My love-hate relationship with running started during the pandemic. Social distancing and other restrictions prohibited the entire community from engaging in team sports, so cycling was the next best thing to do. The sport did wonders and checked most of my bucket list. It even came to the point that cycling the entire Negros Island was just a sleep away, but border control made it close to impossible.
The shift to running came as a surprise. Cycling became an expensive hobby (at least for me), and I wanted a new “challenge” without breaking what’s left of my bank account. Fortunately, I had a pair of hand-me-downs, so I laced up and started jogging.
What started as a casual jog around the neighborhood quickly transitioned to running. I ran almost every day. But as a beginner, I didn’t listen to my body and had no rest days in between. All I knew was that I was putting one foot in front of the other; I was getting “faster” and losing weight.
BECOMING A STALLION
Running became a serious sport when I met the members of the Bacolod Road Stallions. Established in 2016, the BRS is one of the most respected running groups in the city and has helped produce elite runners who are still competing today.
It was a casual encounter, but they “schooled” in ways that I didn’t expect. What they taught me was more than a crash course in running; it was information overload that over that week, I drowned myself learning about pace, monitoring my heart rate, shoe rotation, rest and recovery, and pretty much everything about running.
But it wasn’t the lessons that allowed me to give my utmost respect to BRS. It was the fact that they accepted me as me—a nobody who is willing to listen, learn, and improve. I became a member of the group in 2019, and since then, I have run two full marathons, a ton of fun runs, and even represented them in triathlons and open water swimming events.
MY FIRST HALF MARATHON
It’s kind of awkward that I’ve already finished two full marathons years ago and only completed my first “half marathon” during the Bacolod City Marathon in June. This is because most, if not all runners revere the half marathon. Some say that training for a 21K is harder than a 42K. I’m still leaning on what little experience I have in running and don’t know why, but a half-marathon race requires more speed and tempo rather than maintaining a comfortable pace for four hours.
The Bacolod City Marathon was set for June 18th. I registered for the event on May 17th. This gave me a window of more or less a month to train and sort my priorities considering that I was focused on completing a four-leg open-water swimming competition that time.
I took the chance and concentrated on finishing my first 21K, not because I was already registered but because I wanted to prove something to myself. First-timers should spend somewhere between eight to 12 weeks to prepare, with 16 weeks as the ideal peak.
I only had 30 days. No special training. No special diet. No supplements. No gym time. My swim sessions were even cut in half for the students during their weekend program.
I had no coach, too. I relied on the Half Marathon Plan of Greg McMillan, one of three coaches offered by Garmin. The only advice that I asked my veteran runner friends is if I can finish the race in less than two hours. They all said I could, but given my prep time and the fact that my body was more attuned to the water, I set a realistic goal of 2:30:00.
CROSSING THE FINISH LINE
Race day came, but I felt no pressure while I was warming up. The usual greetings and high-fives were all around the venue; it was more of a celebration, a reunion of new and familiar faces. I was even surprised when a teammate from another running group who beforehand jokingly said that he was going to be my pacer, showed up.
The race started easily. We ran at a comfortable 6:30/km pace for the first 5K, increased to 6:20/km leading to the halfway mark, and maintained a 6:18/km pace for the rest of the way.
I finished my first half marathon in 2:21:04, a decent nine minutes below my realistic goal.
June 18th was a good day. I was proud of myself.
Despite the lack of preparation, juggling an 8-5 career, overcoming laziness, and thinking if I made the right decision, I crossed the finish line with a renewed passion for running.
