My Heart Skipped a Beat: Things I Learned From Running & Finishing My First Half Marathon

I have a love-hate relationship with exercise.

It’s as if my “inner beast” is always fighting with my mother’s influence on the love of food and my father’s advocacy on having an active lifestyle.

Although I came from a clan greatly influenced by martial arts, I only share a small portion of that gift. Hehe! Make me dance and I’ll be fine with it. 💃

I’ve never joined any sports competition before. All I have under my belt are bragging rights for winning some Sports Fest activities. So, joining running events and actually training for some of them are a first.

And oh, by the way, my father once told me that sometimes running is the best self-defense. This might be a good thing. 😁

So, here are a few things that I learned from running and finishing my first half marathon:

1. Research as much as you can.

When I first decided to join fun runs, all I wanted was to, well, RUN and HAVE FUN. That’s why it’s called a FUN RUN, right?

While it might be okay for short-distance races, it might be a little different for long distances. It is still fun though. But it turns out you need to consider a lot of things if it is your first.

When I declared to an experienced best friend that I wanted to join a long-distance race, she bombarded me with a lot of terms and information about how to do things. It turns out, just like in any other sport, there are technicalities to think about.

From what I learned from my auditing experience, understanding a business is a crucial step in any procedure. Much like it, getting ready for a race requires research.

Fortunately, we all now have access to websites and groups that help wannabe runners such as myself. I began following blogs and running personalities like Pinoy Fitness , Takbo.ph, Runner’s World, Coach Rio , Mary Joy Tabal and even Donna Cruz for some dash of inspiration and motivation! 🏃

Read up! You’ll learn more fun stuff about running along the way. I promise. ✋

2. It’s a gradual process.

I imagine my running journey to be similar to that of a child learning how to walk for the first time.

It begins with learning to roll over and laying on the tummy. Next comes the strengthening of the arms followed by crawling. Then, tripping from the first few steps. And finally, a straight walk towards mommy and daddy.

In 2013, I remembered downloading the Nike Running App. My first official recorded run was on October of the same year with a distance of 1.61 km. On record, the pace was at 9’46”/km. I was barely running. It was more of a brisk walk, I guess. Hehe!

Whenever there are running events in Gensan or Davao, I would always pick the 3K or 5k. Most of the time, I would go because of the free race shirt, breakfast and sponsor freebies. Haha! Is there any other reason why you would wake up early in the morning and run? You would want your body ache to be worth it, right?

In 2014, I got more serious about running. It was our wedding year and I really wanted to look well on that white dress. I did not mind the distance during that time. My only goal was to run at least 30 minutes a day.

Don Gregorio Pelaez Sports Complex
One of my favorite running spots while I was on audit fieldwork in CDO.

When I finally got the grip of it, it seemed like I was always looking for the “high” that I experience every after run.

It took me two years to finally decide that it’s time to level up the 5K to a 10K.

On November 8, 2015, I finished my first official 10K race with my husband through Milo’s 39th National Marathon at 1 hour and 21 minutes. It was just enough time to be included in Milo’s cut-off of 1 hour and 30 minutes.

After a few more races, that’s when I decided to finally take the plunge and join a longer race.

For me, it took years to finally reach that point. For some, it could happen within just a year. Nevertheless, learning to love and understand running, just like anything else, is always a process. Just learn to trust it. 😁

3. Listen to those who have actually done it.

I was fortunate enough to know somebody who has trained and done countless races before.

I have found a mentor and a constant cheerleader through one of my high school best friends, Chaps de la Cerna. She’s part of the Nestle Family and have aced a lot of races as well.

Funny enough, our chat conversations now include photo exchanges of our injured nails, discolored legs and swollen feet. But more importantly, she has given me many tips about running – from choosing the right apparel down to the recommended vitamins.

Those who have done it and have reached the podium can give you more practical insights on how things actually happen on the road. Listen and learn as much as you can. They are living proofs of what running can offer.

4. Gear up!

Get ready and choose the right running gear.

Apparently, if you want to run better you must be wearing the right shoes, clothes and accessories.

When I ran my first half marathon, I used my four-year old cross-trainer shoes that fit me perfectly. I actually did not want to spend anything for new shoes. It turns out wearing shoes just your size is not advisable for running long distances.

Here’s what happened. Forgive me if this will gross you out. 😀✌

Lesson painfully learned! When you’re looking for running shoes, make sure that they’re at least a half or an inch bigger than your actual size. This way, your feet will have enough space when treading.

What’s amazing is that there’s a science behind every shoe, sports apparel and accessory. Try to have a gait analysis to know what kind of shoes best fit you. Sports stores in the Philippines, such as Runnr, offer this kind of service. Check them out to avoid injuries in the future.

But more importantly, have yourself medically checked. They’re the best people who can give you advice to prevent any actual injuries.

5. Get enough sleep and fuel accordingly.

Now, this is the department that I’d like to improve on myself.

With the previous job that I have, sleep was one of our sought-after luxuries. Aside from that, because of the pressure that we have, food was one of our most accessible stress relievers.

So yes, these were and still are two of my biggest struggles.

But while training for the race, I was advised to hydrate and fuel properly. Well, what does that mean?

With the help of a little reading and a medical explanation from my husband, I learned that our body uses all its energy to maintain the needed oxygen for our brains to function and send all the right messages to our muscles while running. If we lack sleep and will not feed on the right things, muscle cramps, difficulty in breathing and other injuries could be felt during or after the run.

I could go on writing and talk about sodium chloride, electrolytes and lactic acid. But I’m not sure if I could explain that properly. Hehe!

But in general, most of the experts would advise runners to practice proper breathing for sustenance, eat energy-filled food before the race such as peanut butter and bread, hydrate during the race to maintain the right body temperature, take energy gels to allow your body to burn enough calories during a long-distance race, take salt sticks or drinks with electrolytes to replenish what was lost and eat a banana after the race for muscle recovery.

Quite a lot to take in?

Yes, but you’ll be thankful if you follow these.

6. Follow a comfortable pace pattern. Breathe.

“Let, yung pattern,” Chaps would always remind me.

At first, I did not have any idea what she was talking about. Then, it turns out she was referring to my run-walk pattern.

What is it and why is it that important?

Elite runners can run an entire marathon without having walk breaks. They have trained for that because they are racing for a particular time goal.

For me, I felt comfortable to have a 3:1 run-walk pattern. Maintaining a run-walk pattern allowed me to sustain my energy all throughout the race. The one-minute break also allowed me to recover from my heavy breathing and speed up again. This pattern will allow you to reduce the risks of having run injuries.

Click here to have a quick overview on how to do the run-walk method.

7. The running community is awesome.

The love of any kind of sport actually brings people together.

Running, in particular, brings together happy and supportive people from all ages.

Every runner in the race knows how difficult the track is. That’s why a runner complimenting and cheering on another will always be a familiar sight. More than that, most runners I know will give you free advice on how to do your next run.

The goal of every run is to finish strong and happy.

8. You are competing with yourself.

Although you’re running with a lot of people, the whole point of the race will always be winning against yourself.

Yes, you might be faster than the person behind you, but I believe the running community has always emphasized that you’re beating your personal best.

I like the idea of having a cut-off and knowing the time you reached the finish line. The rewards that you can get from running include your longest and fastest. Every run is a competition against your personal records and not with anybody else.

For me, finishing a race is already a fulfillment that deserves a pat on the back and an occasional race medal. 😉🏅

9. Anyone can run.

I have read a lot of articles about runners who are already close to 100 years old, differently abled or with special needs.

These people make me question myself and my excuses. They are also excellent reminders that anyone can do it as long as they put their hearts and mind into it.

If they can do it, why won’t we do it?

10. Willpower + Why Power

Begin with the end in mind.
– Stephen Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

I am always amazed by the process of goal setting and reaching.

Personally, I like setting goals in every aspect of my life. I want them. I need them. I will attract them. I envision myself to be this and that.

But recently, a few lines that I heard from one of the videos of Sadia Badiei from pickuplimes.com hit me.

She said that having willpower is good, but sometimes not having reached a goal hurts our willpower even worse. You get disappointed and stuck. That’s why it’s always better to go back to our “Why Power.”

Why are we doing these things in the first place?

There have been countless times that I asked myself that, more often during the race. Why running? Why not the family legacy? Why did you look for an activity that could potentially hurt you? Why long distance? Why?

Well, if I answer all of these it would take me a few more days to finish this. Hehe! Just kidding!

Truth is, running has become one of the many ways of my recovery from a loss. It has become a symbol and a cause for someone who hasn’t had a chance to walk all her life. And everytime I pound my feet on that ground, I imagine her running with me. That makes all the difference for me.

My First Half Marathon

In October 2016, I decided to challenge myself and joined Milo’s annual marathon. I picked the 21K distance – half of the 42.195 official marathon distance. I finished at 2:54:35, which is actually beyond the event’s 2:30 cut-off time. I wasn’t even on the official list. Nevertheless, I felt great! I freakin’ finished it!

More importantly, I was grateful to have supportive friends who pushed me even on the last hundred meters of the race and welcomed me at the finish line.

Chaps, who has run a number of Milo Marathon legs earlier during the year, offered to give me one of her precious race medals. It was one of the best gifts ever!

Now, I am writing this to remind myself how it felt and to continue challenging myself for the future races. I might still be a work in progress, but the truth is we all are.

Who knows? I might be already close to running a full marathon soon. 😉

“Marathon is life. It’s a big journey everytime you run. You feel a lot of pain, but you think a lot of things to get past that pain.”

- Eliud Kipchoge, 2:00:24 Marathon Finisher