Writing Is Good For Your Health

My Planner and Journal

I've always considered writing as just a form of expression and partly a hobby.  But whether you're a writer/blogger or simply someone who keeps private journals, I'm sure you have found out already about writing's therapeutic benefits.  

I've always been an introvert and so I mostly kept journals when I was much younger.  I don't easily open up to people, but I could easily open up my heart to pen and paper and just write away in total abandon, not thinking about anyone's opinion or judgment.  So in some ways, the journal is like a best friend who can keep your innermost thoughts safe...that is until your sibling finds your journal and starts to quote things from the entries.  Arrrggggh!

Ready for Run United 2014

Looks like we're all set for the first leg of Run United 2014 tomorrow, March 16.  See what the cat dragged in yesterday.  Well, actually, it's one of my running buddies who claimed our race kits for the four of us runners.  I guess this is hard to miss because of the color.  Last year, they give out the loot goodies after the run.  This year, they decided to give it already together with the singlet and race bib.  I wonder if there will still be other giveaways after the run.  Well, we will just have to see tomorrow.

Loot bag

Post Run Update: 37th Milo Marathon

A day after the 37th Milo Marathon, having ran on the 10K category, here I am enduring muscle pains on my thighs, calves, hips, butt, and back. I call them my battle wounds hehehe.  I've gone through even worse pain during the first few days of my Tai ji training some years ago, so I know I'll live through this.  Usually, it's the 2nd day after the workout when I feel the worse, so tomorrow, I'd probably be groaning more when I go up and down the stairs.  My knees are surprisingly in a somewhat better condition, so I am not limping.  I can walk normally although I wince internally sometimes.

Fitness Event: Taba Congress 2013

Source

Have you heard of Taba (fat) Congress?

Infographic: Why Coffee and Tea Are Amazing for You

A few months ago, I've been pondering on whether I should stop drinking coffee.  Truth be told, I have not stopped and I'm still enjoying my morning (and even afternoon) brew.  Some say they could not live without the caffeine fix. I guess if it has turned into an addiction, that could be true.  I would say I can still stop taking coffee if I need to.  But that is something I still have to establish.  Of course, I will not be immune to the withdrawal symptoms also.  I know for a fact that I will have headaches for a couple of days and studies validate that.   

Right now, I only skip drinking coffee in the morning when I have a scheduled early morning run.  It's not because it is a known stimulant.  I think my body could handle that even if I have hypertension.  The thing is, coffee is a diuretic for me.  I don't like interrupting my runs with trips to the restroom.  Twice, I had to endure holding the water in during 5K runs and that is quite a feat considering how each time the foot hits the pavement, my bladder keeps reminding me lol!

NatGeo Earth Day Run 2013

NatGeo Earth Day Run

Gearing up for my next 5K running event for this month, we've chosen to register in the National Geographic Earth Day Run this coming April 28.   The run is all about promoting environment conservation.  There was no mention of beneficiaries but they did say for every runner, they will be planting 3 trees and will be tagged with the runner's name.  A tree named after me...cool.  I just wish I could indeed see those trees grow up.  

Run United 2013

The first of the Run United 2013 series was held last March 17, 2013. I honestly didn't think I would be able to run last Sunday. We arrived at the race area 30 minutes after the official gun time. Would you believe that? On a Sunday morning, when everyone was supposed to be still asleep, I can't believe how dense the traffic was, going to the Mall of Asia. 

It was specified on the rules that runners are only allowed to run 15 minutes after the official start of the race. So I was thinking of the registration fee that went down the drain. I can laugh at it now, but last Sunday, I was probably still scowling inside the taxi despite the effort to put on a straight face.

Running Playlist: Praise and Worship Songs

Running with Music

Tomorrow, I'm going to have a Sunday morning run with my friends.  I was going over my running playlist a few hours ago and I realize I'm getting a bit bored running to the same music.  I figured it's time to make a new one.

It's a Sunday run, and I thought why not start the day with praise and worship music?  It's a good way to prep me up for Sunday service after the run.  That way I got ahead of the worship team hahaha!

PhilHealth: Post Run Update

Philhealth run is my first 5K organized run this year. I must say that after taking a long break from running, I'm not really in my top running condition. I was aiming for a less than 35 minutes run but having had not much practice, I finished at 45 minutes and 37 seconds. Still a slow runner. The time may not have improved but I must say I am still a better runner than my first 5K run. I was out of breath back then and experienced the beginnings of cramps and aching bunion, but not this time. I have better stamina, lungs and heart took the exertion well, and my legs and knees were not groaning in pain during the run. I also paid better attention to my running form, always checking if I am still running at the correct posture and proper foot landing. I also practiced deep breathing even while running, and I guess that helped to sustain me. 

Tribesports: Are You Ready for the Challenge?

Some months ago, I took the 200 Squats Challenge.  After one update, you have not heard me talking about it again until now, right?  Suffice to say that I failed miserably but I'm not taking it so hard.  It's a challenge I took and one that I had to give up after the 3rd week, when my knees are already screaming at me.  Doing squats is probably one of the best exercises there is, but for one who has injured her knees previously, taking that challenge was a bit of suicide, at least when it comes to my knees.

Ta-RUN-a: PhilHealth Nationwide Run

It's just 12 days from now and we'll be running our first organized run this year.  We missed out on the January  running events, probably because we needed some time to get back to form (What form? hehehe).  Either that or we simply have the holidays hangover.  

PhilHealth organized this nationwide run.  This will be a simultaneous run on different parts of the country.  We three gals will just be on the 5K category while the two guys opted for the 18K.  Here's a snaphot of the tarpaulin ad:

Ta-RUN-a (image from PhilHealth site)

Things I've Learned From Fun Runs

Running

I remember some months ago when I was asking myself this : Am I ready to run? After all, doing the routine daily exercise which comprises of walking, stretching, and lifting light weights is a far cry from running or jogging. My only consistent cardio exercise is walking which is still broken down into tidbits. So you could say, my cardiovascular strength is not really up to the challenge of continuous running.

It only takes a decision...and a decisive step to run a marathon, even just a short 5-kilometer run.  It's a decision that I would always look back to with a smile and a sense of triumph.  I did something I thought I was not capable of enduring coupled with fears lurking in my head because of my health condition.  What if I pass out? What if I have a heart attack?  What if I stress out my already injured left knee?  All those questions and worries flew out the window when I started running my first 5K run.

Let me just share the things I've learned from the past 5K runs I've joined:

36th Milo Marathon Finals: A Not-So-Newbie Runner's Musings

Milo Logo

Back in July of this year, I had my first ever 5K fun run with Milo Marathon. I would say that the experience with the Milo Marathon propelled me to join other fun runs in the succeeding months.  Not just one person said that I was on a roll, and indeed, I am.  I enjoy the freedom of running, and I figured that I will enjoy running while I still can do it.  Time will come when these knees would give out, bones would already be rickety and they wouldn't be able to tolerate the abuse anymore.  But I plan to prolong my running stint as long as I can, hopefully, well over my 70's.  That gives me a few more decades hahaha! 

KKK Funny Run

No, I did not make a mistake in the title.  I'd much rather call it funny than anything else.  I'll explain...

I got to say, in the four fun runs that I've joined so far, yesterday's run stood out somehow. It wasn't an extraordinary run by the way. The reason for it standing out from the rest is that a lot of runners got lost in the routes lol! That's because the race organizers had few marshals deployed in critical locations and there were no signs either.  I was already thinking if I was one of the declared placers, I wouldn't accept the award because there was no certainty that I ran the right distance. But, gauging from my previous runs, I would say I ran more than five kilometers. I did extra turns along the route, and I would have probably ran longer if I had not explained to one of the marshals who was thankfully in her place, that I already ran the route she was pointing out to me.

Running With PUP Students and Alumni

Last Sunday, I had a blast joining yet another 5K Fun Run. It was organized by the PUP Alumni. I did not attend school there, so I'm just another outsider joining in the fun. Most of the runners are young college students, so me and my companions were kind of out of place, and yes, feeling old already compared to the students. Maybe I'm just being paranoid that a lot of them were eyeing us, seemingly assessing if we could still run lol!

UST's Kislap Butil Night Race

Photo courtesy of Takbo.ph

Races and marathons are usually scheduled on the wee hours of the morning with the latest starting at past six  for short races. But who says runs are just for early risers? The Kislap Butil Night Race organized by University of Sto. Tomas will start at around six in the evening this coming Sunday, the 23rd.  This will be an interesting change in the usual morning run.  I wonder how I would fare.  I'd be coming along with my colleagues who were with me during my first run but another one would also join us.  Hehe another recruit in the running craze. Non of us are Thomasians by the way, but it's a good thing they opened this to the public. 

De-Stressing Over the Weekend

It's a long weekend we're going to have, starting today. I'm going home to the province this afternoon, after work, to be with my mom and the adorable nephews.  Ahhh three days ahead just staying at home, no work to do...Woohoo! And how tempting to do this for the next three days... 

slpn Po, originally uploaded by kooklanekookla.

Next Running Agenda: 7-Eleven Run 800

I enjoyed my first fun run so much that I went scouting for another event I can participate in.  In fact, in my current goals, I included running activities to my list.  My running buddy, Ate S. even wanted to upgrade already to 10K. She was probably caught up in the excitement of our first run.  So am I, but I'm not yet delirious lol!  After all,  I have a heart to protect.  I said it's too soon for me to upgrade to that category.  She agreed, so we're still on the 5K level, but now that I have a personal record, I'd try to beat that first.  My record time for the recent Milo Marathon is 45 minutes and 21 seconds.  Slow, right?  I don't mind, as long as I finished the race still standing up, no sustained injuries and still able to smile at the finish line.  I was expecting my legs to hurt days after but there was only slight pain, the kind of good pain you have when you exercise.

For running enthusiasts, I am most sure they have come across Takbo.ph.  They've got a list of running events there.  My running buddies and I chose this particular event:

Image from 7-Eleven Run 800

36th Milo Marathon: My First 5K Fun Run

Two blog posts ago, I was asking myself : Am I Ready to Run?  I wouldn't have been asking that question if I didn't have hypertension and is in fact under medication.  But I said to myself, I wouldn't pass up opportunities like this one just because of that condition.  I refuse to be held captive of high blood pressure, although I need to be wary of signs of fatigue or whatsoever.  I am thankful for those who encouraged me through the comments, that I can in fact do this.  And so, last Sunday, the 29th of July, I was there at the Mall of Asia with thousands of runners, ready to pound the pavements and beat their personal records.  I haven't got a personal record to beat, except to prove to myself that I can still run...for health. 

Minutes before the official gun time for the 3 and 5 K runs, this is what's right in front of me, a sea of green shirts (okay never mind the guy in blue).  Seeing the starting line made me smile and all excited, specially since the crowd is already cheering, bobbing their heads, jumping even to see what's happening up ahead.  When we heard the gunshot, the cheering grew louder and people started, well, walking.  There's such a huge crowd that it was impossible to run a few meters after the starting line.

Starting Line

Am I Ready to Run?

Few weeks ago, my colleague who has been joining fun runs in the past year has finally recruited us to sign up for one.  I was actually planning to join fun runs next year, when my body has really acclimated to doing more vigorous activities.  If I didn't have hypertension, I would have joined instantly.  I was kind of hesitant because of that, but with a little coaxing, I finally gave in and signed up for this:

Milo Marathon Packet : the bib and the singlet