Running with a cold

 

How?  Just run and think like you don’t have one.

Last night’s was a get-back-on-the-track run, after shamelessly putting up with my having colds as lame excuse for not running.  Good thing someone in the forums teases me to quit from just making ‘kulit’ side-comments in the ‘Today’s Run’ thread, as I didn’t have mileage covered to post anyway, and reminds me that the UP oval has been awaiting my next run.  As if that wasn’t enough a scolding for me, another runner posts about his run while having a bad cold. 

Thanks guys, you just made your point –  straight to my face this time – that runners shouldn’t be softies.

I finished 3 laps of the acad oval last night (roughly 6.6km) with stops in between.  The first stop was to catch my breath as I’ve ran rather speedily when I tried to consciously practice the “lean forward” technique of the Pose Running method.  Talk about experimentations again.  Well, it might just work, who knows. 

Another stop was to rescue my dry throat, which I thought to be a well-justified break:  well, you stop at water stations on the 2.5km’s mark (I was then finishing my 2nd lap so I’ve covered more than 2.5km), and besides, I’m recovering from a cold – oh but didn’t I just say at the start not to think you have one, yay… 

Last night’s was sort of uncomfy running for me, despite the fact that it’s only been four days since the last time I ran/ joined the sprint race.  Muscles tightening on the lower leg part, my breathing shallow and uneven, and my skin richly perspiring on a rather humid UP evening  -  last night felt like it’s been a semi-forever since I last ran!  Oh but I enjoyed it.

A puzzle hard to crack:  Find me a reason to hate running.

Aww, I’m missing the Company Fun Run

Have you ever had yourself all psyched up to join a race just to find out 3 days before the actual race that you can’t make it?

Terrible.  Tsk.

Sick mode

I’m currently down with colds and yesterday was a house arrest day for me. 

After my back-to-back races the past weekend, I made sure my Monday was supposed to be a rest day – definitely a “no run” day.  But I was supposed to be back and up already by Tuesday to attend my second session at the Nike running clinic. 

But surprise of surprises, Tuesday turned out to be a sick day.  Oh and what a nice succession is that -   rest day then sick day! 

I was glad anyway to have found an excuse to stay curled on my bed most of the time yesterday and get plenty of sleep.  Oh but the self-enforced water therapy (I probably finished up more than five 1L pitchers of water yesterday!) proved to be a not-so-easy task.  But it worked, I think. 

I am giving this colds two more days from today for an ultimatum.

Race for Life on Saturday & Sprint Race on Sunday

For a not-yet-that-strong lady runner, having consecutive races every weekend is quite a crazy thing to do – uhm, actually not quite so for running addicts, but back-to-back races in one weekend is already lurking on the twice crazy side, at least for my case.

That’s why I messed my 10K run in Race for Life last Saturday just to save my first ever entry into sprint races yesterday.

And it paid off!  My track and field team won champion overall in the Singolympics and we, the women, did the “pulling up”.  It’s not like our men in the team did so poorly, but more because they ran side by side “pro” sprint monsters for their opponents. 

***

First things first.

Race for Life, The Fort.  Nov. 22 (Saturday)

My friends asked if I’d call this my worst race so far.  Erm, I thought for a while and then I said, ‘Yes… so far’.   Not that Race for Life went totally amiss as I’m sure there were many people who had their road racing debut there and found a great time for themselves.  In fact, I too had a great time.  I think the mere fact that it’s running, which is something I will always love to do, and I was with my great, great running buddies -  every race shall always be a good race.

But according to the order of enjoyment of one’s race experience, getting a good time of finish, and race venue setup and convenience of procedures, so far this would qualify to be one of my least favorites.  But this isn’t like ‘it’s the organizers fault!’  –   hmn, NOPE, not that.  This being the race before my ‘first ever sprint race’ - and the latter having me all really excited -  it was doomed to be, at the most, just a ’second best’. 

I had followed my initial plan, which is to make this a relaxed run to save my energy for the following day.  Truth is, I further demoted it to a ‘relaxed run and walk’. 

But I should mention other things which made this race less pleasant for me when I had previously planned to just enjoy this run.

> We arrived more than 10 minutes late to the race venue which forced me to have to pass through the “confused” stage first before eventually easing to the relaxed running mode.  And I thought there was something weird with the positioning of the start/ finish line.  I don’t have the abundance of words and time to describe it now but I just found it weird. 

>  I don’t know if it was just me, but I thought I had some unwanted dose of chaos last Saturday.  There were too many cars parked in the race route, too many groups of ‘walkers’ who would occupy the entire lane (you’re left clueless how to get through them and you end up bumping into them or you take the other lane at the risk of being hit by cars), high traffic and being forced to stop several times at the intersection points, and finally -  and this is so personal I know, I realized my calves had not fully recovered yet from the sprint trials. 

Don’t get me wrong about the ‘walkers’ thing because in fact, I had joined them even before I started my second loop.  I figure there were more recreational runners in this race as this was, in the first place, a run for a cause.   That’s apart from the fact that there were still two major races the following day. 

It is also in this race where I learned how important it is to ‘listen to your body’.  My calves weren’t in good shape still and I kept on feeling a tingling sensation while I ran.  Since I could not afford to be injured that day, I took it easy and alternated running and walking.

Jihan and Ryan had a fair share of incongruent things happening in this race as they had both registered for 10K but got race kits that were for 5K.  Of course they hated it as they had already psyched themselves to be running 10K. 

Finishers still:  Myself, Cha, Ami, Jihan, and Dree

Pre-breakfast kulitan

Ryan as our muse for the day

 

***

My first ever Sprint Race in Singolympics.  Marikina Sports Complex, Nov. 23 (Sunday)

I was in full ecstatic mood yesterday!  I had totally enjoyed my sprint races.

Leaving Marikina Sports Complex almost 5PM already yesterday, I sent this SMS to our trainer:  “Hey Denmark, thank you for the coaching.  Did you know it was first time to do sprint race?  And I really enjoyed my runs.”

While hearing mass at UP chapel, I had to be whispering “sorry, God” several times as I found it difficult to focus as scenes from the sprint races kept rolling in my mind.  I was hilariously “high” with it,  Ha ha! 

So we won 1st place in women’s 4×100m sprint relay and in the more challenging 4×200m relay.  It was funfunfun! 

But my 200m individual sprint performance sucked!  I finished second to the last and I figure it must be the Mcburger, fries and iced tea which I took 10 minutes before I had that run.  Golly it felt weird to be feeling those foodstuffs joggling inside my tummy while trying to sprint.  Good thing the relay races came a little later that afternoon when I was back to my elements.

There’s a different kind of high in sprint races.  It’s more competitive, yes, and pressure is exponentially higher.  Yesterday, I would have butterflies in my stomach minutes before each race.  And I thought it was a kind of feeling so similar to what I’d experince when I would join impromptu speech contests back in high school.

I also enjoyed my bonding moment with my team.  One of my male teammate asked how long I finish my 10Ks.  Before answering, I asked him first how long he finishes his.  I nearly choked when he said, “45 minutes”.  And then I was obliged to say mine.  Hesitant, I said, “Oh never mind, I’m sooo slow… really slow!”  But he insisted, “So, ano nga?” 

“Wala, 73 minutes!  Ambagal!”  I replied.

And surprised, he uttered, “Hah?!  73 minutes?  Ah, mabagal ka nga!”  And that came with teasing smile.

Oh, you wait til I finish my running clinic.  Hahaha!  (I wish!)

MSC filled with over 1,000 SFC athletes and spectators.

And MSC has a nice Olympic size pool too!

How to deal

I don’t know what to do with my race tomorrow at The Fort. 

I am racing 10K in Race for Life.  Probably I should quit saying “I am racing”.  When one says he or she will race, dealing with that statement automatically means doing a chase run -  either for a new PR, or for an enemy on the race track, or for the medal and prize -  or for all of these if you’re a road monster.

So I say ‘I am running tomorrow’,  barely in good shape after covering shamelessly little mileage this week and still haven’t fully recovered from the past weekend’s NB race ‘high’ -   I intend to make it a relaxed run instead.   One more thing, I cannot be injured before Sunday where I shall have my first ever sprint race in Singolympics.   Not that I want to win.   Oh, but it’s prolly nice to win it.  But I am more after putting up a nice play for my team.  I cannot mess up there. 

Our SFC chapter’s track and field trainer last night in a sorta closing prayer after our practice went: 

“… Lord, make us ready to fight, ready to win, and ready to glorify You.  Amen.”

Yay!  You sound serious man!  Me scared.

Anyway, back to topic -  How I plan to deal with tomorrow and How I actually end up dealing with it tomorrow may turn out to be two different stories afterall.  How exciting life is.

My calves hurt

Last night wasn’t about training but more of trial runs to find out who’ll do the 100m dash, the 200m, the full 400m, the 2x 400m and the relays.  

I am doing the 200m sprint race on Sunday, apart from being the first runner in two relay races.  Best luck to me.

Now don’t dare think I was assigned that because I did well last night.  Truth is, it’s simply because there are no other girls in the team so we were all given our dues.

After the sprint trials last night, my calves hurt.  Now I know why they say that sprinters are more injury-prone than distance runners.  The muscles in the legs would get the shock of their lives everytime you sprint!  Ha ha ha!  

And there was an added challenge to last night’s sprint trials.  We had to do it on an unlit grassy ballground of UST.  The surface was uneven but you only feel it because it’s dark you never really see what you’re stepping on.  It was kind of okay though to me because, at the very least, I am sure to land on a soft ground if ever I fall while pushing it my best. 

True enough, I went close to stumbling down while running full speed with the uneven surface and the lack of proper lighting.  Sprint racing brings up all the adrenaline rush in you and you begin not to care about anything except to cross the finish line first.  But last night I sort of shivered at the thought of the I-almost-fell-while-sprinting experience.  I was pushing it hard so I know that if I had really fallen to the ground, it’s going to be a “hard fall” too.  Yay!  I’m no ready for that.  That’s MPG to the nth level.

I don’t like the idea of being injured.  I think I want to run safe. 

So after the sprint races this Sunday, that’s supposed to come after a 10K race this Saturday (now my mother starts to wonder what it is I want prove to the world, hahaha!),  I shall go back to focusing on my distance running career.  I may be slow in finishing my 10K but I finish it still standing tall on my two strong feet and so injury-free. 

Not like this, when we only did a few sprint trials last night and still my calves hurt as of this writing.

What’s on my plate tonight

Training with the track and field team for Singolympics at UST…

I don’t know what I’m getting myself into.  They just told me they need people to play/ race and a friend volunteered me into it as he knew I’ve been into distance running lately -  but distance here defined as 10K the farthest, haha!  And another team wants to get me play for them in badminton.

Do these people have an idea I used to be sickly and weakling as a child?

First session of Nike Running Clinic

 

I may really just get a brighter future in sprinting, than in distance running. 

That’s what I realized from last night’s Nike running clinic where we, the Tuesdays group of trainees, had our first session.

The running clinic last night was impressive.  The program, I just realized then, is more serious than I thought.   The coaches made us run, run and run!  Well, what do you expect to get from a running clinic anyway. 

I went to ULTRA last night with Brian who’s also a newbie in running.  Side by side him, I could be considered a semi-veteran in races as this guy hasn’t tried road racing yet.  I am pretty sure though, from last night’s scenarios, that 5K is chickenfeed to him and he will run past me in 10K. 

Being a telco person, I work more than eight hours a day and I usually depart from my office desk at 7PM the earliest.  So I had hoped for the running clinic to take some delays in starting so that I could catch up right in time for the sessions. 

But NO!  The people manning the clinic are runners too (running coaches even!) and these guys know what minutes or seconds delay in time is worth.  Things went the other way around.  I learned that as early as quarter to 7PM, a batch of trainees were already doing their warm-up runs.  To cut things short, I was a latecomer – a very latecomer! -  and I ended up being the lone female among three guys.  We were the last batch handled for the night.  FYI:  They have separate sessions for males and females.

Call time for the Nike clinic is at 7PM.  Brian and I arrived to the venue 40 minutes late.   Walking towards the track, I was surprised to see several packs of runners donning in race bibs on top of their shirt.  And I suddenly thought we were lost.  After inquiring though, I learned that that race bib contains your trainee number and you’re supposed to wear it everytime you attend the sessions.  

Last night’s training consisted of time trial runs of two sets of 4 laps with 10-minute break in between, one set of 2 laps, and then a finale of just 1 lap.  They get your time from the runs and record it.  I think those times of finish recorded are supposed to help them assess whether a trainee shall have to be assigned to the beginners group, middle, or advanced. 

And since I missed the chance to be with the other lady trainees, I had to be running side by side three guys in finishing all the sets.  As expected, I lagged behind them and Brian was consistently the fastest.  I didn’t mind it though as I saw one of the guys do walks in between while I did continuous running.  Joining road races made me realize that long distance running is, in the end, really a game of endurance.  And that’s an area I’ve been working on really hard for sometime now.

But there’s a highlight for me in that session.  Without intending to, I took the limelight in the finale run of just one lap.  The assistant coach told me I can run my fastest pace this time as this is only 1 lap and then I immediately asked if I could sprint it.  He said, “kung anong kaya mo ma’am” and so I did what I could.  In my last set, I ran full speed with my longest stride and before I knew it the coaches started shouting cheering me on because I left two of the guys far behind me while Brian was trying to catch up but wasn’t able to until after the 300th meter.  I think I caught them surprised, haha.  I had been running snail pace in all the other sets -  or at least, side by side my batch of all-male I was ’snail pace’.   In the last set, I finished close second to Brian.

The clinic was fun, well, serious too.  I wonder what they’d let us do next Tuesday…

New Power found @ NB Power Race ‘08

Little did I know this Clark race would be so much fun!

While I think runners’ blogs shouldn’t sound this cheesy, then again I cannot help but state the events as they unfolded.  With my MPG runner-friends and the local running community invading Clark, this weekend’s New Balance Power Race ‘08 had been so whackily fun!   This is definitely one of my best races, if not ‘the best’, this year. 

Kudos to the organizers for the systematic setup and procedures, for giving plenty of freebies, and for choosing a very nice venue!  They were twice lucky too for affording to offer racers a nice cloudy weather that made the running experience a little more pleasant, and bearable to some.

MPG @ NB Race:  Jihan, Carla, Myself, Dree, Romel, Mox, and Ryan  (Not in pic:  Bless, Francis, & Ami)

I was thinking the weather condition should have been a big help especially to those who ran 25K -  and also to those who took up 10K for the first time.  As for me, it was my third 10K race and I am happy to get myself a new PR!  Don’t be fooled to think it’s something worth the notice.  Truth is, I am really sloooow as a runner but I am inspired to see I that am improving anyhow. 

New PR for me!  (But I seriously want to get rid of the number 7,  tsk!) 

This time, I finished 10K at the NB Power Race in 71 minutes (unofficial record) -  which means I shaved off 6 minutes from my record in OctobeRun.  I should be saying ‘Yahoo!’ now for at least getting myself a better time, only that I had honestly aimed for at least a sub-70 minutes record.  At the turnaround for 10K, I clocked in 35 minutes and I cringed at the thought of having to muster a negative split in order to get a sub-70.  But I had tried, you know. 

You’d be laughing if I tell you I was really working hard at it that I was doing alternates of sprint and walk in my last two kilometers.  In fact, when I was sprinting and was able to ran past a coach and his trainee who were running together, the coach perhaps was taken aback with my unusual speed that he shouted, “Oh, that was fast!”.  That’s one of the many comic turns for me in that race -  major Hahaha!  because in no less than two minutes, the same coach would see me walking and gasping for breath with a loser’s face.  Ha ha ha!

Another comic story took place on my last half-kilometer when I was back at the Parade Grounds.  All my friends who ran 10K were faster than I am and they had all been out of my sight after the turnaround.  So in the last half KM stretch I got surprised to spot Ryan just close ahead of me, and that’s when an evil intention formed in my mind as I cooked up this plan of sprinting really fast and overtaking him at the finish line.  Hahaha, naughty me!  But the good heavens forbid evil intentions to materialize.  Apparently Ryan was also doing the same -  sprinting the last few distance!  And my friends were all laughing when I was telling them this story during the post-race breakfast.  Ryan, on the other hand, joked that I’d always finish a minute later than he does in all the group’s races -  which had been the case, by the way, in three races we both joined including this one.  Now what a challenge is that!

I was also gladdened to have met in this race two runners from Takbo.ph, Queenie and Rene.  Apparently there were more Takbo.ph people who also ran this race, and were able to spot me! as they said the forums (ang daya!), but I was not able to meet them.  For one, some of them ran the 25K and I left the race venue before most of the 25Kers finished as my friends and I went rushing to find a place where we can grab a bite. 

I have to mention that Rene was gracious to give me a Runnex singlet (he’s a member of the Runnex club) and I am most inspired by the move.  I felt it was a formal welcoming for me into the local running community and it makes me want to run more and inspire others to do the same.  Rene, thank you thank you – and you’ll see me running soon in that Runnex singlet!

Let some of these pics tell you more story about our funfunfun NB race:

 

This is how the Saturday race, for 1.2K (kids) and 5K looked like.  Three MPG runners – Carla, Ami, and Bless -  did the 5K so most of my gang (including myself) were already in Clark last Saturday afternoon to support our 5Kers.  Dree and Ryan’s families and relatives also ran the 5K race, all of them first timers in a race.

Posing with some of our 5Kers:  Dree’s mommita beside here, Carla in her bandana look, and Dree’s aunt – Darang Edis.

New @ MPG:  The Saturday 5K race was a baptism race into the MPG gang for Ami (leftmost in powder blue shorts) and Blessie (in pink bandana).  They so loved their first race experience I am almost sure now they’ll be running more races with us soon.

The 10Kers turn:  Bless took this pic while we were in real stretching mode prior to 25K and 10K races Sunday early morning.  Seen in this pic are Francis, Ryan, Jihan, Myself, and Dree.  Mox and Romel were missing in action, perhaps already easing their way to enter the assembly area.  This time there were seven of us already in the 10K category -  the relatively new ones are myself, Frans, and Dree.  Among the seven 10Kers, I finished last and that should explain why they call me the MPG president.  I want to get faster soon just to get rid of that title, hahaha!

True to its name:  So MPG naman!   While somebody kept on announcing over the megaphone that competitive runners should stay infront and the ‘not so’ at the back, my friends insisted that we stay right at the very front of the starting line.  Serious runners would squirm at this, but there we were occupying the first row as can be seen in this picture.  Set your gaze at the light from the lamp post and right below it you will see myself in white headband.  Right next to me on my right is Ryan and on my left are Jihan (with black collar) and Dree (in blue bandana).  Mox, Romel and Frans were in the third row, still mastering how it is to be MPG.

‘Winner feeling’ with the finisher medals on!  Among my friends, Mox finished the fastest runner in the group that he, in fact, got a loot bag that’s given out only to the top 20 or 30 finishers for 10K.  You are no MPG man, you are real!  That’s why you don’t get emals from our egroup, fake MPG!  Hahaha!

Post-race stretching:  Funny how we seemed to be doing different things here when the fitness instructors on the stage were demonstrating only one type of stretch at a given time.  And somebody looks absolutely funny here, but I won’t tell, hehehe.

‘Chill’ mode:  We were unstoppable in photo-ops!  This shot was taken while we were waiting for Ryan to get the car to bring us to the nearest resto where we can grab a bite, or two.  Needless to mention, we were all tired and HUNGRY.

Yumyum!  This is what you call carbo-REloading the MPG way.  Hearty breakfast and lotsa laugh trips at Rumpa resto in Clark.

Acknowledgments:  Thankyouthakyouthankyou to our hosts Ryan and Dree (who are both Pampangeños) for serving as our gracious hosts in this NB race.  Now we found our North Luz headquarters for the MPG runners.  I should take care of our South Luz HQ, hehehe!

Three days before NB race

Why do I like joining races?  One of the top reasons would be that it motivates me to train more often and more seriously.

What’s cooking for me now are three consecutive weekend races:  NB race in Clark this Sunday, Race for Life at The Fort on Saturday next week, and the DMPI Fun Run in UP on the last day of the month (What a month-ender is that!).  I have plenty on my plate, I know, but I hope this isn’t yet the case of one who’s “biting more than he can chew”. 

In any case, while I’m doing 10K in the first two and an 8.8K in the last (just because it’s the longest distance category offered- naks!), I am determined to attempt to set a new PR only in the NB race this Sunday.  The other two can be just like any relaxed long run for me.  Then again, because I know the crazy stuff I’m made of, my mindset can change one snap of a second during the actual race -  and Cathletic tries again to make it a chase run instead of a relaxed one!

This morning, I ran at ULTRA with Cla, who’s a dear friend of mine since college and who just decided to take up running as a hobby.  I did 10 laps of the track oval and was forced to quit after doing a timecheck on my watch.  Going on my eleventh round, it was sometime 7:20 AM already when I checked and I realized I still needed to take a shower after, change to office attire, and get an FX to bring me to Robinsons. 

This is what I don’t like much with my morning runs where I end up only half-satisfied (eeengk! bigtime “bitin”) with my practices.  The twin hassles of forcing oneself to get up so early in the morning and then ending up not being able to run as long as you want and can are surely big cons for me.  Nevertheless, it’s obvious that solving the first means solving the second problem too.  No difficult Algebra needed there. 

Ergo, slow runners like me aren’t born.  Rather, they are created when a person worships laziness beyond the tolerable level.