A few years ago when I was reviewing for the bar I read an article that oxydating the body tremendously improves memory. A well-oxygenated cells (brain cells) are not likely to get sick. It allows your mind to function and hold those precious information you want to retrieve at least during the exam. Out of desperation I obliged.

Engaging to a regular exercise and eating the right food are among the highly recommended activities to avoid oxygen depletion in the body. During that time, I resolved that I will do my daily morning 1-hour jogging before hitting the books for at least 8 hours everyday.

Wanting to keep my early morning jogging exciting I tried several spots.

Abellana / Cebu City Sports Complex
Entrance fee is P15 for regular joggers and P10 for students. Jogging here is less strenuous to the feet because of the rubberized track. This venue is usually packed with more than a hundred joggers.  5 PM after work to 8 PM is its peak hours. For variations, there are also tae-bo, swimming, ball room dancing and belly dancing sessions. Everyone is welcome to join for a very affordable fee ranging from P10 to P50 per session. No changing room but the comfort rooms are clean so you can change there. You may leave your things at one of the secured rooms. An attendant is on duty to look after your things. A major drawback of this place is the fact that the air you breath there may not be that fresh since this area is very close to the major thoroughfares of the City. You don’t want to suffocate your lungs with polluted air while jogging. However, it may not be that polluted as well. So far, I am yet to see a study on how polluted is the air here in Cebu.

The Family Park at Talamban
Entrance fee is P10 to P15. Every first Saturday and Sunday of the month, entrance fee is waived. The trees are tall. The birds are singing in chorus and the grass are green. The jogging path is a bit challenging because of its ascending pitch and trails that are not yet cemented. It is rocky and narrow. Fresh air is everywhere but not people. Only a few joggers come here. Most of the time, families come here for picnic, animal watching or maybe swimming.

Asiatown IT Park
There was a time when jogging here is prohibited. Today however, IT park is one of the favorite jogging site especially for the mid twenties to early 40’s crowd. It is clean and hip. Very close to everything. There are free parking on the western side of the area. A cemented pedestrian road can be utilized as your jogging route. No changing room but the rest rooms at The Walk is  a good makeshift.

Cebu Business Park
Less and less people jogs here. It’s a very big area but most of the time one can only cover a portion of it. For me, that area beside Union Bank is best place to jog. The place is secured. There are security guards on duty.  But a heavier volume of vehicles passing the road makes this place less appealing to joggers .

A. S. Fortuna
Although I haven’t tried it here, I observed that there had been several joggers who passed by this stretch from Manduae Highway to Foodland – Talamban. There are a number of vehicles passing on this street, safety is a concern. There are dogs on the road from residents beside the street so this may not be a good idea for those who fear dogs. If you will run going to Mandaue Highway Seno from Foodland, you will face the sunrise on your way.

Plan and enjoy. Happy Jogging!

TIP: To look for more places safe for running/jogging you may want to visit http://www.ceburunning.com/runsafe/ Aside from a very informative cebu running map, the site also contains such data as areas where runners are robbed or attacked. It also indicates which parts of Cebu runners should avoid for being unsafe, especially at night.