Standard Chartered KL Marathon Race Report - Team Athlete Chan Jun Shen

Team2ndskin Athlete Chan Jun Shen and Deo AH broke their personal best in Standard Chartered KL Marathon! Checkout Chan Jun Shen's race report and his tips to get faster on race day!

2016 is a big year for me to chew ever since I set up my goals to be achieved. The main goal is to pass my Air Engineer’s board followed by all the sporting achievement goals include breaking all my personal best by end of the year. My main goal took up a lot of my time, I come back to my room really late at times. Hardly get an 8 hours working routine because I need to learn as much as I can in the Air Wing. Not complaining, I enjoy learning new things. 7^th of August became my big day to break my long overdue personal best for Marathon Distance. The last time I seriously ran a 42.195km was in 2010 when I finished 3 hours 38 minutes with lots of walking at the last 10km, poor pace management. I knew I have the potential to do much better than this but I had some other commitments, so I put this goal on a rain check. Standard Chartered KL Marathon is my best chance to break my PB. 

Preparation 

Based on my race records, I consistently clock average 4.19-4.25mins/km in all my Half Marathon distance. So I worked out my pace from there. I was a fat 58kg athlete 4 months before SCKLM, the goal was to shed 4kg before the race week, consistently carboload after training, stay injury free by stretching every day and gradually increase the training mileage. I bought a digital weighing scale, every day after training I will strip off naked for weighing before I key in my weight data in Garmin Connect. As I slowly increase my mileage, I notice my ankle couldn’t take the stress. I went back to Garmin Connect and check my Running Dynamics to confirm my running gait. True enough, I have very minor imbalance in Ground Contact Time. The left foot kick off faster than the right foot, taking up more stress compared to the right foot. I did some correction drills but not much improvement seen, the left foot is still kicking harder than the right. I came to the last resort, working on my cadence. If I can up my average cadence from 180 to 182, I can greatly reduce the ground impact and also improve my vertical oscillation. I set the metronome in Garmin Forerunner 920xt every time I do cadence drills. It helps to keep my tempo without overstriding. Roughly one week leading to race day, my resting heart rate went down to 49 beats per min. I was very well rested.

Utilizing Garmin Connect to correct my running gait.

Pre Race Day

I weighed 55kg before I drove back to KL from Lumut with my squad Lt Quek, he will be losing his marathon virginity in SCKLM. =p I got my race pack delivered to my house but he didn’t, so we still had to drop by the race expo to pick up. I didn’t check the race pack collection area so we both went to Dataran Underground instead of Kenanga Wholesale City Mall, rookie’s mistake! Then we walked to KWC Mall, brisk walk passed all the booth saying hi and wishing each other good luck for tomorrow then got back home by noon. Quek and I had super heavy Nasi Goreng Kambing, my way of getting a good sleep. I love to sleep after heavy meal. 7pm we were already on the bed. At 10pm, I was awaken 2 times by Azan, then I couldn’t get back to sleep anymore. I watched youtube, checked the race route, had a look at my race gears, then laid on my bed again. I just try to let the body lay flat and rest despite not able to sleep. The pre race jitters got really serious, I was listening to my own heart beat middle of the night. 

Race Day

 

Train ride to race start.   

Had my breakfasts, 4 breads and kaya, 2 bananas and a hard boiled egg made by my mum before she slept. The complementary train ride was a big thumbs up from me. This shows how much of attention to details given by the organizer to make everything easy for all runners. Baggage check in was a bit far from race start, but I believe it was a smart move to prevent congestion at the starting line. 30 minutes before gun goes off, I was inside Pen2 doing my warm up. I had a lot of thoughts lingering in my mind. GPS signal locked, metronome set, virtual partner good to go and all alerts are working in my Garmin Forerunner 920xt. I am very sure Skechers GoMeb Speed 3 is perfect for me, the only thing I modified was the traditional laces replaced with lock laces. Annie said she wanna run with me but I told her that I am willing to screw up this race holding at high pace, so if I fumble this time please proceed with her podium goal. I will try to hold 4.45mins/km as long as my body could take it. 10 seconds before the race kick off, I took a few deep breath and wet my body with the mineral water I carried too cool my body down. I wore my 2ndskin Vapor Lite running vest, so the evaporation mechanism helps to cool my body off.

First 3 kilometer I was doing like 4.15mins/km without realizing. I slowed down a few times just to stick to my 4.45mins/km plan. Deo and I were running side by side but we didn’t talk, both wanna PB so we save the nonsense after the race. =p Many runners formed their pack but I never bother to follow, I have my virtual partner in my watch already. I took a caffeinated energy gel at Jalan Jelatek Fire Station kilometer 10, one capsule of Hammer Endurolytes and Hammer Anti Fatigue. Up till kilometer 21 as I entered Duke Highway, my rhythm was awesome as I felt fresh, super fresh. Average pace was holding at 4.30mins/km. There were a few rolling hills around kilometer 22, all of a sudden I felt a little sluggish. My watch’s alerts never stopped beeping to warn me that I am slower than 5.05mins/km! Weh panjat bukit la for sure la slower! I picked up my coke given by OP Azrul X Game, he paced me a bit with his new bike. Didn’t get a chance to have a glimpse at his new race machine. Maintaining a caffeine free diet gave me the advantage of kicking the pace higher once I get my caffeine boost. Soon, I was back to 4.30mins/km pace. My parents were on the highway cheering for me in the wee hour because Duke Highway is just next to my neighborhood.

I had to consume more gels from kilometer 24 onward. I started to starve a little, pace was dropping to 4.40mins/km also. My simplest rule, eat energy gels when hungry. Every 5km I took in one gel. The change was a dramatic one, from super fresh at kilometer 21 come to slight hunger at kilometer 24. This is not good. I am aware of the major climbs at kilometer 33 onward, so I needed to refuel at every single water stations. The drum beats along the highway kept my tempo going, and the volunteers were really helpful in assisting us. I snatched one cup of isotonic, and two cups of plain water. My Skechers GoMeb Speed 3 was not soaked with water despite some of the cups I missed, the ventilation was superb!

Kilometer 30, I was a struggling to keep my 4.45mins/km pace, my face tells everything. I still can finish this within my PB time because I am more than 20 minutes ahead of my PB time! Hydration and refueling went as per planned, till around kilometer 34 I snatched a Caffeinated Hammer Energy Gel given by my team mate Tri Stupe. I stuck the tempo set by my metronome, keep up with the 180 beat per minute. The slow pace alerts really discouraged me, I can’t dig anymore deeper in my reserves! Kilometer 35 onwards, I barely survive the hilly winding roads of Langgak Tungku at 5.00mins/km pace. Although I am lacked in LSD mileage, I have nothing to regret because every single day I am racing against time to finish up my work! The mental battle starts now. Legs feeling the tingling cramping sensation. 

Kilometer 35 took a long time to reach, I saw my 2ndskin team mate Jason. Took another coke, drank as much as I could to get the caffeine boost. Yuan Yu Fang local women champ overtook me at this time. Then I saw my UPNM batchmate Aiman, he escorted me with my 5.00mins/km pregnant tortoise pace. Still ahead of time, possibly hit a 3 hours 21 minutes finishing time! 

I was about to tell him that if I ever collapse please wake me up, I have 20 minutes nap to spare for my PB =p Hope he knows that I wear my LifelineID Companion. I cannot wait to settle this and go home to sleep! 

 

Smoked a Half marathoner=p

Kilometer 40, I up the pace to finish off whatever I left in my tank. Tried to take one more Hammer Anti Fatigue and end up dropping it. Huge disappointment! Till now, I had sucked in 11 gels in total! Surely my urine will be the same colour as the energy gel later. Haha. The legs start to cramp, my jaw and fingers cramped also. If any shorter distance runner bang me, definitely my weak body cannot take the hit already. I just need to survive 9 more minutes and I can collapse after that. 

 Sufferfest! =)

Just keep going!!! 500m before the finishing arch, my parents, Edan were cheering so excitedly. Aiman left me here to let me conclude my mission. Come on!!! I pumped my hands and kick as hard as I could to score the very final phase of my Marathon at pace 4.10mins/km. Once crossed the finishing arch at time 3 Hours 22 Minutes 40 Secs, beat my personal best by 16 minutes! That’s around 3 kilometers ahead! Hoorah!

 3 Hours 22 Minutes. New Personal Best by 16 minutes! =)

My body hurt so badly, once I received my medal and finisher tee, I laid down on the floor and nap. Aiman is a true friend sitting next to me ever ready to give me assistance, then my parents came. I had massage, didn’t have to queue because I finished the race early. Haha. One thing for sure, I was not in disbelief because I could have done this long time ago if I put an effort to break it. In the meantime, I use the apps made by organizer for us to checkout on our friends. Quek and Annie were still out there. Deo already finished a few minutes behind me, he scored his PB as well! I was so glad for the race went smoothly and uneventful. I will be taking one week of break from running, let my two toenail peel off first before I come back to training. I am done with my marathon dream this year, next will be Ironman!

 

Let me sleep first =p 

 With my parents=)

 Lt Aiman the Great

 

My Thank You wish =)

Thanks to my parents for waking up so early made hard boiled egg for my breakfast and stood by the road cheering for me. Thanks to my friend OP Azrul X Game for offering me the bottle of coke that revived me from a sluggish 5.00mins/km pace to 4.30mins/km at those critical kilometer marks. Thanks to my team2ndskin fellas, it is always a fruitful discussion prior to race day. Thanks @jasoncolour and Tri Stupe for the coke and gel at the Langgak Tungku ever ending hills, I was brought alive from dead. Thanks to @alphot for escorting me starting from kilometer 35 when I was really struggling and bonked so badly, it meant a lot to me. Thanks to all family and friends for tracking me and all the midnight good luck wishes. Thanks to @becca_jori for being so understanding throughout my busy days working and training, you're the best girlfriend ever! ;-) Thanks to @2ndskinasia @hammernutrition @skechersmalaysia @garminmalaysia @lifelineID and most importantly Royal Malaysian Navy for all sorts of support including providing gears and fuels for this race. Thanks to Tadonamo and Old Putera gang for keeping track. Congratulations to my buddy virgin marathoner Lt Quek for the strong finish.

3 hours 22 minutes, my new Personal Best for marathon distance 42.195km specially dedicated to everyone who supported this mission of mine.
‪#‎team2ndskin‬ ‪#‎teamNavy‬ ‪#‎teamOP‬ ‪#‎garminmalaysia‬ ‪#‎hammernutrition‬‪#‎2ndskin‬ ‪#‎skechers‬

‪#‎GoMebSpeed3‬ ‪#‎NavyEngineer‬

 

  Finisher Certificate. Ranked 39 Overall. =)

4 Days after SCKLM, I sat for my Air Engineer’s board with my boss and I managed to pass it smoothly. Next target is to pass the Chief Engineer’s board for me to slash the biggest goal of this year! Nobody understood the pain I had in my body underneath my uniform, I never complain or give any excuse to skip my work for the sake of racing. All age groupers face the same challenge, just like me. Right now, my motivation is high and strong. Hopefully 2016 will be a fruitful year for me!

Kerian International Duathlon 2016 - Team Athlete Chan Jun Shen Race Report

Kerian International Duathlon is the race which I signed up and forgotten about it after a while. I am just too occupied with my work at Air Wing, I hardly have any time to check for races. Every time I log on to my pc, I will sign for multiple races. The very same weekend, I have Garmin Clinic and also OP Running Clinic on Saturday morning. How am I gonna split myself like an amoeba and be at 3 places at the same time? I managed to merge the OP Running Clinic and Garmin Clinic, it turned out to be the right decision! Killed two birds with one stone. I drove back from Lumut to KL. I woke up to a rainy (no thunderstorm) Saturday morning, the Garmin clinic participants' attendance was around half of the class' strength! Well, not all runners are "All Weather Runner". Thanks to all the OP Running Clinic participants who filled up the lists and made the clinic really happening. The HIIT session mainly focuses on the program, running dynamics and benefits of understanding the data in Garmin devices. We concluded the clinic at around 1030H, I called up a few friends to pick up my race kit in Kerian just in case I can't make it in time.

Sharing with the participants on High Intensity Interval Training.

 

Pics courtesy Limite Art. 

3 hours of self driving is so boring! I came to KL from Perak and in less than 24 hours I am heading to Perak again. I met my UPNM juniors at their homestay and collected my race kit from them. Not knowing what to do, I conducted a 3 hour triathlon training class to kill time.

 During my cadet years, my seniors were not very knowledgeable, not many truly understood the training data given by heart rate monitors. Bike fit knowledge was almost zero. But they were a bunch of awesome seniors who guided me with all the knowledge that they had, whatever they had to offer me, they made sure to get it delivered to the juniors. Prior to my maiden Long Course Triathlon, I only knew that I will be bulldozing over 2.1km open water swim (like washing machine), 90km of cycling and finish up the race with a 21km run. Little that I know that aero bar is so important. My senior Kapten Salman and the gang, helped me to find an aero bar and got it fitted on my bike. Later on they got commissioned, the last word they told me, "Chan, jaga kelab kita baik-baik". Now that I am already a 5 X Ironman Finisher, whenever I meet the UPNM juniors, I will teach them and bring their knowledge to the next level. 

 

Setting up their bikes before sleep. 

My initial plan to camp in the car got cancelled as the juniors invited me to stay overnight with them. In return, I paid for the whole team's dinner. As the night fall, the mosquitoes flew in stealth and quiet like the B2 bombers without us realizing and started the "blood donation campaign". After setting up the mosquito netting (I carry mosquito netting in my car) in my room, I dozed off really quick. To my surprise, I did not feel any pre race jitters. Knowing that this race is full of potential winners, I do not see myself competing at the first pack after two weeks of disappearance from the training ground.   

 

How the cadets sleep. Save money for more future races, so we cramp together in a homestay. No complain, this is much more comfortable than sleeping under the poncho.  

RM50k worth of bike equipment in a kitchen.

0500H, I can't remember the last time I got awaken by the rooster because we do not have rooster in the Naval Base! If the rooster make noise in the morning, those desperate survival training trainees would hunt them down and make them KFC in the jungle. This time, I find it really annoying. Haha. The rooster never stop making noise every single minute! By 6am, I was already at the race area setting up my transition. 0700H flag off, huge crowd sprinting in the front pack. I was just running at my own sweet pace around 4.10mins/km along the straight long stretch next to the waterway. The top 10 gone missing by kilometer 4, I couldn't see them despite the straight stretch! A few UPNM cadets were chasing the front pack with their impressive running speed, not sure how long are they gonna last though. My transition was a quick one, fly mounted and caught a few UPNM cadets who ran ahead of me. They should really buck up their transition skills. Until now, no drama yet. 

Average pace : 4.06mins/km

My Garmin Connect data shows a good pace management with no significant pace drop, the heart rate was at Zone 5 for 94% of the time to keep my high cadence of 174spm and good stride length. To my surprise, my average stride length is 1.42m, my height is only 1.62m so it is already 88% of my height! My stretching shows significant improvement in my flexibility and agility.  

Flat and long running route.

40km of cycling on a flat terrain sucks. I never liked flat courses because I will be beaten by the super bikers on their TT bike, I rather climb hills. First 20km, I rode with the UPNM cadets. We took turn to pull before Richard Tang blazed past us with no mercy. He is another veteran with balls of steel, one aggressive rider! Got off the saddle and drop a few gears to bridge the gap. Then the Sungai Udang Commandos overtook us, trying to command the peloton but nobody bothered. By now, more than 20 riders in the peloton but only 10 power horse. The rest were suckers. Two young 16 years old riders really have the cycling legs, I even thought they represent Malaysia in Duathlon. 10 more kilometer to the transition, Sayuti smoked my peloton and then Fariz came by with a huge "ATRAZ" on his backside. Cut short the long story, my peloton is a tortoise peloton with a few riders who NEVER pulled the peloton throughout the race. I entered the transition with 20 over riders! As I fly dismount and pushed the bike, the muddy entrance got so congested that my aerobar stuck to Fariz's back bottlecages. Hahaha. 

Average pace : 36.8km/h

The fluctuating pace caused by the confusing moves of riders in my peloton. 84% of the time I was riding in Zone 4 heart rate and 16% in Zone 5. Pretty intense. The race was too fast for me to look at my watch, my focus was to stay accident free and stay with the pack. 

 Flat course and no flat tyre. Thank god. 

The cramping tingling feeling started as I ran out of the transition area. Oh Not This Time Please! Shorten my stride a little while maintaining good cadence, stay focused and keep the cadence high. Please don't cramp now! I saw a few UPNM cadets in front of me, but I just couldn't catch them. I burped all the time because of the feeling of throwing up. My diaphragm started to cramp which further restrict my breathing. Kilometer 4, the breathing starts to get more synchronized with my running rhythm. It doesn't get any easier though, because I wanna chase down the UPNM cadets! Hahaha. Kilometer 6 on wards, I pumped my arms to keep the legs going. I am really lack of training, that is why I suffer so much. Padam Muka. When I approached the finishing arch, I didn't know if I will make it to podium. Then Razlan the commentator shook my hand and said "Hey Congratulations Bro, You're No 5!". 5th placing is the very last spot for podium. 

Average Pace :   4.29mins/km

 Picture Courtesy SpeedDemon TM.

 The fluctuating heart rate and stride length was caused by my "Cramp Symptom Damage Control". My average stride length dropped a little compared to my first run, but still it was a good run of 1.25m. Cadence is still under control, averaging 180spm. 65% of Zone 5 and 36% of Zone 4. I gave everything I have. 

 Razlan announced my name to collect my Men Open 5th placing prize. "Chan Jun Shen, a proud product of UPNM and bla bla bla...". Out of nowhere the tears start brewing (not because of winning the race). Knowing Razlan for so long, he has been the one who announce my finish since my RMC and UPNM triathlon races. So when he said "proud product of UPNM", I felt a bit touched to recall how far have I come. I wouldn't say UPNM is the best place to study, but UPNM made me into who I am today. I did Ironman during my cadet years to relieve some of my stresses I got from the regimental routine, it was triathlon who saved me from quitting. We had Instructors who scored flying colours in courses and also another bunch who were put in "cold storage" for disciplinary action. Life was never peaceful for us. So I always tell the juniors, never give up in delivering the best of our ability as a young officer. Kelab Sukan Lasak UPNM has a very special place in my heart.

 Another podium finish for this year. 

Group photo with the UPNM Cadets.

Working is not an excuse for not being competitive. I highly recommend this race for athletes from all level because of the well marshalled roads and clear signage, ample water stations and punctual race start. The fees is relatively cheap compared to other Malaysia Races so you should expect huge crowd with lots of fast athletes come to test their power.

Skechers GoRun Ride 5 Review

Skechers GoRun Ride 5 Review by Team Principal Eugene Teoh.

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I must admit that I am a very big fan of the Skechers GoRun4. It is practically my go-to shoe for every distance, from the 5k to the Marathon. Of course, with the association with Skechers Malaysia, I've had the opportunity to try out practically their entire range of performance offerings, from the stiff and fast GoSpeed (GoMeb) to the FitKnit Bolt and bouncy GoRun Ultra. Some of these models have a permanent place in my (overflowing!) shoe cabinet, like the GoSpeed (that I use for fast workouts and up to 10k's) and GoRun4's. The Ultra though is a tad too high in profile and soft for my liking, so I was wondering how the Ride5 would suit me.

To be honest, I had no inclination of how the Ride5 would feel like, as although the Ride series is already into the 5th iteration, I have not tried any of the preceding Ride series of shoes. High level understanding tells me that the Ride5 should be more cushy, heavier and more structured than the GoRun4. Do these initial assumptions prove true? We'll find out.

I will skip all the technical mumbo-jumbo of the Ride5 and give you a personal real feel impression of the shoes, as I'm pretty sure if you google "Skechers Ride5 review" you will be inundated with a load of sites/blogs giving you the lowdown on the weight of the shoe, the overlays of the mesh, the repositioned pods on the outsole, etc.

I've put about 50-odd kms in the Ride5 to date, and done run sessions in different conditions; tired legs, fresh legs, midday heat, road, concrete pavements, gravel bits, grass and the below are my thoughts.

The Ride5 definitely feels heavier on the run, compared to the GR4, but not by much. If compared to the GR-Ultra, the Ride5 would feel like a nimble Mercedes C250 to the GR-Ultra's Landrover Discovery-like tank. I've been so used to the GR4, that if I put on a heavier pair of shoes, I notice the weight gain immediately. A quick weigh-in confirms my notion, the Ride5 is 10% heavier than the GR4.

One good thing about Skechers Performance shoes is the relatively wide toebox which suits me very well. There are major shoe brands where the shoes have a narrower toebox and I'd have to upsize to fit the front of the shoes, but then the gap front and back becomes too loose for me. The Ride5 fit at the toebox is pretty similar to the GR4, which is great for me and a tad wider than the GoSpeed (GoMeb) series. The one thing that bugs me a little though is the inner foot arch support of the Ride5 feels a lot more prominent than the GR4. Whilst wearing the GR4, my midfoot is allowed to flex (flatten out) when I land, which is more in tune with my natural biomechanics, however, the Ride5 has a stiffer arch support, which limits the flex of my arch. Do note that I remove the insoles from ALL my Skechers shoes as I prefer more ground feel and (on a more personal note) the fit feels more comfortable to me without the insoles. I've got a whole stack of brand new never worn size US 10 insoles if anyone needs any!!

One major difference between the Ride5 and GR4 though, is the construction of the tongue. The GR4 and GoSpeed3 have thin construction with visible net stitching around the edges. The Ride5 is more of a traditional spongy tongue, which feels softer but adds to the weight of the shoe. I can't say which is better as they both have pros and cons in my experience. I had one pair of GR4's where the stitching of the tongue was a bit rough and it would brush against the front of my ankle area as I ran, if I wore no-show socks. I'd then have a red patch of skin blister due to the rubbing if my run was a long one. Best option would be if they could have the tongue as thin as possible without the exposed stitching, that I think would be the best of both worlds.

In terms of breathability of the shoe, I don't feel much difference between the GR4 and Ride5. The upper mesh is a one piece construction with additional reinforcement at the foot flex areas and front toebox, where the likelihood of wear and tear is higher. I've had the opportunity to run in the shoes on a bright sunny 33-34 degree dry summer afternoon and I didn't come out of that run feeling like i needed internal cooling systems in the shoe. Of course, the mesh is nowhere near the breathability of the GR-Ultra which will drain water as soon as you flush the shoe.

So, all in all, what's my personal verdict on the Ride5? Does it have a permanent place in my shoe cabinet? Would I get another pair of Ride5 once I wear out the current one?

Well, the answer is not as straightforward as I would like to make it to be. The GR4 still sits at the top of my list, undisputed and firmly anchored as the firm favorite. The GoSpeed2 & 3 remains my pick for speed work and fast 10k's due to the weight and stiffness of the shoe. So what then, of the Ride5? Would I take them out for my long runs? Yes, I would; to save the mileage and life I have in the GR4 for races and tempo runs. Would I use the Ride5 for my recovery days? Yes, I would. Would I bring them to a 21k or 42k race? No, I'd still fallback on my GR4 for races.

But that's not to say the Ride5 doesn't make the cut. If I wasn't as obsessed with the GR4 (as I am!), I'd say the Ride5 was the all-rounder, you know; the high-school jock who would be amongst the top 3 in grades, played football competitively, could sing at the school choir, write poetry and be the pick of the ladies for prom.

If your requirements are a pair of shoes that can do all distances, structured and cushy enough that you don't kill your legs, but stiff enough that you give your calves a good workout, lightweight enough that you don't feel like tying bricks to your feet, and a toebox wide enough that each of your toes get some time away from each other; then the Ride5 should be heavily considered.

Go on, head over to the nearest Skechers store and slip a pair on. You might just be sold.

Garmin Team2ndskin Running Clinic Batch 5 - High Intensity Interval Training

Dear Participants of Garmin Team2ndskin Running Clinic,

We received huge turnout for today's High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) this morning at Stadium Kg Pandan with some of the runners from previous batches. Job well done for all who had completed the HIIT session and also survived Tri Stupe's mini strength training session before we called it a day.

I have a few points to highlight as a friendly reminder as all of you start your own HIIT session. By emphasizing this few key points, I hope runners can get stronger, faster and stay injury free. HIIT sessions are hard in nature, there is no two ways about it. The higher the intensity you can handle, the greater the improvement on your athletic capacity. Human body is amazing and brilliant in adapting to optimal amount of stress.

We did a variable distance and pace throughout the session. The whole objective of the fast and slow pace was to allow the body to recover during the slow pace. The fast pace is crucial! Every fast pace should be an attempt to SCORE max heart rate! An opportunity not seized is an opportunity missed! As I've always said, Go Hard or Go Home. Undeniably, it demands Max Motivation. 

What is the big deal of scoring Max Heart Rate? Max Heart Rate allows the heart rate zone to be more accurately divided into 5 different zones. The formula (220-age = max heart rate) is widely used among the athletes although the accuracy is not even close to what Garmin can offer. Utilize the Garmin Connect to revise your workout and correct the mistakes. Once a week, grab the opportunity to do the HIIT session, allow the watch to "recalibrate" the zones with your latest Max Heart Rate. 

Our team2ndskin is ever ready to answer if you have any doubts or questions. Get your well deserved rest and be ready for our next session. =)

Best Regards,

Chan Jun Shen

Team2ndskin Athlete

5 X Ironman Finisher

Cyberjaya Twincity Marathon - Deo's race report

With read how Chan did in his half marathon race at the recent Cyberjaya Twincity Marathon. Now, Team 2ndskin athlete Deo unveiled how he got more than what he wanted (or expected) from his full marathon race, where he finished in 10th place in the Men's Open category. It didn't come easy for him but the perseverance and dedication to training has paid off, at least from what we have witnessed. It was his 34th full marathon to date and more to come from him.

Read on how the marathon went for Deo...

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I didn't plan to sign up for this race but somehow trapped into signing for it by my buddy who didn't start the race after all as he was out of town on the race weekend. After a PB effort in Nong Khai Marathon in early December, I didn't plan to run in any marathon until April as I need to build up a good mileage and strengthen my core further. And after the quite disappointing and suffering experience during the first edition of this marathon in December 2014, where the route was trashed with undulating elevation, the boring route around Cyberjaya and Putrajaya with nothing much to see and no one cheering for you, and the high humidity weather; I was just not interested to join the race. But with registration done, and I am chasing to do 7 full marathon races this year in quest to do my 40th full marathon races by my birthday in December (#40on40 #birthdaymarathon), I told myself just go for it, treat it as another long run for the upcoming TransLantau 50km race in March. The one thing that really worries me was the lack of LSD runs after Nong Khai Marathon. I even tried to run a half marathn distance on Friday, a week before the marathon and I suffered, couldn't run all the way and had to stop and walk many times.

I was worried, even on the race day morning itself. Probably the things that could give some relieves were that the Race Director assured me that the marathon will be enough in distance, unlike last year, and up to the race day morning, I noticed that all the comments I blogged about the marathon in 2014 have been addressed. The promotion for this marathon has also been really visible with lots of 'attractions' offered to runners like the teh tarik and roti canai station, which I didn't get to enjoy obviously. And the number of participants have grown by many scales, I don't have the numbers but you can notice it by just looking at the crowd during the start or browsing the race photos. Anyway, for the marathon, I was aiming for a modest target, a sub 3:45 will make me really happy.

I arrived at the race venue quite early, and got a chance to walk around the still quiet start area. Did my 2km warm-up lap around the area. Bumped into my little brother who was fresh from his half marathon PB of 1:42 a week earlier and that was his only second HM. He was a volunteer for this race. After I was done with my warm up lap, I walked near the main stage and there were trophies for top runners and noticed the trophies will be given out to top 10 runners in each category. Deep inside, I harbor a hope of landing myself on one of the trophies. With 3:45 timing, based on 2014's race result, I would have a chance to be inside top 10, I told myself. So, from a modest target of just run a 3:45 marathon, the target has now shifted to getting into top 10. But it was still a tall order. Bumped into many more friends as I waited for the race to start. It was more happening this year. The organizer even had the fried noodle ready that morning should any runner would like to have some foods before the race.

Before the race with some of many friends I saw/met that morning. This one is with Ray, Fazli and Bukhari the RD.
[photo by ActionPix Malaysia]

At 4am, suddenly the horn sounded. But no one started running... until the man behind the horn asked us to run, then only we realized it was the start of the race. No countdown lol! So, the race began. It was humid. The route in the first 10km was the same as of in 2014, if I'm not mistaken. So, I sort of know the sections with uphill elevation, especially along Shaftsbury Square before we entered the motorcycle lane towards Putrajaya. I started quite well, with the strategy to run as fast as I can afford to, in order to have ample buffer for the anticipated slower second half of the race. First 10km completed in 46:30-minute, and that was even faster than my first 10km in Nong Khai Marathon. I was running at 3:30-hour marathon pace and surprisingly, many more runners in front and behind me were running at about the same pace. Some of them, I had never seen before. Along the way, especially in the uphill sections, I was overtaken by several runners while the front bunch of 7 or 8 runners were already out of sight. My hope for a top 10 finish got slimmer and I wasn't hoping for it anymore.

I just continued running, still hoping for a sub 3:45-hour finish. The elevation got worse in Putrajaya and those who know me, know how I really hate running a marathon in Putrajaya. There were slight changes to the route, one that I noticed was the one going into Precinct 20 (the graveyard route) and this year, we didn't run in front of the PICC. My second 10km was done in a slower 50:24-minute and total time was three minutes slower than Nong Khai. So, sub 3:30-hour is no longer in the equation. The full marathon runners have spread out from each other at this point, but I was joined by the half marathoners, overtaken by the leading runners. As we headed back to Cyberjaya, we had to go quite a steep elevated road (before the Fire Station) and as it was almost 30km done, I don't have anymore strength with my legs to run up, and don't want to trash my legs further as there will be another 12km of quite flat section to deal with in Cyberjaya. So, I walked up the elevated road and in the middle of my walk, 2ndskin team mate Chan came from behind and urged me to run with him. He was on pace for a top 10 finish in the half marathon category. I didn't follow, just enjoyed my short 'honeymoon' walk before starting to run again as I entered Cyberjaya. Third 10km was done in a slow 55:20-minute.

Drinking and showering is allowed during a marathon. Keep hydrating while keeping the body temperature low...
[photo by RFF]

The last 12km in Cyberjaya was all familiar route for me, eventhough most part of this section was ran in dark as the street lamps shut off earlier than expected/sunrise. There was even a junction around KM31 where half marathoners turn right while full marathoners go straight, where a lot of people got confused (and most probably were not directed properly). Some full marathoners (including the 4:00 pacers who most probably didn't do enough homework of the route) turned right into the HM route and ended with a shorter 3km marathon distance. And I saw a handful of half marathoners (most probably the front runners) had to backtrack as they missed the right turn and went straight into the FM route. They ended up running 3km longer than the actual HM distance.

My pace became slower, legs were tired, even the Hammer Gel could not do wonder to help me pick up my pace again. At that point, I was just hoping that water stations came as soon as possible so that I could take a short break and have a short walk while having my drinks. There was a moment when I was approaching a water station, feeling relieved that I could walk again and have my drinks. But when I arrived at the water station, when I asked for water, the volunteer there told me that there was no water, only teh tarik is available. He even told me that water is available at the next station, some 500m away. Right away I said, "Shit!" as I had to run for another 500m to the next water station. Then I realized it was the teh tarik and roti canai station but I didn't see that because it was still dark when I arrived at that point.

I was struggling to keep to 5:15-minute pace in the final 5km of the race...
[photo by Amin Jaafar]

So, it was run with occasional walks in between, up to KM37. As I realized I could do very well below 3:40-hour timing, I decided to run all the way in the last 5km, albeit at a slower pace. And in the last 3km, I think I overtook two or three FM runners but I wasn't sure which category they were in. Still, the hope for top ten finish had gone long ago as there were too many runners in front of me, from my count at one of the u-turn sections earlier. My fourth 10km was done in a slightly better time of 53:47-minute. I just continued to run and finish strong, with the slightest hope to better my Kuching Marathon timing as the fastest local marathon race for me. But it was not meant to be. I arrived at the finish line with a nett time of 3:36:21, about 40 seconds slower than Kuching Marathon, but well ahead of my initial target of 3:45:00. And to my surprise, I was handed a position card for 10th place in Men's Open! It made my day, definitely! and it was a pleasure to wear it around my neck while friends came to me congratulating me for the effort. Great day, it was for me to finish in top 10, given the strong field of runners.

Icing on the cake! 10th place in the Men's Open category.

Overall, I was satisfied with the run, not expecting to run a sub 3:40-hour race. And that was achieved with lots of walking *sigh* which I know I could save about 5 minutes had I not walked. In terms of the organization of the race, I can say it was really well-organized with all concerns for the runners were taken care of, with nice finisher t-shirt, finisher medal, proper set-up of finishing area, the foods, the RPC venue, plenty of water stations with cold water and icy-cold sponges at certain section. All I can say is that, keep up the good work. The only comments I could give are on the 'missed turns' of the route, which definitely the race organizer needs to look at and the main stage that was located quite far away from the finish area where only podium finishers care to be around the stage after the race.

And that wrapped my 34th full marathon, six marathons away from my #40on40 #birthdaymarathon quest.



For the results of Men's Open full marathon category, click here.
For my race details on Garmin Connect, click here.