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Inspired by John Bingham’s RW column No Need for Speed, Hitme came up with this new tagging game which he entitled, “I am a Runner”.

Hitme wrote: To hear it from Bingham quote the late Dr. George Sheehan, beloved Runner’s World columnist, who once wrote that the difference between a runner and a jogger was a signature on a race application. As succinct as Dr. Sheehan’s definition was, it made the point. If you are motivated enough to train for and participate in an organized running event, then you are a runner. Anyone willing to risk public failure in order to be part of the running community – no matter what his or her pace per mile might be – was a runner. Period. (NNFS, 2007)

To Bingham, though, such definitions are meaningless, since those who call themselves runners already know why they call themselves runners.

So, as promised to Hitme, these are the reasons why “I am a runner”:

I AM A RUNNER because I give importance to my training schedule. There is so much more in my life aside from running—my husband, children, parents and siblings, friends, graphic design, baby sign language, art, household, blogging, etc.—each of which requires special attention from time to time, or in some cases, all the time. But, should some aspects demand more from me or if my load becomes overwhelming, running is never set aside; it has its own slot of time in my crazy, busy life.

I AM A RUNNER because I am in it for the long haul. I’ve enrolled in countless gyms during my lifetime—Shape, Clark Hatch, Slimmers World, Fitness First—and never thought, for once, that I could sustain the monotonous act of going in and out of those gyms for over a year.  I signed up for badminton and golf excited over the initial sessions, but my interest waned for these sports quicker than I could say the sentence “This is not for me.” Running is different. I fell into a whirlwind romance with running, was completely infatuated with it, still love it for all its flaws and challenges, and I’m fully committed to it in good times and in bad (my hubby comes first, of course). I can see myself running until I am old and gray.

I AM A RUNNER because, whenever we are on the road travelling around Metro Manila, all I ever look at is the ground: “Hey, it is asphalted here, this would be a good running route.”

I AM A RUNNER because I have blindly spent all my hard-earned money on anything and everything that can improve my running. When was the last time I purchased a good pair of shoes or a fancy handbag? Maybe the same day that asteroid killed off all the dinosaurs. I can tell you though that I have happily shelled out cash for my treadmill, running shoes, sports bras, tops and shorts, ipod, nike kit, thorlo socks, no-slip headbands, cases of Gatorade, and so many more.

I AM A RUNNER because when I talk of travels abroad, all I ever think of is running. To a friend: “You went to Sydney, how did it feel to run there?” To my cousin: “You lived in a villa in Southern Italy? Wow, it would’ve been great to run there early in the morning!” To my Coach: “You’re back! How did it feel to run in Michigan?” To my husband: “Next time we go abroad, I’ll play golf with you and you can run a race with me. Wouldn’t that be romantic?”

I AM A RUNNER because my schedule revolves around races. When can we go up to Baguio? Am I free for dinner this Saturday evening? Wait…let me check if there’s a race on Sunday. I free up my entire week (or at least lighten my load) before a race because I know I have to train for this and be in tip-top shape.

I AM A RUNNER because I have my easy runs, fartlek, hill training, and LSD’s. I don’t churn out these technical terms for others to know I am aware of them. Hell, I don’t use them that often. I just run them.

I AM A RUNNER because I have to run. I must. If not, I feel awkward, incomplete, and unhappy. It is no longer about losing the last few pounds, burning excess calories from overindulging the night before, or keeping up with other runners. It is all about me and what I must do to feel alive.

Now I tag: Ben, Rick, E-rod and Crunchy ‘Nanas.

Date: October 14, 2007, Sunday
Time: 5:30 am – 6:30 am
Place: QC Memorial Circle – Runnex Shed

The running clinic is open to the public and is free of charge. For this fellowship, participants are encouraged to bring food that can easily be distributed to fellow runners such as biscuits, sandwiches, boiled eggs, juice, etc.

For more information, call Marie Casareo at 716.5534/5537

“Time trials!” Coach Ige declared loudly as he arrived at the Mizuno Run Club. Chatting away with Marga and a new blogging-running friend, Taki, we almost fell off our seats when we heard this. I glanced at the other lady runners across me—two long and lean sisters who were half my age and another runner who looked like a track-and-field athlete—and I knew Marga and I were the only intermediate women runners there. I wanted to hug her and condole with her for our upcoming demise.

Coach Ige comforted us by saying this was all in the spirit of fun. (No, they wouldn’t post a list in front of the Mizuno Store for the viewing public to laugh at our time way down at the bottom.) We were running against ourselves and no one else. Weeks from now we would time ourselves again and astound ourselves with our improvements. Okay, I was up for it.

We were to run 3 laps around High Street, six runners at a time. Men were going first. As we watched the first group of runners speed away, I laughed nervously. I needed a warm up.

We asked Coach if we could run along with the other group for a warm up and he says to go ahead and time ourselves already. Oh okay, this was going to be it. I ran with Gelo, a regular run club participant, and Marga. We started off slow then gradually found our own pace and separated.

I ran the 3 laps (4.10 km) at 20.19 minutes with a 4:57 min/km pace. Not my fastest as I didn’t hear Lance congratulating me on my nano, but it was still a good time for me. I ran another two laps at a slower pace just to get a little bit more mileage in for the day.

After the run, I saw Jujet de Asis and asked his time; it was 11 minutes. Then, I met other athletes, Liza Yambao, who won the Milo Marathon at age 21 and held its record for a while, and Barz, another young athlete, who both enthusiastically shared their tips on training for a marathon. We all agreed to meet up one time for a training run in the future. Little ol’ me running with these super athletes?! I was bewildered, amused, and oh so excited!

Running with elite runners could significantly improve my runs. I look forward to learning the technical aspects of running and other aspects that should help me modify my training program and show some results. But, more than that, I’m looking forward to just being around people who love running as much as I do (or perhaps a little bit more!) They’re energy alone is intoxicating.

For starters, Jujet shared a little tip that can help ease pre-race jitters: Drink a bottle of beer before hitting the sack. Hmmm… I’m not sure if that’s one tip that will work for me, but I’m pretty sure some of you guys are looking forward to trying that out.

Mizuno will have another Mizuno Run Club session this coming Thursday, October 11, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. in front of its Mizuno store at Bonifacio High Street. The Club is open to runners of all levels—beginners, intermediate, or elite—and is free of charge. Just show up in your running gear and you are good to go!

For more information, you may contact Chanda Baldo at 0916.338.7417 or email chandabaldo@gmail.com.

Hope to see you!

Admit it. Most runners like us are masochists. We feel like winners when our calves are burning, our feet are sore, and we are too exhausted to run any further yet we still plod on for the sheer passion for running. Conversely, slowing down may feel like we’re giving in—or worse giving up.

For those who want to run for life, one must actually learn to slow down at times. In the runner’s world, that could mean: to decrease your pace, to lessen your number of runs, to shorten the length of time, or to allow your body to rest and recover for a certain period of time in order to avoid injury.

For me last week, I felt I needed to slow down in Life. I was going at breakneck speed and, if I did not reduce my pace anytime soon, I thought I’d find myself laying lifeless in the middle of the road.

So, after last Friday—the day I finalized work for one large design project and fortunately the same day that both kids were back in the pink of health—I confessed to my mac that I needed some space. (Yup, that’s why I hardly posted anything new here.)

It was during those days away from the laptop screen that I was able to focus on ME. I happily indulged in days of pampering and pleasure:

1) Treated myself to a massage. I got a home massage one evening last week much to the delight of my left ankle, which was a bit sore from my past two treadmill runs. Fortunately, I found the perfect masseuse for me, Jenny, who has a super strong but relaxing massage style… so different from my masseuse from hell.

2) Got a pedicure/foot massage. It wasn’t so much the foot massage that I desired but the pedicure. I could no longer look at my fourth toe nail staring back at me in all its blackness. My foot just looked hideous. I visited a nail spa last Friday and treated my toe nails to some beautiful red paint.(Uhm, I don’t usually wear red on my toes but this was the only color that effectively concealed the death of my 4th toenail. The lady there said I could return on the last week of October and she would gladly paint all my other 9 toenails black just in time for Halloween!)

3) Visited the parlor. I finally saw my hair stylist again for the first time in months. He chopped 2 inches off my hair. Not that it makes a significant difference since my hair is forever up anyway.

4) Met up with McDreamy. He’s back…my (and a million other women’s) McDreamy is back! If there is one thing that can stop me from running when I’m heading out the door with my shoes on, it would be Dr. McDreamy beckoning me to watch him on television. (Oh okay, maybe my husband begging me to spend the day with him would be another reason too.) So, after months of not watching anything at all, I spent more than an hour glued to the screen watching the first two episodes of Grey’s Anatomy’s Season 4.

5) Went shopping. Actually, I went shopping online a couple of days before I even submitted my work. No, I am not into the newest fashion trend. In fact, I’ve hardly spent a cent on anything but running accessories for the past couple of months. So, I am awaiting my new running partners that should arrive before the month ends. For now, I shall not disclose what these are for fear that, as they say in tagalog, “Baka maudlot!”

6) Ran alone. I needed to feel alive again. I ran in Ayala Alabang on Saturday with my playlist “Running Happy” playing on my nano throughout the hour’s run. I ran to my favorite songs of all time like “Next To You” by Elisabeth Withers, “Just for You” by M People, and “You Are the Universe” by Brand New Heavies and felt supremely happy and reenergized. Aaah, by far, this was the best treat of all.