I guess many of us were runners. But instead of coming together before the starting line of a race, we got together in a movie theatre. It was a strange feeling. I hardly knew these people. But I knew that among them, there were those who ran in the same ING Georgia Half Marathon as me, those who ran in the same Peachtree Road Race as me, those who ran the same Atlanta Half Marathon as me. And after leaving the theatre that night, our paths are bound to cross again, even without us knowing, in some race.

We were at the theatre watching a movie, Spirit of the Marathon. The movie’s official website describes it as “the first ever non-fiction feature film to capture the drama and essence of the famed 26.2 mile running event”. And thousands of other runners across the US were watching that same film in their local theatres at the same time as us, for that movie was screened only on that day, at 7.30 pm, once.

Just like you would find in a marathon’s starting line-up, runners of diverse backgrounds and abilities, the movie featured 6 runners, including first-time marathoners, a grandfather in his seventies, a Boston hopeful and top world class athletes, and followed through their training progress for the Chicago Marathon in 2005.

The emotions associated with running and preparing for an event as demanding as a marathon are not just all about triumph and a sense of accomplishment. There is also the more negative side to it that any runner has to handle, overcome and sometimes simply accept. Frustration with an injury that thwarted your running plans, the humbling and distressed feeling that there is still so much in front of you while sensing that half of you is already gone, disappointment that that you have missed your goals despite all the months of hard work – these are all part and parcel of the marathon journey and were very well-captured in the film.

Quoting a person interviewed in the film, the marathon is like a metaphor of life. You set your goals, you plan and you work towards it. There are setbacks along the way and you learn to handle them. Your race may not turn out they way you hope for it to, and you go back, work on it and come back again for another race, hopefully wiser and stronger. You cannot expect things to be smooth sailing all the time, which, by the way, makes it too mundane.

I do not know what is it that other runners see in a marathon that makes them want to run, but there has to be something about it that keeps us coming back. I know that I will continue to run and I am already looking forward to my next marathon.

NB: By popular demand, there will be another screening of the movie Spirit of the Marathon in the US on 21 February 08. Runners, you still have a chance to watch it if you missed the last screening. Non-runners, if you like to take a peek into our sport, this is a great film to catch. Find out more about the movie here: http://www.marathonmovie.com. If you are not living in the US, you probably have to wait to see if the movie will be screened in your country. If not, wait for its DVD release later this year!

Hard-earned medal from a painful race, the outcome of which I found disappointing.

1. Train and race injury free
2. Build strength and balance
3. Finish the race
4. Employ techniques to reduce the amount of pain on my knees

These were the 4 goals that I set when I first started training for this Marathon. There was in fact a fifth one, which I said in this post that I would not pay too much attention to, because if the first 4 goals were met, this fifth one would come naturally. The fifth goal was to improve on my timing, if possible.

Now, I shall take a look at my report card:

1. Train and race injury free – Accomplished
2. Build strength and balance – Did make an effort, but could not feel its effect at the race
3. Finish the race – Accomplished
4. Employ techniques to reduce the amount of pain on my knees – Complete failure!

Naturally, since not all the four goals were met, the fifth goal did not even come close.

I started to have pains in my knees relatively early into the race, even before I reached the halfway mark. I had thought of an approach to preserve my knees, by taking a short walk in every 30 minutes of running. This approach, which seemed to be effective in my training, did not work out at the race. I also began to develop pains in my feet from the running. All these pains kept me from running towards the later part of the race and I had to walk the last 5 miles or so.

I was rather upset with the condition that I was in. I went into the race thinking that I had been doing the sensible thing for the past 5 months of training, but it just did not go right on race day. I have been thinking about what I could have done, or should have not done in my race preparation that could have landed me in a less agonising state. Man, I hope somebody could tell me!

I can actually think of many different reasons that can possibly explain why I was having those pains. I did a lot of winter training on the treadmill, so did my legs need more road running to get the knees used to the pounding associated with the larger impact when running on the road? Could I have tapered off my training too early? Could my shoes be too worn to give proper support to my feet, even though these shoes were relatively new with only 100 miles on them? And were these shoes providing sufficient support for me in the first place? Should I try using insoles with my running shoes? Or perhaps it is just the biomechanics of my body, how my bones are aligned and I am not an efficient runner anatomically?

The frustrating part is that there can be so many reasons and I can think of different ways to address them, but I do not exactly know which is/are THE way(s) that will make a difference. Do I have to take another 5 months of training and another Marathon to tell if my training or my running gear works?

Maybe not. Hopefully I should be able to learn as I train, which was actually what I thought I was doing when training for Disney World. In any case, there is one important thing to keep in mind – you never know what is going to happen at your Marathon, as the seasoned people say. Remain calm and work out a plan B. When out there with a race bib pinned to your shirt, it is your mind that helps you get to the finish.

2005, Singapore, Standard Chartered Marathon – I had my lesson number 1 in marathon running.

It was my first marathon and I did not have a proper game plan for my training. I thought I could just put in some regular weekend long runs and try to run as much as possible in the evenings after work. I knew nothing about injuries that can affect runners and how to prevent them until I was hit by one myself.

Just over a month before the race, I had problems running. There was a plaguing pain on the side of my left knee. The pain usually came after I started running for a short while. It was a pain that did not allow me to take a single leap forward at all any more.

It was painful, and I do not mean the pain here. It was painful to see other runners passed me by, not knowing what happened to my knee and not being certain if I was able to run ever again.

I did the right thing by getting myself referred to a sports clinic. There, I learned from my doctor that what was affecting me was something of a mouthful called the iliotibial band syndrome, or simply ITB syndrome. I learned that this is a common injury among runners. I found out that the funny-sounding name, iliotibial band, is actually a muscle that runs along the outside of the thigh from the hip and inserts into the bone just below the knee. I found out that the pain I experienced was the result of the muscle being too tight, which caused it to rub against the bones and tissues near the knee when I was running.

I was advised to take a break from running for a few weeks and I was put on a physiotherapy program at the clinic. I was taught how to stretch this muscle to loosen it up and I was introduced more stretches and exercises that helped loosen and strengthen muscles on my hips, thighs and calves, which are all inter-related in the mechanics of running. It finally dawned on me that preparing for a marathon does not only involve running miles and miles.

I also learned about the behavior of my feet when I run. I was categorised as an overpronator, meaning that my feet tend to roll inward too much after they hit the ground. I was told that the running shoes that I have been wearing did not have sufficient support to reduce this excessive motion and I was advised to switch to a pair that did.

I slowly resumed training, knowing that I was gradually recovering, but also fully aware that I have not completely recovered. Then, race day came.

The wise thing to do was not to participate at all, but I did. I wanted to be one of those who pinned their race numbers to their shirts and stepped up to the starting line that morning. I reckoned that I could still be part of the race and I made it a point to not push myself too hard.

I alternated between slow jogs and walks and watched out for warning signs that would tell me that I should cut my race short. Green light at 10k; green light at 17k, which was the turn-around for the half-marathon race, and I decided to carry on. 21k, then the half-way mark, running got more difficult, and the ITB menace unleashed itself.

I could not run anymore, but I did not want to abandon the race. I wanted the finishers’ t-shirt. I walked. I had cramps. I stopped to stretch. I resumed walking. I had cramps again. I stopped once more to stretch. I resumed walking again…

Having to walk this far was not easy at all. I cannot even remember whether it was 6 or 7 hours after the race started that the finish line came into sight. I was limping by the time I was crossing it.

I spent some time after the race to nurse the injury. It was not something catastrophic that would affect my daily life, but I knew from this episode onwards that I wanted to stay injury-free in my running life. As for the finishers’ t-shirt, I still cherish it till today. I wear it only very sparingly to avoid the wash and the wear from damaging it excessively.

That was my lesson number 1 in marathon running. I am a much wiser and better-informed runner today.

I am not yet a seasoned long-distance runner and I always find something worth learning about from the races that I ran. With my race coming up on Sunday, I read some of my old writings made after some past races and I thought I would post some of the excerpts here. I will start with the Flying Pig Marathon of Cincinnati, in 2007.

Why the Flying Pig?

I wanted to go for a race that catered to runners of all abilities, one that is enjoyable and able to offer a supportive environment to back-packers (no pun intended) like myself. The Flying Pig’s cut off time is 7 hours, one that leaves me with a comfortable finishing margin. It is also a big race with a record number of some 15,000 to 18,000 participants this year. I think this was a good choice.

No particular timing goals for this event for me. My goal was simply to complete the course injury-free, given my nasty experience with the ITB Syndrome when I did my last marathon.

The race

So, how did the race go? To tell the truth, it was torturous! Come on, 26.2 miles, or 42.195 km, how much of a breeze do you think it could be?

I do not know if I really met my goal of running injury-free or not, because my knees were hurting so much in the second half of the course that it slowed me down considerably.

Most of the uphill portions of the course are found in the first half. I did not have problem with them and I loved them. It was the downhill parts that were so punishing on my knees. In fact, they were hurting so much that around mile 20 or 21, I wanted to stop and walk.

It turned out that walking was much worse. I could not walk at my normal pace because of the pains, and there was a damned 5 miles or more to go. I am not trying to be philosophical by saying this, but I reckoned that the only way for me to finish the race was to keep running. Trying to walk the remaining 5 miles (read that again – 5 miles) would have taken ages, given that state that I was in.

So I kept running, at a pace that was probably similar to my brisk walking pace. The sun was warming up the day. I could feel my lips getting burnt, with all the drinking washing away the sunblock that I have applied. My mouth was dry and tasteless. I chanced upon every possible opportunity to inject some taste to my palate to keep myself interested in what I was trying to accomplish – Gatorade at every mile, energy gums that some kind souls were giving out, my power gel ration that I took my time savoring as I conquered a drink station after a mile marker followed by another drink station and another mile marker…

At the end, it took me almost 3 hours to complete the second half of the course, about 30 minutes more than what it took for the first half. Well, at least I was still running and did not have to walk more than half the course, like I did before more than a year ago.

The Aftermath

I was actually feeling cold and a little weak after crossing the finish line. Yes, it was a bright and sunny day, but there was a breeze blowing across the Ohio River, where the finishers’ area was too. I did not feel it when I was running, but once I stopped, the sweat evaporating off my drenched shirt left me cold and uncomfortable. Luckily, the participants were given survival blankets to wrap ourselves in.

After a hectic exercise like this, I did not have any appetite for a proper meal. I was having dizzy spells and I just wanted to make sure that I replenished my energy level so that I can at least make it back to the hotel and “plonk” in bed. I fed myself with what I needed at the finishers’ area – bagels, bananas, yogurt, pretzels, cookies etc. – and rested until the dizzy spells no longer plagued me before I made my way out.

I did not have to limp back to the hotel, which was quite some blocks away. I just had to walk very slowly. I did not regret my decision to spend that night in Cincinnati and leave for home only on the next day.

My knees recovered quickly over the next couple of days. It was my lips that were awful. Sun burnt, they were cracking and felt so scaly that I did not felt like having the face to meet people.

Take aways

1. There must be a running technique that minimizes pain on the knees and I got to learn it

There are so many people taking part in marathons nowadays. If a 26.2-mile run does so much havoc to everybody’s knees, why are there still so many people taking part in the races? There are people who do not end up in pain after running a race. I have also came across literature that talk about running techniques, and I believe that the right technique exists for people who wish to do their 26.2 miles with less pain, if not pain-free.

2. Carry a lip balm with sunscreen to a race

One more thing to carry, in addition to my power gel ration. I am always aware of the importance of hydrating myself at the drink stations. However, as I gulp down a cup of water or Gatorade, it washes away what has been applied on my lips prior to that. This has to be applied regularly over the lips, probably as regularly as I drink.

After doing my first ever marathon, I ended up with a black toenail on the big toe of my right foot. My nail on that toe was too long and the pressure it put on the nail bed each time my foot pushed off the ground was too much. Subjected to 6 or even 7 over hours of repetitive pressure with the running and walking, some of the blood vessels underneath the nail ruptured, causing what looked like a bruise under the toenail.

A few days following that race, the entire nail detached itself from its nail bed and I had to trim it off. So, I was without a toenail on the big toe of my right foot for a while and it took a whole 9 months or so before it grew back to its normal length.

9 months without a proper toenail! If I do a marathon once a year and I stand to lose my toenail each time, would that not mean that I would have a complete set of toenails only for 3 months in a year? The prospect of having missing or incompletely grown toenails for 3 quarters of a year is not appealing to me at all. It is from this episode that I learned my lesson. From then on, I would keep my nails short when my long run mileage exceeded 10k. On the eve of every half marathon or full ones that I did, I would definitely cut my toenails real short!

When say I cut the nails real short, I really mean I cut them as much as I could. I would cut off all the white parts of the nails and leave close to nothing that is not attached to the skin. This has worked for me and I have not lost a toenail from running ever since then.

I enjoy going for a pedicure every now and then and walk out of the pedicure salon spotting a set of nicely shaped and conspicuously colored toenails, and with my feet feeling fresh and clean. However, with my nail cutting routines that are essential for my running hobby, the shapes of my short toenails ended up being asymmetrical and they would look pretty weird with a coat of colour applied to them. Long distance running and vanity do not really go together, I thought, and there has to be these few months in my running season where I would not be going to the pedicurist. Nonetheless, compared to not having a complete set of toenails for 9 months, the better option is really obvious.

I have indeed not visited the pedicurist for a while, but I do have plans to do so this week. Not for the sake of vanity, but I would like to pamper my weary feet with a foot bath and a massage. Oh, and those callouses that have built up, they hurt my feet as I run. It will be great to have them removed before the race on Sunday.