Talk Of The Town

It’s no secret that the Shape run is one of the most highly anticipated races for women in Singapore. the 12th edition of this event, held on aug 13, was testimony to that. over 8,000 participants graced Kallang practice track, this year’s venue.

Fortunately, the early morning rain stopped in time. When the 10km runners were flagged off at 6.30am, the air was crisp and cool, and the ground almost dry.

By 7.15am, the excitement at the starting point for the 5km race was palpable. Joining the individual runners were participants of the 3km x 5km relay – a new category of three-member teams that required each person to run 5km.

Shape Fit girl victoria pang, a relay participant, told us: “this was my first Shape run – and my first race ever. I wanted to try something new and push myself out of my comfort zone.”

And push herself, she did. “though I’m not a strong runner, I actually hit my 5km personal best time. It was hard not to be motivated with everyone around me so encouraging ”.

Also a Shape run newbie was Fly entertainment artiste Stephanie carrington. the 35-year-old, who was training for a marathon, completed the 10km race in just under an hour. She said: “the atmosphere was so great! the pacers were motivating, and I enjoyed running alongside other women. the course was manageable, too. there weren’t too many turns or uphills, and the downhill helped me pick up speed.”.

Those who preferred to take things easy joined the 1.8km Family Fun run, which was open to children aged 13 and under. they received finisher medals as well.

After the races, everyone gathered by the sponsors’ booths to enjoy attractive discounts and freebies. Some even took part in a car wall-sit challenge helmed by Duo rewards. of course, taking selfies and wefies were a must.

The runners’ high lasted to the end. After the prize presentation, many stayed on to join an energetic 30-minute dance workout led by true Fitness instructors – even the kids!

The 3km x 5km relay in action!

“This is my first time in an all-women's run. The energy is so different! Everyone was really supportive and encouraging.“

The Duo rewards car wall-sit challenge was lots of fun!

“ I love shape Run because it’s always well organised. It’s special to me as well because it was the first race I’d ever joined."

“I USED TO HATERUNNING. NOW I’M ADDICTED! I USED TO
HATERUNNING. NOW I’M ADDICTED!"

STEPHANIE CARRINGTON SHARED HOW A HEALTH SCARE NINE YEARS AGO LED HER TO DISCOVER A LOVE FOR RUNNING.

Fly entertainment artiste Stephanie carrington, who clocked 55min 45sec in the Shape run, looked like she’d barely broken a sweat when we caught up with her.

Stephanie was on a roll, having completed her first marathon in tokyo earlier this year with an impressive timing of 4hr 17min. next on her bucket list: berlin marathon in September. “I’m aiming to do it in under 3hr 45min so I can qualify for the boston marathon,” she chuckled.

Her ultimate goal: to one day complete the abbott World marathon majors. this is a series consisting of six of the largest and most renowned marathons in the world that take place in tokyo, boston, London, berlin, chicago and new york city.

With such grand plans, we found it hard to believe that she used to hate running. She shared: “I didn’t really enjoy running when I was younger. In fact, I dreaded it, especially when we were forced to do it in school.”

The turning point

A health scare nine years ago prompted her to become more health- as well as fitness-conscious.

“I was 26 and on my honeymoon in greece. towards the end of the trip, I started having massive headaches and a fever. I would be super hot and sweaty one moment, and shivering the next. the symptoms sounded like malaria. after a check-up, the doctor said I had a crack in my skull which had caused my spinal fluid to leak.

“I was put on antibiotics and bedridden for a month. I couldn’t even lie on a pillow because my head would hurt. the pain lasted for so long, I thought I was going to die. to this day, I have no idea what caused the crack.”

That episode motivated Stephanie to work out regularly. She cycled, did high-intensity interval training, and exercised on the elliptical machine.

Thanks to her dog cobey, she eventually discovered the joy of running. “I’d take him for walks and we’d jog in the evenings when it wasn’t too hot. Slowly, I got into running and now I’m addicted!”

Inspired her husband  to run

Her enthusiasm was so contagious, it motivated her husband Kiran to run in the upcoming berlin marathon with her. he said, “I’ve never been into running, but when I saw the look of euphoria on Stephanie’s face when she crossed the finishing line at the tokyo marathon, it really inspired me.”

At the time of writing, they were training together, with Stephanie giving pointers on how to run better. and she was running four times a week, plus doing high-intensity interval training as well as core- and kneestrengthening exercises in between the runs. “My knees hurt for a week after my first marathon, so I have to strengthen them through exercises like squats, wall sits and leg extensions using the resistance band,” she explained.

WE COULDN’THAVE DONE ITWITHOUT YOU