45:33 mins @ On Your Mark 10K

On April 13, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Pictures, Races, Running12 Comments

5:57 AM 13 April 2008

The On Your Mark 10K and 5K races started at the same time at The Fort barely two minutes before 6:00 AM. As planned, I was wearing an all-new runner’s kit with my newly-broke in ASICS Gel-Kinsei 2 (“top of the line” on ASICS Running Shoes which I bought early last month) and my MP3.

I am using my bulky but reliable Sony Vaio Clip Earphone with my “cheap” Samsung MP3. My new IPod Classic (barely one month old) is now for repair because it got wet from my sweat while I was running in Jamindan. It is covered with one year warranty but the Apple Store here in the country would make me pay for the repairs & replacement of battery. I’ll just wait till I will visit the USA and send it to Apple for the immdediate replacement of my unit.

After donating four of my running shoes, I am now using one brand of running shoes which is ASICS. I bought this ASICS Gel-Kinsei 2 after having some pains on the rear end of my right foot. This shoes made me run better and it gives me stability on my heels. This is the first time that I used it in a road race after using it during my running workouts for the past four weeks.

For the first five kilometers of the race, I did not check my GF 305 for I knew I was comfortably running with my training pace of about 5:00 minutes per kilometer. A few meters from the 6-Km point, I was tempted to look at my watch and I saw that my elapsed time was 27:35 minutes and I was surprised that I was running a faster pace as planned. I tried to pick-up my pace and make some “speed play/fartlek” on the last 4 kilometers but my pace would make my breathing harder and I resort to coughing as if I am going to “throw-up”. This is a warning sign that I have to “listen to my body” and slightly relaxed my pace and concentrated on my running form.

On the last 3 kilometers, it was a test of endurance and “mind over body”. The music on my MP3 helped a lot to relax my mind and inspired me to run harder. It was “Bob Marley’s Greatest Hits” who was my companion entire the course. Some runners would overtake me on the last two kilometers but I just maintained my fastest pace that my body was capable of. All the runners that overtook me were at least 20 or 20 + years younger than me and that’s fine with me. On this part of the race, I was not fighting with the other runners but I was fighting with my own self.

I knew I could reach the finish line in less than 48:00 minutes based from the readings I got from my GF 305. I did a little sprint on the last 500 meters and I was in the company of Gabriela Calma, who beat me last Mizuno 15K Run and Rene from Gold’s Gym.

As I crossed the finish line, the clock at the finish line had a different reading which I deduced that something went wrong with the race clock. So, I stopped my GF 305 and saw that I finished the race in 45:33 minutes! It was only when I was uploading my data from my watch to my PC that I noticed that the distance registered was less than 10 kilometers. The distance was short by almost 600 meters!

This is a picture after crossing the finish line. I was surprised with my time and I thought I improved a lot. I was using my Nathan Water Belt and I did not want to be holding those bottled water available in every water station along the way, while I was running.

Well, whether it is short or not, I can see that I was able to improve my time even if I will add 2:30 minutes to my unofficial finish time. The following data were taken from my GF 305:

Time—45:33 mins Distance—9.45 kilometers

Average Pace—4:52 mins/km Average Speed—12.3 kms/hour

Maximum Speed—17.4 kms/hr Total Calories—692 cal

Average HR—168 bpm Maximum HR—172

Total Ascent—208 meters Total Descent—202 meters

To all the runners in this morning’s race, congratulations! Keep on running!

I will post the other pictures in my post tomorrow.

D-1 Day: On Your Mark 10K Run

On April 12, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Races, RunningLeave a comment

Goal—Be able to run and improve my previous time of 49:37 minutes for the 10K Race during the Condura Run. At least, to have a finish time of 48 minutes will be a nice goal for this run.

Strategy—Run slower on the first 5 kilometers at 5:00-5:10 minutes per kilometer pace and slowly increasing the pace on the remaining 5 kilometers. Try to apply “speed play and tempo runs” on the last 5 kilometers. I will try also sprinting at the last 500 meters of the race to the finish.

Support Services & Running Kits—I’ll be using my Nathan Water Belt and I will not be stopping at the water stations. My runner’s kit will be all-new–Nike singlets; Nike running shorts; and my newly “break-in” ASICS Gel-Kinsei 2 (my 1st time to use it in a road race). My GF 305 will be my “guide & target opponent”. I am not yet decided if I am going to have some music along the way through my MP3.

Others—More time to stretch and do warm-up jogging before the start of the race. Concentrate on my “running form” during the race. Run tall, run relaxed, run naturally.

To my fellow runners, see you tomorrow at the “On Your Mark” Run at The Fort. Good luck!!!

Hills, Heat, & Water

On April 6, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Races, Running3 Comments

Critique on the Mizuno Infinity 15K Run

This is my critique on the conduct of the first rendition of the Mizuno Infinity 15K Run which was held last Sunday, 30 March 2008 at The Fort and Taguig City Area.

In the shorter distance run less than the half-marathon, the Mizuno Infinity 15K Run was the most challenging road race I have participated in Metro Manila because of the terrain of the route. The hills along the Bayani Road, Lawton Avenue, and McKinley Hill made the race something to talk about among the runners. These hills separated the men from the boys, the ladies from the girls and those unprepared runners from the prepared ones. But there is nothing to complain about those hills because it is a part of the challenges in a road race.

At this time of the year, summer, the sun rises so early in the morning. The 6:00 AM start for the 15K runners was already a late time to start a road race during summer season. On that particular day, the sun rises and appears at the horizon after almost all the runners passed the first five kilometers of the race and when most of the runners were about to start running the last five kilometers of the race, the sun was already way above the horizon and it was already giving out intense heat to the runners. The hot sun and those continuous hills at McKinley Hill area (13th kilometer) tested the strength, patience, and perseverance of the runners. If only the race for the 15K started, at least, 30 minutes earlier, the sun could have not been as hot as it was experienced during the race day.

As I entered the Heritage Park after the turnaround at the end of Bayani Road/near C-5 Road, most of the runners at my back were already complaining about the lack of water and one of the marshalls told us that the next water station is on the next kilometer marker. A few meters from the Gate of the Heritage Park, one of the race volunteers gave me a small hand towel! I thought it was a “cold towel” but it was an ordinary “dry” towel and I said to myself, “wow, this is new!” This was my first time in a road race to be given a small hand towel. For what? So, my both hands were holding something while I was running inside the Heritage Park—on my right hand was the hand towel which I used in wiping my sweat on my forehead and my left hand was holding a bottled water. Later, I threw the empty bottle in one of the garbage bins in the park and I put my hand towel at my back, on the garter of my shorts and I continued to run with my hands free from anything.

Before leaving the Heritage Park, there was a water station and I tried to pick one cup and drink from it. I was surprised that the taste of the supposed water is different. I only found out later that the liquid is one of the energy drinks being given but it was so strange to my taste buds. It would had been better if they completely provided drinking water in all the water stations. The energy drinks are supposed to be available at the finish line where you can replenish the spent sweat and electrolytes from the body, most especially in road races shorter than the half-marathon

I seldom stop and drink from water stations during road races. This is one of my techniques to shave-off time for the run. If a runner spends 10 seconds to stop, drink, and walk in every water station and there are at least 3 water stations in a 10K race, he/she is losing at least 30 seconds. This is the reason why I bring my Nathan Water Belt or designate my security detail to preposition themselves in points where they could hand me those bottled water. But in this particular race, I had observed that the organizers placed enough water stations but there were not enough water supply and cups on these water stations for all the 15K, 10K, and 5K runners. I had observed also that they did not position a water station at the rolling hills of McKinley Hill area and at the Finish Line. Anyway, I read on the post of The Bullrunner that the organizers sent a letter of apology to all the runners for the reported “lapses”. I hope these complaints will not be heard from the runners in future races.

Finisher’s T-shirt? Who cares? For the nth time I was given a finishers t-shirt too large for my size. The organizers should think that almost all the runners have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 22 to 25 (the elite runners have lower ones) and this translates to XSmall, Small, and Medium Sizes.

My Overall Rating/Grade for this race—78%

(If the saleslady/staff of the Mizuno Store at Bonifacio Hight Street had smiled a little as I was smiling at her when I entered the store and if only she knew me also as the Bald Runner when I registered for the race, I could have raised my rating/grade to 80%)

More Pictures @ Mizuno Infinity Run

On April 4, 2008April 4, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Pictures, Races, Running4 Comments

Posing for a picture with Totoy Santos of Hapy Feet Running Club before the start of a race is becoming a ritual.

The running Senator of the country, Senator Pia Cayatano with her security detail. It was nice to be seeing her in every road race.

It took me to practice a lot in Jamindan on how to drink water from a bottle while running. As much as possible, I don’t stop to drink on water stations during road races. It was unfortunate on this race that I did not wear my Nathan Water Belt. Practically, I had to hold a bottled water while I was running on this race.

The problem with this picture was that I did not use my “hill bounding” technique. I was forced to use small steps in running over the uphill portion from the Heritage Park to the Bayani Road. I will improve on this some more in my future road races.

Another picture with the strong “lady in pink” runner. She finally overtook me along the uphill portion at the Essensa area and politely said, “Excuse me”.

A pose with Mark near the “Donate A Shoe” Booth. Finally, we met in person. Mark is my number #1 “commentator” in my blog. Thanks for the comments and additional information.

I forgot the name of this runner. Anyway, he approached me and told me that he is a regular visitor of this blog. He is a member of the Fairview Running Club and I can recall that he joined/finished the 7th DND-AFP Gintong Pangarap Half-Marathon last 09 March 2008. Major Rod Turno, a member of my staff in the Project “Donate A Shoe” is seen at the back.

A very promising weekend “road warrior”, Taki, who is improving his finish time in every race he joins.

A brief meeting and conversation with my “blog inspiration”, The Bull Runner. I told her, in due time we will be signing a “book deal contract” with Random House or Barnes & Noble Publishing about running in the Philippines.

My running & gym workout friends/buddies from Gold’s Gym Glorietta, Rene and Doc. These guys are really good and consistent “road warriors” in every weekend road races.

Are These Guys Crazy?

On April 2, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Insights, Marathon Race, Races, Running14 Comments

Last Monday evening, while reading the newspapers, I found an advertisement entitled “94K Weekend: Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway Event” to be held on April 18-20. And some of the events to be held on those days are–94K UltraMarathon event; 42K Marathon event; and 10K Run event–all devoted to running. The other events were about cycling, motor biking, and others not related to running. I did not mind about this ads and I just said to my mind that this something new.

When I visited The Bull Runner’s blog, I found out that in one of the comments where I asked “where is the next race ?”, Atty Jon answered my question with a recommendation to run the 94K Marathon on April 20 and he linked the 94K Weekend website in his comment. I checked on the The Bull Runner’s schedule of running events and I found out that she posted it already with the other running events for the month of April.

Checking on the 94K Weekend website, I found out that the events are really scheduled as advertised. Well, my reaction on this was that the guys who thought of including running events on this 94K weekend event were crazy! These Guys Are Really Crazy! Are these guys had experienced running in road races?

Runners are not “super humans” to prepare and join in a 94K UltraMarathon or 42K Marathon event in 19 days!!! They even stated in their brochure on line that the water stations in the marathon event will be positioned every five (5) kilometers!!! What? These people will kill their runners! The registration fee is very cheap to entice runners to join the event but I think this is also a “cheap” running event even if they posted big amount of cash awards for the winners.

Another sign that the marathon is not well-planned is the fact that the marathon event will start at 5:00 AM. The planners/organizers do not know that it is already summer time and the sun rises at 5:45 AM. If they start at 5:00 AM, the runners will be fighting the heat of the sun after running 8 kilometers which is barely 1/5 of the distance. A combination of the heat of the sun and the far distance in between water stations will give serious problems to the runners. Running along an elevated highway/expressway without any trees on the sides or any shade from the sun and with the heat of the sun and the pavement during summer is something “crazy & unbelievable” to think about.

To the planners/organizers of the 94K Weekend, I suggest you do your “homework” properly and plan at least one year ahead.

As for me, I will not join this inaugural rendition of this 94K Weekend running events.

D-Day: Mizuno Infinity 15K Run

On March 30, 2008March 30, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Races, Running, Running Shoes16 Comments

30 March 2008 (6:00 AM-7:16 AM)

I arrived at the Parking Area near the Assembly Area of the Mizuno Infinity Run at 5:10 AM and immediately had my stretching exercises and warm-up jogging. I saw to it that I had to drink water and force my urine to get out from my urinary tract system before going inside the check-in area. It took me about thirty minutes to warm-up while making sure that my officers from the DND-AFP Gintong Pangarap had arrived and put up their booth for the BaldRunner’s “Donate A Running Shoe” Project. I was glad that my staff had arrived on time and I gave them four of my old shoes for donation.

Before the start and as soon as I entered the starting area, many runners had greeted me, most of whom are my visitors/readers of my blog. Guys, thanks for your comments and visits!

The 15K Run started at exactly 6:00 AM with the other runners in the 10K and 5K races to start after 15 minutes. The 5K was scheduled to start at 6:30 AM. As expected my 1st kilometer was a slow one, finishing in 5:44 minutes. But my time was a very slow pace from my planned time to finish every kilometer. I had to pick-up the pace when I was already at the Bayani Road. After almost two-kilometer run inside the Heritage Park, the hills before the Bayani Road, at Lawton Avenue, and at the McKinley Hill areas slowed down all the runners. The worst was, once the runners reached Lawton Avenue after coming from Bayani Road, they were already facing the heat of the sun.

Running at 3-Km point along the Bayani Road before I threw water to the driver of a black Nissan Patrol who was about to cut us from an intersection. I met Mark at this point after the said incident.

It is fun to run when there are lots of runners around you, the more you have to increase your pace!

At this point, going to Km. 8, I just left the Heritage Park and about to run uphill towards Gate 3 of Fort Bonifacio.

At the uphill portion going to Gate 3 of Fort Bonifacio and Bayani Road

I started to pick up again my pace after successfully ascending from the McKinley Hill area and reached back to Lawton Avenue. At this point, I had only 2 kilometers to go before the finish line. I joined the pace of a lady runner in pink and a soldier from Camp Aguinaldo. At the last turn before the Finish Line, I saw the digital clock registered 1:16:00 hours. I just maintained a quick pace and was able to cross the finish line in 1:16:27 hours, my unofficial finish time for the 15K race.

I picked-up my pace after leaving McKinley Hill area. The motorbike rider who escorted me from Heritage Park to the Finish Line was one of my personal drivers & member of my security detail when I was then the Camp Commander of Fort Bonifacio.

A picture with the lady runner in pink who set the pace along Lawton Avenue and a soldier from GHQ, Camp Aguinaldo following us. This was the first time I saw this lady in a weekend race. She is strong and I am sure she placed one of the top five among the ladies.

At the finish line with a time of 1:16:27 hours as I read from the digital timer/clock, my unofficial finish time.

After finishing the race, I immediately went to the booth where my staff established my Project “Donate A Shoe”. I found out that three of my old running shoes were already given to the less fortunate runners. Later, Don Fernando Zobel of Ayala Land Inc. approached the booth and asked where he can donate his shoes. And I and my staff answered, “Here, sir!”. He immediately removed the running shoes he was wearing, an ASICS GT-2110, and donated them to us. We let him signed some forms and took some pictures of him and myself. He left our booth walking with only his socks on. Thanks, Don Fernando! We salute you!

Runners looking at the array of donated shoes infront of Bald Runner’s Project “Donate A Shoe” booth being supervised by Major Rod Turno and Capt Ferdie Espejo of the DND-AFP Gintong Pangarap Running Club, Inc.

Don Fernando Zobel signing the Deed of Donation for his running shoes he was wearing that he donated. I gave him a “ONE” Wristband which he accepted.

Many of my officers/enlisted personnel and dependents in the Philippine Army, my brother, members of the Happy Feet Runners Club, Fairview Running Club, Takie, Mark, Jomes, the BullRunner, jhun & wife, rene & doc from Gold’s Gym and others whom I forgot their names approached our “booth” and had good words about our project. We had some picture-taking, too!

A pose with the members of the Happy Feet Running Club. Guys, you look great!

A pose with my brother & wife who joined the 5K run. At far right is Colonel Oscar Lopez of the Philippine Army who is also a passionate long distance runner & joined/finished the 15K run in sub-1:30:00 hours.

A pose with Takie and the most popular The Bull Runner among the Running Bloggers!

One of the senior runners who received my New Balance 902 Performance Running Shoes showing his old shoes which he used in the 15K run!

Last Two Bibs; Route & Last Run

On March 29, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Insights, Jogging, Practice Runs, Races, RunningLeave a comment

27 March 2008

I registered personally at the Mizuno Store at Bonifacio High Street Mall after lunch today. The staff at the store told me that I am getting the second to the last bib for the 15K run. In one minute, I got out of the store and I am officially registered to run the 15K. While I was filling up my registration form, another guy entered the room and he got the last bib.

While looking at the zeroxed copy of the route, it confirmed the information I got from my officer yesterday. While I was going back to attend the closing ceremony of the seminar which I attended, I planned already to have my last practice run for the week before the race day on some portions of the route after the seminar.

Glancing at the course, the 15K route will be a hard one with so many hills along the way. My target of finishing the race in 1:15:00 hours would be a hard task and I could force my body to its limits. Well, mentally, that is still the target/objective but in reality, a 1:17:00 to 1:18:00 hours would be a decent time to finish the 15K run.

The strategy is to divide the course in three 5K runs. First 5K will be with a comfortable pace; the second 5K will be a faster one and the last 5K will be covered at a 2-mile run pace. The hilly portions will be at Bayani Road after the PA Golf Course; from the Heritage Park to Bayani Road; from the Golf Course along the Bayani Road up to the back of the Philippine Army Grandstand; McKinley Hills area; and the Essensa road. The difficulty on these hilly portions should be countered while running along the downhill portions of the route, which means that I have to increase my pace on the descending portions. The McKinley Hill part in going back to Lawton Avenue towards the finish line will be the “Killer Hill” in this race!

At 6:00 PM, I was already having my stretching exercises. I started from running workout from my quarters towards the Libingan ng mga Bayani, running along the outermost roads inside the park; went out and ran towards Heritage Park and C-5 Highway and back to Bayani Road; ran along Lawton Avenue towards McKinley Hill and was able to reach C-5 exit; and made a fast run in going up the last hill towards Lawton. From Gate 1 of Fort Bonifacio, I had my cool-down run towards my quarters.

My last practice run was a slow one but I was able to run in 1:29:03 hours with an estimated distance covered of 15 kilometers. I used my Timex Watch w/ HR Monitor with a 150-160 bpm and 1,060 total calories burned.

D-4 Day: Mizuno Infinity 15K Run

On March 28, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Practice Runs, Races, RunningLeave a comment

26 March 2008 (8:32 PM-9:25PM)

I’ve been in Manila for the 6th Philippine Army Physical Fitness Test Challenge yesterday and for today and tomorrow, I am attending a seminar/meeting among the Commanders of the Philippine Army. On Friday, I will also attend the 111th Founding Anniversary of the Philippine Army in a Military Parade and Awarding Ceremonies.

While attending a dinner with the Commanders, one of the officers from the Headquarters Philippine Army who is also a weekend runner told me that he had registered already for the Mizuno Infinity 15K Run. Well, I told him that I have yet to register in one of the Mizuno Stores in Makati with the thought that I’ll be registering at the Boifacio High Street Mall. I asked the officer about the route and he told me the general route of the 15K Run. He told me that route covers Lawton Avenue, Bayani Road, Heritage Park, Mckinley Hill Area and The Fort area.

After dinner, I immediately changed to my running attire and had a “run through” or course familiarization on the hilly portions of the course. Actually, it was not a course familiarization but a review on the route as I am familiar on most of the portions of the route. I did “fartlek” runs on the flat/plain portions and hill “bounding” exercises on the ascending portions of the route. I also practiced “belly breathing” on the hilly portions.

The following data were registered in my GF 305:

Distance—8.63 kms Time—48:39 mins

Average Pace—5:38 mins/km Average Speed—10.6 km/hr

Maximum Speed—13.6 km/hr Total Calories—634 cal

Average HR—160 bpm Maximum HR—170 bpm

Total Ascent—324 meters Total Descent—357 meters

Running Shoes—ASICS Gel-Kinsei 2

6th Army Physical Fitness Test Challenge

On March 25, 2008March 25, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Races, Running8 Comments

25 March 2008 (5:00 AM-7:00 AM)

Last night, I took the last flight from Iloilo City to Manila just to be able to participate in the 6th Army Physical Fitness Test Challenge, being the author/originator of this event which started in 2000. For unknown reasons, this event was not conducted in 2006 & 2007 PA Anniversary. I am glad that the Commanding General of the Philippine Army, Lt Gen Alexander Yano revived this event as he is an athlete and lover of sports. One of his priorities as soon as he assumed the leadership of the Philippine Army was to enhance the physical fitness of the soldiers and improve the physical fitness facilities and equipment in every Division/Command nationwide. My Division/Command in the Western Visayas is recipient of this program.

General Yano sent me a text message last night at 11:00 PM, which I read when I woke up at 4:15 AM this morning, telling that he revived the conduct of the Army Physical Fitness Test. It is subtle message that he is personally attending the event. He knew that I was responsible in the creation of this pysical fitness event and he was inviting me to join.

When I arrived at the Philippine Army Grandstand at 5:00 AM, two sets/groups of participants (25 persons per set) had already finished their Push-Ups and Sit-Ups events. I was surprised that my registration form was prepared already and all I had to do was to pin my race number/bib. I joined the third set/group together with my brother, Maj General Samuel Narcise, the Inspector General of the Philippine Army, and some of the Officers and Enlisted Personnel.

A pose with my brother before the start of the 6th Philippine Army Physical Fitness test Challenge.

We started with the Push-Ups event for a time limit of 2 minutes only. I did 65 repetitions in 2 minutes!

Starting position…Once the Umpire says “GO”, you have to stretch/kick your legs to the back.

And down with your body and legs to the ground as one..the fist of the “counter” (one who counts your repetitions) must be touching your breast to count as one repetition. The upper arms should be in line with your back when going down.

You can rest only in this position with your body still straight…but I did not rest and I did 65 repetitions continuously.

After almost 5 minutes of rest after the Push-Ups event, we were led to the next station for the Sit-Ups. This is the starting position. The guy holding my feet pressing them to the ground with the help of his knees is the one who counts your repetitions.

In order to count in a repetition, the whole back of the body should be touching the ground. I did a very fast repetitions on this event. I counted mentally up to 70 repetitions but the “counter” only counted 62! I guess, my counting was faster than his counting. No complaints though!

The Sit-Ups event has a time limit of 2 minutes also. This is the only allowed resting position but it is suggested that there should be no rest while doing this exercise as you will lose your momentum. On record, I finished 62 repetitions!

Our group started in the 2-mile run…with my brother and the officers and men of the Philippine Army..

After finishing the 2nd round/lap…

Finishing the 2-mile run after 3 laps…Remember always, Don’t forget to smile once you pass the finish line. I finished in 14:56 minutes for the 2-mile run (3.2 kilometers). The following data were taken from GF 305:

Distance—3.25 kms Time—14.56 minutes

Average Pace—4:36 mins/km Average Speed—13.0 kms/hr

Maximum Speed—15.8 kms/hr Total Calories—239 cal

Average HR—165 bpm Maximum HR—169 bpm

Lt General Yano, the Commanding General of the Philippine Army (at the center), ran the 2-mile run with the last group of particpants. My brother and I joined him during the run and he finished in 18:21 minutes!

As a result of the 6th Philippine Army Physical Fitness Test Challenge, I was awarded with a Medal as the Champion in the Executive Category (which means, 50 & above years of age!). Not bad for a Major General of the AFP, retiring in 52 days from the service. My brother was also awarded with the 2nd Runner-Up Medal in the same category.

Total Distance Covered—7.5 kilometers (to include one lap of cool-down jogging). It was a nice tapering workout in preparation for my next road race on Sunday.

Running Shoes—ASICS GEL Kinsei-2

I hope to see you at the Mizuno Infinity 15K Run this Sunday!…And don’t forget to bring your old shoes for donation!

D-7 Day: Mizuno Infinity 15K Run

On March 24, 2008 By kingofpotsIn Jogging, Practice Runs, Races, Runners' Training, Running3 Comments

23 March 2008

Happy Easter to Everybody!

I was supposed to spend my Holy Week in Boracay and stay in our Cottage which is located in Station 0 ( I coined the name because our place is way up north of Station 1) together with my “security detail” bringing with me my books, RW Magazines, and my laptop. However, I changed my mind with the thought of preparing for the next road race which is the Mizuno Infinity 15K Run next Sunday within the hills & mountains of Jamindan. I thought that running along the beachfront of Boracay is not productive as my preparation even if I decided to run along the fairways of Fairways & Bluewater Golf Course or even run the hills of Boracay Island. The 2-mile route inside my camp was a better option plus the fact that I could be easily identified in Boracay as one of the tourists there. I am more rested here in the camp than travelling for almost 3 1/2 hours to Boracay by land and my soldiers in Boracay might be concentrating on my security rather than protecting and securing the tourists visiting in the island. And I don’t want this thing to happen.

Building-up my strength and endurance in the hills/mountains of Jamindan was part of my preparation for the Mizuno Run. I want to improve my time in the 15K with the plan to run at an average pace of 4:50-4:58 minutes per kilometer in order to finish the 15K run in 1:15:00 hours or below. Not knowing on the details of the route, I concentrated my training on my hill workouts in order to prepare for the “worst”. If the route of the race will be at The Fort Area, I am confident that I can maintain my pace with those gradual ascending portions in the area.

Having woke up early this morning to attend the Easter Sunday activities at 5:00 AM at the camp & attending the mass after the “Salubong” at the Camp’s Chapel, I opted to have my run late in the afternoon and confident that there will be no rain today. I started my running workout with stretching and later made my warm-up with brisk walking and slow jogging for about 1.6 kilometers along the 2-mile route. I am supposed to have my endurance run which is a regular run with a distance of 10 kilometers but I finally decided to have a “speed play” within the 400-meter distance flat area along the route. I did 5 repetitions of the “400-meter intervals” with 400-meter slow jog in between speed repeats. The following were the data taken from my GF 305 every lap:

#1) Distance—416.33 meters Time—1:47 mins

Average Pace—4:18 mins/km Average Speed—13.9 kms/hr

Maximum Speed—16.4 kms/hr Total Calories—26 cal

Average HR—134 bpm Maximum HR—153 bpm

Total Ascent—6 meters Total Descent—19 meters

#2) Distance—413.16 meters Time—1:44 mins

Average Pace—4:12 mins/km Average Speed—14.3 kms/hr

Maximum Speed—15.6 kms/hr Total Calories—27 cal

Average HR—151 bpm Maximum HR—161 bpm

Total Ascent—7 meters Total Descent—11 meters

#3) Distance—436.97 meters Time—1:38 mins

Average Pace—3:44 mins/km Average Speed—16 kms/hr

Maximum Speed—19.2 kms/hr Total Calories—28 cal

Average HR—148 bpm Maximum HR—163 bpm

Total Ascent—7 meters Total Descent—13 meters

#4) Distance—438.73 meters Time—1:41 mins

Average Pace—3:51 mins/km Average Speed—15.5 kms/hr

Maximum Speed—18.8 kms/hr Total Calories—29 cal

Average HR—152 bpm Maximum HR—164 bpm

Total Ascent—8 meters Total Descent—14 meters

#5) Distance—432.57 meters Time—1:56 mins

Average Pace—4:28 mins/km Average Speed—13.4 kms/hr

Maximum Speed—15.8 kms/hr Total Calories—29 cal

Average HR—151 bpm Maximum HR—159 bpm

Total Ascent—8 meters Total Descent—11 meters

Cool-Down Jogging for 1.2 kilometers (3 X 400 meters) and then had my post-stretching exercises.

Running Shoes—ASICS Gel-1120

Music—Linkin Park/Laura Fygi

Total Distance Covered—6.8 kilometers or 4.25 miles

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