It was my 6th day on the summer capital and I wanted to do something different. I’ve been running for the past 5 days exclusively around Burnham Park to avoid jeepneys and cars. But in this sunday morning, with less vehicles, I thought of doing a city tour on foot.

I started running at 6am near Microtel in Upper Session road. A jacket on top of shirt with jogging pants for a perfect 18c weather. I turned left to South Drive passing by Teachers Camp. It was a combination of uphills and downhills early on.  I continued to Baguio Country Club leading to the old entrance of Camp John Hay where pine trees, a golf course and an uphill greeted me. An awesome view! There were other runners as well enjoying their morning run. I passed by The Manor and went straight ahead, making a U turn at Technohub. I used the same route to exit CJH. This time, I headed towards Wright Park. I made a brief stop at St Josephs The Worker Parish to pray. Once I got into the park, I ran the stairs which felt like a hundred steps. My next stop is The Mansion. After taking some pictures, I proceeded to Mines View. It was a grueling uphill climb. I ran passed the Good Shepherd’s convent and then finally, the top of the hill! A little bit over 10km to reach Mines View Park!

I appreciated the view for a few minutes then went down the same route until Wright Park. This time, I used the Leonard Wood Road passing by the Botanical Garden, Session Road, ending in Burnham Park. It’s one of my memorable runs as I got a free city tour on top of completing a high altitude long run.

Read more about running in The Philippines.

Hello readers,

I am still a slow runner. My best Half Marathon timing is 02:49 but I am sure I am going to do better next time! Initially I thought I could beat my PB during the 2016 Great Eastern Women’s Run [21.1KM] but I was down with cough and flu after the Newton Challenge Run [32KM]. At GEWR, I was able to run together with the 02:30 pacers until around 5KM and I needed to pee. After queuing for the portaloo and finally done, I lost the pacers forever. My nose was running like a tap and my throat was so horribly dry and irritated. I wasn’t feeling very well on that day and thus, the whole race was quite a torture for me. My husband advised me not to run, but I insisted. Glad that I still managed to complete it in 02:57 but I had terrible backache after that for 1 week as I have not fully recovered from the gruelling newton challenge run and went to run another 21.1KM after just 2 weeks. I am not elite runner and I guess my body is unable to cope with this intensive activity yet.

I only started running in June 2014 (age: 33) and since then, I have been running regularly mostly alone at nearby park.

My first few runs were quite tough for me as I had never really run any distances before. Started to run around 2 to 3KM and increased the distance gradually to 4KM, then 5KM and so on. My first ever 10KM run was in Batam with my sister and brother during CNY 2015.

My first Half Marathon was 2XU Compression Run 2015 in August. I actually signed up because my siblings asked me to join them even though I was still hesitant about my ability to run a half marathon. Well, as unpredictable as it was, I eventually ran the race alone on 2 August 2015 because my brother had a leg injury and needed an operation and my sister was sick. So they both had to miss the run. So I braced myself, woke up at 3am to join the shuttle bus to the race venue. First race being first race, it was tough and I completed it in 03:02. I was so proud of myself when I crossed the finish line but my legs were so painful I had difficulty walking to the MRT station after that. While walking, my tummy began to rumble and I knew I had to go for breakfast before I go home. Saw Mcdonalds at Raffles City and went to order my breakfast. It was very crowded and I had to wait for quite sometime for my food to be ready and I started to feel really nauseous, I almost puked. I squatted down immediately as I couldn’t stand anymore. Luckily my food was ready within minutes and I managed to bring my food to the outside table. I felt so much better immediately after I gobbled down that sausage mcmuffin! I figured that it was my hunger that caused my nausea.

After that experience, I was looking forward to run more half marathons. I have since ran for 2XU Compression Run 2016 [21.1KM], CSC Run by the Bay [21.1KM], Newton Challenge 2016 [32KM], Great Eastern Women’s Run 2016 [21.1KM].

My next race will be 2XU Compression Run 2017 [21.1KM] and Income Eco Run 2017 [21.1KM]. Might attempt full marathon once I feel I am ready and have sufficient training.

I’d like to feedback that I hope all races longer than 10KM should provide post-race food like what Newton Challenge and GEWR did. I really enjoyed the fried rice and beancurd at Newton Challenge race village and yogurt at GEWR! Considering the fee that we paid for the race, food should be provided. At least some simple snacks like breads,muffins, fresh milk, etc will be much appreciated, rather than only bananas. Because after a long race, most runners will be very hungry and had to search for eating place nearby with their sore feet and tired legs. 2XU Compression Run please consider!!! 😀 

(Featured photo credits: David Tan)

Happy birthday Gei Gei Running Club! ? So happy to be able to join Gei Gei Running Club in this celebration run as I’ve already missed a couple of their runs such as the Coconut Relay where runners dressed up in school uniforms and run a relay in a team of 4 and the Majullah Singapura Run to celebrate our nation’s birthday. Seeing the photos uploaded on the events is clearly evidence that I’ve missed out loads of fun ?

There were different themes for the past runs each time and all my past experiences running with GGRC are all runs that were very enjoyable! It’s definitely so much more than simply running ?

(Photos Credits: Gei Gei Photographers)

Really not simple and easy to organise a running event accommodating almost 200 runners. Want to thank all the sponsors for the lucky draw, refreshments and food, the volunteers, the photographers who always comes up with beautiful photographs for us to keep as memories and the organizers for coming up with this awesome run and best of all, it’s a free run ? Which I’m really starting to cut down on signing up for runs that needs a fee. And who need medals and finisher tees when all you can gain is loads of fun, laughter and memories? Ok, don’t say too early. I will want medal and finish tee for Income Eco run in April next year if I’m going ? But so nice that people can choose to opt out of medal and finisher tee to go Green and support Green.

(Picture with Gei Gei Running Club president ?)

Sometimes I think that gahment could step in and offer funds to these recreational clubs since these clubs are bringing a closer bond of the community and encouraging a active lifestyle for their people ? Citizens active = Citizens healthier = Less healthcare cost ??

Manage to get a photo with Dr Ashley Liew, an elite local marathoner who represented Singapore in SEA games and the first local athlete recently awarded with “act of fair play” displaying true sportsmanship in SEA games 2015 ? Went to “CSI” him a little on Google just now ? Not only tall and yandao, elite marathoner and some more is a doctor.

(Photo Credits: Eugene)

Luckily I have Sabrina to go with me to this run as a lot of my friends are doing the Swissotel Vertical Marathon and the Pasir Ris Park Family Walk-A-Jog.

The dress code is to wear green or yellow and the meeting point is at Stadium MRT at 7am on a Sunday morning when I can actually rot in bed but I would very much prefer to attend this run though I only slept like 4 hours as we had a BBQ at Serene’s place the night before ? Ok, it’s not the BBQ gathering that causes the insomnia, maybe is because I’m pretty excited that I may be going to Hong Kong Standard Chartered Marathon next year as a FIRST SOLO TRIP which I’m quite scared because I have never travel alone and at the same time, I would also clearing one item on my bucket list: Bungy Jump at Macau Tower ?

The route is from Stadium to Marina barrage and back to Stadium about 8km, a part of the familiar scenic route for many runners who goes to the races ? Its really lovely and always reminds me of how fortunate I am to be in Singapore. It’s amazing how life is. Out of so many things, I could be an ant, a giraffe, a fish or a bird but I’m born human this life for don’t know how many more years. I could be elsewhere on Earth, on this big planet, but I’m here on this small little dot. We just need to appreciate, treasure life and people we come across.

As always, the runs organised by Gei Gei Running Club is full of fun and laughter and simply many nice and friendly runners. After the run there’s good food and refreshments, lucky draw with really good prizes and many gorgeous photos ? The runs organised by GGRC is really the only runs as comparable to Newton Challenge after run refreshments for the runners ?

(Photo Credits: Eugene)

Thank you Sabrina for the chit-chat run with me, think her entire life didn’t run run walk walk as slow as this ? Talking and running at the same time is really not easy ? Already looking forward to the next run with Gei Gei Running Club! ?

(With David Tan, one of the photographer who always captures beautiful photographs of runners at the running events. Thank you! ?)

Throwback Great Eastern Women’s Run and Newton Challenge

The time I used to run 5km, somebody can run 10km. A half marathon no matter what is still a half marathon. Whether you used 1hr17mins to run 21km or you used 3hr59mins to finished it, 21km is still a 21km ? Got a lot of nice photos during the runs and these are some of it! Thanks so much to the Photographers for their passion in running and photography that I have such memorable photos ?

Photo Credits: Tan Kim Lai
Photo Credits: David Tan
Photo Credits: Shiok Running – Kok Wan See
Photo Credits: Pictureart – Dave Poh
Photo Credits: Running Shots – Erwin

Hey there everyone! I am Eddy! I’ve been blogging for a long time (since 2013 to be exact) and I’ve also been running for the past 3 years. I’ve been thinking over the past month that since I’ve developed such a strong passion for running, wouldn’t it be great if I start a new blog blogging specifically on running and fitness. But of course, I am no fitness guru – I am still learning how to be a better running and how to keep myself fit.

So, for a start, I shall do an introductory post on how a fat kid started running and eventually falls in love with it (of course there are some of the times when I was thinking why did I torture myself by running long distance HAHAHA).

This was how I looked like back in 2011 – that’s like a good 5 years ago. Back then, I wasn’t very interested in keeping fit. PE lesson was my most dreaded period and I would probably whine during NAPFA trainings.

But thankfully, I enrolled into Serangoon JC (SRJC) in 2013. That school is notable for organising this Will Run event, usually held towards the end of the year, where students have to run 10km. It’s like any running event we have participated in. Hence, in preparation of that, our PE lessons back then was basically about running. 3km, 4km, 5km, 6km and so on and so forth. That’s when my life changes.

Trust me, I find all these trainings and run draining initially. I couldn’t run for nuts. What could you expect from someone who did not even want to bother to train for 2.4km NAPFA run. If 2.4km was already my limit, 10km seems to be Mission: Impossible.

After 7-8 months of hell, I completed the furthest run of my life at that time. 9.2km. I did not manage to finish running the complete 10km because I failed to reach before the cut-off time.

But this was when I started slowly falling in love with running long distance.

After I left SRJC at the end of the year, I made sure that continue to run. I made a target to be able to complete my first ever 10km at the Standard Chartered Marathon 2014.

And that December, I managed to do it. That sense of achievement of being able to complete a 10km distance was out of this world. To be able to achieve something that I thought I couldn’t do, actually gave me a huge morale boost in life. I realised one thing:

In life, there is no limit, the only limit lies in your mind. If you constrain yourself, you will only be able to succeed what you think you can do, but you will not be able to stretch your potential.

This is one of the life lessons that I acquired through running.

I started to fall in love with it.

But because of my schedule in 2015, I did not take part in any run. However, at the end of the year, I promised that I will make a comeback in 2016 – being more serious in running and taking my new hobby to the next level.

I can’t believe I signed up for 4 races this year and has already completed 3 of them.

I took part in my first 2XU Compression Run this year and here’s me with my first medal of the year and my first 2XU medal!

I realised that there’s a way to make running more fun and that is to join my friends. I can assure you that having a running partner will help with your pacing throughout the race. Nothing can beat enjoying the city skyline and sweating some calories off together with my friends. This marks my first night race, my first race with Sundown Marathon and my first race with my friends. Oh, did I not mention it’s also the first race that I actually ran at least 8.5km of the distance? More milestones hit.

Here comes the craziest decision I’ve ever made over the past decade. I signed up for Army Half-Marathon 2016 – which means this marked the first time I decided to go beyond the 10km mark and push my limits.

I didn’t have much time to train because I have a final year project to handle between June to August and had to travel to Hong Kong for two weeks as part of the execution. However, I did not forget to train whenever I have the time. I took some time off each week to run while I was at Hong Kong – anything I couldn’t believe I have done because I am a naturally lazy person. With that, that becomes the first overseas runs in my life.

As soon as my project ended, I resumed my training – and that’s like a few days before AHM2016. I could remember vividly how I sprained my back during my last training session before the race, but it didn’t stop me from going on and complete my first 21.1km, my first half-marathon (although I need to confess that I actually ran out of stamina by the 11km and so I basically walked the next 9km before finishing off my last 1km with a slow run-cum-sprint).

Ever since I started my internship in September, I’ve asked my friends out for weekly run sessions so that I can make sure that I still keep fit and prepare for my next race – Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2016 – although I am only running 10km. I remember this saying that goes something like this:

Runners don’t plan time to run, they plan their time around their running schedule.

So how does running benefits me?

I used to weigh 94kg back in my secondary school days and now, I am actually at 69kg.

From this:

To this:

I am really thankful that running has such a positive impact in my life and makes me takes fitness more seriously.

Have a nice week ahead! Hope I’ll be able to do up another blog post here soon!