Nangalawang.

Having lingered too long in the lazyland, I could barely finish one complete round of the Acad Oval in UP this morning. It’s been seven run-less days for me. The biking last Sunday didn’t count. Base training is really fundamental, and duh!, that’s redundant I know.

I finished only two rounds of the acad oval when I was supposed to run at least four (four rounds is roughly 8.8K). I decided I should just give in to a friend’s offer that we do a long run together in Pampanga. Whattheheck, it should go better that way as I know myself as someone who’s ever excited to try a different route everytime. To be honest, part of the reason isn’t even related to running – just plain excitement in discovering new places.

So I did an easy run instead, that turned out to be not so easy actually as I figured I was in the “nangalawang” mode. While I was doing a warm-up jog, something already ached on my left foot. That was too soon a coming for a bad sign.

Now I’m in Clark with my brothers and currently in a dreamy mode visualizing how the morning long run tomorrow, the Pampanga way, will look like. I’ve suggested that we do a practice run on the 10K route for the NB Power Race next weekend – clever eh! Then again I’m spending the night in SF and proceeding with the idea means getting back to Clark so early in the morning tomorrow when the Pampanga Sports Complex comes in more handy. Anyhow, SF or Clark, it shall be a Pampanga run tomorrow.

Craving for ULTRA

Tomorrow morning, if all things go well, I shall have my second ULTRA [morning] experience.

The plus?  A new recruit to the MPG runners group.  WELKAM CLA!  

I’ll be running with our new recruit tomorrow.  I know the MPG pips can’t wait to get to race with her na din.  Now we got for ourselves a proven clown darling in the gang!

 

Nov. 5, 8:44 AM, Cathletic arriving to the office:

Haaay… things didn’t push through as planned.   Cla suddenly had the girly red alert, while I, who was supposed to take plan B instead (a morning run in UP),  had found it too nice to pass up on a golden opportunity to stay on my warm bed and savor the cool early morning breeze with more ZZzzzzs …  Boo!  Lazy me! 

Addicted.

Certified running addict.  Now I know the symptoms of being addicted to something, beyond reason.

It was raining when I came home last Friday.   I had a run practice plan in mind and I decided that not even the rain will stop me to execute what I had planned to do.  It (the rain) already did stop me the previous day.   I cannot afford to make it too successful in messing up my regular weekly runs.  It just cannot be that way.

Amid the drizzling night sky and my wondering landlady (“what is this girl doing?  it’s raining and she’s still running?!”), I changed to my running clothes and began walking to go to UP acad oval.   On my way home from office, my usual running buddy, Dree (who was on her way to Pampanga with her Dad), already texted me that the rain was pouring rather harder and that she barely saw any jogger/ runner that night.  I swear, with this text message and the weather condition that night, I should have had more than enough excuses to not push through with my running plan that night and just opt for a longer time horizontal training (a.k.a. “sleep”).  To quote part of Dree’s SMS to me. “Cathy,… the campus is awfully quiet tonight…”  Hmm, medyo horror pa ata dating sa kin nun ah!…

But my feet and legs were itching to run.  And I just decided to give in.  By the time I got off the UP Ikot jeep, the rain had already stopped and I felt the heavens had just decided to give me a good run that night.  I finished two rounds – heck, that was 5k! – and realized that there were just about five other runners traversing the acad oval route that night.  It wasn’t exactly “awfully quiet” as there was a mini-concert infront of AS building and there were students walking along that side of the acad oval.  I suspect Dree wasn’t able to notice it as she emerged from her dorm in Sanggumay and just had to pass by the opposite side of the oval.

I tried to time my two rounds of run and I figure myself to have finished rather longer at about 40 minutes.  I wasn’t even able to sustain a continuous run routine as I hardly gasped for breath after one round.  To make things worse, I think I experienced my-first-ever-cramp-while-running (it was awfully bad!) so I didn’t have a choice but to slow down.

As I walked back home, I was filled with thoughts of how I have turned out as a certified running addict.  Upon entering my room, I immediately took out my camera and got for myself a picture in my drenched shirt and pants, and my running shoes.   ‘Eto ang adik sa takbo!

 

Whoever invented the self-timer technology in digicams is a genius for sure.

Rain, rain, go away! Please, will you just go away?!

I had it all prepped yesterday.  It was a Thursday – my usual run practice day.  I had my backpacks on while going to the office - never mind if I looked more like a high school kid than an office chic.   I tried pacing things faster so that I can reach Ortigas early, hence, get the license to leave the office earlier than usual in the evening.  And then…

IT RAINED!  Whatta!

I got the weather alert from She, who was supposed to be my running buddy last night.  She texted me while leaving her class in UP (and being stuck in a building because she forgot her umbrella, poor girl!) that it’s been raining hard there since 5PM.  Whatta!  I couldn’t believe what she said because I could still clearly recall how the sun shone brightly as I left the boarding house that morning.  So I quickly checked the glass windows from our 29th floor office to see if there really was any downpour outside –  I swear, staying in a high-rise building makes you less aware of the real weather outside because all you know is that there’s the air-conditioner, bright lightings, and your report deadlines are piled on your desk.    When I checked, it seemed all dry in the EDSA flyover, in the chapel down below, and things are proceeding quite normally.  Heck, it’s not raining, ano bah! 

But after 5 minutes, I peeped outside from the glass wall again and saw rather wet highways this time.  Oh man, it is raining! 

But being my optimist me, I told myself that the downpour will soon stop and I can STILL have my weekly run.  For somebody who dares brave to really strut on the racing scene, my once-a-week run is almost a joke.  Seriously, I think I should find a way to run twice or thrice a week.

Anyway, to cut the story short, when I got off from the bus at Philcoa, it was still raining, almost crazy if I had decided to push on running last night. 

So later, granting it won’t rain, I will really take a quick run, even if I’d be getting up from bed 4AM tomorrow for the GK Tarlac Build…  What a busy life!  Just as I like it. ;D