What happened last Sunday could be one of the defining moments of my life. I’ve discovered myself, learned how I reacted to life’s pressures and finally made a 360 degree turn-around to do the right thing.

I’ve started everything as planned as detailed from my previous post. I woke up earlier than expected, did  a short prayer, had my breakfast, dressed up and hit the road around 2:00am. I picked up elite runners Ellen Tolentino and sister and a sprinter athlete at 711 station in front of DLSU-D and then headed straight in front of Manila Hotel where I parked my car. Few minutes before we got out of the car and as they were preparing their stuffs, Ellen gave me a suggestion what to take before an actual run. Take Pharmaton. Hahahaha yeah that multivitamin supplement. I’m sure they are not official endorsers of that product and they do mean it to help me out with my race. So these elite runners are taking it before they run, I shall try this in the future and check how it will affect my performance. I did my usual warm up by slowly running around and then decided to go to the nearest McDo where takbo.ph guys were suppose to meet. I got in there around 3:50am but found no one so I decided to go back near the starting area where I met Craig of  Team Logan. We had a little chat on how he placed a nice banner on his son’s stroller and informed me that his wife will run her first 21k that day. I stick with him knowing that he’s suppose to lead a prayer for 42k runners around 4am but that didn’t happen as no one from the team was still around (or they were already inside the race area). Around 4:10 am, fellow virgin marathoners from Takbo.ph runners were slowly coming in. In what could be a foreshadowing of things to come that morning, just when I was about to get inside I noticed that the barcode attached to my bib is gone! I ran towards my car (and met Wilson along the way) to see if the barcode is still there but found nothing. I have to ask one of the race guy and he informed me that I could just give my race bib so that my official time could be registered.

So I finally got inside the race area and saw a couple of runners bloggers ready to rock. I made sure to greet every person I recognize from blogger world like BaldRunner,  Jonel, Natz, Vener and Ivy Macainan (not a blogger but sure she’s hot, anyway…). The race started earlier than expected. The road along Roxas was easy and with my pace still in check via my heart rate watch, I made sure I wasn’t running too fast to conserve energy. On the 10th km, I consumed my hammer gel followed by a sip of gatorade from my hydration bottle. As it was my FIRST time to take it, I felt something weird about the taste. I ignored the taste and moved on with my run. The road going to Buendia section was a relief as I didn’t feel the usual stomach cramp that normally triggers after more than an hour of hard run. I met Bards and her team and joined her for a few meters. I asked her our pace and she told something like 6min+/km. Somewhere along this section of the road was a misting station. When some runners would run quickly as not to get soaked from it, I actually ran slower to enjoy that area with the intention of cooling my body temperature. Few meters away from the misting station, I realized I made the worst mistake in what could be the start of my agony. I noticed that my shoes were already wet, including my socks and feet! I was hoping there would be no blister attack as I almost soaked my feet in petroleum gel the night before. True enough, there were no blisters the entire race but there was a very painful deep crease on my left foot. Imagine running with a sharp knife under your feet stabbing you every time you step. That’s the feeling. See what I got:

Every step is a painful experience

I had to remove my shoes four times during the race (the last time with Doc Roy) to see if it bleeds, because if it bleeds then that would be the time to finally call it a day.  I still continue my pace albeit slower then took another Hammer gel a kilometer before the road going to Kalayaan Flyover. I can only reckon if this stimulated bowel movement because a few minutes later, I was dying to look for the nearest public rest room to release it! The entire event made me remember Murphy’s Extended Law. If a series of events can go wrong, they will do so in the worst possible sequence. I was already in the treacherous road of Kalayaan Flyover when this happened. This is the time I really ran very very slow.  Then Rico appeared out of nowhere behind my back. This happened near the end of Kalayaan Flyover. I tried to pace with him for a few meters but finally have to give up my pretension and informed him of my predicament.  He informed me of the nearest public rest room (Shell station) and another one near the Army headquarters. I thought it would be impossible to do it at the Army station and so I decided to visit the neared  rest room at Shell station.

Look closely at my face....this was the time I was dying to release all my frustrations in life to the nearest public rest room!

Off I ran in the opposite road while telling Rico I’ll have to go to Shell station to do my thing. As MOST public bathrooms here in the Philippines have no tissue paper, I have to go the counter to BEG for tissue paper (I didn’t have money on my hydration belt). The lady gave me one and I hurriedly ran towards the C.R. Just when I was about to release it, I heard a knock on the door and so hurriedly put my shorts back. I opened the door and there was this lady in front of me. I then realized I entered lady’s rest room! Grabe noh? I apologized and went to the next room which I made sure was for guys! I was finally able to release it and just as I put my shorts back, Migs (shutter_speed) also hurriedly went inside! I think I gave him the shock of his life when he saw me. As I was technically already done (but haven’t actually flushed the toilet yet when he entered), I hurriedly flushed the CR, put my hydration belt and bib on and off I go.

..to be continued…

This post will detail my preparation for Sunday’s 33rd Milo Marathon Elimination. I hope you guys send any comment and let me know if I got anything wrong here before its too late.

Foods and Drinks before the Race Proper
Official race time for 42km runners will start at 4:30a.m. I plan to wake up at least 3 hours before 4:30am so that means I have to be awake by 1:30a.m already. In doing so, I plan to sleep VERY early like 6:00 pm. I’m not sure if this is doable but according to some blogs I’ve been reading, drinking alcohol will help me fall asleep. I will not do this. I will try instead to take a nice shower, get rid of all the noise and turn on the airconditioner and hope this will help me fall asleep fast. By 1:30am, I shall be eating my pre-race meal which consists of 2 regular size banana and a 2 slices of whole wheat bread coated with peanut butter. I’ve been eating this every morning since Monday and will do so until Saturday to ensure my stomach will get used to it. I will not add anything new to my usual breakfast until marathon day. While I understand that waking up as early as 1:30am may be an inconvenience for first time would-be marathoners, this is very vital. First, it will allow my stomach adequate time for digestion, thus reducing the risk of developing any gastro issues during the race and probably cramps. Secondly and most important, after consuming my pre-race breakfast, my body will release insulin. From what I’ve read from several literatures, insulin inhibits growth hormone release. Because growth hormone improves performance, I plan to minimize growth hormone inhibition by insulin. And finally, elevated levels of insulin before activities results in a faster rate of carbo utilization. Since we all know that carbohydrates are critical component of energy to complete this particular race, I do not want to use them up too quickly. Its been said that it usually takes 2-3 hours after a meal for the insulin levels to return to normal, therefore I plan to eat a small carbohydrate meal (sample above) about 3 hours before the start of the race. By 2:30am, I will start drinking 2 glasses of water to offset any deficit accrued during my night’s sleep. I will drink a glass of water 30 minutes before the start of the race for this will allow water to be entering the circulation as the race begins and improves the ability of my stomach to digest fluids. At the said time, I will visit the bathroom to pee and remove bowels if ever I feel the need to (man I hope there will be a decent portabletoilet there!).

Body Check
I sweat a lot. This offers both an advantage and disadvantage depending on how you look at it. It is an advantage as it will help me know if I’m dehydrated. Once I stop perspiring or my perspiration decreases, I know this will be a good time to start hydrating myself with Pocari or water. Major disadvantage? The dreaded blisters. So afraid of blisters I actually bought two shin/leg compressions at Runnr store just for the purpose of “catching” all perspiration dripping from my upper body before it gets straight to my shoes. I’m still thinking if I should go for this. I also have chafing issues near my armpit and other strategic areas of my legs. I also notice to feel burning sensation near… hhmm..near the area where my bowels come out during and after my run. How I’m going to resolve this? Just before I sleep, I will “pre-lube” those areas. I don’t want to slow down on the latter stage of the race just because my ass*#le is burning mad! After my warm-up exercise come race day, I will apply again petroleum jelly on the said areas (except the area where my bowels come out)

Main Race
Days ago I sent a text message to veteran marathoner Verner and ultramarathoner Luis on what’s the best strategy to use on long run. I did my research too on the internet and came up with this conclusion. Start a consistent but slow run then run faster on the 2nd half. This means negative split is the best to do. As I don’t have a Garmin watch, I will rely on my heart rate monitor watch (which means I’ll have to wear that annoying chest strap again!) to check my pace. Here’s my pace:

1stkm to 25th km : I will run just within my “aerobic zone”, which means I will run somewhere between 70%-80% of my maximum heart rate (MHR). That would be 155-165 beats per minute. Running within my aerobic zone will ensure that my glycogen stores can last 3 or more hours. (quick review: running within anaerobic zone requires a lot more glycogen to produce energy compared to aerobic training which utilizes oxygen and fat for energy and small amounts of glycogen). Comparatively, when running anaerobically at 80% of your MHR you will use up almost all of your glycogen stores in less than two hours, a BIG difference.

25th km to 35th km : I will add just 5 beats (165-170). Take note that at this distance, I should be running in my “anaerobic zone”.

35th to 42nd km: Run 170-185 beat per minute.

The distance from 25th to 35th is most crucial as this will start utilizing all the glycogen stores in my body. Hopefully, the number of spaghetti and bananas (thanks to 711) I devoured for several days will start helping me at this stage. The dreaded “wall” will start creeping on the 30th km and above and so I will make sure I have enough carbs and fluids to help me. My plan is to finish the race within the 5 hour cut-off time.

Nutrition and fluids during the race
As this will be my first marathon race, I plan to consume five Hammer Gels as my source of carbs and combination of either Pocari Sweat, water and Gatorade. As I have this weird habit of feeling sleepy during long runs, two of the 5 hammer gels I bought have 25mg of caffeine hehehehe! This will be my schedule of hammer gel intake:
After 10th km : consume hammer gel
After 20th km: consume hammer gel
After 25th km: consume hammer gel
After 30th km: consume hammer gel with 25mg caffeine
After 35th km: consume hammer gel with 25mg of caffeine

I know Milo race organizer Rudy Biscocho will not screw up on the hydration needs of runners so I plan to drink all available fluids on all hydration station. I will also have my own hydration belt with Gatorade. I heard there will be banana stations available but I may not use it, as I don’t want to run with bloated stomach.

So that’s about it! Good luck to all 42km virgin runners (like me) and to all participants! Kaya Natin To!