I can’t believe I haven’t posted here for an entire month. That’s wild. I meant to write more often, but it’s been busy—in a really good way. Never-ending food trips, both by myself and with family; exciting adventures; excellent matcha; and lots of quiet moments filled with ideas and inspiration.
There are so many things I want to tell you, but first, let me do a quick recap of how June went. (Since this blog is all about nature and the great outdoors, I’ll only include updates that are related to those.)
Cycling
I finally got back into cycling. It still feels surreal.
When my bike was stolen nearly a decade ago, I vowed to myself that I would never ride one ever again. It wasn’t just the pain of losing something I bought with my own money (I was a broke college student, and it took me months of saving to have enough to buy a decent mountain bike). But there was also the fact that I was a careless cyclist back then. I didn’t know anything about the rules of the road, but I still braved busy highways, including routes my little brother—an expert driver and cyclist—never used because they were too chaotic. I almost got hit by a truck and a bus a couple of times, but somehow I made it out without a scratch each time. My guardian angel worked overtime back then.
Anyway, I’ve been thinking about getting back into cycling since May. I basically got jealous whenever I saw someone riding their bicycle while I was out on my early-morning walks or runs. After much deliberation, research, and type A-induced overthinking, I finally took the plunge.
One Saturday morning, my family and I went to Quiapo, visited the bike shops on my list, and found an adorable (and affordable!) 7-speed folding bike. I fell in love with it at first sight and first try—it felt more comfortable and natural than the 27.5 mountain bike I also tried.
Over the next couple of weeks, I got busy “re-learning” how to ride a bicycle and just getting comfortable with it.
Immediately the day after my purchase, I had my dad and little brother teach me how to start and stop my bike correctly. Back when I was still cycling actively, I developed the bad habit of always sitting on my saddle, which often left me wobbly on my bike while waiting at red lights. It didn’t take me long to grasp the gist (the videos from Local Motion and Sheldon Brown were incredibly helpful), but it took a bit more time before the motions became natural. I basically spent my next rides just practicing that, and once I got the hang of it, I started experimenting with shifting the gears.
To be honest, I still get anxious when I ride my bike, especially during the first few minutes. I mostly just explore our neighborhood. But a week ago, I finally mustered enough courage to take my bicycle outside—a quick half-hour ride near Miriam College in Nuvali. (It’s a story for another time.)
I’m sure I’ll rant more about cycling at some point, but for now, let’s just say that despite all my deep-seated anxiety, I’m smitten.
Swimming
Another major update: I started taking swimming lessons. Yes, you read that right. I finally bit the bullet! I got extremely lucky because I found a swimming school that uses a nearby pool as one of their teaching locations—it’s literally 5 minutes away from me on foot. My coach also happens to live 2 houses away from us, which is a pretty funny coincidence.
I’ve only had 2 sessions so far—8 more to go.
During the first lesson, my coach already taught me how to swim freestyle… and saying it’s hard is a massive understatement. By the second day, I was still struggling, and he made me do different drills to zero in on specific movements and problem areas.
I practiced by myself a few days ago, and I’m still at a standstill. I don’t think I improved at all. In fact, I probably regressed; it was much easier with my coach’s constant instruction.
During the second lesson, I asked him whether all his adult students had learned freestyle by the end of the sessions, and he assured me they had. He’s always so optimistic about my progress. He was ecstatic when I told him I had decided to learn to swim for fitness, and later on, he even added that since I also run and cycle, I can eventually sign up for a triathlon.
I found it so ridiculous and hilarious, and he said that while I was most likely flailing my arms in an ugly way while I attempted to freestyle.
Hiking
I conquered Mt. Pico de Loro, my second mountain! I thought it would be easier than Pulag, but I was gravely mistaken. Even my brother’s girlfriend, who has already hiked around 10 mountains by this point, agreed that it was a more demanding hike than Pulag and certainly not a 2/9 mountain.
Anyway, I don’t want to rant too much about my experience because it warrants another post.
Physical movement
June is my most physically active month in recent years. Given everything I’ve written about so far, this shouldn’t come as a surprise.
According to my smartwatch data, I worked out a total of 60 times, for a whopping 30.5 hours. That’s essentially working out for an hour every single day!
Here’s a quick breakdown of my exercise times this year to understand why my current stats are a big deal:
| Month |
Total exercise hours |
| May |
15.8 |
| April |
13.5 |
| March |
12 |
| February |
7 |
| January |
7.3 |
Other plans and ideas
- I want to get into rollerskating. In fact, I already found a place where I could take a few coaching sessions! I inquired about their rates, and they’re surprisingly affordable. But I don’t want to overwhelm myself with all the physical activities I’m doing. I plan to start only after my swimming lessons end, and once I’ve already gotten the hang of freestyle (at the very least, I want to know it enough to be able to practice by myself and swim laps).
- I still want to try and hike at least once a month.
- I want to continue doing calisthenics at least thrice a week. I’m following the Hybrid Calisthenics Routine and making slow but steady progress.
- I really want to join Eco Exploration’s Be a Forest Ranger for a Day activity. Since my tree-planting activity got canceled, I never got to scratch that itch. So when I saw this post on my IG feed, I got so excited! Taking up forestry in the university is one of my biggest what-ifs, and this event literally combines my love of the forests and the mountains. It entails hiking Mt. Balagbag to reach the reforestation site in Ipo Watershed. More than just hiking, you also do forest ranger activities. I’m on the fence about it because it’ll be my first time in the mountains without someone I know, and the logistics are tricky because there’s only one pick-up and drop-off location, and it’s at least 3 hours away from me.
- Speaking of forests, my family and I went to UP Los Baños for my birthday, and I spent about an hour just walking around by myself, surrounded by massive trees and endless greenery, wondering how my life would have been had I pursued forestry or bio (majoring in ecology). A part of me even entertained the notion of studying again—there’s just something about being in any UP campus that stirs that desire—and finally taking up the natural sciences. But I know it’s not the smartest move, given thatI live in a country where the STEM field isn’t valued and compensated well. For now, all I can do is scratch the itch and learn as much as I can on my own. (I’ve already signed up on Class Central and bookmarked a bunch of interesting courses.)