Posts Tagged with: "Group Running"

I recall my perfect running schedule from May till mid-June and—with Whitney Houston singing “Didn’t We Almost Have It All?” in the background—I plunge into a deep dark hole of melancholy and sorrow for all that was—and what could have been.

Perfect. That would be the only way to describe a schedule that flowed so smoothly into my daily itinerary that finding the time to run was effortless and uncomplicated. Early mornings were MY time. I would leave while the entire house (even the sun!) slept and I’d return before the hubby and kids awoke for breakfast. No one would even notice my absence (mind you, for a mother of two children below 6 that is a rare occasion!) I loved my running schedule with Coach B and Annie during the past summer:

Monday: Medium 5:30 am

Wednseday: Heavy 5:30 am

Friday: Light 5:30 am

Saturday: Super Heavy 5:30 am

But, as they say, all good things must come to an end. With the start of school, my entire sched has gone haywire. Goodbye to morning runs as Annie and I have to get our kids ready for school, while Coach B must attend to coaching duties in school.

Temporarily, I have settled with a new sched that keeps me running four times a week—three are solo runs while the fourth run is on Saturdays with Coach B and Annie.

So, last Saturday, Coach B and Annie met for the first time since school started, but this time at a new venue—Alabang Country Club.

– Me with Annie and Coach B before our long run –

Coach B must have missed us during the entire week because he surprised us with a host of new drills that we practiced in the wide open field of the club. (Ooh, running on grass—loved it!) And, let me tell you, I missed our group so much that when Coach B asked me how long we were going to run, I blurted out 1 hour 10 minutes. Was I sure about that? Naaah! But what the hell, let’s go for it, I thought. And so we did.

12k all over Ayala Alabang with running buddies who keep you on your feet—literally. How else could I describe that morning? Perfect.

Some runners love to run alone. Others can’t even run around the block if their running buddies are absent. When it comes to running, it doesn’t really matter how you do it as long as you get the kilometers done.

I thought I would always be the happy lonely runner. I love running alone. I like the solitude, the silence, the opportunity to think without my clients or the kids hollering their next request. And I particularly like the fact that, when I feel the need to run, all I have to do is put on my trusty running shoes and head out the door or towards my treadmill. No need to set a play date with an entire team!

Call it fate or coincidence that I now find myself part of a growing runners group here in the South. Initially, it was just Coach B and I who ran together. I decided to invite a friend and she in turn invited another friend, and they plan to invite more of their gym buddies for future runs. The more the merrier!

– the wide, paved roads of alabang make it ideal for training –

I never thought group running would be this much fun. This was the first time a ran a full hour without feeling like I had to be peeled off the road during the first 5k. Time certainly rolls by quickly when you are with other runners who are enjoyable to be with. And it is true that—just like in a sports team—you can feed off each other’s energy, push the other to work harder, or provide motivation to finish the last five minutes. Of course, I’m still going to run by myself, but group running will now get a larger share of my running schedule.