Ran my first official race this past Sunday - the 10km at the Hong Kong marathon.
I was aiming for a sub 1 hour 10km and I clocked in at 59:50. My heartrate was absolutely jumping the first 2km...adrenaline, nerves, running on a highway I drive through on a weekly basis...it was quite the experience. The biggest lesson for me is the beginning of the race can be quite dense - it was tough to maneuver around people and find a consistent pace early on. But maybe it was also for the best so I didn't peak too early. I was literally blocked from going too fast. I didn't really "lock in" until 7km, where I shaved 30 seconds off my pace (from around 6:00 / km to 5:30 km) for the final 3km. I passed by at least 100 runners in that final stretch. I leaned into my training and hovered around the mid 170s for HR, and just went for it. Such a rush, especially when I saw my final time came in for what I hoped. While I get that running is trendy and I'm not above the propaganda - it's truly a "me vs. me" sport. I have no one to blame / thank / believe in but myself. Happy with where I'm at with training and I know the full Tokyo Marathon in March will be a great time.
The last week was also marked by finally returning to social running. The marathon week brings the city together unlike any other occasion - tons of brand activations, group runs, and a general sense of camaraderie. I ran two events - an Adidas x Shelter tempo run at Kai Tak and a HBX x Shelter shakeout run at Central. Much of my training block has been done alone on the same route, so it was extremely refreshing to see familiar faces and try out different paths.
Work-wise, I've been leaning heavy into my TEFL certifications. My CV is in a great space now and I've been applying to more jobs. I'm genuinely excited about the future. "Swimming with the current" isn't a bad thing. Prospects could be much, much worse. I'm grateful for the opportunities ahead.
Back to running - two medals into the first month (Garmin half-marathon + HK 10km). Collecting hardware like OpenAI. Let's get it baby.