It’s been five months now since I started running. I am not really conscious of my pace until the most recent race I joined. In that race (Bayanihan 2012) I finished 10k in 1:09:02. Prior to that (I Can Run), I finished 10k in 1:10:02. And on my first 10k (Saya Lakad, Saya Takbo 3) I finished it in 1:16:00.
Looking at my PR, I would say that I made some improvement. Although not quite significant, it is heart-warming to see the decrease in pace in each race. And since, I am serious about this whole running thing, I decided it’s about time to increase my speed.
So when I hit the ground this morning I thought I should do it. However, after few minutes of easy running, I decided I wasn’t ready for it yet. I guess I have gotten so used to easy running that somehow the idea scares me. Will I get injured if I increase my speed? Will I get bonked? And the questions went endless. Until I realized 40 minutes had passed and I didn’t even try increasing my speed.
In the last 6k though I thought I should increase my speed. At first it was challenging. At some point I would ran out of breath and would have to slow down a bit. Once I had recovered, I would go back to running fast. When I reached home, I checked my timer and I was surprised to see that I finished the last 6k in 37.8 minutes. Yay! 6.30. I felt very happy. I realized that I could still improve my speed only if I work hard and believe in myself harder.
