Patience counts!

Hey there! Yeah, I know… it has been three quarters (since my last post) and it’s only now that I found the time to write updates on what has happened in my running life. Seeing that I’m still on the road to regaining my running prowess (ehem) while improving whatever’s left of my speed and endurance, let’s call this an installment to my bounce back year anecdote.  Shall we?

Well, the past months have been about labor. I started doing my old routines though not as intensive as I would wish, or how it was before. My goal this year is to beat my current 5k and 10k PRs, so my training revolves on these two distances. That being said, I daringly ran a few short distance trial races, and here’s a quick recap…

World Vision Run 06/22, 5k at 24:55 (5.8km)
This was my first running event for the year. The funny thing about this race was I got lost, though I still somehow managed to get back on track. My Garmin registered at 5.8km. Kath, on the other hand, finished 3rd place in the women’s category and was also awarded as Celebrity Mom (and got her freebies as my consolation :P).

5k 3rd place women at 27:21

And her Celebrity Mom award, with Ms. Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan and Coach Rio 

Energen Run 07/20, 5k at 22:36 (5.2km)
After a month, I have to test my 5k again. I was able to hit sub 22min at 5km mark on my Garmin. It was a great event I thought. But then, Kath got her 4th podium finish and bagged her first 1st place in the women’s division, and so I mused great was an understatement :)

Kath being awarded as fastest 5k female finisher at 27:49

With Ms Mars and some veteran runners

Magdalo Run 07/26, 10k at 49:31
This was my 1^st attempt at 10k for the year and was happy with my result. Kath, as well, finished strong as she raced to the top 10 women’s 5k. She seems to be doing better in bouncing back than me lol.

With Ariana, also top 10 finsher

HP run 10/19, 10k at 44:23 (9km) 
HP runs for the past years have had very good reviews for being well organized. Sad to say, this year’s was a miss. Unfortunately, there was an issue with the 10k route that cut short the distance by over a kilometer. Anyway, Kath finished strong at 55:05 while I registered 44:23. Still deserving of a tap on the back!

Kath’s mantra pic after HP run. hehe.

I’m happy to say that I’m starting to regain my strength and speed, my body fat also went down, and my overall fitness has improved. And while my current 5k and 10k PRs still stand, I know I still have a few months remaining of my bounce back year. I should be anxious, yes, but if there’s one lesson I learned from this slow, hard work…it’s patience, and it counts. So let’s see how it goes… :)

‘Til the next race!

New Year. Bounce Back Year.

Bachelor NO more
Just recently, I moved past yet another milestone in my life as yours truly tied the knot. You read that right, I’m a bachelor no more. And though marrying in this generation and era may have gotten more nays than yays (insert practicality here), it seems to be the trend at least in my age bracket as some of my friends and a handful of familiar faces are either engaged or just gotten married. Nevertheless, I know I’ve been blessed because I “got tied” to a wonderful woman, my wife. :)

After wedding, up up and away.

You know that a runner will always be a runner, right? Well I guess that explains (literally) why I had been wearing my Alpha 1 race top the entire wedding –call it ‘giving a touch of “runner” appeal’ hehe.

Year in Recap
Alright, 2013 had been a very challenging year. Indeed, I had encountered a lot of road blocks in meeting my goals in running. It was tough yet I managed to get up and move forward even with just small step at a time…while shouting at the back of my mind, “NEVER GIVE UP.” Maintaining my focus somehow helped me to keep moving forward. Let me share to you my fave video where I got that mantra.

My daily music

Back to running
I have little to no mileage as I focus more on reducing weight, lowering body fat and strengthening by building muscles. It doesn’t look like I gained weight but YES I DID! Still shredding some fats and putting on some more muscles. Lately, I’ve been doing a few easy runs, some swim for cardio and stationary bike, sometimes. Looking forward for this year as I bounce back!

Just playing around the keyboard

Can’t wait to run a race but I think it will be very very soon… Game on,

BOUNCE BACK YEAR!

Getting back on track

TRIALS AND CHALLENGES

It’s been a while since I last updated this site, and in the same sense, updated myself in running. I was put into a lot of challenges lately that took its toll on me. I was literally on the verge of giving up, but thanks to my fiancée (yep, I’m engaged…and she’s the best support system in all aspects of my life) who keeps reminding me that  “giving up” is NOT an option.

With Mrs. FFS

Amidst the trials we’ve been going through, she remains strong especially at my weakest. Thankfully, we’re blessed with an angel, my baby girl “Andi” (yep, I’m now a dad…yey!!). That serves double purpose; she’s my inspiration and my protégé, in case I plan to retire from this sport lol.

Our baby girl’s first photo. My future athlete!

So there I was… gaining pounds of fats during the pregnancy period (I ended up eating all leftovers). Plainly, those were months of no running, including physical activities (gym, basketball, etc) and then there’s my knee injury from Milo marathon race (Dec 2012). My body fats have risen from 12% to 19%, muscle mass lessen and overall fitness level depleted which affected my strength, speed and flexibility big time. Not good news for me and my running goals…

Do I still have it and the drive to do it all over again?

RECOVERY

Just before thinking of going back to running, I sought medical advice for my supposed “knee problem” I got from my last year’s race. Fortunately, it was only caused by some tight muscles especially on my quads and hamstrings…nothing serious. I went for 6 sessions of physical therapy and felt renewed again.

Hot warm compress to begin the therapy

Thank God… just recently I was able to break away from this inactive lifestyle and finally do my first training run after ages. My running shoes were literally packed in a big plastic and were placed in a cabinet which I needed to clean as molds started to form (haha). I also finally opened my running box (wherein I piled up my running stuffs) and  felt happy to see my old gears—which brought back memories of a lot of things.

My running box all dusty

One thing that made my day and helped me boost up my motivation was when I found my 3-year old Garmin Forerunner 405 GPS watch. All this time I thought that it was dead already since a  Garmin’s lifespan, based from other users, is only good for 2 years.  I just tried charging it to confirm my inkling, but I was surprised seeing that “charging…” notification popped at the screen. So there I got my cue…definitely a good sign.

Charging… whew! :D

GETTING BACK

I started out my first training run and to make the long-embarrassing-story short, I managed to consistently jog for 1.3kms before I started gasping for air (loser). I guess the first run is always the toughest. I consistently did training runs for almost 3 weeks and finally got myself into registering on my first event, Botak at Kadla ni Pidol… 16k! What was I  thinking???. lol.

Pic1: PF pic (TBP)

Setting my foot at the event. c/o Jeff Lo (Pinoyfitness)

Of course… being part of a race event got me all pumped up. From the moment I got from the event location, I was already enjoying the feeling of it. From pinning my race bib, warming up for a short run, waiting for the gun start and even lining up for the portalets. lol.

c/o D’ Fabulous Running Divas

With only 3 weeks since I started running again, I was able to finish my 16k (1:39:14 unofficial time). This was already an achievement for me compared to when I can barely manage to finish a kilometer. I think I still have it, the drive to get back and do it all over again. Thank you Lord for this gift. It would be a fresh start for me.

“It ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward… how much you can take and KEEP MOVING FORWARD!” – Rocky Balboa

I guess it ain’t over yet…

Ending 2012 with 2:15 :(

Merry Christmas (2012) and Happy New Year (2013)!

No doubt that my favorite road distance is 21k. When I was just starting to run, I envy those who can run a 21k and can’t wait then to finish one. After 2 months, finally finished my 1st 21k at KOTR 2009 with time of 2:05:36 and officially a half-marathoner. How greatful I was then achieving a feat and even brags it to friends. Lol. After doing several 5ks upto 42ks,  I knew 21k was the distance I love most!

My 1st 21k experience at Adidas KOTR 2009

3 years have passed and here I was, trying to get back in my top running condition once again after half a year of bumness. I have this thought on my mind that a new 21k pr would be achievable and that would start my year strong.  I plotted series of 21k races below and hoping to lower my time before the year ends.

 07/8/2012 HyperSports run with Marvin, MsMars and KG. 21k @ 1:54:16

07/29/2012 Milo Elims, 21k @ 1:53:54

09/16/2012 Run United 3, 21k @ 1:54:56

 09/23/2012 Rexona Run as Official Pacer, 21k @ 1:54:50

 11/11/2012 NB run post race with TA1, 21k split time @ 1:49:50

 11/18/2012 Tetra Pack Run, 21k @ 1:49:17

After achieving 2 consecutive sub 1:50 21k, I have this hope of doing a 1:45 or even a new 21k pr before the year ends. Target race was Milo Finals on December 9, 2012! In less than a month to prepare, I need to stay focus and consistent with my training runs. I was able to have consistent good mileage per week and been looking forward to race day but unfortunately, a slight pain occurred on my left knee a week before race day. I think it’s because of the sudden increase in mileage and speed trainings, increase in body mass and the weekly basketball trainings that I’ve been doing. I applied R.I.C.E for 5 days and hoping that the pain will go away.

MILO FINALS came and I felt good and I thought that my left knee injury was alright. My plan was to sustain a 5 pace and will speed up on the latter part of the race. I was able to maintain it until 8km then I felt the same pain on my left knee. I tried to push myself and ignore it but I felt a blistering pain on my lower leg afterwards. I tried to check what was causing it and found out lately that its my old calf ompression tights.

I removed the calf compression tight that’s causing the blister somewhere.

I think our greatest opponent is Mental Weakness. And for me, it’s my kryptonite!!! With the blister on my leg and pain on my left knee, somewhere around km14 I told myself “I quit!”…. and cry (haha, joke).

The walk of disappointment few meters to finishline. 21k @ 2:15:17

I walked literally for the last 3kms. I was strucked so hard mentally… I guess it wasn’t for me yet. 2013 will be very very hard for me as I’m expecting a lot of challenges along the way that can hinder in achieving my goals in running.

Please God, give me Strength and Guidance. Thank You!

Breaking the Sub45 barrier

PATAFA-Philippine Road Racing Leg 2
July 1, 2012
10k

I was then torn whether to sign up for a 21k or 10k distance. I knew I needed the mileage for base building but I also wanted to test my current speed for 10k. I haven’t done a 10k race pace for a long time so decided to register on that category instead.

At the starting line

It was a very simple event with few runners and with comedian-runner Bearwin on the side as a host telling jokes while motivating people to run(nice). The last time I did my 10k best was on a training run during ARC race where we hit sub46mins. I was really “wasak” that time and Martian was there to pace me. Now, I was really thinking of only hitting a sub 46 min and that would still give me a new 10k pr.

Ready, set and go!

FIRST 5KMS
To be able to hit a sub 46min was to maintain a 4:36 pace. I was really trying to maintain it on my first km but I really felt strong and light. So I decided to keep a sub 4:30 pace and hoping to hit that sub 45min 10k. I knew I wasn’t prepared for this yet thinking sooner or later I would feel tired and probably would slow down on the last kms. My plan was to do sub4:30 pace and would just slow down if fatigue hits me.

U-TURN POINT
I have maintained my sub4:30 pace and the u-turn slot was on site with still a lot of energy left. I was really hyped knowing that I’m still alright despite of the feeling I would bunk out any moment. But it never happened! Counting the male runners ahead of me, I was on 4th place and 3rd place runner was just few meters ahead of me. By the time we reached the u-turn area, I was just trailing behind him. Checking my garmin and we’re on a sub4:30 pace so it was safe tagging myself to him. I never intended to finish 3rd but hearing his breath getting louder and his running form changing, the 3rd place spot is at reach. But I still maintained my 4:30 pace and sticked to my main goal. As we passed by the flyover nearing the 8th km mark, he finally slowed down and 3rd place spot is at hand. :)

3rd place at 8th km
I’m on 3rd place now. Yey! But too early to celebrate, I still have 2kms to cover and podium finish for the 2nd time. I was excited thinking I might able to finish 3rd and at the same time setting a new 10k pr and/or better yet, breaking the sub45min barrier. On the other side of my mind, I was also cautious thinking I might get cramps, bunk out or get mental fatigue then might not even achieved either of the 3.

Last 2 kms
35mins and 30secs have past with 2kms left! If I maintain a 4:45 pace, I would hit sub 45. If I maintain a 4:30 pace, I would finish sub 44mins 30secs. What should I do??? I’m really computing my finish time, what pace should I maintain and checking my physical state at that moment. It felt like I was on a slow motion picture but I knew it all happened few seconds on my normal state of mind. What the heck, I want to enjoy this race so I speed up! I really felt stronger and lighter and I knew I was doing faster than 4:30pace. I didn’t look at my garmin on those last kms as I was getting goosebumps. Nyahaha!

My finishline sprint pic

By the time I crossed the arc I knew I finished 3rd. I looked at my Garmin and it was 44mins and 6secs at 10.04kms! I did a 4:15 pace on my last 2kms, negative split! I was really ecstatic and accidentally almost ignored Bearwin and coach host calling my name. I hit sub 44mins crossing the 10km mark on my garmin. The route was a little bit more than 40meters but who cares, I’ve achieved 3 goals in 1 race event! Yebah!

Awarding

Due to technical error, the supposedly 2nd place runner was disqualified so I moved to 2nd place. Ayos! It was my first time to podium finish at 2nd place but feeling sorry to that runner. Overall it was a great experience! Thanks Sir Jeff Lo and PINOYFITNESS for the pics and the warm welcome at your booth.

That day opened my competitiveness once again and gave me more hope in achieving my goals.

I’m now 1 step closer…

Thank you Lord!

Come back races

I can’t remember the last time I updated my running file. Yeah, I kept a file on my past races and the details of upcoming races. Mejo nerdy lng pagdating sa running… lol!

My sample file..

I usually update this every after race. This time, I will definitely open it and update it again! I have registered to ValueCare run and Run United 2. A back to back event where I could test my current running fitness level on speed and endurance.

ValueCare Run 5k
June 16, 2012 (Saturday)
I registered for this event to test my current speed. And to do that, a 5km run would be nice. This would also be the first time to use my Mizuno wave universe 4 race flats. Sweet.

Wave Universe, lend me your speed

The plan was to maintain a good pace until km3 and to all out on the last 2kms. I just wished then that I may able to pull off a time not exceeding 25min.

Pacing with a runner. Few meters to go

I finished way ahead my target time and had a new 5k pr. Maybe because of the hype and excitement of returning to road races that I was able to pull of a sub 22min 5k!

The distance was accurate

W/ Alpha1 Masters Chad and Natasha Davis

Funny thing… I was awarded as fittest male runner! (What were they thinking???!). I was given a box of free yogurt! haha.

W/ female fittest runner @ 5k 28mins 10secs (KG)

Freebies. Yahoo!

So much for today’s speed test, tomorrow would be test of endurance…

Run United 2, 21k
June 17, 2012 (Sunday)
As always, Runrio events are the most anticipated road races all year round. This time, there would be 5000 runners… that’s 21k runners alone! It was very very crowded area, heat and smell coming from everywhere(lol), drizzling rain and standing/waiting for an hour for the gunstart… the things I missed the most. Soon, I’ll be running my 1st 21k after almost half year of bum mode! The plan was to finish without injuries and to test my current endurance level.

Yebah! Salamat sa pic bro.

I missed the people I used to “nod” or say  “hi” during U-turn areas. And most of them this time, they are all ahead of me. I finished it sub2(1:59:52) chiptime without injuries/pain and was happy with the result.

Team Alpha1 w/ Doc Maya

Thank you Lord for this chance of getting back to road races… I miss everything about it!

Speed and endurance tested… Now to get back to my old self! Yebah!

Been up to…

“I don’t only miss running, but everything attached to it…”

After the staggering first international full marathon at HK, I was out of running shape with low or zero mileage for the next 4 months. Though my last event was RUNEW at Alabang(4months ago) where I got a new 10k pr with my VFF.

After the race w/ the guys. 47mins 34secs 10k using VFF

There were lot of things happened that somehow lost my motivation in running race events. And additon to that, a lot of factors made me even more lazy to do training runs. The new role at work, the summer escapade lazy mode and some complicated personal matters. To sum it up, negative vibes came in and seriously broke my passion in running. And I know that shouldn’t be the case…

FFS if not running

On the positive side, I still keep myself fit(lol) and make sure not to ruin my running fitness level once I decided to RUN again. FFS, what have you been up to?

A Runner’s Circle thursday fun runs
Yep, I still run sometimes… Marvin the Martian invited me to attend ARC run one thursday. They cover 5km and 10km with designated pacers for free. These running community is compose of very friendly runners having the same passion in running. On my 1st time to attend, I got a new 10k pr(unofficial), ended up finishing 3rd and I think we broke that 45min barrier.

Marvin(2nd), Edgar(1st) and me(3rd)

They give out freebies to placers, free running advices and raffle out SHOES.. yes SHOES! Thanks ARC, definitely worth attending… :)

Core/weight training and summer escapades
As we’re on the peak of summer then, I still continue to find what I’ve lost during college, my abs. LOL! After doing this secret workout for the past months, I dropped down to 10% body fat at 165lbs. There you are, totally found them again! lol. A combination of core weight training followed by high intensive interval workout 3 times a week. It was really deadly but results were amazing.

Buko sa beach = Stress free

Pacer duties
I also did a couple of pacer duties on some small running events. During these pacer duties, something sparked inside me and remembered the things why I was hooked to running… I think everything’s coming back once again and I hope this will continue. To continue what was left behind, goals not yet met and to continue motivating others…

I will reach my goals someday… someday!

Now, the journey continues…