My Eastern Night Riders (ENR) training buddy, Steven achieved a personal best time of 3:45 at the Hong Kong Marathon while I did a 3:29. We found out that we ran with no major expectations of the race, other than completing what we heard was a ‘hilly race’. I had aimed for under-4 hours, whereas Steven aimed for a sub-4:30 timing. As written earlier, perhaps slow may be faster.
Last night, I did an 11K time trial/tempo run. I ran the first four kilometres at less than 4:10 minute/K, which was one of my fastest intervals. The remaining distance was done at race pace, to determine if I was fully recovered about nine days after my last marathon. I completed my evening run in about 48 minutes, which was slightly off my last time trial set about two weeks ago. It would have been great to set a new PB – riding on the post-race fitness peak – however, it would have given me a sense of unrealistic progress. I took a week off heavy training because I will be engaged in the 70.3 Singapore (half-Ironman triathlon format) in less than three weeks from now. My staple diet is mainly shorter workouts with intervals and strength work.
It feels good to qualify for a race, gain entry into a group/club, and meet cutoff times. Qualification is about meeting standards set by the organizers. It allows inclusion into a group of people and practitioners. It is also a passport to meet other high performers so that augurs well if you aim to do much better. Mix around with entrepreneurs and you will gain insights about business, and develop your business acumen. Ride with the stronger cyclists regularly, and swim with the seasoned swimmers, and you will get better.
Congratulations to David Tay for qualifying for the Boston Marathon again! This 50-year-old life coach completed the cold and sunny Tokyo Marathon with his 3:28 race time. He is consistently fast and progressing well each year. Knowing that I am about one minute behind David’s recent marathon time encourages me to train smarter, and appreciate my improvements. Here’s to more frequent small gains! Congratulations to Richard Leong for his challenging finish; he completed the 42.195K with an injury. Get well soon, Tokyo Marathoner!
Lessons Learnt: How often do you appreciate your improvement? How do you respond to your personal progress? What engages you to enhance your performance at work, and at play?
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