Dr. Irvin Sulapas, assistant professor of family and community medicine at Baylor and primary care sports medicine physician, had a full day at the Chevron Houston Marathon in January, first running the half marathon and then volunteering at the medical tent. He discusses his experience in this Q&A.
Dr. Irvin Sulapas at Houston’s half marathon in January.
Q: Was this your first time running a half marathon?
A: Yes, it was!
Q: What inspired you to take on this task?
A: As a physician, I volunteered for the medical crew last year, and I treated all types of runners. They came in all different shapes and sizes, and some even had chronic medical conditions. A lot of them finished the half/full marathon. At that point I decided to run the half marathon myself, and that night I signed up for the next year’s event!
Q: How did you prepare for it?
A: I prepared with friends who have run a half marathon before and went through a half marathon training regimen to increase my stamina and mileage.
Q: What was your experience like?
A: It was great! I’ve never trained for any running events before, but I had a good support system and I enjoyed doing all the local running events prior to the half marathon. My first running event was actually the BCM Wellness 5k back in October!
Q: How was your experience working in the medical tent after the run?
A: As a sports medicine physician, I enjoy providing medical coverage for the athletes. I was a little sore after the half marathon, but I was still able to see some patient/athletes to take care of their injuries. The medical coverage for the event is very well run, and the volunteers are great!
Q: Would you want to complete a full marathon next time?
A: It’s not in the plan at this time, but never say never! Currently, I have signed up to run the half marathon again next year.
Q: Any advice for those who are interested in running a half/full marathon?
A: Find a training regimen to help increase your mileage, run with friends and cross train!
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