These are the following reasons why I improved my PR best time for the Half-Marathon in this road race:

1)  More rest/no run days—After the Pasig River Marathon last 24 February, I barely had a running workout and rested the whole week. After the Condura 10K run on 02 March, I only ran for a short distance once during the week and had more time to rest, sleep for 7-8 hours every night before the DND-AFP Gintong Pangarap Half-Marathon on 09 March. After logging so many miles/kilometers during my endurance & strengthening phase, I think I could easily increase my pace in road races. My body feels stronger and more relaxed when I have more rest days before the race day.

2)  Body Massage—Two days before the Condura 10K run, I had my body massage and I ran faster during the race. After the Condura run or the week before the Half-Marathon, I had my body massage for two times, Monday and Thursday. These two sessions of body massage made my muscles more relaxed and free from tightness and “lactic acid”.

3) Course Relatively Flat—The route of the Half-Marathon is relatively flat as compared to the Subic Half-Marathon race where the runners have to run over hills and a mountain course. Familiarity with the route was also a a contributory factor because it brought confidence in me what to expect along the road. Practically, the first half of the course was relatively downhill and I was able to preserve my strength  and slowly picked up my pace in the second half of the course.

4) Adequate Support System—There were lots of water supply and water stations along the way. Kilometer markings were visible along the route. Lively music from the Major Service of the AFP Brass Bands deployed along the route provided morale-boasting feeling to the runners.

5) Running With A Partner or Group—I picked up somebody to run with from the start of the race and try to keep up with his/her/their pace. If I feel that I can increase the pace, I look for another runner infront and try to keep up with his pace. Running with MSgt Illut and Capt Ferdie Espejo in the last 5 kilometers of the race brought out my last strength to sprint and kept a faster pace to the finish.

6) My GF 305—An immediate “feedback” as to my average pace from my Garmin Forerunner 305 gave me the “signal” to increase my pace or conserve my energy along the route. The GF 305 is a helpful runner’s gadget, most especially, in road races and running workouts.

7) ASICS Gel-Cumulus 8—So far, this is my most reliable performance running shoes. I used this in the Pasig River Marathon & Condura 10K run. It is light and gives stability to my feet.