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I understand that most of my readers are runners but in my effort to help people to start running as an exercise, I thought I should start a post to help address those people who never run before. If your primary reason to start running is to lose weight and start an active lifestyle, I do believe running is the best course of action. However when you start running competitively, don’t believe those people who still proclaim that running is the cheapest form of exercise. You need to invest on a nice compatible running shoes, running gear, hydration belt, running watch, eye wear and these cost a lot of money. Will probably start a post about this later.

This is an 8 week program that I got from About.com and hopefully help you transition into the sport:

1. Get a green light from your doctor before you ever started.
If you suffer from high-blood or any heart related issues, this is a must. I remember my dad running with me 4 months ago and upon reaching home, his blood pressure shoot up. We had him checked at hospital and was later told by a cardio that running is not for him as it will elevate his blood pressure more. We later found out that he’s got some issues in the right-ventricle of his heart. So folks, running is NOT for everyone.

2. Buy the right running shoes compatible for your foot. This is very important to avoid any long lasting injury. If you live near Makati area, you can try Athelete’s Foot for gait analysis at Glorietta or if you’re near QC, try Second Wind store at Teacher’s village.

Second Wind
88 Maginhawa St., Teachers Village QC
Email: secondwind.proshop@gmail.com
Tel: (632)799-2089

Athelete’s Foot
2nd Level Glorietta 3
Ayala Center, Makati City
Tel: (632) 817-7896

There’s another store opening this 2nd week of June called Runnr Store that has Footprint Scan and High-Speed Video Gait Analysis plus the first to offer Custom Insole Moulding. Got this info from the Bull Runner.

3. It is very important that before you start running, you need to warm up first for 5-10 minutes. You can do this by walking the whole 10 minutes of it OR walk for 8 minutes then jog for 2 minutes. You are properly warmed up when you start perspiring and your heart start pumping a bit faster than usual. If stretching is for you, then do stretching. There are countless debates if streching actually help. Even my favourite running coach Jeff Galloway repeatedly mention that the reason he is able to run injury free at his old age is that he never stretches. He firmly believes that it is harmful to runners and so is doing yoga. He must be a lucky guy but not everyone is as lucky as him. Personally I do stretching after warmups and I never encountered any issues doing so. You may want to follow some of running streches here.

Note: If you have access to an oval track, this is the best place to do this program. You can try oval track at Ultra-Pasig or try Bonifacio Global City (cement road though) considered to be one of the most comfortable and safest place to run.

4. Week one: Walk for 6 minutes, then jog at an easy pace for 1 minute. Repeat 3 times. Aim for three sessions with that same sequence for week one.

5.  Week 2: Walk for 5 minutes, then jog for 2 minutes. Repeat 3 times. Aim to do three sessions in week two.

6. Week 3: Walk for 3 minutes, then jog for 4 minutes. Repeat 4 times. Aim for four sessions in week three.

7. Week 4: Walk for 2 minutes, then jog for 5 minutes. Repeat 4 times. Shoot for four of those sessions in week four.

8.  Week 5: Walk for 2 minutes, then jog for 8 minutes. Repeat 3 times. Do four of those sessions in week five.

9.  Week 6: Walk for 2 minutes, then jog for 9 minutes. Repeat 3 times. Try to do four sessions for week six.

10. Week 7: Walk for 1 minute, then jog for 11 minutes. Repeat 3 times. Do four sessions this week.

11.  Week 8: Try walking for 5 minutes to begin and end the workout, and run for 20 minutes in between. By the end of the week, try to run for 30 minutes without stopping.

If you do this religously, try joining 5k races! Road races you can find here at takbo.ph website.

Inspired by Gingerbread Running post on reasons why he run, I thought of making my own. I just finished my very first 21km race last Sunday and so I thought of posting 21 reasons why I run.

1. To lose weight - My most commented post “How I Lost 28lbs in 2 months running” gathered a lot of comments and buzz.  Probably the first reason why I started to run in the first place.

2. To eat foods I love after the race knowing that I won’t gain weight. You can eat foods right after a race without having to worry about gaining weight. Your muscles will absorb them really fast.

3. To be with people with similar passion, for camaderie and friendship

4. To test my limits - It’s a personal challenge I always want to do everytime I run. Can I run for another kilometer? Can I overrun that cute girl? etc..

5. To help charities - Joining races for benefits give me a very satisfying and purposeful life.

6. I have full of energy. - This is such a great benefit if you are working in an environment where the stress level is high. This includes managing your family at home or at work. Since I started running, I get more done in less time with complete focus on the task at hand. With every week of running I found myself getting physically stronger.

7. To get race certificates which I’m fond of collecting.

8. Time for myself.

9. To  help me focus and strategize for my next move.

10. To meditate - the silence of running alone is a joy.

11. I feel at peace with myself after a run

12. To try new routes

13. To escape from daily routine

14. To discipline myself in terms of training and set an example to my kid

15. My metabolism increased! - I believe this is the obvious with any exercise routine, but I can really tell a difference. Even over the holidays when I indulged in a few extra sweets, my waistline remain the same.

16. The silence, the wind brushing your hair, blowing againts your face while running is satisfying

17. To be an inspiration to others - Running enables people around me to shape up when they see me how much fat I lose by running. Please refer to my previous post about losing 28lbs in 2 months running.

18. My self-esteem and confidence levels have soared way up. - Running increases my sense of accomplishment everytime I finish my goal. When I overcome fear and pain of running by crossing that finish line, it made me feel I can accomplish even the most difficult task ahead.

19. Running is a great stress reliever. The release of endorphins in your brain does wonder to your body by giving you that “good mood” feeling. If you’re running alone and running in comfortable pace, you can even meditate, pray and worship the Lord.

20. I am now a part of a great running community.
Entering many races has allowed me to meet interesting people. If you can find a running group, join them. Although not necessary, it helps me to continue on my passion and be able to get up, get out and run.

21. I have total control - Running is not a team sport hence the outcome is totally yours. If you’re like me and you’ve run  a race before, you know the pressure that comes when dealing with your running team mates, demanding practices and trying to get your best PR. These aspects of running are common but running for myself has been much more satisfying. You set your schedule, pace and speed. Your goals are all yours and if you reach those goals you have a satisfaction of realizing your potential. On days I don’t meet my goals, I don’t have to worry much and beat myself about it. I still give myself a pat on the back and feel good about the effort while receiving the benefits of health and wellness.

Now what about you? Why do you run? What motivates you to run?

I visited shoutbox of takbo.ph group and there was a discussion on how many lbs of fat we lose by running. I was asked to post a before and after picture when I told them I lose 28lbs in 2 months so here it is. See above.

Now for those who are trying to lose weight, here’s what I did. Remember that we have different body structure, different daily routines and so there’s no guarantee you will lose the same weight like mine. Please consult your doctor just to be sure. In a nut shell, its a combination of running and diet.

1st month:
1. Do walk-run for 2 km everyday in the morning. Do this Monday to Friday. On Saturday walk-run for 4 km.

I saw an article somewhere that people who runs in the morning tends to be more consistent than those who did at night. I can vouch for that as its been effective during my first month of training.

2. Avoid coffee and fruit juices. Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. If you should drink fruit juice, I’d say use REAL fresh juice, not those concentrated juice you buy on the stores.

3. Avoid fatty foods. You know them so I won’t discuss it all here. Feast on fruits and vegetables. I’d go for complex carbs like whole wheat bread. Avoid white bread at ALL times. This is bad carbs. I remember I also ate seafoods and fried chicken, avoid the skin part too.

4. Stay away from fast foods. You know the stuffs, french fries, soda, breaded chicken etc.

5. If you have a car, park it far away from your place. If you commute, much better as walking is really a good way of losing weight.

On the 2nd month, you can slowly introduce coffee. Also instead of doing walk-run everyday, I would say do it 3 or twice during weekdays. But stay running 4km during Saturdays.

Now after two months, tell me what happened. If you lose less than 5lbs after 2 months, either you’re not doing what I did or you’re simply really eating like its the end of the world tomorrow.
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In my effort to improve my running speed, I decided to take tempo runs seriously. This is only possible if I could train on a more “formal” settings and not just on any concrete/asphalt roads. As there’s no way I could train at Ultra (and for a fee) because I live in Dasma Cavite, I tried my luck if I could  use my school’s facilities- DLSU-D rubberized Oval track. See below:

Here’s another picture with students doing that star thing stunt. I heard they made the biggest star la sallians would be very proud of. Okay…

After dealing with bureaucracies inside our school, I was given a “go” signal from the vp of facilities. Woohoo! I was granted to use it M-W-F and Sat every morning until end of Sept. As I plan to use this during mornings (5am to 6:30am), I was told I might be running alone and I could ask facilities to turn the lights on during my runs if its too dark. Man I felt VIP that day!

I would use this to train myself for the marathon on October. I guess spending 7 yrs (I took Comsci and MBA here) in College is worth it after all! Hahahaha!

Hopefully, after a month, I shall revisit 10k race and have my revenge!!!