5 Neutral Cushion Shoes to consider in 2010

If you are in the market for neutral cushion shoes, I recommend these 5. I am partial to these 3 brands for running – Adidas, New Balance and Asics.

1. Adidas Response
2. Asics Gel Cumulus 11
3. Asics Gel Nimbus 11
4. New Balance 1063
5. New Balance 827

Adidas Response

I have been an Adidas user as far as I can remember. Their styling has improved the past 2 years especially in the adizero line. This Adidas Response got rebooted as well. I just hope they fixed the stitch issue which rubs the toes.

Asics Gel Cumulus 11

Asics Gel Nimbus 11

The last time I wore Asics was about ten years ago. Yet, I can still remember how fine the ride was. I like the styling of these two – especially the Nimbus 11. The feedback on these shoes from Official Reviews has been very good. Prices remain steep however.

New Balance 1063

This version is actually a stability shoe. There is the cushion neutral which looks exactly the same but has the color accents of Yellow and Grey. Very lightweight training shoe! I love NBs because of the technology that goes into the shoe. Check out the gel-plugs in the forefoot! Nice… In addition, NBs are priced really affordable.

New Balance 827

This is a racing flat. If I had extra money I will buy this in a second. I love the weight. I love the colors. I love the design. Well done New Balance.

Thanks again to RunnR BHS where the pics were taken. So what are you waiting for? BILI NA!

Keep on Racing!

10K Training Schedule for the Week

“Good things come slow – especially in distance running.”- Bill Dellinger, Oregon coach

This is my training schedule for the week. Me thinks that writing the sked down makes me commit to the training. After being sidelined for about 2 weeks and missing PSE Bull Run

I just started my training today – in earnest. I did an easy 1 hr run today at the treadmill. Here’s my training sked the rest of the week.

Mon: 1 hr easy run
Tue: 30 min easy run (in the village)
Wed: 4 x 2K (Ultra)
Thu: Rest
Fri: 30 min easy
Sat: 6 x 1K
Sun: 30 min easy

I am deciding if I will join the STRIDING TOGETHER FOR GREENER COMMUNITIES slated in Mckinely this week. Am feeling great and will decide by Wednesday. Registration is convenient at Chris Sports Megamall and the fee is only P350. If I decide to join the race this Sunday, I may move back the 6x1K intervals on Saturday to Friday.

I am excited with my workouts and hope to do strongly and consistently. I pray that I will be healthy and have ZERO injuries. I hope you are starting your training already too!

Keep On Racing!

Under the Weather

I have been feeling under the weather for a week now. I have gone to Medical City for consultation and have been given some meds. I don’t think I will be able to run this Sunday. Hirap pilitin. Sayang my payment in the PSE Bullrun.

Worse come to worse, I will be at the starting line to monitor the race and get some pics while I am at it.

Next race is Condura.

10K Racing Routes

I use 3 routes – open to the general public – for my training runs. These are Ultra, Bonifacio High Street (BHS), and UP Ikot.

Ultra is a tartan track accessible to the public. You pay P29.00 to use the track which greets runners as early as 5am. They open one of the big lights for night running. The place is cool and breezy. If you are into serious training, running in a track is ideal. In Ultra, you get to see all kinds of athletes training – triathletes, hardcore amateurs, national team elite runners, PBA players, and celebrities. Seeing them and being part of such a special group is such a big motivation.

The outer perimeter of the BHS Complex allows runners to do their training since a large walking lane – with street lights – is provided. The distance is 1.2KM using the road side lane. If you run inside the walking lane, about 1.1K. For people living in Makati, Taguig, and The Fort, BHS is a great place to train. Safe, Well-lighted, Runner’s a-plenty. Best of all its free.

UP Ikot is 2.2KM (Thanks for the runners who commented on my typo). On Sundays, they close down the road so runners and families get to enjoy the whole place all by themselves. Cool and tree-lined, UP Ikot is one of the best places to run. Sari-sari stores are open for hydration needs. Four laps and a half give you 10K (more or less). There is a 5K route that includes an outer perimeter of the UP Ikot. Regular racers in UP are familiar with this route. Two laps give you 10K. Of course, running here is free.

Keep On Racing!

PSE Bullrun on Sunday

Are you ready for this Sunday’s Bullrun?

I am joining the 10K this Sunday at the Fort. I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that the organizers will do well in this race. PSE Bullrun is traditionally the first race of the year and participation is generally high. Runners want to have a good race and get the cobwebs out from the holiday binges they just did.

Based on my experience at the registration site (PSE Tektite), everything went smoothly. The race packets and singlet were released efficiently. I am hoping the organizers will follow through in the race itself.

Hope to see you this Sunday. Keep on Racing!

2010 Forecast In Philippine Running

This is the first time I will give forecasting a try. Allow me to list 10 and see what happens at the end of the year.

1. Running will reach an unprecedented popularity in 2010 evidenced by bigger races, celebrity participation and weekly races.
2. Women runners will play a key role in the growth and popularity of running
3. Registration fees for road races will reach the P1,000 mark.
4. We will see more Saturday races.
5. There will be bigger out of town races aside from Subic and Clark that will be widely participated
6. A third running store chain will open – after Second Wind and RunnR
7. A running magazine will be launched followed by a running tv show
8. A regulating body will be formally set-up to impose on road races
9. A relative and/or a friend will pick up the sport
10. Major shoe manufacturers will start to show presence (i.e. brooks)

Tell me what you think.

Keep on Racing!

Getting Back On The Saddle

I just found out that slacking off from regular training for about 2 weeks will have counterproductive impact on racing performance especially when it happens during Christmas.

In the last two weeks of December when the Yuletide fever reached its full crecendo, I replaced training runs with gym time and used the treadmill for my cardio work-out. It was such a convenience to just work-out in an airconditioned cocoon in the late morning or afternoon and not have to worry about waking-up, pushing out the door, and digging for a hardcore session. Don’t get me wrong. I love training! But Christmas season in the Philippines really takes out the athlete in you. All you want to do is eat, drink, sleep and be merry.

At the gym, I placed higher resistance in the treadmill by increasing the incline difficulty so I can feel my calf muscles working and pushing instead of the machine doing the run for me. I put in 5 work-out sessions at the gym during the 2 weeks — which I think is 5 more than the regular Pedro did during this period. So far so good.

The downer came when I scheduled a 6 x 1K interval training run at the Bonifacio High Street (BHS) last Wednesday night. I did a 10 minute warm-up and then stretching and then started the speed runs. Result ? I never reached my desired times. My legs felt heavy. My muscles were stiff. My air capacity was not keeping up with the run. I felt woozy. All I could think of was beef morcon, coke and a siesta after. Hahaha!

I stopped after 3 intervals and never even made an effort to walk and cool down. Man. PSE Bullrun is next week and I want to do well again and beat my 48:30 PR. I have huge doubts now if I can even break 60. I jumped in the car, paid the parking fee and headed silently home.

I though about what happened. I decided I was not Superman and acknowledged that I needed to break-in my body from the downtime. So last night, I went for an easy long run in my area. I targeted 100 minutes.

Malamig pa ang weather. Maginaw. I wore a singlet although I quickly realized I should have worn my windbreaker as well when I felt the bite of the cold Christmas air.

I mustered a 60 minute run – total distance -> 10K. It was a fast pace for sure. The good news is I felt my muscles and bones adjusting to the training. The lethargic feeling was replaced with a measure of strength and tautness.

Next week’s training is critical if I want to get good times in PSE Bull Run.

Keep On Racing!