Patience is a virtue

If you happen to drive along the streets of The Fort, from BHS to Rizal Drive to the Buendia flyover and along Buendia Avenue - from Paseo to Malugay streets on a Sunday morning, I suggest that you bring a big bag of PATIENCE and HIGH SPIRITS with you and you will thank me for it. I know it’s not easy to be perky in the morning, especially on a Sunday when you have a long list of errands on your dashboard and the wife is on an earsplitting banter with the dog and the kids at the back of the car.

Due to the recent high levels of addiction to running, these streets are generally closed for a Sunday race or marathon where hundreds to thousands of health conscious runners are participating. It is unfortunate though that for some of us, we consider closing these streets for a marathon (or for a rally, perhaps - but that's another story waiting to be blogged) a hassle or even a waste of time. Unlike some spectators, who by the way cheer on the runners - not only during last Sunday’s run but in previous races as well, most motorists have yet to understand why we like to run on the asphalt and not on the sidewalk or on the pavement.

Besides the bag, what else can you do to keep your sanity until the green light?

-Honk to the tune of ‘Beat it’ and wave to the runners
-Pump up your car’s volume and call out to the runners to increase their momentum
-Get out of the car, dance, and give out a loud cheer for the runners as they go by
-Join in and RUN – away!

Run for Home: Easy Like Sunday Morning

Locked and Loaded

Before the caffeine hit the spot, I loaded up on Texas Roadhouse Grill’s Pork Steak and Classic Savory’s Classic Combo – that would make you think that I was doing a 42k. Nah, just celebrating - plus it was one of those stormy weekends that you just can’t get enough of the carbs.


Classic Chicken at Savory



Yummy Pork Steak at Texas Roadhouse Grill - just love 'em carboloading


Arrived at exactly 4:45 am on Sunday morning and was shocked to see that there's no one parked in front of the jump-off area. It turned out that they're reserved for the VIPs. By the time the engine was turned off, I saw an unbelievably enormous number of 21k runners off to an early start at exactly 5am - I thought I was already late and these were all 10k runners. At 5:30, the 10k runners totaled to around 1,500. Bumped into Jerry (highaltitude.com) before the 10k gun-off. When he asked my friend and I how our pace was like, I went: 'don't ask - we're very slow'. Sorry, Jerry - I doubt I'll be able to catch up with your pace :) My pace was an easy one - didn't rush off with the rest but finished off the Buendia flyover with no walk breaks - woohoo! But when I reached the Jaguar showroom, I had side stitches and had to slow down and walk. After a minute, I set off again until the turnaround. Got another side stitch but no numbness, so I continued on the run/jog/walk routine until the finish line - where I didn't sprint off like I used to. Unofficial time clocked in at 1:25.

Much ado about the VIPs

V - ast. This is what the parking space in front of the jump-off looked like. There were a lot of parking spots and no one was parked in it. Did the VIPs WALK to the race? Or maybe the cars were used as support vehicles?

I – nstant. The ChampionChip did not provide the on-the-spot, immediate, after-the-race results as promised. Did the imaginary rain destroy the magnetic field? Were the chips designed for another race? Did we tie it correctly? Are the results disposable as the chips? Uh-oh…hope not, because this is the first time I did not bring my Timex watch.




Looks like I got it right coz it didn't fall off :)


P - ossibilities. This race opened up possible innovations for upcoming races (organizers – hear ye, hear ye). Consider designing a new or different route for the 10k or even the 16k. Test run on those chips and we’ll all experience better technologies for every race. I kinda like the AS on the Buendia flyover – can we have more of these plus the markers?






In toto, I give this run a 6 rating. It has innovation for the race route, a timing chip and enough liquids to last a 42k. But, they lost 4 points for the instant race results - which is in fact, one of the big time reasons why I joined this run.

Are you a green runner?

Before you get the wrong ideas, let me make myself clear. A green runner is someone who stays healthy by running and helps Mother Earth healthy by taking care of her.

Go ahead and check out if you are:

--- I bike or run from home to my office and back
(that is, if you don’t live in Bulacan and work in Makati)
--- I handwash my dri-fit gear and hang them dry
--- I donate my old shoes to the baldrunner (www.baldrunner.com) and to other recycling groups
--- I don't leave my bibs or turnaround strings lying around afterwards
--- I bring my own hydration liquid
--- I avoid using the plastic cups in the AS and throw them on the streets
--- I join eco-friendly and environment-conscious races
--- I run/bike/walk to every race
--- I keep off the grass and stay on the asphalt


greenfaze.com

How to prepare for a race

Bet I'm not the only one. One wears a favorite dri-fit orange shirt (which he used when he met his PR at a 21k, didn't feel any leg pain, and felt really good afterwards). Another makes sure that she wears her Adidas climacool white cap - which she believes keeps her maintain a sub sixty for every 10k. Still another gulps down caffeine an hour before a race to keep her on her toes during an entire 10miler. And yet another wears Nike Elite Running Socks everytime he wants to finish an Ultra. Whatever the reason, there would always be that hope that we would achieve a certain running goal if we keep on doing this or wearing that or keeping this or taking that.

I decided to gulp down on caffeine the day before Globe's Run for Home and it was not my usual tall, mocha, hot at Starbucks but I tried Canada's Blenz Coffee Iced Cafe Mocha because I want my adrenalin pumping for the next day race. It was only at 2am, three hours before the race, that I realized I made a mistake. It worked for the Starbucks before, but the sheeps ran out on me this time.


the culprit


So, I guess every runner better keep these pointers in mind before each race:

1. Erroneous beliefs will not make you faster or keep you pumped up during a race. But what the heck, we all have our own misleading notions for everything we do.
2. If you want to get a good night’s sleep before a very important race, leave the coffee to the call center agents the night before. If you’re a caffeine addict, go ahead and spend another P150 for that Venti afterwards - it's your P150 anyway.
3. Never increase your distance if you have not started on a training program yet. Call on the Baldrunner (www.baldrunner.com) for a free running clinic and a good training program.
4. If you want a parking spot during the race, arrive early.
5. Bring your own hydration liquid. So you won't have to complain of diarrhea afterwards.
6. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day – but if you don’t want an appendectomy, a whole egg, or a banana, or two slices of wheat bread and Gatorade will do. Take your pick.
7. Tie your shoelaces correctly. Read www.runnersworld.com for the proper way.
8. Early morning toxins must be released to avoid discomfort.
9. You want to stay healthy and run? Lucky strikes will not do you any good. And that goes for the alcohol load the night before.
10. Stretch those muscles but don’t keep them too warmed up.

Desserts after Milo

They say we always try to find a 'diversion' from a recent depressing situation or happening in our lives. Some would eat a dark chocolate cake, some would watch a movie, some would shop (till they drop), some would pig out, some would blog - no really! Ok, I must admit I've done some of these...haha!

As for me, after a disappointing 10k run during Milo I was fortunate to receive a call from my balikbayan Tito and the new cousins, who invited me to Tagaytay Highlands right after Milo. And I totally forgot all about my very disappointing run.

Food for thought:Stressed when spelled backwards is Desserts






Can you see those cloud formations?


Hmmm...race you?



Nah...didn't swim nor rode in those cable cars - but the kids did :)

Milo Marathon: I wasn't ready

With zero sleep and training before the Milo Marathon, it's no wonder that I spent half of the race walking. But before I get to that, let me recall my very first Milo experience...

When I got to Kilometer 0 at 4:45 am last July 5, the 42km runners had just raced off in a rainbow of reflectors. They left behind a very festive crowd of onlookers, runners-in-waiting, supporters, taho vendors, a group of little Buenavista hopefuls, and green men and women. I remember the last time I was in Roxas Blvd at dawn. My friends and I were working on our Investigative Journalism project - the state of the flesh trade in Luneta. But that's another blog entry in progress...so moving on...

The race started on time - after a national anthem, a prayer, and welcome remarks from Chairman Bayani Fernando and Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim. The first two kilometers were fine and I kept holding on to my mantra "you've done this route before, you can do it!" but I slowed down as soon as I saw the 5km turnaround - "i can't! i really can't!". And before I got to the flyover, I was already walking. My fingers were numb and everything I see was distorted - like a Vincent Van Gogh painting. Damn! I will never make it to the 1:30 cut-off. I walked/run/walked/run until I got to the turnaround and berated myself for registering for a 10km...girl, you're stubborn as a bull. But someone else was talking to me - you have to finish this race and you must do so before the cut off time! But then again, I might have already been delirious.

The numbness reached my lips and my right arm and I was a bit dizzy when I got to Km 0. It was already 1:25 on my watch, 500 meters more and I will finish this race. Sprinting to the finish at 1:30 left me more dazed, dehydrated and still numb everywhere. The thought that I finished the race within the cut-off time (official time is 1:27) is more than enough consolation for a poor run. But, I really have to train and sleep more or I will never finish my next 10k.


A Van Gogh - courtesy of the net