As the cliché goes it’s sweeter the second time around. Oh
no, I am not pertaining to heart stuff! Besides, I don't really apply that
cliché in that aspect. LOL
I hate comparison but forgive me, I
can’t help it. My second 21K experience in the recently concluded Run United
Philippine Marathon was the exact opposite of my first in 36th Milo
Marathon (Manila Leg). All throughout the race all I ever did was recall every
single detail about my first half-mary and compare it with the second one. So
this entry is essentially a comparison of my two half-marys. And yes, I am
thankful I learned many things in my first half-mary which proved to be helpful
in my second. As William Nicholson would put it “experience is a brutal
teacher, but you learn fast”.
Pre-Race
Nutrition:
I gained weight. I am six pounds
heavier now. Thanks to my recent trip to Davao pus I recently added chicken to
my diet after five years of being pescetarian. Before RUPM, I desperately tried
to lose weight. I was afraid it might not do me good during the race. I thought
if I weighed 53 kilos in MM and still struggled through the finish line,
gaining six more pounds might double the difficulties. Surprisingly, never did
I feel heavy in the entire duration of the race contrary to MM wherein I
started feeling 10 pounds heavier as soon as I reached KM10. I even hopped
from one water station to another during RUPM but I never felt bloated or
heavy. I guess proper nutrition helped me a lot in finishing RUPM with ease.
Training: I am on my 6th week in
training for TBR Dream Marathon. In fact in my training program I am supposed
to run 25K last Sunday. But since I joined RUPM, I shortened it to
21K.
During
the Race
First-Half:
Belle and I started out with an easy
pace. We actually didn’t have a choice. There were more than 3,000
runners for 21K category. It was difficult to increase speed without having to
hit or bump the runner ahead of us. It was a picture of a human maze! There were
areas with no street lights too! We decided to stick to 7:00 until we
reached KM6. At one point I would increase my speed. Haha Maintaining a slow
pace was somehow boring.
Second-Half:
In MM, the second-half was a terrible 11K
run. I tried my best to think of every happy thought I could possibly excrete
from my mind to fight off all the negative thoughts. At one point I was literally
thinking and at the same time reciting this line: HAPPY THOUGHTS. HAPPY
THOUGHTS.
On the contrary RUPM was a different
story. As soon as I reached KM10, I was beaming with happiness. I even had time
to smile and greet my fellow runners. And oh I noticed celebrities along
the way! Sen. Pian Cayetano ran past me twice. Yay! I also spotted Rovilson
Fernandez who looked hot. Triathletes Vanj Endaya and Michelle Estuar were
there too.
Stamina:
If there was one thing I was proud and happy
about RUPM it was the endurance I have developed. I never imagined I could
finish 21K with so much ease. When I reached KM18, I was all smiles. I knew I
could still go on beyond the remaining three kilometres. In MM, however, KM18 was one of
the points where I told myself it would be my first and last 21K (which of
course didn’t happen LOL). Trainings paid off! (I’m kinda lazy to do
speed training though. haha)
Injury/Pain:
Before MM, I was nursing an unbearable
pain in my right knee. I was apprehensive about the idea of joining in MM
for it might worsen its condition. Thankfully, it didn’t hurt
much during the race. Although a stingy pain lasted for three days, it was tolerable.
In RUPM, it was the exact opposite.
Yes, exact opposite because it came as a surprise that my left knee was in pain
all throughout the race, however, manageable. But when I reached KM18, I had to
stop. The pain was killing me. Now that was rather theatrical of me.
Walking didn’t help though. I decided to jog instead. I was limping and jogging
but it didn’t matter, the finish line was just few blocks away. As soon as I
crossed the finish line, the pain disappeared. Parang nagdahilan lang!
Time/Pace:
In MM, my friend Belle and I started
with a relatively fast and controlled pace. Our goal was to reach KM10 at 1:10.
We succeeded. Since MM was strict about the cut off time, we were kinda
pressured. I struggled in keeping up with Belle. Most of the time, she
was few hundred meters away from me until I finally stopped keeping up with her
at KM14. I walked and ran my way to the finish line. Thankfully, I managed
cross the finish line at 2:46:47.
In RUPM, Belle was not cleared to run. But
since, she couldn’t afford to miss the final race of Run United, she still
insisted on running. Hence, we started with a slow pace and agreed to maintain 7:00. But I was kinda bored. At one point I would increase speed and at one
point I would wait for Belle. When we crossed KM10, I thought I needed to
increase my speed. I wasn’t really after making a big progress in my PR but I wanted
to see improvement. Thankfully, I crossed the finish line at 2:45:57. However,
when I checked the result of the race my time chip recorded 2:43:49. Yehey!
Post-Race
Injury/Pain:
After RUPM, my fellow runners from
Cabanatuan stayed at the parking area while we waited for our companions who
braved 42K. The pain in my left knee started to slip in again. Although tolerable, I
knew I had to do something about it. I elevated it to somehow relieve the pain.But as soon as I got home the pain was gone. The following day, I was itching to run but decided to rest instead.
To sum it up, my first 21K in MM was a not
so fun run. It was struggle spelled out. Although I still managed to cross the
finish line, I knew there was so much to be done to improve my running skills.
I needed not only proper training but nutrition as well. And patience too!
As they say experience is the best teacher. All the things I learned in my MM helped me surpass RUPM. The not so
good experiences were not there for nothing. Some lessons are
better learned in a challenging way. Plus there are people around me who never fail to encourage
me. Special thanks to Belle and Mimi whose hospitality is incomparable. Kuya Ming is also worth mentioning for he did not only teach me the ABC of running but
also emphasized humility and respect. I am also grateful to Phillip, Kuya Kune,
Kuya Jose, Kuya Ricky and Christian who always include me group messages should
there be long runs. And how could I forget Phase2pm group?! Haha Of course the
time spent with them after late afternoon trainings were the best (I haven’t been to Phase 2 in two weeks though; which goes
to say I missed you guys.). Oh, thanks to Diko and Ate J for the perfect running shoes!
As they say experience is the best teacher. All the things I learned in my MM helped me surpass RUPM. The not so
good experiences were not there for nothing. Some lessons are
better learned in a challenging way. Plus there are people around me who never fail to encourage
me. Special thanks to Belle and Mimi whose hospitality is incomparable. Kuya Ming is also worth mentioning for he did not only teach me the ABC of running but
also emphasized humility and respect. I am also grateful to Phillip, Kuya Kune,
Kuya Jose, Kuya Ricky and Christian who always include me group messages should
there be long runs. And how could I forget Phase2pm group?! Haha Of course the
time spent with them after late afternoon trainings were the best (I haven’t been to Phase 2 in two weeks though; which goes
to say I missed you guys.). Oh, thanks to Diko and Ate J for the perfect running shoes!
As I start Week 6 of my TBR Dream
Marathon training, I understand that there are so many things to be done. It is a
long long way to go. But knowing that
there are friends and fellow runners who continuously support me and knowing
that I have a dream to reach, it only means one thing: train smart!
