the glory of God (Living Person 7)

as  part of John Carroll University' 125th anniversary, my dearest friend, Fr. H.Paul Kim, has recruitrd over 90 runners to participate either in the 10k, half or full-marathon on Sunday, May 15th 2011 in and around downtown Cleveland. i have decided to join him and others in an effort to raise awarenss and funds for the Fatima Family Center and the children of Madagascar. please visit our website below and consider making a donation to these worthy causes. thank you for your generosity and God bless you.

(i have included last year's Living Person VI promo for your enjoyment)

Click here to learn more about Living Person 7

the children of Jamaica!

over this past Christmas & winter break, i journeyd to Spanish Town (Jamaica) with eight other JCU students and a JCU administrator for our much anticipated Jamiacia Immersion Experience. we spent a little over a week teaching lessons, mediating child-to-child conflict, playing football and tag, renovating a playground and singing praises to our Christian God with many children who have experienced neglect/or abuse from their parents & families. in many ways, i felt like were at recess all day!

DONTE. DELANO. PAULA. KYLE. PATRICK. JANICE. JOSEPH. SAMANTHA. SONIA. BEVERLY. TASHEIKA. RAJAY. OMINAY. PHOEBE. DOROTHY. ZENA. KEYMONI. KIMBERLY. SEAN. AFRICA. ANIKA. APRIL. JESSICA. SHAQUEL. TASHEIKA. TIANA. ANGELA. NASTASIA. ANTHONY. ALWAYNE. SAMARO. GEORGIA. RUTH. STEVEN.

please pray for them!

Red Hot Chili Steppers

6.2 miles instead

although my initial intention was to complete the Cleveland half-marathon, i have recently decided to drop out of that particular race and slide into one of the 10k running slots. it seems to be the best decision for my health right now, but my competitive spirit is not all that pleased.

i really want the commemorative medallion and the glory that is awarded to ALL participants who FINISH the full- and half-marathon routes. i want to be able to tell my friends and family members that I accomplished this great feat in my final days living in Cleveland. i have trained hard, when i have been tired, when i have had aches and pains, and even amidst inclement weather. i hate GIVING UP!

all of sudden that voice of reason begins to speak. it reassures me that such a decision is in no way indicative of being a quitter; in fact, this choice of mine is actually very wise and, in many ways, healthy. do i ever want to exercise (attn: play basketball) again? there is chance that pushing myself to my physical limit could cause greater harm to my unclear health status! i know i don't want that. running, jogging or even walking 6.1 miles is a great accomplishment. in hindsight, as with most experiences, i think i will understand the impact of this decision.

week thrive

in my fifth week, i hit the ground RUNNING...

110 sit ups
75 push ups
1 min interval crunches
(a sub-7 min mile!)

i'm feeling that "runner's high" that i felt earlier on in my training, but now it is becoming addictive. i just want to keep running!

i usually don't listen to my iPod when i run or workout; however, i often use this song below (wavin' flag by k'naan) as motivation for any occassion. so why not, right?

my "irregular" heart beat take II

i just got off the phone with a UH physician who suggested last week that I get an EKG (heart ultrasound) in order to gain more insight into what could possibly be causing my abnormal symptoms. well, she shared with me my results and the test showed that nothing is wrong with the valves or overall activity of my heart, but i have been informed that it would be wise to sit out of tomorrow's 10-mile relay race (i think i am still going to jog/walk it). i also must monitor my heart for a 24-hour, high-intensity period sometime soon. good grief!

my "irregular" heart beat

this afternoon, i attempted to run 6-8 miles, but i only managed to run about 1.5 miles. good grief, tommy k! i have been experiencing what i have been calling "palpitations" in my chest. i did visit a physician last thursday and she encouraged me to get an ultrasound of my heart (EKG). i plan on going to that appointment tomorrow afternoon and am hopeful about the results. my sister and i are planning on running a 10 MILE relay race on Holy saturday, but i'm not sure what my heart condition will be at that point. i'm trying not to let the frustration get the best of me, but i'm not having much success.

week floor

this week was geared towards building my stamina. i think i accomplished this feat. i completed 50 sit ups, 60 push-ups and "crunches" for 25- and 35-sec intervals, over the course of four or five days. my breathing is inching closer to a semi-automatic state, and aside from a few intermittent stomach cramps, my body feels great. since i gave up sweets for the season of Lent, my diet has been a lot healthier and my stomach avoids such feelings of uneasiness as before my sugary sacrifice. weeekly basketball contests and Mass continue to be part and parcel of my weekly workouts; in fact, i would argue that the thoughts and emotions that surface during the liturgy occasionally place me on a spiritual battlefield as well. i am excited that i still have several weeks of training left to feel greater confidence and preparedness for my 13.1 mile scamper.

Brittany

about two months ago while riding the T in Boston, i received a call from a good friend of mine, Brittany. she is preparing to become a Catholic through the RCIA (Rights of Christian Initiation of Adults) program here at JCU and wanted to know if i would be her sponsor. i was flattered!

i also recently asked Brittany if she would be my running partner, as we both train for the Cleveland half-marathon. she agreed and our first run was fabulous, despite the lousy, wet weather. for me, running is so much enjoyable when you can walk & talk...

week free

i spent a considerable amount of time this third week RESTING...

i was a varsity athlete in high school more than seven years ago, yet i have never been through such a rigorous training program as this current one.

when i was able to get my workout in, i noticed that my breathing techniques were improving based mainly on practice and feeling more comfortable with controlling my lung capacity. i completed about 15-17 pushups and jog/walked for about 50 minutes a day or two prior to the weekend.
fortunately, as part of my long-run schedule on saturdays, i was able to participate in and finish the 33rd annual saint malachi's 5 mile race in approximately 44 minutes (see picture above). i definitely could have stretched better after the race, but i felt some pressure from my friends (who were walking) to grab a bite to eat!


p.s. i have never wanted to give up or drop down to a shorter race, but i'm finding every excuse in the book to skip my training days.

Julionne

my classmate who broke her femur!

week too (much)

my second week of training was a bit more intense than my first. my long stretching continued, but i ran for a longer amount of time and distance as well as focused more on some deep breathing mechanisms (in, hold, and out). i completed 17 sit-ups and 20 pushups, of which i have always struggled and my cramps returned.

i got the opportunity to walk for 20-30 minutes with a JCU student who is also planning on participating in the 10k or 1/2 marathon in May. this occurrence made me appreciate alone time as well as long for a running companion...

i made one silly pre-workout mistake--namely i indulged in a heavy snack--and one fantastic post-workout decision--attended daily Mass on campus.

week won

during my first seven or so days of training on the JCU intramural track (spring has yet to arrive here in Cleveland), i started out slowly. i spent a significant amount of time, prior to each of my actual workouts this week, holding my stretches (legs, arms, hammies, quads, calves, back, neck) for twenty or more seconds. my mother is a physical therapist, and she has always reminded me of the importance of pre-exercise stretching in order to avoid injury. i would like to avoid such nuisances in the early stage of my half-marathon training, so i am going to follow my mother's suggestions. my right heel started bothering me on day two and three, while my lower left stomach (attn: lungs) began cramping! i realized that i need to start drinking more water!

as suggested by my training manual, i started the first couple of days practicing what is called a "shuffle," which i would describe as a SLOW, no knee-lift float across the running surface with minimal arm/shoulder movement. this is a slightly uncomfortable posture, and i felt as if all the athletes on the courts below were staring in bewilderment at the ridiculousness of this shuffling. i wanted to follow the manual precisely, so i did not abandon this novel style of running.

aside from shuffling and light jogging this week, i was also fortunate enough to play pick-up basketball and make my FIRST appearance into the Corbo room, which are both parts of my cross-training schedule. i  have been hesitant for quite some time to make my way into the weight room due to my nagging self-consciousness and poor self-image. surprisingly, i was able to take advantage of the several Nautilus machines (i.e. linear leg press, calf, and seated leg curl)--all of which i lifted between 70-90 lbs for several repetitions.