More than 20 years later on Sunday, I took part in the 21km Safra Singapore Bay Run and Army Half Marathon.
It was fun at first, running past Shenton Way and Marina Bay Sands, but after 7km, I started to struggle.
That was also where runners were delayed by a bottleneck near the Marina Barrage. I took the opportunity to rest longer than I should.
I had been working six nights straight and had less than a hour's sleep before the run, which was flagged off at 5:15am.
After 15km, I was jogging so slowly I might as well walk, which was what I did for most of the rest of the way. I was very disappointed with myself.
I was so exhausted I could feel the weight of my sweat-soaked tank top on my shoulders. My right knee buckled at one point. I really felt all of my 47 years.
I also made the mistake of drinking (or "hydrating") during the run which I've never done before. That made it difficult to pick up speed as I was filled with fluids.
Still, I managed to force myself to jog across the finish line at 3 hours 3 minutes. I was hoping to make it under 3 hours. I must try to do better next year.
Below are some of the less blurry pictures I took with my shaky iPhone along the way. They seem almost psychedelic in retrospect.
One positive side effect is that next Sunday's 10km Vertical City Trail run (which includes a 20-storey stair climb) now seems like nothing in comparison.
UPDATE: Don’t worry about the 10km run – the stairs will kill you
