It's Official

I am now a marathoner. I conquered 42kms today!!! A more detailed post on that maybe tomorrow. For now, it's time to sleeeep.

Goodbye Injury...?

A week and a half since Condura half-marathon.  Four days before TBRDM 2013...

In between Condura and today, I've only done one 5km, and I walked it - thanks to that injury.  Today, I woke up feeling much, much better.  I think it must have been Fastum and the Celebrex Dr. Rafanan made me take.  I skipped school yesterday to take a chance at Dr. Rafanan's clinic.  CA has been making me go to Dr. Miguel del Prado and because I really could not go all the way to St. Luke's and wait in the clinic all day, I decided to go and see Dr. Rafanan in Medical City (as advised by an athlete cousin).

As with Dr. Del Prado, I also did not have an appointment.  The only difference, Dr. R's secretary was more...encouraging about being a walk-in patient while Dr. DP's did not even offer taking the risk.  So, I took the day off from work yesterday to go to Medical City.  It was my first time there - I've always gone to Cardinal Santos and gave birth there, too (the only time I was ever confined in a hospital).  Although it was quite embarrassing, I had to ask guards for direction, haha! Anyway, back to the topic.

So I got there at 8:30 AM and because I had no appointment, my 'appointment' depended on whether those scheduled would actually show up or not.  Thank God, some didn't (haha) so I got to see the doctor at about 1:00 PM.  That was about 5 hours worth of waiting!

The diagnosis? Gluteus medius strain.  What he's asked me to do? Take Celebrex 400mg for 2 weeks, have 3x a week PT sessions for 2 weeks and apply Fastum 3x a day for 2 weeks.  I should be better after.  We'll see.

I asked if I should run my marathon Sunday.  Well, he said no.  HONESTLY, I feel like my body can take all 42kms already (of course I will have to take it slow, meaning goodbye to my dreams of a sub 5 marathon, there will be other runs for that).  I woke up this morning and voila - no pain! I think it was the Celebrex that did the trick.  Although I do think that I was probably about 80% healed when I saw him - thanks to the rest I did.  He didn't firmly say no, like I would be killing myself if I did run... more of like a preventive/cautious no... Which I figured he said only so that he won't be to blame if anything happened to me - knock on wood (I can't go back to him and say hey Doc you allowed me to run, why am I more injured now?).

It's Wednesday today and I was supposed to run in the gym - an easy 5km but decided against it.  I will run on Friday though, just to test drive my legs and feet, make sure I still got it even after almost 2 weeks of not running.  If I'm already much better now, I should be at my best on Sunday.  I know I'm probably undertrained, having done only one 32km, but I'm banking on the good vibes and positive energy I'll be receiving from the people around the race route and organizers!

So grateful the Lord has allowed healing for me, but until then, I'll still be praying for complete recovery.  Thank You!

Still On The Ham Issue

So I said I woke up with no pain after Coach Salazar's massage, right? Well, that's partly true.

Saturday - massage (he told me to rest until Tuesday and try running then)
Sunday - no pain when I woke up, but was sore from the massage
Monday - walked normally already.  I know Coach said to wait until Tuesday but I attempted to run in the gym but to no avail.  It still hurt - no longer the hamstring area but the butt, not quite sure if it's soreness or really still in pain.

I left the gym feeling super down, and emo about the entire situation.  I was thinking, how could I have stupidly injured myself training for my marathon?!?? What did I do wrong??? Could CA be right that it was all just because I hadn't done any massage ever? I don't want to think of that as the case, since I know so many other runners who do not have massages done regularly.  My husband (also mentioned by Coach S) thinks it's the additional weight I've put on.  Yes, I've already lost a lot of it, but I'm still about 20 lbs. heavier than my pre-pregnancy weight.

So anyway, I was sulking in the car and that annoyed my husband.  So he gave me a long lecture with the following points:
(1) You may love running, but running is not your life! There are so many other aspects of your life that are going well, so don't let running affect you this much.
(2) So what if you paid 3 grand for the marathon? If your legs can't do it, don't push yourself.  There are so many other runs in the future.
(3) You can still do the run but don't push yourself - just walk/run! Or only what your body can take.
(4) You did a great 21km at Condura and if your body tells you to stop at that, then stop.  You won't be a lesser you if you back out from TBRDM.

My husband is not a man of many words.  Usually, I'm the one who does the talking but when it really counts, he knows the right things to say :) I slowly got over my sadness and decided that this was what I was going to do (as also suggested by my marathoner friend Victor): rest for the remaining (9) days, run  an easy 5km on the 22nd and then do the marathon on the 24th.

Okay, I think I can do that.  I'm going back to Coach S tomorrow for my 2nd and last deep tissue massage.  Hopefully that will cure me entirely, or at least, enough to be able to do TBRDM.  Praying for healing!

Seeing my fellow aspirants tomorrow at the Dream Marathon send-off party! Going there after my session with Coach Salazar.  Should be fun to see friends doing TBRDM, too:

Van
Jun + Van's Milo running clinic friends (don't remember the other names)
Aimo
and barefoot runner/college friend Victor

:)

HAMsakit-sakit!

I've been abala for the past few days thinking about many things... the pile of papers to check on my desk, the upcoming marathon and how I'm going to finish it and the biggest worry the past few days... my hamstring :( Since I haven't been blogging, here's the timeline for that:

Sunday - Condura 21k

Monday - felt okay... body was sore but no specific pain

Tuesday - status quo

Wednesday - started to limp and question whether I could do CA and I's usual Wednesday training run

My hamstring, starting from my mid-butt area hurt so bad and I really had difficulty walking, even my students noticed.  CA still wanted to see me and try if I could run so we met up.  It was really too painful then and even while running, it wouldn't go away so we decided to just walk 5km.  Since time immemorial, CA has been asking me to go for a massage since he says it will help make me run better.  Get this, I've never, EVER had a massage so I was tinatamad to do it! But this injury, if you can call it that pushed me to call Intercare ASAP.  I scheduled a myotherapy massage for Thursday afternoon.  Even left school earlier than usual so I could make it to the only available slot - 3:00 PM.  

Before the doctor saw me, a lady came in the room I was led to and asked me to change to the robe.  She made me stand facing the wall and took photos of me using an iPad - I was in my undies and quite uncomfortable, at that.  I think she sensed it because she said, "Para makita ni doc yung alignment mo." Carrying the iPad with my photos, Dr. Guab then identified my problem - tight hamstring.  It was weird seeing my semi-naked body on the iPad hahaha but helped to see that obviously, looking at how I stood, there was discomfort on my right side.  I was recommended for myotherapy and stretching (both what CA asked me to have done).  Too bad the one who does stretching wasn't available.  Therapist came in for myotherapy and I had my hour-long massage.  Save for a few moments where there was a tiny bit of pain, it was pretty relaxing and calming.  I did feel better after, and, well, body felt less tense!

Left the place feeling happy and hopeful that I could do my scheduled long run of 32km the coming weekend.  NOT.  #1, recovering from a tight hamstring isn't that easy, or quick.  #2, I woke up the next day still with the same pain + limping leg :( Honestly, I was devastated and although I tried very hard to hide it, CA got annoyed with my 'panic texts'.  So much for hiding it :))

I did my research and came across Aileen's blog.  A 20-something ultrarunner who once had pain in her hamstrings too.  She went to a certain Coach Tito Salazar who's apparently notorious for his excruciatingly painful but effective massage that cause his 'victims' to shout/cry/squirm in pain.  I immediately e-mailed Aileen and can not be grateful enough for her prompt reply.  I love it when runners are so kind to each other! <3 Anyway, within the day, I found myself texting Coach Salazar and asking for an appointment.  Oh, I also asked Dennis about Coach Salazar and he said the same thing - super painful massage.  I was thinking, if a big tough guy like Dennis considers his massage painful, what more me?!! Then again, I've always claimed to have a high tolerance for pain - daw! Plus, with the marathon only 2 weeks away, I was desperate!!!

Okay, going back, I had my husband go with me yesterday morning 6:30 AM (yaaawn) to see Coach Salazar in Ultra.  When we finally met, he led me to this empty space for my death massage.  He rolled out a mat and asked me to lie on my stomach - and the torture massage began.  

For the most part, I was biting on my towel and pushing A at his hip (he was seated on the floor, in front of me).  No, I did not cry but the towel helped A LOT.  Apart from the massage, Coach Salazar also gave me lots of tips (first was to avoid oily food so I can lose a little more weight and put less stress on my legs when running, he mentioned sweets first but I've already given that up, so, he moved on to anything fried).  Now, over a day after the massage, my right hamstring and butt are both bruised (pasa) but mostly free from pain! Miraculous!!! Aileen said to think, "the more painful it is, the more effective" INDEED! 

Coach Salazar asked me to rest Saturday and try running Tuesday then go back to him one last time on Wednesday.  

I guess this is another proof of one of my mantras, "if it's not easy, it's not worth doing!" 

Condura Skyway 2013

So, there went my third half-marathon...and I couldn't have chosen a better race to do it! I loved every single minute of the run - yes, even having to climb up the flyover! The uphill parts felt like forever! I was planning on a 2:30 half-marathon which meant I was going to run 7:30-7:00 for the first 15kms and then speed up to 6:30-7:00 for the last 6kms.  I finished at 2:34 because I noticed I ran at around the pace of 8:00-8:15 at the uphill parts.  Van and I agreed to run it together.  Alone, she has the tendency to start a bit too fast so my purpose was to slow her down, I guess hehe! We ran together until 15-16kms and then since her knee was becoming too painful, she asked me to go ahead.  I reminded Van that this wasn't our race - that this was just in training for TBRDM so she should take it easy and be careful not to have serious injuries that may jeopardize our first full marathon.

Praise God everything went well! Except for one thing: After crossing the finish line, I bumped into CA, Dennis and Janine.  Janine (who finished her first full marathon in a long time at 5:32!!!) pointed at my shirt and asked me what happened and I was like, huh? Then I looked down and saw the front part of my shirt - oh dear, it was bloody! Apparently, my heart monitor chafing (from the Wednesday speed trainings) chafed even more with the sports bra I wore.  Yes, chafed so bad that it bled through my shirt! :(( You can just imagine how painful it was to shower after.

Overall, I think the people behind Condura Skyway Marathon did a reaaaally good job organizing the run! Although there was reportedly over 14,000 runners, it didn't feel like it.  Thanks to the huge Condura Village (where runners went to claim medals, get drinks, participate in post-race activities) and the many waves for each category.

Gahh, a little over 2 weeks before my FIRST FULL MARATHON!!!