Bataan Bataan Ka Part 2

"Sariling pagraranas ang aking pamamagitan"




PANULAK

My attempt to continue running during medical school was successful. There was a time when I stopped because I encountered the most difficult subject cluster of my first year. The sem break saved me, and from there the relentless pursuit for more mileage began.

As far as I can remember, and without looking through my dailymile, my plans leading up to BDM 2016 was this.

Manila Marathon 42K
Milo Marathon Qualifiers 21K
Run United Philippine Marathon 42K
Naic to Nasugbu Ultramarathon 50K


Only the third planned run took place.

So my dedicated preparation began as soon as I got the approval on May 04, 2015.

Prior the extended summer as a result of academic calendar shifting, my long distance runs were really spontaneous. I would wake up, and just then and there decide where my destination would be. Some of my runs revolved around my journey to visit each NCR city hall. That was a great achievement!

It was easy to run during the summer. I was blessed enough to have that much time to spend on the road. Most of my runs extended to the heat of late mornings and would often involve time on feet (time I spent standing, walking or running). I needed the much needed heat training to test my adaptability to the intense heat of the metro, that I assume would be similar or worse i Bataan. It also trained me to maintain a strong mind to get through the run.

Another kind of training that I involved myself in was the sanity and boredom loops. I would often run short and similar loops. For most runners, this kind of run is boring. No sights, nothing new. For me, it was another mental challenge that I think would definitely help me in focusing on at most 18 hours on foot in Bataan. I'd imagine plain rice fields, the scorching waves bending your vision of the road, and your local vulture circling the running carcass.

The trickiest part came when I entered my second year in school! Year Level 6 took away my weekdays and weekends (especially the weekends). To add to the mayhem, I enlisted myself into two sports that were in the opposite spectrum of long distance endurance running - ultimate frisbee and track & field sprints. Mixing med school life and all these physical activity endeavors wasn't the best way to start and go along with the most dreaded year in basic medical education.

ASMPH 2016 Ultimate Frisbee Team

Most of the time it all boils down to discipline and commitment. Here's the rundown on how I look at a day.

• Do your routine and stick to the time as much as possible 
• Cut all essentials to the shortest time (mostly bathing, eating, watching, etc.) 
• Do your best to stay awake in class and use free time to sleep 
• Do your best to study during free time and study before bed time 
• Focus on trainings and get home quick 

More or less that's how a week goes through in my mind and in my world (excluding all other interactions that take a lot of time too). Let's do it again:

• Monday: Exams 
• Tuesday: Frisbee 
• Wed: Rest 
• Thursday: Track 
• Friday: Weights (end of 2015) 
• Saturday: Frisbee 
• Sunday: Long Run and Study 

ASMPH 2016 Track and Field Team

The only day truly dedicated to preparing for BDM was my long run during Sunday. Rarely we would Independent Study Times in school, and that was an automatic signal to go home and use it to run. Holidays meant the same thing, especially when it was a long weekend!

The hardest run during my training was my third full marathon. The things I learned from this great run gave me enough information on how to run an ultramarathon. From this run, I knew that I could easily get cramps at 17k and that it was easy for me to control the pace after such injury. It was also in this race that I knew my spirit would fight until the last kilometer of any race! This was last October 2015.

Palarong Medisina came in quick. As I mentioned, all sports were located in different extremes of the athletic world. You have two sports that rely on explosive power, different anatomy and physiology. I wouldn't even fail to mention the equipment that I had to invest in, funds that I could have spent on my running paraphernalia. I did my best to sink in some distance running, most of the time they were a day before exams. Once the games were over (and thankfully on a high note), my last training focused on "converting" my legs back to distance running. It wasn't easy because I carried over shin splints on both legs and had a history of multiple ankle sprains. Simultaneously, I also did my test runs on equipment and nutrition, while I observed all my physiologic limits such as thirst and tolerance to pain and heat. Finally, I did last minute research on nutrition and tips for ultra running. The last training period span two weeks.

My thoughts and assessment after my training?

- I trained enough to cross the line
- I will survive 60k, but I need to get past 70k
- It'll take a lot for me to give up
- In the back of my mind, I didn't train enough to achieve a good time
- I really don't wanna die :))