found this pic on the web and i thought it was a perfect fit for this post. lol.
Lizeth asked me if I wanted to join the Pinay in Action Walkathon a month ago and I was definitely reluctant to nod my head and say, ‘Sure!’ but after a minute or so of contemplation, I told myself that there is no turning back from my commitment to fitness and health, to activity, to ACTION! And now, after having gone through that experience, I am definitely thankful I gave it a shot! I was up and about at 5:45am… with buds sleeping over at home, it was a blessing that they had an event to go to at 7:00am as well. Otherwise, I may have been stuck in my bed with no motivation to get up and get ready so early in the morning on a Sunday!
As I entered The Fort through c5, I was greeted by men and women alike, walking, jogging, running, in the area of Market Market and ISM and thought I was late for the Marathon! Thank goodness Lizeth texted me and told me she was waiting for me in the parking area… apparently, there were 10k, 5k, and 1.6k long events (guess which event we were joining!), and those that joined the 10k event were already going on their respective laps around The Fort…
As I reached the NBC tent, I saw that this was definitely a big event! Hundreds of people were there! Mostly women but there were men and children as well. Met up with Lizeth and we tried to find our way to the start of the run… she showed me the map of our route… 4 rounds around the NBC tent… that shouldn’t be so difficult! And it will definitely be fun especially since we joined the GIRLFRIENDS 1.6k event where 2-5 friends were to run together, attached by strings, and must cross the finish line together. Soon enough, Chrizelle and T.Myrna and her daughter met up with us and we prepared for the call to begin…
At the holler of the organizer, we ran! And we ran… and we jogged… and we w-a-l-k-e-d. Thinking aloud a couple of times that it seems like we were not following the route we were supposed to take! It wasn’t until we reached MC Home Depot that we had to turn, then up to Serendra, then all the way back to the NBC tent. Something was definitely wrong! We heard people say that this was 1 of 2 laps and that they can’t imagine that that was already 2.5k! oh no! we were running the 5k event! Ugh! As we reached the NBC tent, towards the finish line, we slowed down and talked to a volunteer who asked us if we were running the 10k or 5k? umm… the 1.6k? She directed us to the starting line… guess what??? Our event hasn’t started yet! And we were out of breath, flushed, and flustered! When we got there, people were hand in hand, with elastic strings attached to their wrists, fresh and excited, waiting for their turn to run! Chrizelle called it quits and T.Myrna and her daughter decided to go on with the 5k run… Lizeth and I on the other hand, decided to try out the 1.6k event as a tandem… it was much more fun than the other event… girls were all laughing and taking it light and easy… enjoying the moment they had with their friends and family! The 4 rounds was a breeze compared to the long trek we first had! We could’ve probably won it if we didn’t exhaust ourselves from the first round! Haha! NOT! We didn’t finish first but we were far from last!
After some photos that will serve as memories for our first marathon, we headed off to the expo and got some freebies: laundry detergent, vitamins, food!
It was definitely a fun experience! We saw a bunch of people we knew from school – students, teachers, parents… and some celebrities too like Pia and Lino Cayetano (of course!), Bianca Gonzalez, and the First Three Pinays that Peaked Mount Everest! It’s wonderful to know that a lot of people came to support Pia’s event as it was for Pinays celebrating ♥life!
It was my first marathon and I’m definitely hoping that it isn’t my last! Thanks to Lizeth for inviting me to be a Pinay in Action! And to Jerz for spreading the word in the first place!
You should all give marathon-ing a try!
