I had set today as the day I return to ULTRA. I was quite anxious for many reasons…

ONE… It’s been a while since I’ve trained at ULTRA.

I think it’s been months if not a quarter since I last set foot on ULTRA. It’s really been that long. It felt like my first time when I set foot inside the track. I scanned the area for people I might recognize. I was looking for the usual coaches who were there or those that used to Coach me like Rio, John and Roel.

TWO… I felt out of place.

Ultra is know for people who do speed work and not for those who jog or walk around the track. It’s known to be the home of so many athletes… and I was not one of them. As I scanned the track oval, there were a lot of people who looked and ran like runners, not your recreational runners who take their sweet time as they stroll the entire  5k route. Inside were runners who were real serious about their training, either doing their tempo run, interval or fartleks.

THREE… I was huge.

I felt embarrassed about how big I had gotten. I was hoping not to see anyone I knew. Perhaps in their mind, “Si Passion Runner ba ‘yo?! Bakit parang hindi niya kamukha yung facebook profile niya? (Is that Passion Runner? How come he looks nothing like his facebook profile pic?)”

Or something like, “Geez! This guy ain’t a runner, what is he doing here?”

Despite my apprehensions, I went to my usual place in the track and did a 2.0km warmup. Afterwards, I did a complete set of drills as Coach Rio has originally taught me.

Focusing on form

Today, my focus was on form. I didn’t care how fast or slow I went as long as I maintained proper form. I also wanted to make sure I was doing the right foot strike. They say that it’s best for people to land on their midfoot and not on their heels… but it’s not as easy at first.

The midfoot is basically the part between the ball and the heel. So as much as I could, I tried my best not to land on my heels. Coach John told me that I might get injured but I said that I’d just do 3km with it and get used to the technique. True enough, after 2.5km, my calves were aching and any farther, they would’ve cramped.

I wondered whether I was doing the right thing or not… so I searched youtube for videos on running form and the midfoot strike. Apparently, what I was doing was the forefoot strike. YIKES! I was landing on the ball and not on the midfoot.. or I’m not so sure, since I really couldn’t see my own form. All I know is that my calves are so sore that it’s difficult to walk. I’ll probably do cross training tomorrow to rest my calves.