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Most of my runs the past fortnight have been on the track. Aaaah, the track. What can I say? How can one oval bring so much joy and the same amount of pain at one time?

– My brand spankin’ new Mizuno Wave Precision and I on the first day we set foot on the track. Don’t laugh at the shimmering legs…I got carried away with the sunblock –

I love training on the track. Early in the morning, when half the city is asleep, there are extraordinary people who gather in this little oval to unleash their potential…and I simply feel fortunate to be among them. It’s awesome to be surrounded by athletes who are ten times stronger and a hundred times more dedicated than I am. The energy in the air is palpable and sometimes I secretly hope that their power is contagious.

When I run here, I am more focused. And, I train harder. (Or is it because I’m surrounded by generous coaches?)

Then, at the same time, I experience the pain. It’s the good kind of pain though, the kind that tells you you’re pushing your body to the limits and you’ll come out stronger after. The drills make me gasp for air. 20 to 25 sets of stair climbs make my quads tight and get me wobbling like a duck. And, the sprints…oh the sprints just leave me feeling utterly depleted, like a balloon that’s lost its air.

I leave each training session feeling exhausted but happy. I’m always relieved to know that I’ve worked hard yet my knee isn’t complaining. I seriously think that (knock on wood) I’m heading out of the danger zone with regards to my knee injury. Two full weeks of running, swimming, and gym without the slightest hint of the evil runner’s knee! Looks like I’m right on track (no pun intended) for full recovery.

Boy oh boy, I can hardly contain my excitement. Trail running and ultramarathoning is finally hitting our shores! Are you up for this?

Venue and other details are still being finalized for The North Face 100, but it is definitely pushing through.

The Team Pinoy Ultra Runners will be training for this event. The team will be organizing an ultramarathon training program which will start around May and they are inviting anyone interested to join them. For inquiries, please email Neville Manaois directly at pinoyultrarunners@yahoo.com.

As for me, I’m eager to join the 10k trail runs. No more drooling over Rick and E-rod’s scenic courses. We’re finally having our fair share of trail runs in the country. Finally!

Surprise surprise, I thoroughly enjoyed the Bonifacio Global City Run this morning. As I said in a previous post, I was NOT looking forward to this race at all, but it turned out that this was the best among all other 5ks I’ve joined the past couple of weeks.

Here’s why:

[ POSITIVES ]
1. Race started on time – 6 a.m. on the dot. Thank God my alarm clock rang this time…and my back up cellphone too!
2. Water was overflowing – In my 5k run, I passed three water stations. Three! Now that’s how to treat us hardworking runners. Pour on the agua!
3. Lots of marshals – There were marshals at every turn. If you lost your way here, you would have no one else to blame but yourself for drinking too much last night.
4. Clean restrooms – No need for those sucky, yucky, stinky, and hell on earth portalets. Bonifacio High Street’s restrooms were free to use…without the long lines too.
5. Food was being served – I didn’t line up for this, but hey I’m sure a lot of those runners who skipped breakfast appreciated it.
6. “Entertainment” – A number of celebrities showed up to run for charity…even more than the Kapuso race!

PLUS:
7. Hubby and I arrived a good 30 minutes in advance. I had enough time to warm up, stretch, and run to the restroom.
8. My best running buddy, Annie, claimed 4th place overall and 1st place in her age category. Congrats again Annie!
9. Hubby boasted of a faster time too.
10. As for me, I ran at a faster pace with much more confidence and less paranoia over my knee. It felt great to once again try to outpace some men (heehee) and break away from the walking crowd. I still didn’t go full blast; in fact, I kind of burned out at 4km due to my lack of training but oh it was awesome. I fell in love with races again! As for my time, errr was it around 29 minutes? Or 27? I’m afraid I’ll have to wait for the official results for that. Now, you must be scratching your head asking “Hmm…didn’t TBR time herself?” which leads me then to this…

The only bad experience of the Global City Run for me was…

[ NEGATIVE ]
Someone here forgot to charge her Garmin! (Ah, that’s me by the way.) Argh! It died on me while waiting for the starting gun to fire! The race was this close to being perfect were it not for my little booboo. No worries. The positives far outweighed the negative.

– Celebrities who ran for charity took centerstage. Hats off to them! –

– Athletes and hosts Drew Arellano (nice seeing you again, Drew!) and Paolo Abrera –

– Jackie Castillejo and popular fashion models ran too…or did they really? I’m not so sure since, again, there’s not an ounce of sweat on them. Plus, I can’t imagine running with my hair down and bangs covering my eyes! –

– Me with Annie, Jenny (another fast runner) and her sis. Next time, please remind me to lose 10 lbs before posing with athletes like these. I look huge beside them! –

– Patrick C. and Annie A. –

– I wish I had taken more photos of real runners like these cool guys above. Next time I promise…less celebrities, more runners –

The jury is still out on whether a runner should lift weights or not.

I’ve interviewed several runners asking whether they pay regular visits to the gym or do strength training exercises at home and I’ve received different responses. Elite runner A only uses free weights on his arms to mimic the vigorous arm motion while running. Serious runner B lifts weights 3 to 4x a week. She increased weight training on both upper and lower body a few months before a marathon for strengthening and only decreased this a few weeks prior to her marathon. It worked for her as she finished her first marathon in tip top shape. Serious runner C is against any kind of weight training for runners. He believes one can perform strengthening exercises through drills and running hills.

Almost all running books I’ve read recommends strength training twice a week as a good cross training option for off-running days. Why even Paula Radcliffe believes it’s beneficial to runners.

I guess there is no hard and fast rule when it comes to weights and running. I say just do what works for you. If strength training can improve your performance in running (and gives you a svelte and toned body as a bonus), then why not right?

Here are TBR’s top 5 reasons why you should lift weights:

1) builds and strengthens muscle

2) prevents injury

3) improves performance

4) speeds up metabolism which leads to burning more calories

5) gives you a chance to spot Aga Muhlach* in the flesh! I just saw him at my gym two days ago!

* Note to men: kindly replace Aga Muhlach with your favorite female celebrity.

There are two races coming up this weekend…the 4th Global City Fun Run and the Ateneo Big Blue Run (Go Blue Eagles!)

As much as I love my alma mater, the hubby and I registered for the Global Run during On Your Mark last Sunday. (Ateneo is just way too far for me.) We received our singlets and race bibs for Global Run. But, there was no route map.

Thanks to Genevieve for emailing! (Thanks too to those of you who offered to send it.)

I am not that excited about this race. This is the 3rd one I’m joining as I recover from my injury (I don’t think I’m completely out of the woods just yet) and now that the thrill of racing again is slowly dying down, running a 5k at an imposed slow pace is turning out to be a bittersweet experience. On the one hand, I’m happy to run without the pain, but at the same time it’s also difficult (even painful) to stop myself from going all out. Half the time during a race I’m wishing I could just run without worries again.

Okay, I’ll stop with all this negativity; if I stay in this realm any longer my bull horns might start popping out.

See you at Global Run! Assembly is in front of Anta store at High Street.