Thursday, November 3, 2016

Getting Ready for Safari Zoo Run 2017

Safari Zoo Run will be back for another year! We missed this year's run because it clashes with another event that we were attending, imagine our excitement when we know the run date TODAY, I can block off the date; 18 February 2017 to ensure that we go for the run next year!

We have been to a handful of family runs since last year and this year DinoBoy went for his first competitive race, finishing a 1.2km race at 5m 19s, that was really an achievement for him.  With that he was looking forward to another chance to run competitively and the 2.5m Safari Zoo Kids Dash will be a great opportunity to test his limits.  And since he'll be running his own race, this gives me an opportunity to run my own 2.5m Safari Zoo Family Dash.

This will be my FIRST solo run!  I am excitement and scared at the same time because I am not a runner, never has been a runner.  Yupe you read it right.  During my younger days, I hated PE lessons, detested running in any form, even running forward or backward to catch a ball makes me frown.  I loathed IPPT or NAPFA or whatever they used to call it (see, I don't even remember the actual name), can't even remember if its 1.6km or 2.2km distance.  During these test while most of the students are running I will be with a group of like-mind friends strolling behind, jogging a short distance whenever a teacher urged us to move faster.

So, how come I joined so many family runs?  Well, I remember the time when I received an media invitation to our first family run, I contemplated for a couple of days whether to turn it down or bite the bullet and go for it; it was ONLY 800m dash and I have to think so much about it, you can already know how "unsporty" I am.  In the end I decided to go for it for the sake of DinoBoy, because I wanted him to be exposed to outdoor sports and activities, I was so afraid that he'll become a non sports person like me.  And years later he will have problem when he goes into the army!  I can't allow that! (ok I am thinking too far but never hurt to plan early right?).  We went for that 800m dash, he loved it so much and requested me to let him join in MORE run, thus here we are, with a handful of finisher medals under our belt.  And yes, I struggled to finish that 800m, almost tripped and fell too coz I was dragging my feet unknowingly.  However, this year, at the same race same distance I fared better (still can't catch up with the boy), not as out of breath as before and I finished it faster than I anticipated.

During the previous family run events that we participated, I will either jog/walk/run the entire route, the longest distance was 4km, it was quite amazing to see myself a new milestone at each event.  This time, for the Safari Zoo Run I want to try to run or jog the whole 2.5km, no more walking or strolling.  So how should I start training for it?  Besides getting a pair of good running shoes that supports the ankle and provide good cushioning; like my Skechers GoRun Shoes, I am looking at some basics that I need to improve, once I get them right I should looking more in depth into the Art of Running.

Breath Correctly
I told DinoPapa that I am always out of breath when I run, even for short distance, he said I am not breathing right.  Eh, breathing IS breathing that comes naturally, is there a right or wrong way to breathe?  I am definitely not turning purple at every other minute for lack of oxygen.

Well, apparently, there are basically 2 ways of breathing, chest or diaphragm.  It seems that I am the Chest Breather, this means I take in air to fill up my lungs, enough to bring oxygen to all cells and preventing me from turning into a purple monster.  When running, we need as much oxygen as we can and in order to achieve that we have to make full use of our lungs.  This means inhaling and exhaling fully and deeply through the mouth to the diaphragm.

To train my diaphragm muscles, I can either go for weekly swim of a few laps in the swimming pool or do the Diaphragm Exercise.



When I get that right, I can work on my breathing rhythm.

Best Strike Forward
Heel-strike, midfoot-strike or forefoot-strike?  Confusing eh?  Which one is the best strike?  Well, after reading a few websites on this topic it seems that forefoot-strike is preferred as it causes your feet hit the ground as close to your body thus preventing over striding and reduces the impact force and offload the knee.  You can read more about it at Footstrike 101: How Should Your Foot Hit The Ground?

After reading about this I suspect I am a forefoot-striker because I always feel a drag on the front of my feet when I tried running long distance (ahem! long distance like 100m for me lah).  This is probably also due to the fact that I am not bending my knees more to lift my feet further away from the ground and thus causing friction among the shoes and the ground.  I have better work on this unless I want to embarrass myself by falling flat on the ground face first in front of the other runners and the animals... the chimpanzees will laugh so hard at me that probably will fall off the tree..

There you have it, 2 things that I need to work to be a successful "serious: runner.  So, come join me in training for the Safari Zoo Run 2017!  We'll see you there!


About the Run
Safari Zoo Run was conceived to commemorate Singapore Zoo’s famous matriarch and one of Singapore’s most loved animal personalities — Ah Meng the Sumatran orang utan, who died of old age in February 2008.

The objectives of Safari Zoo Run are to encourage family bonding and raise awareness on wildlife conservation.

Safari Zoo Run 2017
Date: 18 February 2017 (Saturday)
Time: 6am
Venue: Singapore Zoo, 80 Mandai Lake Road S729826.
Website: http://safarizoo.run/
Facebook: @SafariZooRunSingapore

Meet the Animal Icons

The run’s theme is “Run for Wildlife” which focuses on raising awareness for wildlife conservation. Each animal icon team supports an endangered wildlife species that we would like to raise awareness for.

Show your support for wildlife conservation by joining Safari Zoo Run 2017 and choosing an animal team to run for and help raise more awareness about them.





Category & Fees


*Adult supervision by a registered 5.5km Safari Zoo Family Run (Non-Competitive) Adult participant is required. Due to safety reasons, one 5.5km Safari Zoo Family Run (Non-Competitive) Adult participant can only be paired with one 5.5km Safari Zoo Family Run (Non-Competitive) Kids participant.

**Adult supervision by a registered 2.5km Safari Zoo Family Run (Non-Competitive) Adult participant is required. Due to safety reasons, one 2.5km Safari Zoo Family Run (Non-Competitive) Adult participant can only be paired with one 2.5km Safari Zoo Family Run (Non-Competitive) Kids participant.

^ Children below 4 as of 18 Feb 17 enter for free (without runner’s entitlements) in the non-competitive family categories.

Flag off time

Stay tuned for the update

Age Limits (As of 18 February 2017)


Route

Stay tuned for the update

Discount Code

Here’s a unique discount code for DinoFamily's friends!  Enjoy 10% off current rates when you register via www.safarizoo.run with the code SZR2017BGPDINOM10 from now till 15 Jan 2017.

Disclaimer : We were invited to join in the Safari Zoo Run 2017, no other compensation was received. All opinions in this post are 100% ours.

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