keeping my head in the game

its been quite a while already since i laced up my first serious running shoes, and since then, a lot has changed. throughout the runs, be it as short and sweet as a few rounds around UP acad oval, or be it as challenging as mckinley hills, or be it in the cold and very steep road adventures in baguio, i've been changed.

i've been changed in the sense that, i was able to gain a lot more confidence in myself (yeah i know, i can get too confident at times, as what happened in my Globe Run) , or even underestimating myself (both in running as i had a PR during Milo eliminations, and at the same time having enough energy in me to pace my good friend Rod in his first attempt at a full mary).

a lot has changed since the first time i ran during the Condura LSD held at the Fort last March 8, up until the Timex Run held last November 15. I was able to slowly progress from the first attempt at running a full 10K during this year's Condura Run, then progressing to a 14K LSD around MOA before attempting to level up to a 16K Slimmer Run. From that, I had a leap of faith when i attempted my first half marathon. from that half marathon onwards, i had tried to slowly improve my running form and technique, from doing further research online, continuous conversations with more experienced runners in the running community, and by joining running clinics like the Mizuno Run Club.

a lot of people have leveled up this year also, even for some who had their first half mary one weekend, then their first full mary the following week. there are some also, who have leveled up from having a fairly decent time for half marys despite making "tirik" along the way, to having a a series of "unsuccessful" full marathons under their belt (unsuccessful in their own terms ah, kasi for me finishing a marathon itself is a feat that is not that might not be easily understood by non-runners, or newbies for that matter). there are also who decided to have decided to run their first full marathon with less than a month and a half left to train and yet was successful in their first attempt.

these are a few of my buddies who leveled up to being full fledged marathoners in their own sense.

i also have friends who were initially in the "beginners" group who, after a thorough self examination, bundled with training and determination, decided to have their fair share of the half mary. they may not be at the head of the pack but surely they are consistently adjusting their sails in the right direction. as they say, there's no other way but to go up.

as early as october, a lot of my friends in the running community have started to train for their first full mary next year, others eyeing the cebu international marathon, others the condura run. as early as june, a lot of runner friends have been trying to convince to start training for a full marathon, as they believe i can already handle it, strength-wise and endurance-wise. they even told me that if i wanted, i could have joined the milo eliminations for my first full mary. back then, i never entertained that thought. for me, i still have to prove a lot to myself, either by training harder to improve my current PR in my half marathons, or achieving my sub-60 10K (as i stopped after the miracle run), or even joining my first 5K race(which i finally did at the timex run, with my girlfriend)!

now is the moment of truth.

i have to decide whether or not to run a full mary in condura.

a lot of people have put their trust in me that i can do it

others have shared encouraging words on how to approach a full marathon

i know i can do this as long as i put my head in the game.

it may sound cheesy, but i know and i believe it's true. running a marathon does not only consist of the physical aspect, but mostly psychological also.

just like what pharmaton said, what the mind can conceive, the body can achieve. this i believe is true. as i've had runs where i was not able to focus at the task at hand and i slowly lose focus and start to slow down, walk, or just "give up" in the middle of what started as a promising race/ run.

i believe this is the right timing, and with enough training i believe i can still make it.

i've known some runners who, at some point in their running careers, get injured right after their full marathon, or even DURING their marathon. I do believe it's not because of their lack of training, but more so, on their over-eagerness to "do more" or to achieve things in a short span of time. i have nothing against doing their method ah, but for me, i believe that things happen for a reason, and if you try to force things when it is still not the "right time" then it might spoil the fun of the marathon (or any other thing for that matter).

as i was chatting with a fellow runner, a veteran runner at that, (basta mas matagal nang runner kaysa sa akin), he mentioned the following to me:

"i have known you since the condura CLP..i have read your blogs..i have seen you run....i have monitored your progress...so i believe you can .....it's in you eh..."


"kaya lang sabi mo nga...hindi ka nageewan katulad ng iba...kaya mas napabilib pa ako sayo ..."

this made me think again

and this gave me more confidence in myself.
(akalain mo yun, may sumusubaybay pala sa progress ko).
:)

now i believe IT IS TIME.

no more slacking off, no more tamaditis when it comes to running.
it is time to get serious. its time to but my head in the game.

i am going to start my training for the Condura Full Marathon.

training starts not on the road, but in my head.

i've done my warm ups, now its time to start gaining mileage.

Skyway, here I come!