Running keeps me...

My time might be your lousiest PR so I would not dare brag about it, definitely not going to rant about my medals either. What I've been itching to share with you today is about how my curiosity led me to join this booming fitness craze that is running. I am not a seasoned runner, nor an athlete so I cannot afford to give tips on how to run fast, so please do not expect.  I am just passionately curious about why some people are so obsessed they keep joining running events like it is some high society event or a very fun party that involves running shoes and colorful socks. Why they pay for registration fees only to limp at the end of the day? How they manage to keep their cool while sporting those bulging calf muscles? I am also envious of the things they get after finishing the race. Aside from the loot bags to take home, they receive medals. And talking about medals, that is one of the few reasons why I keep gracing running events even if I curse the road and promise not to run again after every race. Crazy, I know.

My first fun run. Find me! :)

I have to admit that when I joined my first "official" fun run (NatGeo Earth Day Run 2013 – 5km), it is purely out of the feeling that I do not want to be left behind by my co-workers. Talk about being competitive, huh! I remember when their race kits arrived at the office and saw how excited they were, and how 30% envy, 50% curious and 20% lazy I felt that day, I went ahead and looked up the next fun run in the calendar.

Then I started running.

How do I train, if you ask me? It actually depends on how afraid I could get of the race category I signed up for. For 5km-10km runs, I do a one-time 2km run from the time I registered up to race day or sometimes, no pre-race-run at all. For my first 10 miler, I did a rough 4km run in total. Like what I’ve said before, I do not have a solid source of motivation to run (though medals, technically speaking, are classified as solid in elementary science). In other words, I do not train, like really train. To tell you, I’ve never been proud of myself for not training at all and for not “respecting the distance”. 

It was only after I completed this year’s Run United Trilogy that I came to realize what I have been missing the whole time: my health, me being fit. 

I remember back in college in our P.E. class when we had to do one round inside the campus and I blacked out after (thanks to my classmates Joy, Win and Rhod who saw and assisted me). I did not want to blame myself for being a weakling so I thought I needed to have something else to blame. I took it all out on my loose shoelaces. If it weren’t for them, I would not have to stop running and bow and tie them. Shame on me.

Fast forward to today. Reasons are now becoming clearer.

For the past four years, I’ve been eating too much than what my stomach can handle. I did not see anything wrong about it as long as I am satisfied. I am gaining extra body fats and I am not doing anything about it. Not the type to care about my figure, really. Until my recent war(s) with my jeans, they would not just let me fit in without having to jump and pull hard. It was alarming. Another reason added to my list.

            I am running because it is the cheapest and easiest way I know to shed those extra pounds. No gym membership, no equipment needed, just running shoes and a water bottle. The roads are free.

          Did I say free? Yet I am paying for registration fees. My dear, it wouldn’t hurt to give for a cause. So yes, kudos to those people who choose to pay rather than become race bandits.

Every run that I get to finish, I learned to appreciate my feet even more. Because even though I’m the slowest runner of the pack, I can proudly say that I finished the race without having to make someone else finish it for me. That I do not have to cut the route and magically appear under the finish arch because these legs can now endure the distance. Even if cramps and hunger became my “pacer”, I did not let them beat me. I am a finisher, always.

Running is like a drug. Once you get hooked, there is no turning back unless you suffer from injuries brought about by excessive running or other feet problems and was advised to quit or else, suffer the consequences. But I know a lot of people who continue to run after several therapy sessions and medications.

Even incapacities cannot break a runner's heart. If you too have seen this blind runner crossing the finish line with one end of the rope on his wrist, the other tied on to his friend that served as his guide, or this guy with an LLD (Leg Length Discrepancy) who successfully completed the Sub1 challenge (finishing 10km in an hour or less), you’d be more inspired.

Now I know the answer why some are obsessed with running. You see, I can be a bit slow in understanding things. :)

To all the Kings and Queens of the road, long may you run!