fellow runner friends? It started with Nadia and Shaqi. Shaqi busted his knees during NB 30km if am not mistaken and Nadya suffered it long before I discovered her blog. Just recently, Yim also succumbed to one, crushing his attempt to do his first full marathon at SCKLM. And today I read about KakJune’s plight on the same injury and about Ziff’s kissing goodbye to his participation in SCKLM for the very same reason.

Truth is, I am also nursing one. I contracted this injury during an LSD run last Monday night. I did 2 loops of the Masjid Putra-PICC-Masjid Putra route. It was on the 2nd loop that I noticed there was some nagging pain at the back of my right knee joint. I couldn’t seem to stretch my stride bigger. Every time I did, my joint felt strained. And I found that I couldnt run the normal gait that I used to. My cadence were smaller and as a result it took longer time for me to complete the usual 2 loops that I normally did.

Till to date, the pain is still there even when I walk i.e at office, at home. Though it’s not something like major, sharp, stinging pain, I am worried that if I continue exerting my self with strenuous training, it will further deteriorate that I can kiss my FMV attempt bye-bye. Hence, I haven’t been running since then to rest them knees so that they can be back to their normal, natural form. Unlike the rest, I have yet to visit any sport injury specialist. The most that I did to nurse them were icing them and spraying them Salonpas spray (goodies from NB15km race). Alhamdulillah, they are doing okay though the pain is still dangling.

I googled the net and discovered the closest description of my knee injury. Most probably, the situation that I am experiencing now is called Poplietus Injury which may have been caused by overusage of poplietus muscle. It may also have been caused by poor biomechanics or movement patterns. Thank god the remedial measures do not involve operation or long rest from running. The website stated that all that one need to do is to rest from aggravating acticities that involves the affected areas and stretch the hamstrings several times a day.

The Popliteus is a small muscle located at the back of the knee joint. It is responsible for internal (medial) rotation of the Tibia (shin bone) as well as for 'unlocking' the knee joint when bending the knee from a fully extended (straightened) position. Essentially it initiates knee flexion (bending).

So it has been 3 days of non-running which has gotten me restless. The runner inside me badly twitches to sweat myself out and to get the usual dose of endorphine and runner’s high but I guess I will be deprived of those for these few days :( I guess I will only try doing a light run next Monday, hoping by then, my knees are gonna be better like brand new. InsyaAllah.

Akhir kata, Love thy body. Your body is a shrine. Worship it. Take care of it!

Kids in a Candy Store

Most runners will find themselves like kids in a candy store for the 2nd half of 2010. Running events scheduled in the pipeline are aplenty for runners to choose from. I bet most runners will be all ‘rambang mata’ in selecting which race is worthy to participate in. So many interesting running events, so limited weekends. *sigh.. There are few equally interesting races which fall on the same date will surely give hard time for runners to decide. Me myself have shortlisted 11 races that I plan to take part in, tentatively.


Klang Centro Run – 11th July 2010 *new race for me, not sure whether last year got or not..registered oredi

Siemens Run – 18th July 2010 *participated last year, event was not that bad, hilarious lady MC

Shape Men’s Run – 31st July 2010 *potential goreng pisang panas, RM300 worth of goodies, a must run race!

Newton 12/25km – 26th Sept 2010 *expensive goodies, cool 2XU socks, interesting distance

Adidas King Of The Road - 3rd Oct 2010 *sentimental value-sake, among early runs that I took part in, love the atmosphere in the stadium

Mizuno Wave Run – 17th Oct 2010 *love the upm hills

Putrajaya 12 hours walk – 24th Oct 2010 *gonna be a maiden 12 hours walk for me

Genting Trail Blazer – 31st Oct 2010 *Revisiting the muddy trails, I’m all up for dirty fun

Penang Bridge Marathon – 21 November *revisiting the bridge and perhaps cuti-cuti penang afterwards

StanChart Singapore Marathon – 5th Dec 2010 *revisiting the merlion, plan to go there like a pauper this time around

Malakoff 12km run – 19th Dec 2010 * wretched hills of mont kiara got the better of me last year, so it’s pay back time this year..



These are the races that I’ve shortlisted from many races slated to be held. How crazy is that? Running is in for Malaysians nowadays so it seems. Maybe Malaysian find it fashionably cool to be spotted in running gears and wearing bib numbers. Hey, that was what I thought in the initial phase of my involvement in competitive running! A poseur I was before and now I am regularly running and regularly participating in running events. That’s not a bad thing kan?



Sadly, as many think that running is a cheap sport, it is not that cheap when one talks about fees of races. I notice that the price of few running events have spiked up to exorbitant range of fees which could be a pushing factor for one to enter a running event. To encourage people to take up running and to participate in running events, organizer should consider lowering the running fees. This could be achieved if the organizer make it optional for runners to opt whether to have the running vests or to forgo them. Runners who opt to have the vests may pay more than those who choose not to have them. Come to think of it, this year alone there are like more than 20 races and all runners are made compulsory to have them through the fees that they are made to pay. That said, one will have to store 20 vests in the wardrobe for year 2010 alone! Gile kan? And one wont get the chance to wear all, as us runners do have preferable or favourite running vests that makes us feel at best when wearing them while in action *i am talking about my self here, mine would be the white NB15km 2009 vest and the orange Adidas KOTR 2009 vest, ironically, both vests give me chafings! LOL! I don’t fancy the idea of piling up running vests in my tiny wardrobe in years to come.. i make good use of them by wearing them as baju tidur though..



Why restrict to running vests alone? Runners may also choose not to have them goodies or even post race meals as these may help to lower the running fees even more.. All the runners need to pay is administrative fees and off they go with their own shirts/vests and bib numbers provided by the organizer once they are let off at the starting line.. *I know, I sound like a cheapskate already.. hehe



If only seasoned, influential runner can highlight this matter to those money-milking organizer and enlighten them about their supposed social responsibility that is to encourage more people to run, and that is by lowering the race fees, they could attract more sedentary Malaysians to move their butts from the couch and eventually take up running as mean of exercise. *especially for those in the lower income bracket, that’s me!



No need seasoned and influential runner lah.. we can get so called newbies *otais actually* to create a “WE DEMAND CHEAPER RACE FEES TO ATTRACT MORE MALAYSIANS TO RUN’ group in the Facebook and recruit fans to file a petition to powers that be. (read: yim and kak june) hehehe..



Just a wishful thinking from el cheapo me.. it's not that i am starting a running revolution though, hehe.. Having said all that, choose wisely, folks!

Romancing The Hills

New Balance 15 KM 2009 marked one of my earliest participation in competitive running *though I don’t run to win. The route for this race was a runner’s nightmare *at least to me, as the organizer included the vertically challenging and brutal hills of Bukit Tunku. It is still firmly etched in my mind how I struggled my arse out to complete the distance up to the point of blurting out vulgarities and cursing myself. LOL! I clocked 1 hours and 46 minutes to complete the whole course and swore to never get myself running on that hell-ish route again. But, sometimes people don’t mean what they say, and first love is hard to forget so they say. I registered myself for New Balance 15 KM 2010 last December for the sentimental value of it and to see how much have I improved as one year has gone by since the 2009 edition.

So, the memory lane of NB15 km was strolled down again last Sunday. I was a bit prepared knowing what to expect *the mean double hills of course, how to tackle the hills, and how to run during the whole course but still the jitters never ceased to haunt me. Tortures of the hills still remain though. Punishing enough to those who didn’t wisely plan on how to conquer them. And the scorching morning heat was equivalently evil, draining every bit of energy there were in grasping-for-breathe runners. The only salvations throughout the course were the time going downhills. Just only when one thought the suffering was over, just before one could heave a breather of relief, there came another hill mounted infront waiting to be scaled up!

But, Just like Yim and Nadya, I love them hills especially when going up. It is the time where I gotta sayur back people who overtook me at the corner of somewhere flat earlier. Contrary to many people, I kinda dislike going downhill because this is the part where people sayur me back. I don’t know, I guess my stubby legs couldn’t take the speed and the momentum of going downhill. Sometimes I feel like fumbling forward when I was going too fast running downhill. I’d rather maintain my cautious stride and don’t give a hoot when other runners overtake me when racing downhill.The idea of my body rolling down the hill doesn’t fancy me much.. LOL!

The last stretch going downhill from jalan parlimen to the finishing line was heaven-sent. I upped my pace and strived bigger aiming to overtake a Chinese uncle, maybe participating in the Men Sr Veteran Category, whom I paced on the 2nd half of the run but to no avail. He was just too fast. Nonetheless, crossing the finishing line, knowing that I have improved my timing from last year’s is just enough to give me a runner’s high. :)

NB 15KM RUN 2009 VERDICT

Time : 1:46:41             Men Open Placing : 423      Overall placing : 926

NB 15KM RUN 2010 VERDICT

Time : 1:15:34             Men Open Placing : 37        Overall placing : 77

p/s: Met the usual suspects at the race – syuk, diket, det, ian, yim and kak haza. truly weekend warriors!

p/p/s: thanks to kaki lariks – irwan, babart, aliff, ted and amir for the company and for the sinful-but-justified nasi lemak session after the race.. :)

The Much Anticipated, Most Talked About Energizer Night Race 2010

The most hyped up and talked about running event in Malaysia in recent time finally took off. Yours truly took part in the half marathon category. Due to lack of training I didn’t expect much in this race. I was only hoping to clock a decent time of 2 hours and 5mins. A sub-2 hours timing would be a bonus though.

Though half marathon was only due to start at 8.00 pm, the kiasuness in me itched to reach the race venue early to avoid parking hassles. So off I went to cyberjaya and reached the Street Malls parking area and secured a parking spot. After a somewhat less than 7 minutes shuttle-bus ride I reached the race venue at 5-ish pm. Full marathoners were spotted in sight, busy preparing themselves who were scheduled to start off at 6pm. Met otai runners i.e syah, ian, nik, shahir, shuk who were all psyched up to run their early evening marathon. It was still blazing hot when they were let off at 6.00 pm and I bet those runners were crossing their fingers hoping that the weather would get cooler soon.

At 8.00 pm, the half marathoners were let off but not before the cheeky cheerleaders performing their funky routines and sensual moves first which attracted catcalls noise from the runners. The early phase of the road where we were let off was lit off. I think it was intended so that the runners’ headlamp that the sponsor supplied would be seen as effective. It worked though. The headlamp can be a nuisance but if one knew how to tie it, it wouldn’t be that bordersome.

Lesson learned from Putrajaya Night Narathon is not to pulun at the early phase of the race. The strategy for this race was to go for a negative split. So I opted to deploy a not-so-slow,-not-so-fast pace strategy for the first 15 km. Along the way I bumped into Yim who was spotted from behind sporting 4 glowies! Had a quick chat with him and exchanged good-lucks before we continued running on our own. The route was 70% flat with 30% hilly parts that was not that taxing. Surprisingly, unlike PNM, the much dreaded hot and humid night condition was not felt. Instead, it was chilly and at certain part of the route it was breezy, perfectly ideal for a night run. I managed to keep my pace steady during the first phase of the race and not to tense myself up when other runners overtook me. I kept reminding myself to stick to the strategy or otherwise I would burn out too soon, way before crossing the finishing line. Along the way, I tried pacing some fast runners just to make sure that I was not going too slow. Some were paceable and some were very fast that it was hard to keep up.

Towards the 15th km onwards, numbers of half marathoners that I could see in front of me has reduced in number. I reckon that it was at the 17th km that the half marathon route and 10km route merged at this particular intersection and I found my self running into swarm of thousands of 10km runners who were coming from another direction. I had to run in zigzag motion and criss-crossing to avoid bumping into them. The half marathoners who I paced earlier were no longer in sight. Realizing that it was the final kilometers of the race, I ran a faster tempo hoping to clock the time that I desired. And as in any other races the final kilometers are always the longest and seems neverending and this race was not an exception. We were made to run on a final long stretch which has the longest incline ever and I was repeteadly cursing, “Where is the effing finishing line?!” and almost blurted it out loud. It was only after I saw the final roundabout that I know the elusive finishing line would be finally in grasp.

Overall, I ran a good race . The dreaded heat from energy-sapping, blazing hot tarmac was not felt this time around. Sticking to my strategy of not going too strong at the beginning of the race really pays. The bananas that I consumed really worked in providing me instant energy (I had 8 bananas from 3-7pm). And not to forget plenty intake of 100 plus during the race day has prevented me from experiencing potential cramps. And it’s even sweeter that I rewrote my 21km’s personal best time!

Verdict - 21km Men's Open Category

Placing : 33

Chip Time : 1:55:30
Gun Time : 1:55:59

Putrajaya Night Marathon 2010 – In Search Of Better Half

My NB20km timing that I clocked 3 weeks ago was promising (according to my amateur standard lah,  of course!) that I set such a high benchmark (again, my amateur standard) for me to surpass this time. NB 20km run was not precisely 20km, in fact it was actually 2 kms short of a half marathon. After much calculation and estimation of what I have done and could have done, I have set a target time ranging between 1 hour and 50 mins and 1 hour 55 mins for me to clock this time around.

Reached the race compounds at 7.30pm with the rest of Kaki Lariks who earlier gathered at my place. We parked our cars behind the what-used-to-be-MECD-building and rushed to Perbadanan Putrajaya to perform maghrib prayers at a surau there. Bumped into Che at surau and he handed me 10 glowies. *che,will pay u today eh.. The atmosphere was great. Sea of enthusiastic runners donned in white vest/shirts flooded the Perdana Boulevard. I caught a glimpse of a marching band troupe in blue in their position ready to perk up the night. Weather was fine. But the much dreaded infamous night humidity had yet to surface.

After depositing our belongings to the luggage tents, we rushed to the runners’ gantry located in front of Palace of Justice where there were already early birds all hyped up to be released. I bumped into Shuk and exchanged hellos and all-the-bests. Did a little warm up and chatted with Babart and Irwan to make me feel more relaxed and less jumpy. We were released when the digital clock indicated 28mins-ish after the full marathon runners were let off. I was at the middle of the pack and it took me 30 seconds navigating through eager runners before I could cross the starting line.

I started off maintaining my pace, striding big but not pushing myself hard that I could tire myself easily. I darted through my way towards PICC and got to ran side by side with the inspirational blade runner from Singapore. I later ran into Yim whom I identified from behind by the glowies he wore. We ran together and parted ways as I made a little detour to join fellow runners emptying bladders just before the climb behind PICC.

The route was a mixture of not so torturous hills and flat surface which was a good thing. And there were not-so-long stretches, gentle slopes, turns and roundabouts. In short the 21 km route was not boring. The rest of the run was smooth. I managed to maintain the same pace and stride until I made a turn into the route leading to Prime Minister’s Department. It was like a long stretch about 4 kms before the finishing line. My feet started to feel numb. The warmth of the tarmac which could be tolerated before has become unbearable. It was as if my running shoes were absorbing the heat from the tarmac like a sponge does to water. The numb feeling and the burning sensation was such a deadly combination that it really drained me. It got worse with every constant pounding on the tarmac. My pace has gone haywired and my stride has turned smaller. The more I tried to stretch my legs for a bigger stride the more drained I become. I was literally running at a snail pace. Quite a number of runners whom I overtook earlier took sweet revenge overtaking me and my effort to keep with their pace was futile. It was like the most excruciating and the longest 4km in my life and to double-whammy that, it came with a cruel detour behind Palace of Justice before the runners could really end the race.

Finally, after what felt like ages I crossed the finishing line. I immediately took off my shoes and limped barefooted on the tarmac, looking around for my friends who were done with their 7.7 km run earlier. Believe me the socks and the shoes were totally drenched. The feeling of having to get off the shoes from my feet was just heavenly.

Overall, mission was not accomplished. :). It was mainly because of the agonizing and punishing last 4km. If I could have maintained the same pace from the start, if i could have known how to handle the burning feet, the targeted time could have been achieved. But it was a feat for me too as I managed to shed 7 minutes off from my personal best done at SCSM2009. I really have to train myself more frequently doing the real distance in order for me to achieve that. Energizer Night Race is the venue for me to achieve that. InsyaAllah.

Verdict : Official time - 01:58:49 , Nett Time :1:57:51

p/s: how does one deal with burning sensation from the tarmac? What kind of socks/shoes one needs to wear? I observe that this burning sensation is only felt during night run. I experienced the same thing during PBIM.