Who Is Who
Alex Ong (top) and Ivan Low (left) are both regular podium finishers in the Singapore running scene.
Ivan, who picked up running only in 2011, has come a long way since then. Within one short year of his introduction to the sport, he stole the show, with a third-placed finish in the 21km race at the 2012 Sundown Marathon.
And then last year, he won the 10km Men’s relay race at the same event.
Alex won the 42km race – at the 2012 Sundown Marathon. It marked his first win at a Full Marathon event.
Last year, he took part in the Full Marathon again and came in third. Come May, he hopes to conquer the same race again, in a time of less than three hours.
Here are a few tips from these two top runners on how to prepare for the big night race.
How to stay awake at night
For both Alex and Ivan, keeping the body alert during a night run is definitely a huge challenge. Consequently, their personal timings may often be slower than those clocked at early morning races. Ivan advises that sleeping during the day may help to ensure that the body can cope with the rigors of running past midnight. Alex says that you could gradually tune your body clock so that it learns to stay awake at night.
Carbo Loading
Alex also shared some useful tips about carbo loading, a common pre-race practice for runners. Generally, he feels that it is good to start increasing carbohydrate content, about two to three days before the race. Some of his personal favourites include spaghetti, bananas and sweet potatoes.
Speed and Pacing
Meanwhile, Ivan Low has some useful tips regarding training in speed and pacing. These include assessing your current conditioning and setting training goals that are within your ability. Doing interval training on a smooth, flat surface such as a running track would also be good training.
Click here to read more on Alex Ong’s tips.
Click here to find out what other advice Ivan gave.
