doodledee.doodledum: Monthly challenge #1 : i did it!

Hello dear followers! and new readers and those who just happened to stumble across my blog. Hi! Its Sarah again and today is the day where I tell you and proudly share my glorious moment/achievement of my life with all of you today! (while I am wearing a facial mask ;D)

What is it, you ask? WELL....for the past month, I've been training myself for a challenge I put up in efforts to improve myself and also help people get motivated in challenging themselves and stepping out of their comfort zone.

So for the month of August, I had challenged myself into joining my first ever 10 km marathon. I trained myself with the help from B, various training apps (Nike+ running & training club) and other people who gave me tips and motivation throughout my training.

And I'm proud to say exactly a month from the date I started the monthly challenge:

I DID IT! I COMPLETED MY FIRST EVER 10 KM MARATHON RUN! and I've accomplished my August monthly challenge! Which is a big thing for me as this achievement marks the end of my monthly challenge for the month of August!

So here's how it went :

At 11pm the day before my race, I prepped my gear and set my alarm for the next day. Was determined to wake up at 5am the next morning so I can get to the race early and bask in the ambience of a marathon. That day, my family and I just got back from Ipoh as we went to Kuala Kangsar to pay our respects to a relative whom passed away on Friday. (we stayed over night in Ipoh and headed home on saturday afternoon). I was pretty tired and slept like a baby that night.

I slept so soundly that I actually didn't hear my alarm blasting at 5 in the morning on my race day! I eventually woke up at 6.30 am and in a panic checked for the race schedule. I completely forgot to check it the night before and my 10km race starts at 7.15 am!

I quickly jumped out of bed, ran to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. Put on my deodorant, I didn't even shower that morning (sorry y'all had to know that!) and got dressed as fast as I could. Mum was up and ready to send me and we were out of the house by 6.45am.

The problem was that on that day, it was Kuala Lumpur Car Free Morning. Which meant cars were not allowed to go in to the city centre and they had blocked out the roads for the race.

We took a detour and by that time it was already 7am. I was in a panic. It was my first marathon, so I had no idea how they run things. I was worried they wouldn't let me run anymore. but because I was so determined, I decided to just go.

Eventually we arrived near the race area. However the roads were blocked and I had to walk all the way for about 1 km to Dataran Merdeka where they had the race. At that time it was already 7.20 am. And I had missed the starting of my race.

I may have not been a marathon before, but I have been in an endurance horse race before and I know that they have a grace period for other riders to go in before they started the other races. I thought it was like that and I had no chance to reach it in time. But because I was already there, I decided to just run to Dataran Merdeka and hope that they will still let me in.

So I actually ran all the way from Medan Tuanku station near SOGO and reached Dataran Merdeka exactly at 7.30am. At that moment the organisers had started the 5KM run. I joined in the run with the 5km runners. At first it was ok, as there were room for fresh air to ventilate through.

However, once we reached the tunnel towards the National Mosque....The air grew hot and heavy and I could feel...literally feel everyones carbon dioxide filling up the air above us. Being only 5Ft...It was pretty stuffy for me amongst the sweaty pits and heavy breathing of my fellow runners.

Finally after that first hurdle, we reached the 1km mark. By that time, everyone was starting to slow down. They used up too much energy during the starting and some even decided to walk. I continued at my own pace and thanking God for the fresh air that saved me after the stuffiness of the tunnel...

We continued on and passed by various tourist places that were not as busy as the main roads. We passed by the bird park, planetarium, orchid park, butterfly park, Bukit Aman police headquarters and so on around the area. I can only name some of the places as I was still conscious of where I was.

At the 3km mark there were the refreshment stands. I decided I wasn't gonna wait till the next 3km, so I took a cup and drank while I walked. After that I pushed on. Normally, a 3km run for me would take me 30 mins. this time, probably because of the excitement, I completed my 3km in 17mins. I didn't marvel at the time as I knew there was a long way to go and I just kept on pushing on.

During my training prior to the marathon, people kept on telling me that there would be a point where I would regret my decision in joining a marathon. Honestly, I was expecting myself to give in to that and walk for most of my 10km. SURPRISE SURPRISE! I didn't feel that way. In fact, I felt good about myself. And I felt even better after the 5 km runners had turned to their track and the 10km had to go on further up the hills.

I felt good cause everyone I passed by was walking all the way. And I'm proud to say that I didn't! *YEAAAHHH* I continued going slow and steady. At the pace I was comfortable in. I could feel their brain waves going "how on earth can she run??" and "what the heck this girl!" well..sorta. Hahaha it was all in my head and probably my subconscious self was trying to motivate my conscious self by boasting. -_-

So yeah I continued on, pushed on...and eventually I MADE IT!

I made it to the finishing line and I completed my 10KM marathon strong! :D