14 February 2014:
This thing called running.
Today is the last time I'll be running a road run as part of a school. I don't really know what to feel about it, though. Should I be happy there are no more runs, or should I be sad about my run today?Today, my left leg numbed up around 1/3 of the run. This happened before, when we were running ~4 km during one of the PE lessons. I honestly didn't expect this to happen again; I thought it was a one-off incident.
Hence, I decided to slow down to a brisk walk. It was a risk I was not willing to take: what if I severely injure my left leg because I decided to ignore the numbness? There is SYF coming up - no matter cast or crew, an injured leg wouldn't be convenient.
Quickly, many others overtook me. They were slow-jogging or even running. And yes, I became one of the last runners. Technically there was a group behind me, but they deliberately (from how I saw it) took it slow.
On top of the injury, I had faeces right at the door, waiting to come out any moment. Which, of course, made it harder for me. Along the way, I saw L, who was also at the same pace as me. He was really nice and stayed by my side, talking to me.
So, we walked more than half of the run. It's rather disappointing, actually, having to give up the run due to an injury risk. But oh well, I rather disappointment then inconvenience. I guess we can't have our cake and eat it.
Back to the part about L, yes, he was really nice. He tried his best to talk to me and suggest things like trying coffee shops along the way to see if they had a toilet I could use. I honestly felt very touched because I could tell he was genuinely concerned.
Sidetrack: I honestly think it's very rare to find someone like L. Yes he may seem a little simple-minded at times, but he has lots of innocence, a scarce quality right now. And of course, innocence, but not stupidity. So yes, he is a gem, if I may say.
I walked with L till near the end of the run, about 2 bus-stops' distance away. Then I decided to run (and of course asked him along). By then my leg was less numb so I felt safe enough to try and give a final push.
When I reached within the school, I instinctively stopped near the rock wall, since that was where we stopped for PE lessons. Then I realised that this time we had to run a short distance on the track!!
So yes, L and I started running again. This time we really ran to the finish line and collected our certificates of participation. Again, I would like to stress how nice L is, waiting for me and helping me hold my things while I rush to the toilet.
~
I used to hate running. I have zero stamina and therefore do not fancy running at all. Last year, I adopted a really bad method for all runs: start and stop, start and stop etc. I learnt that it actually doesn't help the body and I'll never get my stamina up.
Which is why from this year, I resoluted to try my best for all runs. I may be slow, but at least I made sure I did not stop at all, completing it in one stretch. Gladly, I did do so for all but one run, which was the abovementioned when I had the numb leg.
Ever since then, I've felt that my stamina has improved. I can run for a longer distance before I start to feel breathless. My legs also ache later, which means the lactic acid build-up is delayed.
Therefore, my stance towards running actually improved. I no longer hate it that much, and start to like it. It's certainly still not a favourite of mine, but at least I don't dread it as much as previously. Also, I view it as pre-NS training.
This was why I felt rather disappointed about today. I thought that given my previous runs, this would be good too. Good, in the sense that I could sustain and not stop at all. Sadly, this was not to be the case.
So, too bad. This is my last road run of my schooling life, and this is how it ended. I'm just glad that I did not have any severe injury and the numbness went away after about an hour. Things could've been worse, so luckily it did not.
~
The quote I've been using to motivate myself during runs, by 九把刀:
TTFN.
The picture of the beautiful sunrise is not by me; I picked it somewhere off Google. I just overlayed it with the quote to make it look nicer.