Last Sunday, I celebrated my 27th birthday by running my seventh full marathon. Originally, I was planning an out-of-town trip for that weekend but because of circumstances beyond my control (like my schedule duh), I had to cancel that trip. Since I had nothing to do on my birthday and I saw a friend selling his 42km race kit for RUPM, I decided to buy it two days before the race. Tada! I suddenly have a race, and a full marathon at that, with zero mileage a month prior because of an ankle injury. But I did not care. I did not even bother to buy the usual provisions (Saltsticks and energy gels). All I cared about was being able to run a race on my birthday and finish it. Also, I had still had some leftover energy gels from my last race.

So come race day, I arrived at the venue feeling giddy. I got there thirty minutes before the assembly time so I had just enough time to deposit my bags and do a quick warm-up. I met up with my team mates from Active Pinas, chitchatted for a while, and then finally proceeded to the corral. The race started at 2am.

This was probably my most relaxed marathon to date. I had fun during the race and felt no pressure. I had no plans of beating my personal best. I had no target time. I smiled all throughout the race, waved at everyone I know, and walked whenever I felt like it. I still could have made a sub-6 finish had I not felt my legs cramping during the last 7km. So I decided to just walk it out. 
Photo Credits: Gerald Ronquillo
I finished the race with a ginormous smile on my face. I couldn't help it, with my running friends cheering me on a few meters before the finish line and my family waiting to greet me at the finish line. 

Kudos to Unilab Active Health and Runrio for another successful event. Congratulations to all the finishers!
rank: 1128th out of 1921 runners, official chip time: 6:12:30