Run Early Run: experience

Showing posts with label experience. Show all posts

Monday, May 21, 2012

My Wedding Experience - A Message of Thanks

The Lord has been truly amazing to me this year in many inexplicable ways and I am just thankful that He even blessed me with a wonderful wedding! As cliché as it may sound, the words I know are not enough to describe how grateful I am right now. The ceremony has been fun, and now I'm praying that the marriage will even be more fantastic!

I thank my wife Tey for standing, sitting, running, other-verb-ing, with me all throughout our six years (plus almost 7 months of preparations) together. My eyes still sparkle when I call her my "wife". Finally.

I intend to extend my gratitude to everyone who helped out in making our momentous dream day come true. I'm truly sorry if I miss to single out anyone but I hope you would understand that I'm still walking on air, awestruck by God's blessing.

It is easier for me to list down the important people without regard to form and parallelism. :) Please forgive me if I don't dot the i's and cross the t's. It would look something like this: dot the |'s and cross the |'s.

My Final Blog

This is my short final blog -- but not, like, ever. Silly you. :D

At least it's my last as Mr. Civil Status: Single.

In a few hours, I will be officially married to the woman of my dreams!

You know it has been said that if you want your dreams to come true, you should first wake up.

But in order to wake up, you must first sleep. :P So I think that's what I should do soon. :D

Good night! And goodbye to being single!

P.S.

Before I go to sleep, allow me to sing this jingle:

♪♬ I'm getting married, getting married. Oh boy what a day it's gonna be! ♫♩♯

Oops, sorry I was a bit sharp there. :D

Thursday, February 9, 2012

January 2012 : Slowly but Surely

Back to basics.

This what I told myself at the start of the year. I was careless in my 2011 runs. I was so eager to increase my mileage and my speed - which is not bad in itself - but I wasn't training properly like I used to in 2010.

When I was just starting, I liked doing different kinds of training routines, like interval training, hill sprints, some sort of pyramid interval, etc. I even have training solely for my breathing.Then later on I guess I got lazy on doing these rudiments, you know, and I just ran, ran, and ran without regard to form. Some races, I did not even warm-up anymore - so focused on getting that new PR but missing on the important foundations of running.

Anyway, this year, I'm starting slowly again but I'm learning to appreciate little improvements. I get ecstatic even on mere seconds of improvement on a lap, for example. :)

I can relate this nugget of wisdom that was shared to us by one of the leads in the company I'm working at:

Focus on your job - not on your career.

I guess I agree with this statement, basing on the context. I believe that long-term career development is important, mind you, but if you focused too much on where you want to be 10 years from now for example, you missed the important tasks that you need to do right here, right now - and these are the tasks that determine your Career (t₀+10), if you know what on earth I meant with that.

In running, focusing on your target is important - like say a new PR. But that new PR will not be yours just by running from Start to Finish (although that's part of it, of course). I have started and finished a lot of races, but many of these were started and finished lousily.

Preparation is equally important. Proper execution of your training, the form, is just as crucial. Nutrition, hydration, rest - these are factors as well. There's more to running a race than just legs and loot bags. And that's why I love running.

Finishing a race is one of the most spine-tingling accomplishments one can have (especially with a new PR obviously). However, I daresay that the journey to get to that finish line is just as marvelous!

Enjoy every moment of it.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Goal! Discovering My Pace in 2012

It's that time of the year again when many people start setting targets for their next 12 months. I find it amazing how the coming of a new year - that tiny change in the calendar that results to a number of date typo errors - can kindle feelings of renewal or rebirth, just as a little match stick can ignite fireworks that signal the beginning of the festivities with a BANG!

I thank God for my 2011 and the important lessons I learned from that year. This year, if I'll do something different, it would be to sharpen the proverbial saw. Take my time. Reflect. Find my pace. Then reach my goal!

It is very critical for a runner to know his pace, not exclusively, but especially for long-distance races.

You go out too slow >> you get left behind, you bore yourself senseless, you regret not pushing a little bit more.
You start out too fast >> you burn out, you faint, you finish lazily (if you finish at all).

These, I must admit, have happened to me more than they should have. Many times I tend to have "Low EQ" in running. When I feel I have energy, I run so hard I have tears in my eyes, but then I get cramps and I have to walk-slow run the rest of the distance (and I am only 1/3 of the way through).

It is important to know what pace you can keep : some runners like maintaining it at constant high-speed (between 4 to 5 min/km, this is high for me), some like it dynamic like run-walk. Whatever your case, you should determine that during training.

I'm slowly building up on my mileage and pace again this year. I figured I could do at least 10K per week, so maybe I'll target 520K for the year. :D It's not as big time as I hoped 2 years ago it would be, but I need to learn to adapt to my current situation (e.g. being ~25 lbs heavier. Why oh why?).

I'm aiming to discover and maintain my pace not only in running but also in other aspects of my well-being. In my career, for example. Am I moving too slowly and missing good opportunities? Or am I going so fast that I stumble on the littlest things and fall hard? How about my relationships? My growth?

Anything. I pray that I'm given an enlightenment on what my pace should be in my life. Fast or slow, it doesn't matter. I'm determined to finish this year with my hands up in the air and a smile across my face.

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Let me share with you some of goals for this 2011...I mean 2012:

Get married to the girl of my dreams, obviously. :))
Read 32 books
Run 520 km (total distance, including training and registered races)
Complete at least one 10K and one 21K (registered)
Learn one new classical piano piece
Lose 10 lbs :)) [current weight: 170 freaking lbs]

This is a declaration. A challenge to myself. Some sort of accountability to you, dear reader. If the Lord wills it, let's all see by the end of the year how well I did on these goals.

Quotable quote of the day: "Run with your friends and pace your peers!" - Earl Royce

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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Year-End Blog from Blog Owner Earl

As 2011 draws to a close, I want to do a look-back and to thank God for another year full of blessings. True, it's not a perfect year and there are lots of downs that definitely pushed me to my limit. But look at me now, after all of the turbulence I encountered, I'm still here standing (or sitting), still able to blog about my wonderful year.

There are some things that I wish I did not do, but then again without those things, I would not have learned. Therefore - as cliché as it may sound - NO REGRETS. There's no use in dwelling on the bad things that happened. I'm here to celebrate the good stuff of my 2011.

I only completed 9 races this year but I made all of them count. With my knee injury and all, it's a wonder how I was able to finish one 3K, four 10Ks, two 16Ks, and two 21Ks. My favorite without a doubt is my Condura Skyway 21K. Aside from the exhilarating fact that I ran on the Skyway, it was a race that I and my then-girlfriend Tey will always remember as the race where we finished holding hands. It's (almost) a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Aside from races/runs, my Lego Minifigures collection also made me very happy indeed. I feel like a little boy again! I don't always have enough money to complete them but thanks to my ever supportive sponsors. :)

I completed over a 100K (in terms of registered runs) but another feat I am proud of was completing 30 books! (Actually just 29 - I'm still reading my 30th). It was a great experience to be in someone else's mind or to virtually visit a different world or to time-travel to another era.

I'm very glad as well that I was able to complete one school year teaching high school Physics and one semester teaching Heat Transfer (ME major subject). It's a bit tiring to do it part-time on top of my regular work, but seeing the "enlightenment" in my students' eyes is just one of the best things in the world. [And I hope I made a difference in some little way.]

However - undeniably, irrevocably, unquestionably - the best part of my 2011 is my engagement to my future wife Tey! Modesty aside, I liked my proposal. :)) Although very simple and straightforward, I like how it was planned and executed. But no proposal will ever be good enough if there was no response, right?! :P So I guess Tey did a better job when she said "Syempre naman". :D

I can go on and on if I list all the blessings I received for every single day of the year. I guess in general I just want to say that it was another fantabulous year!

I'm now looking forward to an even greater 2012. Will the world end next year? I don't care that much. I guess I would just have to count my blessings earlier. :P

Thursday, November 17, 2011

The Time Traveler's Blog : My Reasons for Keeping a Journal

I believe there are as many reasons for maintaining a blog as the number of bloggers all over the world. Maybe even more because I already have more than one reason for doing it.

Aside from the online blog, some also have some sort of a classic, pen-and-paper journal, as I do. Or did. Or will. But please take note that it's a journal, ok, not a diary. :P

Whatever the form, my reasons I guess are practically the same. I like expressing my ideas, telling personal stories, sharing my experiences. Some things, I share publicly; some I keep for myself. Sometimes I enjoy seeing other people's reaction/comments but there are times that I want it to be private.

But so far the best thing that I get from it is the feeling that I can sort of time-travel back to that moment. Just before writing this, I was reading my latest entry which was about my proposal/engagement and I felt like I was there again - my sweaty palms clutching the ring-box, the pinkness of Tey's pale face as I went down on one knee, the wild excitement of my relatives and friends, and the sudden deafening and heart-pounding silence that seemed to have followed, as if the crowd was instantly overwhelmed by Tey's silent mouthing of "Syempre naman."

And that was only last month. I can go back to last year when I ran 32K or when I first bought my Timex watch or my running shoes. I can do the Superpositions all over again, starting with the first one, when I was with the guys who originated it (not me, I'm just a messenger, a very avid rip-off fan :P).

Just imagine if you can travel back to 5 years or more! I found my manly journal notebook the other day (Again, it's not a diary, although the cover says Diary, which I think was a misprint). I have entries dating way back to High School and that was just awesome. I plan to share that with you later but they are so good that they most definitely deserve separate entries.

However, I do want to share with you my first ever journal entry. Well, sort of. It was written some 27 years ago, I guess by my Mom, but it was written from my first-person perspective. And it goes a little something like this.

October 20, 1984. Baby's first day home. - It was raining hard when we left the hospital. The taxi meter amounted to only Php 3.50 but my Daddy paid the taxi driver Php 20.00. I first slept beside my Daddy and Mommy. But I did not sleep so sound. I cried and cried. Nanay helped Mommy and Daddy on our first night home. She changed my diapers, my shirts, my beddings. She also prepared my milk. The following day, Sunday, was a busy day. I had lots of visitors.

I was teary-eyed as I copied that one from my baby book. Not because I'm sad, but because the taxi fare was only Php 3.50! And look how high-roller my Daddy was! He paid like more than 5 times, y'all! But on a serious note, I'm greatly touched by knowing that I sort of have a memory of that day. Maybe when I have my own baby someday, I will also be very generous to the driver. :D

Well, I guess that's the farthest I can time-travel in terms of my lifetime. And there are still lots of wonderful stories between then and now.

So there, that's why I like keeping tabs of myself and recording my experiences. If you haven't started one yet, it's never too late to do so. A blog, a journal, whatever. A diary, perhaps? After all, life has so many more things to offer.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Engaged : I Like It

My life was wonderfully transformed in the last 10 days or so. It's not because I did 10K again at Nike Run Manila 2011 after a long time of bumming around. Not because I had a dinner cruise or that I had my first ever body massage (at least the first one I ever paid for). I dare say it's not even because I turned 27 last 18^th and I had the Kare-Kare of a lifetime. It is for one reason and that is Tey is no longer my girlfriend --

-- Tey is now my fiancée!

After 6 years on the day, I finally popped the big question last October 16. It was a Sunday, like the first ever 10-16 of our relationship. I did it at church, amidst the cheers of family, relatives, and friends. It was indeed a day to remember - a day I will always look back to at night, some 30 years later.

To be honest, I knew she would say yes, but even so, at that moment, a couple of minutes before and after Tey's big YES, my heart still pounded like a headache. If you're a runner, you probably know about this heart-pounding you get just after you cross the finish line, after sprinting like a mad man on your last 200 meters or so. But this is something bigger than that. I like the proposer's high way way way better than the runner's high. :P

My life-changing decision started on October 4 when I finally went to Ongpin to buy a ring for Tey. It's a very lovely tale, that day. Maybe if I see you next time I can tell you all about it.

To my girlfriend of the past, fiancée of the present, and wife of the future --

I thank God for our 6 years and our engagement. It's been quite a run, so to speak. We've been through a lot already and there's a lot more road to cover. It's not a 100-meter dash, but a proverbial marathon, an ultra marathon even. We will be dead tired but at the end of our lives, we can look back and say, "We did it, my darling."

To my readers: Laugh now that I am so mushy and in-love. You just wait 'til you get engaged. :))

Or you can just look at these photos and partake in my excitement:

Superposition at Nike Run Manila 2011. This was the day before my proposal. My heart was bursting inside because I could not wait for October 16 - the big day. Tey had no idea that she was so-gonna-be proposed to.

Superposition with other girls -- It's like bachelor party already! :)

The classic "Will You Marry Me?". That's my sister Ritz holding the sign.

And of course the moment. Look at Tey's reaction and those of the people around. Classic. This is once in a lifetime, baby.

The big hug after Tey's epic "Syempre Naman" response.

I like it so I put a ring on it.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Come Together: Twelve Ways to Keep Smiling

September 30 - Earlier today while sitting in a bus on Friday night traffic, the Beatles hit Come Together played on the radio. But it has nothing to do with what I really want to tell you.

♪ Here come old flat top, he come grooving up slowly ♫

For some reason, due to being idle I guess, my mind started to drift towards unhappy thoughts but I decided against it and took out my planner to get myself thinking about something else. Inside the front sleeve of the notebook, I noticed the bookmark that had been given to us last Christmas by the Principal of the school I used to teach at.

♫...got to be a joker he just do what he please...♪

It's a simple cardboard bookmark actually with gold lace at the top. It wasn't the lace that caught my attention but the message on it entitled "Twelve Ways to Keep Smiling".

♪ I know you, you know me ♫

Let me share these with you (credited to Douglas Pagels).

1. Hold on to your dreams, and never let them go.
2. Show the world how wonderful you are!
3. Give circumstances a chance, and give others the benefit of the doubt.
4. Wish on a star that shines your sky.

♫♪ One thing I can tell you is you got to be free ♪

5. Take on your problems one by one and work things out.
6. Rely on all the strength you have inside.
7. Let loose of the sparkle and spirit that you sometimes try to hide.
8. Stay in touch with those who touch your life with love.
9. Look on the bright side and don't let adversity keep you from winning.
10. Be yourself, because you are filled with special qualities that have brought you this far, and that will always see you through.
11. Keep your spirits up.
12. Make your heart happy, and let it reflect in everything you do!

♫ One and one and one is three ♪♫

This is obviously not an exhaustive list but some words there are just what I needed that time. Simple bits of advice like looking at the bright side and taking on problems on one by one are stuff that I know already but tend to forget whenever things don't go the way I planned them.

♪ Come together, right now ♫

I guess there's always a reason to smile, like getting advice from a bookmark, or looking up from your notebook and seeing that traffic is better and realizing that you won't be late after all.

♫♪ ...over me. ♫♪

How about you? What keeps you smiling? :D

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Doctor's Appointment

Last Tuesday I went to see the doctor due to chronic knee pain. I think this started last September but it got worse on November after (or during) my 32K run for Leg 3. I could barely run after the 21K mark and I almost limped my way through the last 5k.

But as you know this did not stop me. I still went on to do a 16K, 10Ks, and then a couple of 21K races, the last being at Goldilocks.

Is this what they call a runner's knee? I don't know for sure yet but it's quite painful and I haven't been able to run or even walk properly since the last run. I feel so lousy and heavy, mostly heavy. Maybe it was weight gain or maybe it was that I did not train and recover enough for that 32K run. A lot of maybe's and so I went to Asian Hospital to find out.

While waiting, I picked up a magazine called MIMS Med Review because one of the articles in it had "Chronic Pain" in the title. To my surprise, the article was a nose-bleed one especially to a commoner like me.

The article was "The Place of Pharmacological Treatment in Chronic Pain" by Dr. Mick Serpell, FRCA, and it started with "The processing of nociception involves multiple neural pathways, transmitters and receptors..." I should have stopped there because all I could think of was Inception but I read on dreamily until about 3 pages in and I already finished stuff on NSAIDs, codeine, and opioid drugs.

It was like mental bloodbath in that article but amidst all that confusion, I think I understood something. This phrase was highlighted and I sort of get it:

"It is easier to keep pain at bay rather than trying to control it after it has resurfaced."

It made sense and I should have understood this earlier. Dr. Serpell was saying that "...rapid control of pain symptoms can reduce the risk of chronicity" and this mirrors what many runners and bloggers already say: LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.

It is natural to feel pain but you should know when to take it easy so that you can enjoy what you love doing for a longer time.

My advice is not new but I would like to say it as a reminder to myself:
1. Train well and get enough rest and nutrition.
2. Give yourself time to recover.
3. When you feel pain, do the famous RICE (Rest-Ice-Compress-Elevate) and see if the pain is only temporary.
4. If unsure, consult your doctor immediately.

I want to add that you should keep your weight at the optimum level. Like I said, I feel heavy and lousy lately and maybe that affected my running form and the impact on my knees.

Doctor's advice was for me to stop running for a while. I was expecting that.

But I fear I might violate that in the near future. :P

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Thank God it's 2011!

The start of a new year marks the end of another. Before I continue planning for my 2011, I want to look back and thank God for His blessings in my 2010.

It's already a year ago when I first started joining organized runs. And although it seemed like a lot, I only ran a total of 12 - from my 5K at Condura 2010 up to my 32K at Run Rio Leg 3 (Unilab 2). [Counting Takbo Para Kay Gibo, I did 13]. Wow, that's like 1 race per month!

Every race offered a unique experience, a different high. For some, I came in very well trained. Others, I wasn't ready. There were routes that were generally flat like Roxas or MOA and there's the hilly and banked like McKinley and the flyovers. Some had timing chips and d-tags others manual bar codes. Sometimes only 5000 runners. The next time 120,000 runners. Some near, some far; some easy, some hard.

Many times it felt like I didn't have enough strength to finish, but then I did, and it felt good and I wanted to do it again. I used to faint when it's even just a little bit hot and I'm tired - like in 2001 during ROTC at the sunken garden or in 2007 after jogging (for less than 3K). And now I can finish a 32K - and still stand up the next day (legs shaking a bit but I can)!

Having the courage and strength to start and finish a race is only one of the many blessings that the Lord gave me in 2010. I had more than a couple of "walls" last year that I thought I wouldn't be able to overcome - but God was there to give me hope and to carry me over the wall and to set me back on my track and eventually finish my 2010 strongly.

The fireworks of 2011 are like the gun start of my new year. I don't know how hard it would be or how long and hilly the road is gonna be - in fact I don't know anything at all about what lies ahead. But I do know that God will be there with me until I reach my finish line - as He has always been. To God be the glory!