COMING SOON! The first ever non-fiction movie that captures The Spirit of The Marathon.
You have to see this trailer. Awesome!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8XSit8XyeM]
So, what’d you say? Let’s all watch this movie together with tons of bananas and gallons of Gatorade. I can’t wait!!!
Visit The Spirit of the Marathon website here.
Thanks Taki for telling me about this!
So, I paid my doctor a visit yesterday. Until now, I don’t know how I should feel about his medical advice. Happy? Anxious? Relieved? Scared? Uhm…perhaps all of the above.
[HAPPY]
Dr. Rivera told me that my knee problem, the discoid lateral meniscus, needs no rest nor recovery. It’s a congenital problem that is and will be there regardless of the miles I run or don’t run. So, he basically gave me the license to run and train for the marathon. Woohoo!
What about the pain? The discomfort I’m currently feeling is due to the increased pounding on my knees as I train for the marathon. He prescribed a pain reliever before long runs or in case of any soreness or swelling.
[SCARED]
Then, he went on to discuss what may have to be done after the marathon: arthroscopic surgery. Arthro what?! In this outpatient procedure, he will shape my D-shaped meniscus into the regular C-shape it should be. Recovery period would be six weeks. I’m not really fearful over the surgery, but more about the cost. Yikes, this won’t be cheap. (To my hubby: pretend you didn’t read this.)
[ANXIOUS]
I’m fearing the pain to come. For now, it’s bearable. It’s just a slight discomfort after a long or hard run. But, what if it becomes excruciating during the last few miles of the marathon? (Based on the high-intensity screaming and wailing I demonstrated during my normal deliveries with my two kids, it is proven that I have a very low tolerance for pain.) Will I be able to place mind over matter—or in my case, mind over meniscus?
[RELIEVED]
Like most runners, I worried about hearing these two words “Stop running.” Thankfully, Dr. Rivera was a runner himself until he suffered a major injury that prevented him from continuing his passion. During the consultation, he spent a good five minutes wistfully recalling his L.A. marathon and how awesome it felt to cross the finish line. He said he wouldn’t deprive me of that.
So, here I am experiencing a grand mix of emotions unable to decipher if the news I received was bad or good. For now, I guess it’s good. The doctor ordered me to run, so that I shall do.
As for surgery day, now that’s another story…
One year ago this month, I started running…and never looked back.
Last year:
– briskwalking for 30 mins on the treadmill was a great achievement for me
– 5km was a dream, 10km a long distance reserved for the elite
– “fun run” and “marathon” were synonymous
– “singlet” was, I would’ve guessed, a microphone a little bit smaller than the magic sing
– the only time I would sweat was when the aircon was off
– I would’ve opted to watch Paula Abdul rather than Paula Radcliffe
– I owned 1 pair of rubber shoes that were only worn with jeans
– I didn’t have any friends who ran (well, except for Mayi and Jamike who I bugged with tons of questions like “What do I wear to my first race?”)
– I only ate bananas when I had diarrhea
– Gatorade was a colored sports drink that tasted funny
– I would starve myself to lose weight (and it still wouldn’t work)
Since then, running has turned my life upside-down, inside-out, and transformed me into—what I would like to believe—a better, stronger, and happier me. Why didn’t I get into this sooner?
– My feet in my favorite Mizuno Wave Creations right before my first year anniversary run (taken ala E-rod)-
To celebrate my first year anniversary, Running and I took off for a 3-day stay in scenic Subic. I took the family along since my hubby might get jealous. (I’m kidding!) Every road we traversed in Subic beckoned me to run on them—near the airport, along the golf club, close to the bay—everywhere! Without any hint of my knee injury, I certainly had to give in to the beautiful roads’ whims. My hubby, a golfer who runs on the treadmill to maintain his fitness, decided to join in on the fun. (This was a wholesome threesome, mind you.)
We got up at 6 a.m., left the kids to my mom, and decided to go downhill from our place. A mere 5 minutes into our run, we reached a screeching halt. Two large dogs awaited us at the bottom of the road. At that point, it was a simple choice between rabies or to run uphill for our lives. We chose the latter.
We climbed up slowly but surely. I was wary of my knee while my hubby was getting his second taste of a ruthless road run he lacked training for. As soon as we reached the top, we plodded on exploring the vast new running course before us.
Barely catching our breaths from our close encounter with the dogs, we encountered yet another animal: a monkey closely watching us from the electric wires above. I was almost sure that monkey would pounce on me, grab my hair, and steal my Garmin (as discussed in our e-group) so I shut my eyes and ran forward.
Everything from then on went smoothly. We ran 6km at a modest pace and returned refreshed and invigorated. Soon after, we relaxed our tired feet along the sandy shores of Camayan beach and I fell asleep beside the photo of buddies Lance Armstrong and Matthew McConaughey running half-naked in Miami. A great way to celebrate my 1st anniversary, don’t you think?
– Just one of the four back issues of Runner’s World courtesy of Hitme that accompanied me on the trip –
This time it’s for real… I am back! My 7-day forced abstinence from running is officially over. I am healed!
– Annie and I after our run. We look so poised! You wouldn’t believe that we were laughing like noisy high school girls before this shot. It was a happy happy day. –
I ran 7.7 km at Ayala Alabang today at a conservative 6.22 pace and there was absolutely no pain. None whatsoever! Not even a hint of a tiny popping sound from the smallest cartilage of my left knee. Woohoo!
Good riddance knee injury! Don’t you dare come back!
“By the power vested in me by the Holy Spirit, I command you evil injury to depart from this poor woman’s knee!” Nope, my attempts at exorcising the soreness out of my knee proved to be futile. So, over the past few days—FOUR long non-running days to be exact—I resorted to more sane alternatives such as ice, ice, ice, more ice, and rest.
During the first couple of days, there was still slight soreness in my knee whenever I walked. By Wednesday morning (yesterday), the pain was gone so I cleared my schedule for the grandest event of the week: my first easy 5km on the treadmill that afternoon (pathetic, I know!) As luck would have it, clients emailed in a heapload of work that left me glued to my laptop saying “This is unfair!” in the same exact tone as my 6-year-old would say it when I ask him to finish his dinner before dessert.
Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, my 2nd dying toenail decides to “go towards the light” which, in his case, is any place as long as he is no longer attached to my toe. So, now my right foot is a gruesome sight with two nail-less toes. (Excuse me while I vomit.) I look forward to the day when, just like Rick, I will look down at my calloused and bruised feet and love them unconditionally. For now, I continue to flinch my eyes in utter disgust. Hopefully, strangers don’t do the same when they see me in my havaianas.
Thankfully, today is the complete opposite of yesterday; it is an awesome day to run. No pain in my knee. Work has been finalized and delivered. And, it is a Mizuno Run Club night. So, tonight, I shall make my way to Bonifacio High Street with two prayer requests in mind: 1) Holy Spirit, please protect me from that devil of an injury and 2) Lord God, please don’t let it rain!
