The Results Are In: Subic 2008 Marathon

It was around 11:00am when Bards texted me saying "the race results are in!!!"

Finally!

RANK RACE NUMBER TIME NAME DISTANCE
1516 2084 2:49:34 Cornejo Christine 21k

We start training for the Mizuno 15K on Wednesday. I can't wait!

Friends have been sending me articles on race recovery and health concerns for athletes (or people crazy enough to believe they are one), and to sum it all up, here are some things I have to do to continue on with the things I've been doing...

1. DRINK MY VITAMINS.

I've never been a fan of pills (I hate it) but if I want to last longer and injury free, then this I have to put up with). Bring on that Multivitamin caplet, Vitamin D, Calcium, Vitamin C etc.

2. REST.

Fine. Point taken. Respect the rest day.

3. LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.

Pain is NOT weakness leaving the body.. it means something's wrong and its either you change technique, strengthen muscles, or REST.

4. EAT MORE and EAT SMART.

This I learned the hard way after nearly crashing in one of my long runs. Never underestimate the power of food. It has come to the point that I force myself to down that plate of pasta for dinner, because I know that if I don't, I'm going to pay for it during my run the next day. Gatorade is your friend. Make water your best friend. Bananas too.

5. CROSS TRAIN

Guilty here... time to pick up that badminton racket again. Thinking about taking Total Immersion classes (which H says they offer in CSA). Get into something that increases flexibility as it will help prevent injuries.

Subic Marathon 2008

So we went to the "international" Subic Marathon which officially marked my foray into the half-marathon category. 21k of flat terrain mixed with rolling hills.

DAY 1

B and I decided to drive up Friday afternoon just so we could have a head start and avoid the traffic, settle down and be familiar with the terrain. As soon as we got to Subic, our first order of business wasn't to go to the house to settle in and rest... we started retracing the race route by car, which starts at Remy field. We wanted to see what the 42k route was so we ended up going all the way to Ocean Adventure which was the turn around point. Of course the nerds that we are, we took note of markers for the turnaround point for the 21k which I figured was a little bit after Triboa. Dusk was approaching and it was a nice ending to our route-mania as it kinda simulated the 530am start we were anticipating for Sunday. That night, due to the insistence of B who wanted to wake those muscles up, we did a quick loop around the East Kalayaan hills....quick, yes (40 minutes) but hill-wise, they were a plenty. Then off to the grocery to buy much needed bananas and water. Carbo-loaded Pasta and Salad in Extremely Espresso for dinner. Have to try their nachos! They looked so yummy seeing them from the other tables hehehe.

DAY 2
Woke up to the phone ringing. Good news for me as job hunt is progressing as I expected. Ate a healthy lunch in Aresi and ordered a Ceasars salad, Chicken and Cheese dip with Bread and Seafood Pasta. After that, shopping na! Went around the various groceries basically looking for junk haha. I know I shouldn't eat high sodium stuff the day before race but it was too good to resist. Must say the new Pringles line is superb...the Parmesan flavor and the Sundried Tomato chips are really good. And only in SUbic will you find an assortment of Gatorade variants! Gatorade regular, Gatorade Fierce, Gatorade Rain....

Waited for K, K and H to arrive from Manila..they got there just in time for dinner, which we again had in Extremely Espresso. Their pizza as actually good and very LARGE. But then again carbo-loading time so it wasn't a problem. ALso met up with M, B and the other runners so it was a welcome break since I think we all had one thing in common, WE LOVE TO EAT.

DAY 3 RACE DAY
Woke up at 4:00am to get ready. I don't really like eating before a race but dutifully downed a bottle of Gatorade and a banana just so I'd have enough energy. GOod thing K and H will be running at a later time so they're actually going to be our support team. Taray! Naka CLK pa! That's what you call water with style hahaha.

When we got to Remy Field it was still dark but there was no wind and I somehow felt that it was going to be a hot day. Then DULCE came on and sang "Ako ang Nag-wagi". Winner! hahahaha. And of course they announced that they will be moving the 21k start to 6am instead of 5:30am, together with the 5K and 10k runners. Bummer! What a waste of cover. That 30 mins would've saved a lot of people from the Subic heat. Oh well.

Around 15 minutes before the race I downed my prefunctory Gu and as the race started, I felt fairly optimistic that I wouldn't crash, as I also read the CHI running book the day before and somehow got tips from that. I mean, my last long run was a disaster, with me limping by km 19 and walking all the way to km 22. But when I reached the halfway mark which was waaaay after Triboa, I still felt pretty strong. And so the battle goes on.

What made the run memorable was I met a lot of nice people along the way. Like these two PNP guys who paced with me for km 6 to 9, they were actually very nice and kept my mind off the heat. By km 10 I left them already and I was alone again. By km 15 these two oldies but really strong runners became my pacers. It was entertaining as they regaled me with stories of their glory days, of the marathons they've been to here and in other countries. I actually learned a lot from them. They told me about their experiences in the NY marathon and how challenging it was as there were a lot of competitive runners there. Galing!

At around km 17 the support team arrived. Actually hard to miss with the red car and I was okay with the water supply and just dumped my empty bottles with them.
My God!! My Polar started to register that we were going over 21k! They even moved the finish line inside the track oval which really didn't make sense to me. B had friends who measured the race route again after the race and it really registered as 24k. So now I know how 24km feels like...it's not really so bad after all.

Right after the race, I noticed M and the others were at the bleachers and finally took a nice pic of me crossin the finish line. See! It pays not to be the first, you end up with great pictures.

And that ends my first ever 21k. I can't wait to train for the full marathon. It's officially an off week for me so I can afford to bum around and not train. But next week it will be a different story...

Job Hunt Blues

Hunting around for a new job is a humbling experience... because you have to look yourself squarely in the eye and ask the question "Is it all worth it?"

I'm thinking YES. Worth it because at least you know how much your job market value is, re-evaluate your career and where it's going, as well as get to know what other options are out there for you.

The past few weeks have been filled with days waiting for that ONE phone call to come and hear the magic words "We're interested in meeting you..." *insert music here* plus *dance of joy*.

And it did come last week, made my day really. It was the day before the Subic Race and I was in B's house, half-awake but still in bed. I was still mulling over the 5am race start the next day, running through scenarios in my head with stories about the dreaded baboy damo and mischevious monkeys that can/might steal your bananas. And then the phone rings and I wonder why the number wasn't familiar.... then realize OH MY GOD gotta answer it quick! And so they said "We'd like to meet you next week..." *handels hallelujah enter here*

Had the interview today.... in two weeks or so they'll call again to say either
A. "You're not what we're looking for" or
B. "We want to see you in the classroom so when can you fly over?"

I left the interview feeling pretty confident about myself and hearing from them that they liked what they have heard so far and if I am of the same mold as my friends who are already there (and are apparently are making waves there *applause to friends) then I have a pretty good chance. That sounds pretty positive right?

Its not what I initially wanted but I'm thinking, at least it's a lateral move and I get to get that IB experience which will unlock more doors for me in two years or so.
So am pretty excited about that...just hate the waiting....two weeks!?!?! Torture really.

Abangan...

How do you respond to the phrase "I Wanna Die!!"

The other day, E got all emo on me for some strange reason. When he's good he's really really good, but when the shit hits the fan, goodluck to whoever gets sprayed with his emo-ness.

He just had a really bad day I guess, but it still makes me wonder where he gets it. Or maybe he didn't really "get" or hear it from someone but its the only way he can express how much of a shit-mood he was in.

Notice the peppering of SH-- words above. It was that bad. To the point it really just ruined his day. He didn't get to do anything else because he was wallowing in his mood.

So how do you respond to a four year old saying "I wanna die!!!!"

Sige nga....

Obsessed with Running

I haven't really written anything in a while because..... life happens =)

I guess it's time to break the silence... and what better way than to talk about something I've been really obsessed with lately...Running.

Call me crazy but Running has kept me sane. I love to run. In fact just as I am about to finish a run, I can't help but think about when my next one will be. It's that bad. Or if I can's sleep at night, I spend my time looking through running websites or my ever favorite Runnersworld.com just reading, browsing, internalizing things about running.

I now find myself running more than playing badminton, which I used to do three to four times a week. Now running occupies most of my off time, as I often run at night during weekends and during the wee hours of the morning on Sundays.

My favorite part of the run is during early mornings, when people are fast asleep and you know you (and your runner friends) are the only ones crazy enough to wake up early to do what other people think is a form of torture. In fact many times already, I see people just about to pack up from a gimik night out, and I'm there stretching and ready to run. I like running just as the sun is about to come out, the air still cool and chilly, with everything totally quiet and you just have yourself to deal with. Time when I center my thoughts on anything and everything, where I get to re-think, solve, ponder, troubleshoot on things that happened to me during the week. Let's just say its like my own personal TIVO time, but in this case everything is replayed in my head.

Believe me, long runs are quite therapeutic (nay on torture). Once you've been running long enough, distance is just a number. Imagine I used to be able to run for maybe just 15 minutes at a time. Now, my long runs reach 3 hours or longer and I don't feel the hours dragging by at all. Long runs are like weekly massages for those into that, or maybe parlor days for the more kikay ones. It's my alone time. And I love it!

I read this article on Runnersworld.com and it inspired me....
hope it inspires you too.

I AM NOT A JOGGER

I may waddle when I run, but I'm running all the same

By John Bingham
Photographs by Tim Bower


PUBLISHED 09/19/2007


The late Dr. George Sheehan, beloved Runner's World columnist and arguably the first running boom's premier philosopher, once wrote that the difference between a runner and a jogger was a signature on a race application. (For the youngsters out there, there was a time before online registration when you actually filled out a paper application, signed it, attached a check, and mailed it in. Quaint, I know.) As succinct as Dr. Sheehan's definition was, it made the point. If you were motivated enough to train for and participate in an organized running event, then you were a runner. Anyone willing to risk public failure in order to be a part of the running community--no matter what his or her pace per mile might be--was a runner. Period. Kind of hard for anyone to argue with that logic.

But a few months ago, an ad ran in this magazine that drew a very hard line between runners and joggers. I immediately heard from tons of readers who were upset by the distinction. To me, however, such definitions are meaningless, since those of us who call ourselves runners already know why we call ourselves runners. Your reasons may be different from mine, but here's why I know I am a runner:

I AM A RUNNER because my runs have names. I do tempo runs and threshold runs and fartlek runs. I do long, slow runs and track workouts. My runs are defined, even if my abs are not.

I AM A RUNNER because my shoes are training equipment, not a fashion statement. The best shoe for me is the one that makes me a better runner. I choose the shoe that goes with my running mechanics, not my running outfit.

I AM A RUNNER because I don't have running outfits. I have technical shirts and shorts and socks. I have apparel that enhances the experience of running by allowing me to run comfortably. I can say "Coolmax" and "Gore-Tex" in the same sentence and know which does what.

I AM A RUNNER because I know what effort feels like, and I embrace it. I know when I'm pushing the limits of my comfort and why I'm doing it. I know that heavy breathing and an accelerated heart rate--things I once avoided--are necessary if I want to be a better runner.

I AM A RUNNER because I value and respect my body. It will whisper to me when I've done too much. And if I choose to listen to that whisper, my body won't have to scream in pain later on.

I AM A RUNNER because I am willing to lay it all on the line. I know that every finish line has the potential to lift my spirits to new highs or devastate me, yet I line up anyway.

I AM A RUNNER because I know that despite my best efforts, I will always want more from myself. I will always want to know my limits so that I can exceed them.

I AM A RUNNER because I run. Not because I run fast. Not because I run far.

I AM A RUNNER because I say I am. And no one can tell me I'm not.

Waddle on, friends.