This was an address for the the launch of the IamNinoy Runners group in May 2009.

“I Am A Runner”

My name is Jake de Guzman. I am an Entrepreneur, A Father, A Triathlete, A Teacher, and a Runner.

I started running in 2002 with a group of friends. I was about 160 lbs, very pale, and lived a stressful work life without any exercise. I remember the first few runs were painful: my lungs hurt, my shins hurt, my lower back hurt, and all I could do was 15 mins until I had to walk.

After a month of trying to jog, I made it past the 15 minute pain threshold. And once you cross 15 mins, it gets easier to reach 30 then 45 then an hour. And then it starts to feel good. You breathe easier, you feel lighter, and there’s satisfaction that comes from working your muscles to propel yourself forward.

Driven by the need to measure our new found fitness or set a new motivating goal, we decided to join a 10 k race.

And for someone who’s never run 10k, it seems like an impossible distance to cover on foot. I remember thinking, the race starts at 6 am, will I be done by lunch kaya? So I trained and ran and ran and the night before the race I couldn’t sleep: I had images of crawling on Roxas Blvd, my clothes tattered by the wind and sun, and me gasping for breathe and dying of dehydration.

I woke up on race day and realized I didn’t know what to eat. So I ate a bowl of cereal, an over ripe banana and 2 cups of coffee.

By the time I got to starting line my stomach was rumbling and asking for some attention. All I can say is I had two races that day. One was 10k that I did in 1:08:38 and the other was a 200 meter sprint to the bathroom. To this day I’m more proud that I made it cleanly to the finish in that second race.

There have been many races since then and many more days of just running. Some days are good days and some days are bad.

I remember my first 25k half marathon that I wouldn’t have finished without the support of the 2 friends I was running with.

I remember my second half marathon that I proudly did faster than the first partly because I didn’t want to stay too close to Zorro

I also remember how my knees ached right after the race and I had trouble just standing up.

I remember immediately bonding with a guy in the 10k run of the Subic Triathlon. We said no words but we pushed each other and gave each other strength. We shook hands as we reached the finish together

I have run to mark special moments.

I ran before my wedding and cried and cried for reasons I didn’t understand

I ran after my best friends father passed and something about the distance I was covering and the constant rhythm of foot on pavement seemed to connect me to his loss and his grieving

There are days when running seemed easy and the time and distance passed quickly

And there were days that you fight the voices that tell you to stop and you push yourself to just get to the next lightpost, or to put one foot in front of the next …just to get to the finish line

So what’s the connection between running, The 5775 Movement (http://57-75.org/home/?page_id=137) and the I am Ninoy Runners?

The theologian Karl Rahner once said, “There are certain things that are understood once you have suffered through them.”

As Runners, we understand the power of transformation. No matter our size, fitness level, or experience.

We understand how small things done in great ways can create change and be empowering.

We understand how important it is to build a base in order to move forward or how nutrition affects the ability of the mind to understand and the body to perform.

We understand how long difficult tasks can be accomplished by just putting one foot in front of the next.

And we understand how together we give each other energy, motivation, and endurance no matter how long the day or difficult the task.

Another writer and runner, John Bingham, known in runner’s circles as the Penguin because of the way he waddles during a run, says it much better than I can,

“So many of us have changed our own lives through running that it makes sense we would want to change the lives of others the same way. We can take the drive, ambition, and dedication we used to transform ourselves from couch potatoes to athletes and channel that into making a difference for someone else.

When that happens, we’ll truly understand the words of the renowned anthropologist Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”