Gold Coast Marathon Challenge Part 2

The day after I arrived was the half marathon, but I skipped it to prioritize sleep and rested instead.
It seems many top Japanese athletes participated as well.

The Gold Coast Marathon has become increasingly popular in recent years, and it seems to sell out in about two hours after registration opens. With participants increasing not only from Japan but also from across Asia, it is expected to become even harder to enter in the future.

That said, various travel agencies sell packages that include race entries, and since they aren't prohibitively expensive, I think it's a situation where anyone who really wants to try it can do so. (The World Marathon Majors are a different story, as the entry rights themselves are expensive, making the total cost incomparable. Still, I hope to do them in the near future.)

Although I said that travel and running (marathons) go well together, it can be difficult to balance maintaining your condition with sightseeing.
So, in my case, just because it's an overseas marathon doesn't mean I want to dedicate everything to the race.
I drank alcohol after arriving and enjoyed meals at wonderful Gold Coast restaurants that I had booked in advance. Even on the day before the marathon, I walked over 20,000 steps, including running, to go sightseeing. (I do think I walked a bit too much, though.)

The conditions in the Gold Coast are good, and it seems many people aim for their personal bests there, so I think it's also a great idea to focus entirely on the marathon.

Values regarding travel are truly different for everyone, and refining those values can deepen one's self-exploration. (It leads to knowing what satisfies you.)

And within that, I will give the marathon my all!
During the Honolulu Marathon, I focused on a fun run, running slowly and sometimes walking until I reached the finish line.
That didn't really suit me, and I felt like I hadn't given it my full effort. (I only learned that because I actually did it.)
You can only experience a sense of fulfillment when you give it your all.

So this time, I decided to give it my best shot.
I hadn't been doing any specific marathon training since the Ryoma Marathon, so I didn't know how well I could run.
What kind of performance would I have with just the daily jogging I've been doing consistently? And what kind of results would come from the fat loss achieved through strength training and a low-fat diet?
It was all like an experiment.

For now, I decided to use 3 hours and 40 minutes as a "benchmark." A benchmark, not a goal.

So I decided to stand at the starting line without setting a pace or worrying about a finish time.
If I had to call it a goal, it would be something like, "Give it my all in that moment."
As long as I can give my current best, the time doesn't matter.
I decided I would savor every bit of this event. That's what I thought.
And that peace of mind led to a wonderful experience.