BREAKTHROUGH

I told myself the night before...I will not wimp out, I will run tomorrow, I will run no matter what... AND I DID!

Gathered enough guts to shut out the thought that rabid stray dogs will get the better of me (and believe me, there are a lot around here....stray dogs though....so the rabies comes in a close second I think) and I simply RAN. I got out of the house by 5:30am, ran for an hour and a half, walked a bit, around 3/4ths into my run, some friends who are new to running joined me and also had the guts to run outdoors (their first time ever) and they enjoyed it. Beginnings of a T2 South?? Hopefully =).

The past two months, going out for a run was a real challenge because I wasn't confident and comfortable enough with the surrounding area. You know that feeling when you don't have your bearings yet, and your only reality is work, home, grocery, laundry, atm and mall? I felt so constrained and frustrated which wreaked havoc on my running program. Back to square one. Okay, so I tried going to the gym, but when the traffic going there became unbearable (as there's this huge chunk of the way in which a new flyover is being built) PLUS when the thought of doing another long run on the treadmill seemed unbearable too, I just simply had it.

After 2 months of feeling simply lost, I finally finally had a breakthrough yesterday. I think it was more of mind-over-matter thing in which I have finally accepted that this is home for the next couple of years and I simply had to live with or without the things and routines and schedules I used to have before.

I mean come on, having lived in the city all my life, moving down South is a huge change....everything is slower, less variety in things to do, places to go, reataurants to eat in, people to meet, running events to join...

Imagine, before, I would sleep around 12 to 2 am simply because the way things were, at 2 am you could still go out and have things to do or go to places to eat. Here, everything winds down by 8:30 pm and the mall closes at 9pm. Establishments refuse to entertain you (meaning the actually turn business away) if it means it might interfere with them going home at 9 AM!!!

Before, running events were aplenty and you actually had to choose your races well as there were many that were not in Biscocho-caliber (right Bananarunning?). Now in the land of football, running events are few and far between (I mean hello! For a while the Milo event was even in danger of being cancelled - which is a major race in the country). I actually went to the Mizuno store last Sunday and pressured the sales people into entertaining the thought of doing a Mizuno Run and even jokingly said (well, I actually meant it) that if they had a running event or clinic like the one they do in Fort, I'd actually be one of the first to join.

So now, the huge difference is my life has been simplified, not because I have to, but because I want to. I sleep at 9am and wake up at 6am. I get to run MWF in the afternoons now (well, I started again this week) and I get to cross train and swim in the afternoons every Tues and Thurs. Other than that of course WORK keeps me busy but I have a lot of time to myself too, to just relax, hang out with friends...and RUN AND SWIM.

Ironshoes, my next project is getting a bike. I have a friend here who is training for the Ironman in Manila next March... not that I'll be ready by then but I'll join him in training.....the bike will come soon enough.

So here's to a breakthrough Sunday!

December Singapore Marathon simulcast...here I come!