One week and three marathons – why virtual is good and bad

One week and three marathons – why virtual is good and bad

Today is a Sunday.  It is the last day of the 2021 edition of the Standard Chartered Nairobi International marathon.  If anything, it is actually the real day of the run.  It is usually the day of the real run, until ‘virtual’ spoiled the party.  Virtual running has meant that there is a one-week window to do the run, from wherever you are.  We would usually have this run at the city centre stadium, at the same time, on the same starting line, with the full list of marathon greats.  

That was the norm in the good old days before corona.  However, corona had hit us hard from December 2019 and led to cancellation of most runs in 2020, include the Stanchart of 2020 which was cancelled outright due to corona.  We had escaped a second-year cancellation, but corona had forced us into this run-from-home event now called virtual.  The very corona that had now infected 247,283,954 people globally, leading to 5,013,391 deaths.  Kenyan numbers were 253,310 and 5,281 respectively.  

To put these numbers into perspective, the population of New Zealand, Liberia or Ireland is just about that 5M figure.  This virus was now forcing us to avoid large crowds and run individually or in small groups and run far from the event venue.  The virtual event had its good and its bad.  The adrenaline of the crowds is something you cannot get while running virtually at home.  Formulating a route to fit the run is quite difficult.  

The dangers of the road are many, unlike the real event where roads are closed to traffic and runner rule the roads.  A real event has the routes marked and there is nourishment in terms of water, glucose, and occasionally soda and fruits, every five-kilometres.  You benefit from roadside restrooms at the same intervals.  However, you are on your own when running virtually.  It is the lack of nourishment that breaks a virtual run and renders the longer distances very difficult to do.

Nonetheless, it is not all gloom on the virtual front.  Running virtually gives you a window of one-week to decide on when you want to run.  There is no restriction on date or time.  There is no restriction on the geographical location or the route that you can take.  You can even run many runs and choose the best of them as the final one to post to the event website.  Did I mention that you can even run different distances if you so wished?

Yes, it is with this issue of running-many-different-distances in mind that I found myself rushing to the starting point for a 10km run on this hot Sunday.  It was the last day of the run, the run that had been done since last Monday had already culminated into the final ‘real’ event at the Nairobi’s Nyayo stadium.  The final event of which only the invited elite runners participated in.  The rest of us were to experience the good and the bad of the virtual run from the comfort of home, in my case some twelve kilometres from the Nyayo stadium venue.

I had already done my 21km marathon on Tuesday.  I had even escorted Sharon for her 10km debut marathon on Thursday.  I was today running for someone registered on my team as WW, not WWB.  This WW was registered for the 10km run and I had just noted on the posted results on the organizers website that WW had not yet posted any results on the 10km.  

There were about eight more hours before the marathon event closed.  That was plenty of time to do something about this missing run.  Not only that, I was also aware that one of the team runners, Beryl, was going to miss this run after suffering a last minute medical issue.  A run on her behalf could ease her pain and add mileage to the total collection of distance that we were mining in this virtual running week.  It was not last minutes.  Any distance that was getting to the team was welcome.  I had even sent email to the team to remind them to get out and do their runs for the team.  This was it!

The sun was overhead and hot as I started off the run at Uthiru.  I was on the same 10km route that I had accompanied Sharon on, during that Thursday run.  However, this would be a run of similarities and contrasts.  While we started that Thursday run on almost similar solar radiation, I started this run with a real run, unlike last time when we started the run with a walk.  I was adorned with the same luminous yellow T-shirt of NMMT branding, just like on Thursday.

While on that Thursday we had met the ruffian just across the Waiyaki way after Kabete Poly, the very ruffian who greeted me in zeal and encouraged me to, “mseya, endelea kuletanga tu warembo manze.  Mimi pia uniletee mmoja next time,” much to the chagrin of Sharon.  This day was different.  I crossed the Waiyaki way without seeing anybody who wanted to interrupt my run and then kept running with no much ado.

I reached Ndumbo stage and soon started on the downhill towards Wangari Maathai institute on Kapenguria road.  I increased pace and the gravity kicked in to pull me towards the river.  I was almost out of breath as I reached the river.  On Thursday I was still at conversational pace by the time we hit the river.  I did not give much thought to the upcoming hill after the river on that Thursday.  Today was different.  I knew that there was the one kilometre uphill coming up.  I reduced speed towards the river crossing then settled on a pace that could propel me to the end of that hill, past KAGRI and soon to the Lower Kabete Road to do the U-turn.  I still touched the tarmac as I did the U.

I was not looking forward to my run route back.  I knew that there was that hill after the river all the way to Ndumbo.  A two-kilometre section of pure hell on earth!  I soon found myself on that very hill.  It was tough!  The sun was just hovering straight ahead, beaming its heat onto my face as I kept running to the West.  The beams were painful on the face.  The glare of the horizon was blinding!  I kept going, hoping and wishing that this hill could just end.

While on Thursday we were even commenting that the hill was ‘somehow mild’ after Wangari Maathai towards Ndumbo, as we walked its length to completion, it was different today.  That hill was long and nowhere near mild!  I still struggled on and finished the uphill just past Ndumboini stage.  From there I did the right turn and then ran round the big circle, with the collection of churches encircled, to join Waiyaki way.

I now had only two more kilometres to finish the run.  My energy levels were still high, and the sun had started losing some of its hard-hitting beams.  It was even hitting me from the back as I ran towards the East on Waiyaki way.  I crossed that road and started the last stretch past Kabete Poly back to Uthiru.  My energy levels were still top notch.  It was a sprint to the finish line.  I stopped the timer at 11.93km in 58min 17sec at an average of 4min 53sec per km.  

Why the data was converted to 10.00km in 49min 55sec at an average of 5.00 when posted to the Stanchart website still remains a mystery.  That leaderboard showed that that time was a position 9 ranking.  Of course, there shall be adverse changes to that list when the elites post their data.  But the screenshot of that listing remains the truth as at the time of writing.  I even believe that I deserve a 42km medal.  After all, I did 42km in the virtual marathon week in those three runs, didn’t I?

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, October 31, 2021

The virtual half – a Nairobi International marathon with a twist

The virtual half – a Nairobi International marathon with a twist

I was on the road again on this Thursday.  I was taking a trainee runner to the routes to figure out a 10km distance and give her the impetus to keep going.  We started the run at exactly four in the evening.  It was hot, but not as hot.  We left Uthiru towards Kabete Poly, then crossed the Waiyaki way and ran the length of the road towards Ndumbo.  We alternated our runs and walks.  

We talked during the walks.  We even discussed how we were lucky to have decided to run on this Thursday instead of the previous day, when it had rained from about four all the way to late night.  As a consequence, the traffic jam around Kangemi had been impossible, leading to one of our runner, Berly, getting stuck in the traffic jam for over two-hours after her visit to collect a running kit.  We were glad that our ‘foresight’ in choosing the right day for the run was working to our advantage now that it was hot, but not very.

At Ndumbo we generally ran the downhill on Kapenguria road all the way to the river, then walked the uphill for about one kilometre to the Lower Kabete Road junction.

“This is harder that I thought,” Sharon commented as she finally reached the T-junction of Lower Kabete Road where we were to do the U-turn and run back on the same course.

“You must touch the tarmac,” I urged her on.

“I am too tired, I may fall over into the road,” she lamented.

“This is the ritual, you just have to do it”

She reluctantly touched the tarmac of the Lower Kabete Road, even as the vehicles from Westlands sides approached and hooted.

We turned back and walked for about five minutes on the slight uphill towards Kenya Animal Genetic Resources Institute, KAGRI.  We passed by it on our right then took a few photos.  I had already reminded the runners in the group that photos were necessary for the report to the sponsors, to make them feel good and… to also get that next sponsorship in 2022.

We then did a short run to the river and afterwards faced that one-point-five kilometre of uphill that ends at Ndumbo.  We would run-walk that hill to the very end.  By that time Sharon was taking rests every five or so minutes to get some life back to them.  Her legs were aching.  I knew the feeling.  I could feel for her.  We were now however not far from our destination.  Just another two kilometres and we would be done with the run.  The sun was still overhead and hot, but not as hot.  We kept going knowing that the end was near….

It was however quite a different situation two days ago, when I did my own virtual marathon on that Tuesday.  I started the run at about 3.15pm and it was a hot afternoon!  I have never run in such a heat.  I was nonetheless lucky that my body was feeling quite well on this day.  I did not have any aches and I was quite ready to give the international run my best.

I was suffering the disadvantage of having little choice on the route to take to get the 21km done.  All the routes that I formulated would have at least half of the run being done uphill.  There was no way out.  I therefore decided to do my run on the best of the worst options that I had at hand.  I still had to do over 10km of hills on this route even though I would get my 21km alright.

I had taken the same route as the one that I was taking Sharon to.  I however did not ritualize the tarmac with that touching action.  I instead turned left and ran the one kilometre stretch along the tarmac and then diverted once more to my left to the Mary Leakey route.  It was then generally uphill through the University farm all the way to rejoin Kanyariri road.  I would then turn right and run straight on for about two kilometres to Kanyariri ACK church junction for another right turn to run all the way to the Wangige road underpass for my U-turn.

It remained hot.  I was tiring much faster due to lack of hydration or supplementation with drinks and fruits.  I was just glad that I had got to this U-turn, since I now just needed to survive a return journey mostly on Kanyariri road to Ndumbo market, then the last two-kilometres to Uthiru.  I was tired, it was hot, and I still had an international marathon to tackle.

The end was finally near when I crossed Waiyaki way and was passing by Kabete Polytechnic.  That was Tuesday.  And I stopped my timer at 1hr 54min 26sec with the Runkeeper app reading 21.22km.  That was a good run time bearing in mind that hilly terrain and no water or glucose being dished out as would have happened if it was a ‘real’ run at the city centre.  The real run that had now been allocated to only few elites who would be at the stadium on Sunday, October 31.

Well, Sharon and I finally also finished our Thursday run which was still to be posted to the Stanchart international marathon website as a 10km virtual run.  We finished our 11.32km in 2hrs 03min and 24sec.  The run was posted to the website thereafter.  The stats would show that Sharon was so far at position 57 in a time of 1.47.18.  The organizers had prorated the timing to fit the 10km expected of the competition.  I even saw that other young runner, Atieno, under by tutelage with runner number 2020 being positioned as number 66 on that list of 10k women.  

My runner number 2031 had debuted at number 8 on the men’s 21km listing when I posted my own results registered as a time of 1.53.39.  I however knew that neither my nor Sharon’s time would be in the top 1000 list when we finally get the elites doing the real run tomorrow, Sunday.

That does not matter.  It is on record that we hit the leaderboards, and no one can dispute that.

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021

Running communication is not easy

Running communication is not easy

I remember starting to shout in joy on October 20, just two days ago, when that speech by the president of Kenya was still going on.  I was joining many other Kenyans in anticipation.

“Lastly, with the powers conferred on me as the president…,” the TV screen sound came out loudly and clearly.  

It was just about two-thirty in the afternoon on this Tuesday.  It was Kenya’s Mashujaa day holidays, a celebration of heroes from those of independence, to the current ones.  The shouts continued.  The speech continued.

“The national wide dusk to dawn curfew that has been in effect from March 27, 2020…,” he did not even need to finish.

I could hear the louder shouts in the streets of Uthiru.  I heard shouts from the TV itself.  I was shouting myself at Uthiru house.  The junior runner, Atieno, also with me in the house during this holiday, was also in jubilation.  No one, be it on the streets or on TV was waiting for the words to be said.  We knew what would be said.  It was not a surprise when it was said.

“… be and is hereby vacated with immediate effect!”

The shouts in the air reached their crescendo.  The shouts and jubilation would continue for another five minutes.  This was the day that we had been waiting for!  Finally, we would start living our lives without the fear of the dark.  We had not seen the night for over eighteen months.  The day to finally remember that a day has 24-hours had finally come.

That night there was celebrations outside the housing estate, as evidenced by the noises and the background music that persisted all the way to when I fell asleep a few minutes past one.  Kenyans were celebrating their freedom.  

‘All corona restrictions’ had been lifted, according to what I heard on the streets the next day.  Nobody wanted to know that it was just the curfew issue that had been lifted.  It would take the minister in charge of health issues to clarify that other restrictions remained in place, including social distancing, limits of number of people in churches, meetings or events and putting on of masks while in public places.  That clarification did not change things… corona was over!

Three days later, on this Friday, October 22, 2021, there was yet another communication issue that needed clarification, albeit when it was too late.  I had asked the waste management company to clear some items from my office for incineration.  Some of those papers that you just want burnt, call it old notes, money matters, receipts and all.  The contractors have done this for me many times before and I therefore trust them to do this when they say that they shall do it.

I had sent a message to the contractor’s contact person and had asked them to pass by my office and pick a ‘small package on my desk’.  It was the only item on the desk anyway, since I changed offices and all material had already been moved to the new office in another office block, four hundred metres away.

I was therefore in shock, when I came to the new office some four hours later to find all items on my in-tray missing.  I remember having at least two files and probably some marathon registration documents and receipts on that tray.  It was not as clean as a newly purchased tray.  That was strange and it could only mean one thing – someone had made away with my files for whatever reason.

It did not take me long to realize that my very important files had already been turned to ashes.  When I asked the service provider why this was so, they informed me that that is what they found on my desk.

“We first went to your initial office but were told that you had shifted, so we came to the new office”

I was still in shock before they even told me that, “We even thought of incinerating those boxes at that corner,” while pointing to the boxes containing my marathoners team running kits consisting of T-shirts, medals, water and energy drinks.

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, Oct. 22, 2021

How long does this take? Of five minutes that turned out to be three hours

How long does this take?  Of five minutes that turned out to be three hours

I had now sat on that chair for exactly one-and-a-half hours.  My mouth had remined open for most of that time.  I was tired by all definitions.  The seat was comfortable alright, but the open mount situation was not.  My mouth muscles were tired.

“Shield him up for the x-ray,” I heard the doc say.

When I say ‘heard’ it is true.  I had been having a face cloth covering throughout the duration.  I could not see much, just the darkness of the blue clothing covering the whole of my face, leaving just a circular slot on the clothing for the position of my mouth.  I was already getting used to the darkness of the cloth covering.  The first relief came about when I was being prepped for the x-ray.

I got the chance to look at the wall clock, hanging above the wide window to my left, after the veil was lifted.  I momentarily observed the traffic flowing along Ngong road.  The Green house building was just on the other side of the road.  It was now exactly one.  

The portable x-ray equipment was brought to my once lying position, as the seat was adjusted back to a seating position.  I had to hold the x-ray reader in my mouth for the process to be done.  I would soon be adorned with the leaded shield sheet for the process to commence.  My mouth stayed open.  My mouth continued being tired of being open for hours.

“Take him back and cover him,” the doc instructed his assistant.

The lady adjusted the seat, and I was once again flat on the seat.  My face was once again covered, leaving only an opening for my mouth.  Some little panic was already setting in as to whether everything was OK.  That x-ray break however gave me some semblance of comfort that I would be done soon.

Truth be told, I had surely convinced myself that this would be a five-minute process.  After all, how long does it take to fix a piece of titanium, hardly two-centimetre high, into one’s gum?  Shouldn’t it just be push in and it is done?  I was wrong….

“We are now halfway done,” the doc updated me when I was back flat.  I was still in the dark due to the face covering.

“That cannot be true!,” I thought of saying.  However, in my darkness and a tired open mouth full of all manner of paraphernalia, I could hardly talk.

I would be lying if I said that there was any pain in this whole process.  None.  The local anesthesia had taken effect about five minutes after administration.  The whole half of my right lower jaw and tongue were numb.  I could only feel the motions of things but not the sensation of pain.  I was just tired and now worried that maybe something was wrong with the whole process.  I was expecting a five minute thing.  I was now in ninety-minutes and just halfway through.

I persevered and survived another three x-ray breaks.  I managed to see the number of blood-stained cotton balls lying on the adjacent table during one of those breaks.  They were bloody!  They were scary!  Could all that have come from my mouth?

That Wednesday had started well.  I already knew that this procedure was happening.  My expectations were however far from reality from the get-go.  I had an eleven o’clock appointment, but I was not called into the medical room until eleven-thirty.  That should have rung the first bell that it was not business as usual.  I have always first taken a seat next to the small desk used by the doc for some preliminary discussions.  This time it was different.  Neither the seats nor the table were there.  The room had all been cleared and instead there were all manner of paraphernalia lying around to occupy such spaces.

“Things are thick!,” I said to myself, as I wondered how to even proceed.

I was immediately ushered onto the dental seat and reclined flat.  The first explanations were that there shall be a full face covering on this day.  This was for purposes of complete sterilization of the mouth area.  This was a first one.  I have always dealt with the dentist ‘face to face’.  This time it would be different.  Other than that, I was told that the process would be as previously explained.  That explanation had been about one month prior.  It was simple enough.  As simple as five minutes in my view.

It was at 2.30pm that I was finally brought back to a sitting position and the face covering removed.  I have never imaged that a small gap of a missing molar on a lower jaw, hardly a centimetre space, could take that much time to deal with.  This same gap was costing me about 0.2M.  And it is a big deal when your bill in charged in millions.  All this was to paid out of pocket as the insurance company had indicated that such a necessary treatment as an exclusion.  

I had even debated on the wisdom of this decision, since the alternative option was to extract the upper molar to equalize this lower gap and be done with.  Such an extraction would be covered by insurance, hence a free issue.  However, it was not too late.  The bill was now payable, the titanium crown holder was now buried in the gum, and the next stage of fitting a top crown on the holding root was to follow after two months.

I almost collapsed with the anticipated pain when I got a prescription of the four painkillers, each to be taken over a period of five days.  I knew that my next five days would be hell on earth!  I had already been warned that cold drinks were out of question for a week, nor were hard foods and any much use of the right jaw in that period.  

The first night on that Wednesday was the most apprehensive.  I took the tablets by nine and went to bed immediately after.  That was four hours earlier that I would normally hit the sack.  I wanted to be immersed in deep sleep by the time the pain hit.  The pain would probably be swallowed by the dreams.  The numbness had already died down by this time, though the pain had not yet started.  I did not take any food on this day, just a glass of warm water.

I was surprised to wake up on Thursday without even a painful disturbance in the night.  Today is a Friday, the second day after my dental issue and I am yet to feel the pain.  I am even wondering whether that dentist did implant anything on my jaw.  I however cannot explain those stitches whose strings I can feel with my tongue on that gap.  Maybe I shall ask the implantologist.

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, October 15, 2021

When I could not run for no reason at all

When I could not run for no reason at all

I have had a headache since yesterday, Saturday.  It just started when I got up to go to the washroom in the wee hours and persisted since then.  I woke up on Saturday feeling the pain of the headache on my forehead.  I however soldiered on through the door with the hope that that headache would go away.  It occasionally does go away without much persuasion.

However, my head was still aching when I went to bed yesterday.  There was therefore only one way out when I woke up today and the headache had not subsided – I had to visit a medical facility.  The walk from Uthiru to Mountain View for the clinic was laboured.  The hot sun burned my forehead, further aggravating the ache.  I could feel my heartbeat pulsation on the forehead.  Each pumping of the blood was a jolt of pain, but I walked on.

I got to the third-floor clinic and started waiting for my turn to see the doctor.  It did not take me long to start recovering.  I was seated at the waiting area with four other adults, who were evidently in pain, while a toddler or two kept crying due to some discomfort.  If that was what we call being unwell, then I was surely quite OK.

I was in fact just about to think twice over this issue of deciding to visit the medical facility when my name was called, and I found myself at the vitals checkup room.  I have always wondered why the medic at this section asks you about all of your troubles, when you shall still be asked the same with the doc later on.  I did not wonder loudly but went through the motions.  The headache was still there.  I could feel it throbbing with every heartbeat.

I was finally called a second time to see the doc.  I knew how it would go.  It went how it should have gone.  I was referred to the phlebotomist to draw blood for a blood test to determine ‘the thing that is causing you the headache’.

I matched into that room marked ‘Phlebotomy’ and was directed to a seat.  I have drawn blood before, but this was different.

“I am Mary,” the lady started, with a big smile, just after I had taken a seat.

Is this real?  I have never ever been introduced to a phlebo before!  I never thought they were humans!

“Nice to meet you,” I responded, more in surprise that anything else.

“You just sit and relax,” she said, while starting to prepare her tools, which included some cotton swabs, needles and syringes.

“I am known as the vampire!,” she finally said, when all paraphernalia had been set, ready to start on the action on my right arm.

“Vampire, you mean?”

“Yes, I draw bloooooddd!,” she laughed at me, even as she started the venipuncture.

I just had to laugh in response.  I did not see that coming.  Is it only Sundays that medics are friendly or is it Huduma day in practice?

So, we go got chitchatting over dis-and-dat including why diagnosis still relies on drawing of blood and those painful pricks on the veins, all the way to the beauty of working on a Sunday.  While she swore that blood shall remain the source of ‘medical data’ forever, the computer scientist in me knew otherwise.  We shall soon swallow or implant those data reporting transmitters and that is what shall be used to get data out of our bodies.  Puncturing of any nature is coming to an end soon.

The blood action was done as soon as it had started.  If there is a blood work that I have ever enjoyed, then this was it.  Anyway, I would soon be out of that room and start another wait for that final call to see the doc.

When I finally sat next to the doc, more of opposite him of sorts, I knew from his face that things were bad!

“We have checked the blood, and…,” he started.

“Yes, go on, and what did you find?”

“Imagine your blood has revealed nothing out of the ordinary!,” he shrugged in disappointment.

I am not sure why he should have been in distress.  It was music to me!  I hate medical facilities and the medicine that comes out of them.  I was relieved!  My Huduma day was now starting to come alive.  I was prescribed some painkillers, which I believe shall not be getting into my system if for sure I was just OK.

As I walked out of the building and faced the still hot mid-day sun, my head still throbbing mildly painful which each heartbeat, I wondered why I had even made that decision in the morning to come to the medical facility.  It was more of a safe-than-sorry decision, but my gut feeling had been quite against this visit.  That was my instinct.  I had wanted to fight the headache off until it was all gone on its own.  Well, that is still what I now have to do… fight the headache off until it subsides on its own anyway.

Good news for runners like me is that you can know if you are well or not, by just using your ‘run-o-meter’.  I knew from yesterday when I could not attempt to run or walk fast, that I was surely not normal and something was amiss.  Well, one day later and I still cannot run but I am told that nothing is amiss.  Whom should a runner believe?  Their own bodies or the opinions of those outside their bodies!

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, Oct. 10, 2021

The run to forget, unless it was corona

The run to forget, unless it was corona

If there is a day that I have ever been tired during a run then that day was yesterday, Wednesday.

“Oh emm geee!,” I had shouted out subconsciously, as I took the second step in the more that twenty-five thousand that I was meant to take on this run day.

If you are wondering what 25,000 means, then let me give you the mathematics.  If you were to count out one number in one second, then it shall take you 7 hours to count from 1 upto 25,000 – and therefore 25k is not a small number of steps.  And unfortunately, on this Wednesday, I was already tired on the very second step.

What could it be?  My stomach would soon start paining, hardly five minutes into the run and that would persist for the whole run.  Why I had the pain remains a mystery since I had just taken a normal breakfast, read, tea and bread, followed by a cup of hot water about one hour to the run.  So, the pain was a strange symptom.

Earlier in the day I had had a casual conversation with some work colleagues.  They had wondered why they do not see much of me in the office environment, of which I informed them that I had corona jitters.

“Watu wote walishapata korona,” the guy in the group of two other gals updated me.

“Kale ka homa kenye ulipata from nowhere, ilikuwa korona,” he continued.

“Hiyo ni kweli,” the ladies said almost in unison, “How do you explain nobody putting on facemasks out there and yet nobody is dying en masse?,” one of the girls asked.

“I have no answer,” I responded, “Maybe we are just lucky.”

“Don’t bring luck into the equation,” the gent told me, “You want to tell me that all children in the world are ‘just lucky’ not to get corona?”

I was taken aback on that.

The corona truth or myth was out there for all to decide for themselves.  How or what is it that is causing 237,241,246 infections and 4,843,732 deaths worldwide or 250,510 infections and 5,175 deaths in Kenya?  Isn’t there something out there for sure?  How else do you ‘mythify’ such numbers?

Anyway, that was about eleven.  It was now just about three-twenty and I was on the road for the run.  My inner spirit was urging me to abandon the run and take a rest, though my internal wiring was reminding me that it was yet another day for a weekly run.  I therefore kept going.  I just knew that I would not be turning back if I were to I get out of the compound in ten minutes.

And I got out of the compound in ten minutes and was out there onto Naivasha road and headed to Kabete Poly before crossing the Waiyaki way to the other side of it.  I kept running and my feet knew exactly where to take me.  I was going for the usual run through Ndumbo, Kapenguria road, then Mary Leakey school to enable me traverse through the Uni Farm and then join Kanyariri road for the run to the shopping centre and back.  This is a route that has become the default for the weekly runs but on this day it was just much more difficult than I had imagined.

Turning back was not an option, despite how I felt, and I felt tired, with paining legs and paining stomach.  It did not get better nor did my pace improve.  It would be a miracle if I even managed an average of 7-minutes-per-kilometer on this day.  It was that bad.  I was glad that it was not yet the date for the international marathon, that is set for the week of Oct. 25-31 virtually.  I would have posted my ‘best worst personal time’.

I struggled along until the relief of doing the U-turn under the Gitaru-Ndenderu road.  While it was a relief doing that U, it was a pain imagining that I still had another 10k of run to get me ack to the finishing line.  Anyway, I was already too deep into the mix that I just had to find the willpower to finish the run, however long it took.

I even had a flashback on that corona discussion and really thought hard about it.  Could I have been infected, hence my lethargy?  I had however passed two temperature checks within the day, and did not feel chills or pains on the chest or throat.

I finally made my way to the finish line by some miracle.  I was tired, finished and almost dizzy.  However, I was back to normalcy as soon as I had taken a short rest and a bottle of water laced with Fanta orange soda.  My legs would however pain through the night and my body felt almost malaise.  I even thought that I would have to seek medication for something that I did not yet know.

I was therefore quite glad to wake up on this Thursday feeling well and normal, the memories of yesterday’s run still lingering on, though I would like to forget that episode in a hurry, when I posted the worst run time of 5:58 per kilometre over that 24.5k distance.  It is a route that I have done before in just under 5:00 average at my peak… and that is why I want to forget this run very fast and concentrate on the next.  This run was quite a welcome to the month of October, being the first run in the month.  The very month when the Standard Chartered Nairobi International marathon awaits.

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, Oct. 7, 2021