[ T - T R A i N ]

Bling

This was the reward for running a total of 39.3 miles this weekend. They're so shiny!

Thanks to our friends BRIC and their kids for driving up to Orlando and waiting in the stands to watch us cross the finish line on both days. (They deserve a medal too for doing that!) We're trying to convince them to do it with us next year. And congratulations to our friend RC for finishing his first marathon in the US. I don't think there's a more fun place to make your marathon debut than in Disney.

Again, thanks for your encouragement and for believing that we could do it. It was stupid and crazy but you know I'm one stubborn bull.

*Donald Duck medal (half marathon), Mickey Mouse medal (marathon), Goofy (Goofy's Challenge)

One down...

So, I did the half marathon today. Great. No problem. I got my Donald Duck medal. I did not break any records but definitely finished strong. No injuries despite the lack of training. And I thoroughly enjoyed the whole course. I guess it helped that I brought a camera with me, which served as a good distraction. Tomorrow I'm scheduled to run the full marathon. (A shout out to the Goofy Challenge runners out there!) Still deliberating whether I could realistically run and finish a full marathon soon after doing a half. It would be great to get the hardware--a Goofy medal, natch, for doing both races, in addition to the Donald Duck for the half and the Mickey Mouse for the full. But running 26.2 more miles is serious business. Maybe I'll take a nap and think it over...

Thank you, friends, for cheering me on. Photos have been posted. More to come.

Mickey ears

In Florida for the Disney World Marathon and Half Marathon. Getting myself all geared up to run 39.3 miles this weekend. Mickey ears, give me strength!

From Miami to Manila

I just realized that I ran my first marathon about a year ago. January 29, 2006, to be exact. In Miami.

I haven't been running much lately. No time. And more like no place, really, to run. I've been trying to get back into running again. I'm registered for the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC, later this year--I deferred my entry from last year--and I imagine it's better to start training now rather than later. I do miss running. And I miss having a place to run and people to run with. I used to have Rock Creek Parkway a half a mile away. And I used to have buddies to run around the Mall with. Now, I just have the treadmill and my iPod. It's better than nothing but I need to work on my motivation.

It's time time get these legs running again. Make sure they're ready for another 26.2-mile challenge. Or if not that, just to get from point A to point B without huffing and puffing. Or just learn to enjoy running again.

Sick. Again.

I'm sick. Or rather, I was sick. I'm now feeling much better than I did a couple of days ago. I've only been home three-and-a-half months and I've already been sick twice. I felt so miserable last Thursday I had to drag my body around the house. And of course, I still went to Spanish class that morning but immediately took a much needed nap in the afternoon. I remember having a very strange dream then, and I would have attributed it to being all drugged up with cough syrup but I haven't had any until later in the evening. That was how sick I was. I think I had a fever that was trying to break out but didn't--I felt it in my bones but I didn't have a temperature. I took paracetamol anyway and that took care of that.

I don't encourage self-medication but the combination of stuff that I've been taking the past few days is certainly helping with the rather speedy recovery. (The first time, I had a cough for three weeks.) So I, don't really know if it was the cherry-flavored mucolytic expectorant, the lozenges, the mouth rinse, the very potent ginger tea, or the fact that I recognized the symptoms early and acted on it right away. As to what caused this in the first place, I don't know. Maybe it's the heat. It's been very warm the past few days but it was nothing too out of the ordinary. I have also been sleeping late because I had a few deadlines to catch. Stress really puts your body all out of whack. The funny thing is I've started running again and just had my first yoga class for the year last week. Did those supposedly healthy activities just added strain to an already vulnerable body? I don't know. The best medicine is still prevention. So yeah, no stress for now on. Hah!

Running and Yoga

I've resumed my regular runs. Sort of. A couple of people from my marathon running group have continued their weekly training runs down at the Mall and I come down with them when I'm available. That's turning out to be every other weekend. Juliet, a very sweet and and very nice lady who's sort of became my surrogate mom during the marathon training (which is very strange, her being Trini and all, so people would just stare at us whenever she'd call me 'son,' although she now calls be 'geek' because of a sticker I pasted on my shirt for the marathon), would pick me up at my apartment building, and then Erica, and then head towards the waterfront. Last Sunday we did 7 miles, and it felt pretty good. We noticed we were running faster. It only felt like a warm up.

Shortly after coming from the morning run, I had only an hour to prepare for yoga class. There is a yoga studio located about a couple of blocks from my building. They used to be known as 18th and Yoga but now they've changed their name to Inspired Yoga. I've known about it for a while now but their class schedule didn't match mine. However, they're currently offering a 5-week Intro to Yoga class on weekends. I've done a few classes with Laughing Lotus (isn't that such a cool name?) when I was living in New York. The instructor that I had then was very good but then I sort of had to just jump in there since it was an ongoing class, and it was way downtown in Manhattan so the commute was long. (What I liked about that school were the instructors, the location, the space and environment, and the number of classes they were offering.) I had to learn breathing and movements all at once and it wasn't flowing. Well, this time, we started slow and easy and we were all starting at the same time. In fact, on the first session, we focused on breathing and then learned a couple of resting positions. It was very relaxed. There were also only 8 participants, plus the instructor.

I've always hoped that yoga would help with stress and anxiety issues so that's why I'm picking that up again. Plus, now that I'm running, I really could use a bit more flexibilty and I need to strengthen my core. And what's the use of my yoga mat if I don't do yoga, eh?

Ommm.

Miami Log #3: Finished

So, it's done. The marathon. I've run the race. Twenty-six point two miles. It's an amazing feeling.

Okay, so I didn't even break the six-hour mark. It took me half an hour longer than my estimated time. I'm sure there were a lot of factors that went into that, but mostly I took it easy. I wanted to make sure that I would finish. My group tried to stay together as long as we could but inevitably we ended up breaking up into smaller groups. Except for Cassandra, who suddenly disappeared after the first water stop, and Daniella, who was a bit unsure about the whole race, none of us ran the race on their own, which just shows the kind of bond we've developed in the course of five months. Malinda and I ended up running together. We managed to entertain ourselves for five hours and stuck together almost to the very end. (About five minutes away from the finish line, Malinda told me to go ahead. Then I waited for her to finish.)

The race felt endless in some parts. It took more effort than I would have expected. The 23-mile training run that we did should have been a good simulation of the actual race, but being in the actual race mixes in a lot of surprises. Of course, spectators on the sidelines made it more fun. You have strangers cheering you on and shouting out your name. There was this lady who was handing out orange wedges (and you better believe Florida has some of the best oranges), and there was this other family who had large cooler handing out crushed ice. No matter how tired you are (barring actual injuries), there's just something to keep you going.

Crossing the finish line is bitter sweet--you did it, accomplished your goal, but then you think... What next? I'm probably crazy enough to sign up for another race. But for now, I'm going to bask in this accomplishment. And I'm giving myself a much deserved break.

Regarding the leave issue with my boss, I've decided to take another three days off. I'm spending those three days in New York--maybe I'll get to run at Central Park again. I'll celebrate with a few friends because I have, ahem, a few supporters there. (One even wants us to sign up for the New York marathon together. Uhm, yeah, maybe.)

Most people have gone home today. I'm still in Miami with the parental units. I'll try to spend some time on the beach, maybe take a dip in the pool later. I need to get some sun time since I'm going back to winter weather tomorrow.

Anyway, I'll give a more detailed account of my time here in Miami when I get back home and have a regular internet connection. (I'm still paying $0.15 a minute for internet time.) Folks, thanks for sticking by me!

Miami Log #2: Boo-boos and Dedications

T-Train major boo-boo. I brought my laptop and other accessories to Miami with me so that I could update my blog regularly, give a daily account of what's happening, in words, photos, and videos. All was well and good. Even if there's no internet connection in the hotel room, I found out even before I checked in that there's a stray wireless signal in the lobby. Shweet, right? Well, despite the unmistakable heaviness of my bag, I discovered only belatedly, after my laptop has almost lost completely its juice, that there was one important thing I forgot to pack--its charger. Oh well. That's life, right (as one friend would most definitely say).

So now, I'm using the computer at the lobby where I have to pay $0.25 per minute for the internet. But you know I can't be out of touch for long? Then here you go. Just wanted to explain the situation.

I'm just waiting for the pasta party to start. I've been to the Health and Fitness Expo. I've already gotten my race packet. I've pinned the bib on my singlet and laced up my ChampionChip. I've bought supplies--two 1.5 liter bottles of water, two packs of trail mix, two energy bars, a large bag of salted pretzels, three bananas, and a box of Ziploc (for the goodies I'll be taking with me to the run, and the trash). My parental units flew in late last night. We had a late dinner at this Italian place where the chef, apparently, went crazy with the salt shaker but it was good nevertheless. Then we're having pasta again soon. It's all good.

Okay, that's it for now, folks. I'll see you at the finish line. But before I go, I would just like to say that I dedicate this run, this marathon to my dad. I remember taking walks with him when I was a kid. I would try to match his pacing and his cadence. (I guess I was a natural for the Army? Hmmm, maybe that's why I signed up for reserver officer training.) My dad, sister and I have very long strides. We're naturally good walkers. I'm just taking it a bit further.

I most especially dedicate this to BM. The reasons don't matter now, but I'm doing this for you as much as I'm doing this for myself. Be well.

See you at the finish line!

Waterworld

Swish-swish. Whoosh. Glug-glug-glug. Whoosh.

That's what I imagine I sound like these days, waddling around with a heavy belly. I've been so diligent about keeping myself properly hydrated as part of training, drinking at least 12 cups of water each day, that it seems like I have to make a trip to the toilet every five minutes to relieve myself of all that liquid. Which is probably a good thing because it keeps me from spending hours and hours in front of the computer, which is how I spend most of my working day. The toilets are only a few steps away from my desk so it's not really inconvenient. I'm afraid though that I'm already starting to wear out the carpet covering the path between my desk and the loo.

The thing about taking frequent toilet breaks is that I keep running to the same person over and over. I mean, it's okay, he's a friend of mine. We occassionaly have lunch or coffee together, but it's kind of awkward to make conversation while your fly is open , your thing is hanging out, and you're doing your best not to spray your shoes. You just feel so... vulnerable. And anyway, after your third or fourth encounter of the day, what else do you talk about? You're out of small talk chatter by then. Then you're left with an even more awkward silence with just the sound of piss hitting porcelain as background noise. Come to think of it, all is good as long as he doesn't reach out to shake my hand before he washes his own.

Running to Miami

No, no, no! I'm not flying to Miami yet. Not 'til next week. But I'm thinking about it.

And sorry, folks. I'm still trying to figure out how to compress videos properly.

Download, then play. Plays on Quicktime or RealPlayer. (5:38, 26 MB)