Rain or Shine: Run for your Life!

I now have this habit of preparing my stuff Monday and Wednesday evenings to get me ready for the next day's session. Thanks to my boss who is also a running fanatic, I found myself training religiously as well. Every Tuesday and Thursday, my boss Leo, and another officemate, Herzon at least 5 kilometers at Quirino Grandstand and Roxas Boulevard.

We started running at our office's roof deck. We got bored and looked for longer running routes. We then discovered the Quirino Grandstand route. One round in Quirino Granstan (Roxas Blvd, Kalaw, Q. Grandstand, Burgos) is around 1.1 kilometers. 5 rounds would give you 5.5K. That became our running routine.

We invited a few officemates via email blast. The first meeting was indeed a blast! Around 16 of us ran! We jokingly called our running group Phurorut (Philam United Runners and Other Related Undertakings Team) :) But after a few weeks, members suddenly disappeared. Now we're down to three: Leo, Herzon and Me. :) I hope they return. ;)

Sometimes, when we get bored, we run from Quirino Grandstand to CCP and back. One time, we took the Intramuros route. Running in Manila makes us think that there really are a lot of good places to see here. :)

Running is the new badminton now here in the Philippines. But of course, it's much cheaper than badminton because all you need are a pair of shoes and socks and a long paved road. That is why it's a big hit nowadays. You get to see a lot of advertisements of races from QMC, to the Fort, to MOA! Well at least it makes Filipinos think more about their wellness.

Running had a few benefits on my health. My blood pressure went down to normals levels, my heart rates went down to 70+ bpm, my stamina improved tremendously, and I lost some weight. During my last race, Takbo para sa PGH, my official time for the 5K race was 33:46. I wrote about my Milo Marathon last year and during that time, I was at the 49-minute level. Astig! :)

But of course I have my limitations. My knees are hurting already when I go too fast, or when I go too far. This was because of the injury I had some three years ago from basketball. So my dreams of a 43-kilometer race is far from coming true. At least I am near my 10k goal. :)

Team Phurorut: Front: Me, Ryse, Rachele, RR, Quennie; Standing: Maxi, Marivic, Herzon, Joan, Grace, Rhea, Steve

Team Phurorut with Coach Leo Tan. :)

Thanks to Philam Foundation, we KaAkbay Volunteers were able to sweat it out at PGH's benefit run. Thanks for the Picture, Mima!

I'll just keep on running for fitness. For long life. Team Phurorut, takbo tayo ulit! :)

Cheers!

Figaro Foundation's Harvest Tour 2010

KaAkbay Volunteers Batch 1 - 3

Philam KaAkbay Volunteers took the time off from their ultra-busy work schedules and their usual volunteer weekend and spent one Sunday just to pick coffee beans. Or what's left of them. In coordination with Figaro Foundation, We KaAkbay volunteers were able to experience harvesting coffee beans from a farm in Tagaytay City.

We started early on Sunday, January 31, 2010. At 7:45, after waiting for a few more participants to arrive at the rendezvous point, we departed Manila and headed towards Tagaytay. We arrived around 10:30, and we were welcomed by Figaro with a cup of coffee and some delicious revel bar.

After a short briefing, our group of around 53 volunteers were grouped into six teams and participated in the harvest game. The objective is to pick as many coffee beans as possible in just 40 minutes! We are not to pick just any bean we find, but instead we have to look for bright red beans ripe enough for the picking. Our guide, Joed Alcid of the Figaro Foundation, told us that we are not supposed to pick green beans because if they blend with the red ones and get roasted, the beans would taste acrid. Word for the day: Acrid (mapakla). :)

Bean Sightings

After 40 minutes of fun bean-picking, the caretaker chose the best harvest of all 6 teams. The second group won after a very close contest. Group two won the special grand prize, a Figaro high-grade coffee mug! :)

We had lunch at Gourmet's Cafe,still in Tagaytay. After lunch, we took a short tour of the Gourmet's farm, where we saw a vast farmland full of herbs, spices, and lettuce!

Special thanks to Figaro Foundation for the fun and educational harvest tour.

Picture, picture!

Coffee Beans Waiting to be Picked

Beans Carefully and Scientifically Hand-picked

Searching for the Right Ripe

Team to Beat: Team 3 with Batch 1 Valedictorian, Mr. Adam Amosco (4th from Right)

Red= Ripe. Green=Acrid. Black=Ants. Ouch.

Awaiting the Announcement of the Winning Team

Team 3's Harvest

While Waiting for Lunch: Actuarial/LPC Hang Time

Philam KaAkbay Volunteer Corps

Kudos to volunteerism!