Malaking tulong talaga sa akin ang pagtakbo dahil masaya siya; masayang makasama ang ibang runners. Noong nawala ang asawa ko, napakalaking tulong din nito sa akin. Ang mga iniisip ko, nawawala, kahit sandali lang.
77 year old ultramarathoner Rosalinda Ogsimer, or Nanay Rosalinda or Lola Rosalinda, as she’d be fondly called by the running community, would be the first to tell you that she was not the most athletic in her younger years. Apart from playing the all too familiar childhood games such as piko and habulan, sports was not necessarily an endeavor that she was initially keen on joining.
This would change as she would get quite older with age – the culprit being her eldest son. Realizing his mother wasn’t going to get any younger, her son Jon then started slowly encouraging her to run. “‘Mama, kailangan may exercise ka, kaya sumama ka sa amin!’” Nanay Rosalinda quotes her son as she shares how his gentle encouragement slowly turned to affectionate nagging to get his mom to run and get fit.
From someone who used to hesitate wearing rubber shoes and jogging pants, Nanay Rosalinda eventually relented to his son’s requests, joining him and his family, by heading outside. As a newbie, the exercise started slow and easy – nothing more than walking around the neighborhood. But slow and easy turned out to be just step one for Nanay. She took a liking to this new world, quickly graduating from mere walking and slowly inserting quick bursts of running in her subsequent sessions. Her running increased, and increased, increased…and it all came to a head as she joined her first 5K run.
Nanay shares with a laugh that while this was a great first for her, it initially made her have second thoughts of joining other runs in the future. “Ang kaso, ‘yung buong katawan ko, talagang masakit na masakit. Hindi ako masyadong makagalaw. Sabi sa akin [ng anak ko,] ‘Talagang ganyan, Mama,’ Sabi ko, ‘Sa susunod, hindi na ako sasama sa inyo! Masakit ang katawan ko! Hindi ako makagalaw!’ Pero sabi niya, ‘Kailangan Mama, may recovery. So next Sunday, tumakbo tayo ulit.’”
Nanay credits her current endurance in running to her son for his encouragement. His motivation, even while Nanay would think she was already exhausted, helped in shifting her perspective, allowing her to see that she can actually still do it – be it making it to the finish line or simply pushing her body to exceed her own expectations. Soon enough, a 5K turned into a 10K, then a 21K, then 42Ks, Nanay also dabbles in ultramarathons, her longest trail being a 65K from Cabanatuan to Dinggalan, in Nueva Ecija.
To call Nanay a beloved face in the running community would be a great understatement. She is now recognized in all the runs that she attends, being approached by young and veteran runners alike to exchange a few words and even share photos. But while being able to find a community has been fulfilling for her, her first love remains the same – her family.
Apart from her son’s family bringing her to this chapter, running also has a special link to her late husband. “Malaking tulong sa akin ang running sa pagtanggal ng stress. at saka noong nawala yung mister ko, napakalaking tulong nito sa akin. Kung wala ako sa running, ewan ko kung nasaan ako [ngayon]. Kasi siyempre, malungkot ako. Eh kung nasa running ka, ang mga iniisip ko, nawawala kahit ba sandali lang. Malaking bagay ito sa akin.”
And as for her advice she’d give to those also just starting out, she encourages all to find a support system when trying out new things. And most importantly, Nanay quips to not wait to start changing things for oneself; do things now. “Kung hindi mo susubukan, hindi mo malalaman kung kaya mo,” she adds.
