michaeljosh
Olympic Spirit
Day 52 - February 21, 2010
I know running ain't a Winter Olympic sport, but its the perfect example of the competitive spirit in me, another thing about me that I'd like to share as we enter out sixth day of my Boy Behind The Lens Series.
This shot was taken early this morning after completing a 5K run at the Century Tuna Super Bods Race. I haven't been running in a long while now, but its been something that I have enjoyed a lot. I love the feel of wind on my face, and the freedom to let your mind wander, process some pending thoughts, or just enjoy the scenery. Didn't get my actual time today but am sure it is no where near my best time of just under 30 minutes. Still having trouble with my knees, they started hurting about a kilometer or so into my run.
Which brings me to my story, one that I believe is the best example of my competitive spirit. Two years back when Nike introduced the Nike+ Sports Kit (a sensor chip and attachment for your iPod combo that can track your runs, log your mileage, speed and other stats) - Nike Philippines sponsored a challenge was to run the most miles for the month of May. Being the techie that I was, I joined for the saake of being able to use my new gadget.
Prior to this, I had no running experience whatsoever so I started with a brief 3km run around my village. I woke up sore the next day and it took me about 2 days to recover. By the third day I told myself I needed to move up to 5k which I did, did it religiously for about a week until I decided that I would aim to finish in the Top 10. That meant I had to increase my mileage to 10km per run. And so I did. By the end of the second week my goals changed again from finishing in the Top 10 to finishing in the Top 3. As such I upped my runs to 21km.
Just so you can appreciate the foolishness of my actions, 21km is a half marathon. And for newbies it takes anywhere 4-6 months to train to be able to run that distance. I on the other hand - because of my drive to win began 21km distances on my third week of running in my entire life. I'd run 21k Wednesdays, Saturday and Sunday and then smaller distances in between. I ran in the rain, in the dark, and even after midnight. By my last week my knees were giving in and I ran through the pain. I remember there was a time I was literally crying out to the Lord in pain as I ran, but I just kept on going. On my last day I wanted to finish big as my main rival for first place was an experienced runner. So I ran 10km in the morning, 21km in the afternoon and 10km at night, totaling 41km a kilometer short of a marathon. Believe it or not I ended up winning the whole thing, but as a result I could not walk up or down stairs without pain for 2 months. Two years later I believe I am still suffering from the effects that incident.
This experience taught me one important thing about myself, about how powerful my mind really is. To succeed in something academic was not far fetched at all, but to win an athletic challenge was way beyond my wildest dreams considering that I am such a weakling. But I put my mind to it and even though I busted my knees in the process it g oes to show that if I really want something, and really put my mind to it, there isn't anything that's impossible.
That I believe is the Olympic spirit.
Olympic Spirit
Day 52 - February 21, 2010
I know running ain't a Winter Olympic sport, but its the perfect example of the competitive spirit in me, another thing about me that I'd like to share as we enter out sixth day of my Boy Behind The Lens Series.
This shot was taken early this morning after completing a 5K run at the Century Tuna Super Bods Race. I haven't been running in a long while now, but its been something that I have enjoyed a lot. I love the feel of wind on my face, and the freedom to let your mind wander, process some pending thoughts, or just enjoy the scenery. Didn't get my actual time today but am sure it is no where near my best time of just under 30 minutes. Still having trouble with my knees, they started hurting about a kilometer or so into my run.
Which brings me to my story, one that I believe is the best example of my competitive spirit. Two years back when Nike introduced the Nike+ Sports Kit (a sensor chip and attachment for your iPod combo that can track your runs, log your mileage, speed and other stats) - Nike Philippines sponsored a challenge was to run the most miles for the month of May. Being the techie that I was, I joined for the saake of being able to use my new gadget.
Prior to this, I had no running experience whatsoever so I started with a brief 3km run around my village. I woke up sore the next day and it took me about 2 days to recover. By the third day I told myself I needed to move up to 5k which I did, did it religiously for about a week until I decided that I would aim to finish in the Top 10. That meant I had to increase my mileage to 10km per run. And so I did. By the end of the second week my goals changed again from finishing in the Top 10 to finishing in the Top 3. As such I upped my runs to 21km.
Just so you can appreciate the foolishness of my actions, 21km is a half marathon. And for newbies it takes anywhere 4-6 months to train to be able to run that distance. I on the other hand - because of my drive to win began 21km distances on my third week of running in my entire life. I'd run 21k Wednesdays, Saturday and Sunday and then smaller distances in between. I ran in the rain, in the dark, and even after midnight. By my last week my knees were giving in and I ran through the pain. I remember there was a time I was literally crying out to the Lord in pain as I ran, but I just kept on going. On my last day I wanted to finish big as my main rival for first place was an experienced runner. So I ran 10km in the morning, 21km in the afternoon and 10km at night, totaling 41km a kilometer short of a marathon. Believe it or not I ended up winning the whole thing, but as a result I could not walk up or down stairs without pain for 2 months. Two years later I believe I am still suffering from the effects that incident.
This experience taught me one important thing about myself, about how powerful my mind really is. To succeed in something academic was not far fetched at all, but to win an athletic challenge was way beyond my wildest dreams considering that I am such a weakling. But I put my mind to it and even though I busted my knees in the process it g oes to show that if I really want something, and really put my mind to it, there isn't anything that's impossible.
That I believe is the Olympic spirit.