Style versus Substance
I knew that it wasn't going to be alright but I had to see for myself if my yellow Nike Zoom Victory would be OK to wear again for my run. These are the dreaded running shoes that gave me an injury and made me stop running for a while to recover.
What was I thinking, right? Well, it's plain and simple - the pair fits quite well with my full Nike outfit. And when I say full Nike outfit, I mean it's the whole shebang - Nike+ shorts, Nike + iPod system, Nike running socks and a yellow sleeveless Livestrong dri-fit shirt. Now wouldn't you say that that is perfect?
So I ran twice last week wearing the whole get-up. On the first night, it was OK. There was actually no pain on my left foot. I did a nice three-kilometer run to break the ice. Come the second night, the pain came after a little more than a kilometer. So my planned five-kilometer ran had to be cut really short as I walked home slowly so that I won't injure myself further.
Learning my lesson not to compromise anything on my running shoes, I went back to my Mizuno Wave Precision 9 for tonight's run. The first instant my foot hit the ground, I knew that I made the right decision. The cushioning was perfect and my feet didn't feel cramped inside the shoes. I was actually enjoying the run.
I'm never going back to the Nikes again. (Well, at least for running shoes.)
The last time I ran the Ani Mo, Ani Ko fun run was in third year high school. The course what quite simple - from the high school parking lot, it takes you around the Bellarmine field then back to Masterson Drive, straight to Gate 2 and then around the Blue Eagle Gym going to the grade school parking area before taking a right to Masterson and straight back to the High School.
I was pretty much fit then with a more chiseled abs than what I have now. I didn't have a timer then but I remembered I placed my ID in the 18 to 24 minutes box.
Fast forward to tonight. In celebration of the 2008 UAAP Basketball Championship (yeah right!), I decided to see how much time it will take me to run the same course. And so I did.
How did I do? Nothing really exciting. It's just 17 minutes and 54 seconds. I think I can still push this further but now let me just bask in the glory of topping a personal best.
Nike + iPod: Not so stable
Now I know why Nike created the Sport Band. It's because the Nike iPod connection isn't really that stable. The white receiver that connects to the bottom of your iPod Nano can get loose.
Today's supposed 10-kilometer Nike+ Human Race was cut short because my Nike+ set-up just stopped at the 5.13-kilometer run even though I ran for about 7 kilometers already. Disappointed, I just ended the workout and walked home.
Thinking about it, there are actually a lot of factors that can make things go wrong. If you use an armband, the constant flexing may compromise the connection. Sweat is also a big factor and may actually kill your iPod in the long run.
This is my second iPod Nano to go berzerk because of this set-up and, if they don't build it in the new Nano, I doubt if it'll be the last.
Now I'm kicking myself for not getting that cheap Nike+ Sports Band in Singapore.
Gastos Bug?
I finally got to see and touch the Sony Ericsson W960i. I dropped by the Sony Ericsson booth at Megamall's Cyberzone after paying the landline and water bills. I thought it would be out of stock or something as this was always the case, so I was shocked when the sales person showed it to me. Wow! Finally. Really sweet. Now I'm in love. I think I will be replacing my Nokia N70 very, very soon.
Talking about shopping, I actually splurged on the web, buying running stuff from REI and a Garmin GPS 305 unit from Amazon. I'm sorry. Their offers were quite irresistible. As of press time, I bought a couple of Nike running shorts and dri-fit running shirts from REI, amd a Garmin 305 GPS unit, Flip Video bike mount and two iSkin Evo3s for my 5th generation iPod from Amazon. My in-laws are in Vegas so I'm really taking advantage.
I love my Nike Plus!
I graphed my latest run. I did it this morning in the Ateneo. Doing a 5-kilometer run wasn't as easy as the ones I did last year, but I"m pretty sure I'll be improving my run times as my body gets into the program.
I have a new toy. It's the Nike+ system and it hooks up your iPod Nano to your Nike+ running shoe to give you valuable running data along with your music. Really, really nice stuff.
I'll probably be staying in the 3-kilometer and 5-kilometer range until my body adjusts to the activity and I slowly improve my run times.
Got a Nike+, too? Hook up with me so we can do challenges!
Can't
get enough servings of longanisa for one day? Get longanisa
alerts straight to your phone! Text JOVAN YES to 2366 now
for MMS updates. 
You
know how it is when you get bitten by the Pilosopo bug?
Well, I get those sometimes. And the random thought is...
