Mini aquathlon on a Wednesday - 26 Mar 08

I told myself and a few of my friends that i will be laying off training this week. What a big liar i am. The truth is, while i was nursing my dry cough and fever, my feet and hands were itching for any kind of workout.

Got back to work on Wednesday and weather was fine though dark clouds were lingering when the clock struck 5pm. Changed into my running attire of Mizuno white vest and black shorts, John Doe tag on ankle and NB 735 blue on feet. I also had with me a towel, goggles, swim cap and trunks.

Left office and headed for the 1km route to Jalan Besar swimming pool. Paid the S$1 entrance fee and changed into swimming attire. Jumped into the pool and started front crawl routine.

It must have been the toughest 8 x 50m i have ever swam in my life. Yes, close to 2 months ago i could't even swim freestyle but i should have been more relaxed. Thigh started to feel crampy by the time i hit the wall for the 4th time. Couldn't get into breathing on every 3rd stroke routine and ended up taking in air by the right only after every 2 pulls. Relaxed a while and continued another 4 laps, all with rest in between.

With 15mins to go before the clock hits 6pm, i decided i have had enough. At least i could swim continuously over 50m for 4 laps. Changed into running attire again and slowly ran the 1km back to office building.

Distance:

Ran: 2 x 1km

Swam: 8 x 50m

Retreat and re-strategise - Part 2

So i've laid out what i intend to do and what i don't. Now the difficult part; training.

I've been doing jumpstart training for sometime now. Jumpstart training means starting at a level that is not the lowest, after being away from the sport through injury, busy working schedule or like me, sheer lazyness.

I know that my threshold level for a run is between 27-35km, depending on how far back the last race was. In addition, at my peak, circa June-Sep 06, i trained 5 times a week, on running. So the jumpstart training that i have been doing since February, after having been slacking for about 2 months after SCSM 07, was forcing myself to run distances like 13-22km at one go and having 4-5 workout sessions a week, sometimes at levels and pace i have never ventured before. The results: i find myself feeling depressed, having slow muscle recovery and prone to sickness like flu and fever, eventhough i take Esther-C every night.

Having acknowledged that this method of training does not seemed to be working well, i have decided to go back to basics, which is a very difficult thing to do.

Talked to one of my running sifus, Taz who is actually doing the same thing while recovering from an injury of sorts, and he shared with me his training regime. Run short distances; 4km, 6km 9.89km etc at slow, moderate, tempo and fartlek paces, increase distance gradually, once i feel comfortable.

Good advice. I shall go read up for a training regime for my fitness level. May be a little dificult with all the races coming up, mainly in May. But it shall be done. Short distance runs, long distance cycling and practice and practice on forward crawl swimming.

Retreat and re-strategise - Part 1

Its late March and i have yet to compete in any event. Not in good shape to do so anyway. Took time off, thought about the events and made some decisions:

Not doing:

• Kuala Lumpur International Marathon: Not many people knew i was going for this run. Have registered, reserved hotel room and bought bus tickets home. But surely not in any mental shape to attempt this. I have every confidence of finishing the run, but not hyped up to make my way up to KL for this. Choosing round the island ride instead of the SGRunners' Prata run last weekend was probably the clearest indication of where my priorities lie nowadays.
• Sundown Ultramarathon: Probably registered for this event in a haste, peer pressure the main reason. No doubt i have the confidence to finish this run, all 84km of it, and as i write this, am still not too late to build up enough mileage and practice run to ensure i run with comfort on race day. Then again, just like KLIM, i am not over the moon with enthusiasm to attempt this. So i'll lose 50% of the registration fee, or i can just downgrade to the 42km run. No clear decisions on that yet. I just know that i have no interest to attempt the 84km run.
• Singapore Ironman 70.3: Major disappointment. Kak J aka Harmoni pointed out that this event will be held on the 5 day of Ramadan. What a major screw up! How can they miss that fact out? Anyhow, guess i'll take it as S$335 saved instead.

Doing (I think so):

• Tribob Singapore Sprint Series: All 3 events, for now. Biathlon in April, Duathlon in May and Triathlon in June
• Bidor Half Marathon: Did this in 2006, event came early this year. Looking forward to the cold Red Bull at the finishing point, plus the sumptous food served while waiting for prize presentation.
• A Farmosa Triathlon: Read about this in the Trifam forum. Heard so much about the swim in Milo water. Hope i will be able to make it for this!
• Bintan Triathlon: Guess this is the event i have been basing my training upon. Home territory away from home. Did the run leg last year. Just need to tell myself that there is no pressure on me, no pressure.
• OSIM Singapore Triathlon: Volunteered during the OD Race last year. The bike route seemed rather dangerous. Hope they make some changes this year!
• Port Dickson Triathlon: Excellent event last year. Felt safe swimming. Must try the ayam percik at the pasar tani.
• Tasik Kenyir Triathlon: Heard a lot about Tasik Kenyir, since my gung-ho days in SIM's ODAC. But the long travel will be a major minus point.
• Desaru Long Distance Triathlon: Having decided to give up on SG 70.3, guess there is no way in heaven or hell i am not taking part in this. Will be good if i can drive there, giving more options when comes to meals.
• Singapore Marathon: 3rd year attempting. Probably the only marathon i'll be doing this year.
• MR25 Ultramarathon: Not really interested in doing, but need to keep in shape for the turn of the year.

Let's just hope there are no drastic changes to my life.

Summary for week of 17 - 23 Mar 08

• Monday, 17 Mar: 16km run at dawn followed by swim lessons after work.
• Tuesday, 18 Mar: Travel day.
• Wednesday, 19 May: Heavy rain spoiled my plan for 13km run. No training. Watched Ed's badminton match. My babe won her doubles match with ease.
• Thursday, 20 Mar: 120km round the island ride with L & T riders.
• Friday, 21 Mar: Good Friday. Butt and thigh hurt big time from the long ride.
• Saturday, 22 Mar: Went around Singapore for food feast. Started at Little India for thosai and battura for lunch, Tanglin Mall for the best soy latte, Changi Village for chicken soup and satay for dinner and Siglap for cheesecake supper.
• Sunday, 23 Mar: Dreamt i was running 34km. No training, other than bringing Ed for a 10km test ride on her new Polygon Helios 500.

Round the Island Ride - 20 Mar 08

Lala had been bugging me to join him for rides. Finally there was one that i was available for, though it also meant i have to give up on SGRunners' Prata run, what would have been a better choice for the events that i have planned to participate in.

Anyhow, took leave from work that day and ensured that i had enough sleep. By 7pm, i was all geared up with Zoots Bike sleeveless jersey and Bike tights. Checked on Scott AFD and to my horror, the rear tyre was flat. Spent the next 10mins trying to solve the problem but the tyre just wouldn't inflate. Desperate situation calls for desperate measures, i decided to take a cab to the startpoint. So i grabbed Red Specialised helmet and put on Shimano TR-30 on the right foot and Asics Cumulus on the left.

This ride was facilitated by L & T Bike shop, somewhere at Tampines Street 44. Managed to get to startpoint just before 8. A large group had formed, in a mixture of roadies and MTB. I got the shop machanic to fix the rear wheel's problem for $7 and bought a new pair of gloves since i forgotten to bring one.

All set to go. Wan and Raja gave a briefing before i caught up with Alex Hong from Trifam with his uber cool Triton carbon bike. Before long, the ride started and I kept to the tail of the group.

The route will takes us from Tampines Street 44 - Loyang Rd - Changi Village - Coastal Rd - ECP - Fort Rd - Guillemard Rd - Nicoll Highway - Shenton Way - Keppel Rd - Telok Blangah Rd - Pasir panjang Rd - West Coast - Jurong West - Lim Chu Kang - Neo Tiew - Kranji - Mandai - Seletar - Sengkang - Hougang - Tampines, estimated to be 120km in total.

I was supposed to accompany Lala as sweeper but found him nowhere in sight by the time we left. I assumed the sweeper's role and accompanied a MTB from Loyang till we regrouped with the front pack at the entrance to Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal Rd.

With Lala around, i joined the front pack, mainly made up of MTBs. We cruised our way through ECP and regrouped again at Fort Rd. Soon, the roadies caught up with us. From here, the next pit stop will be at Pasir Panjang Wholesale Market. We let the MTB proceed first and moved off after about 5mins. The roadies started slow but by the time we got to Nicoll Highway it was fast and furious time. My speedo recorded about 32-35km/h at this stretch.

As we left Keppel Rd, it was even faster, since there were no traffic. Speedo captured 37-39km/h at this stretch as i drafted behind, overtook, led and then drafted again behind fellow roadies. To my disappointment, there was no eatable read food served at the rest point so i had to settle for kaya toast and 3 cans of 100plus.

We moved off to the next Pit Stop, supposedly at Kranji Kopitiam. The group was spreadout pretty thinly and i was determined not to be among the last. As i passed Lala at Pandan Reservoir, i knew that i was not and after a couple of red lights, i caught up with the pack of MTBs and some roadies.

Lim Chu Kang Cemetary was the location for the next regroup point and as we waited for Lala the sweeper, i tested out Alex's Triton. Very responsive bike. Started to feel cramps creeping on right thigh so i did some stretching.

We then moved as a pack through Neo Tiew and stopped at Kranji Rd Kopi Tiam, where the other half of roadies seemed to have waited for sometime. Another dose of 100plus and a spray of deep heat later, i was ready to move off, until someone reminded me that i have forgotten to put on my helmet. Realised that i left it outside the toilet, the group left and i was among the last by the time i move off.

A couple of traffic light stops and the group got stretched even more thinly. As i entered Mandai Rd, i braced myself for the long upslope climb. I was probably down to my lightest gear and concentrated on continuously cycling my way up the slope. A lady MTB drafted behind and we finally got to the top of the slope after the entrance to Singapore Zoo.

A few riders were ahead and we motioned to ride as a pack as we caught up with them. At the junction of Seletar Rd, a police car attended to a road traffic accident involving 2 badly damaged cars. We proceeded on and rode across Lentor Ave to make our way to Yishum/Seletar Dam.

Looked like most of the riders were waiting for us as we arrived at the Dam. The place seemed to be a hangout for many bengs and mats racers. The police were there too. Raja mentioned that we have 10km to go to surpass 100km. My butt hurts.

We left via the road surrounding Seletar Airport and passed by Jalan Kayu. I would loved to have a plate of 2 prata kosong but wanted to finish the ride. We went through Fernvale, then Anchorvale and Compassvale before i led the group to Tampines Rd via my old playground at Hougang.

We regrouped for the last time at Tampines Rd and as soon as the group got bigger, we left for Tampines. I cycled-standing for most of the route by then, butt was sore real bad. Finally got to Tampines and i was contemplating on heading straight home but the promise of prata was too much to give up. Reached end point just before 4am.

The kopi shop ran out of prata but it was an enjoyable ride nonetheless. 120km in total, an increase of 30km from my last max of 90km at Desaru LD Tri.

Distance: 120km

Swim lesson - 17 Mar 08

Venue changed to Delta pool. Very old complex. Toilet was dirty. Training pool was shallow, at 0.8m. I was tired!! No sleep, 22km run in the morning and now swim lessons at night.

Anyhow, did the usual kicking with board warmup before doing catch-up with board swim for a few laps. Revised the catch-up thumps together front crawl swimming before proceeding to normal front crawl swim. Think i found my relaxed position in thumps together front crawl as i had a very hard time swimming normal front crawl after that. Butt and legs kept on sinking. The shallower pool made me very cautious of not kicking the floor. I also had difficulty rolling over on my right (breathing left) and drank lots and lots of chlorine water (can tell by the size of my tummy after the lesson).

Coach pulled me over and said, "I got to be honest with you. I think you will take a longer time to get your swim right. You can tell for yourself. Just make sure you remain patient. There are others like you who gave up, but there are also those that completed ironman races". Think i will take that as a motivation and challenge, not a discouragement. Thanks Coach.

Batteries went flat after an hour and my shoulders were sore. Legs felt light, probably the after effects of the morning run setting in. Not a good session for me. I've seen better days.

Monday Run at Dawn - 17 Mar 08

Got back from Shah Alam at 445am and headed to office as the drop off point was at Golden Mile. Ed decided to head to her parents place and i didn't want to go all the way home when i'm right in front of the office. Entered office and made my presence felt to Linda, not the first time i appeared at office in the wee hours of the morning.

Knowing that i will not be able to sleep, i changed into Adidas white tee, black shorts, NB 735 Blue, USK on race belt, white Nike cap, Zen in hand and headed out for a run. Run started at 530am. Plan was to do a return of the 26km abandoned on Friday due to the rain and time constraint.

Started rather fast this time around. Reached Esplanade for first pit stop and continued on towards Kim Seng. Felt pace was too fast so i slowed down, to save my legs for distance ahead. Stopped at Clarke Quay for the second pit stop but by then i already felt tired. Guess the intermitent sleep on the bus didn't go too well with a morning run. I should be getting some sleep instead.

Nevertheless, i continued on, going up the Esplanade bridge and turning left towards Marina South at Maxwell Rd. Time was already 7am then so i decided against doing the long route and headed straight for the pier instead. Pit stop 3 was at the pier. Didn't bring powergel and the shops were closed so i settled for tap water.

Slowly made my way back to Raffles Place, cutting into the new road that leads to Lao Pa Sat instead of using Maxwell Rd. Last pit stop was at Esplanade, but i was dead tired by then. Walked-jogged the rest of the way back to the end point at Crawford Street.

Distance covered was 22.4km, according to Mapmyrun.com.

Shoe: NB 745 Blue

Feelings: Tired. Probably a very bad idea to do this run but i needed the mileage. Legs felt like jelly.

Summary for week of 10 - 16 Mar 08

Sick and travel.

• Monday, 10 Mar: Swim session.
• Tuesday, 11 Mar: ENR cancelled due to rain.
• Wednesday, 12 Mar: No training. Had high fever at night.
• Thursday, 13 Mar: On MC, Doc gave me some tablets for flu and fever and syrup for cough.
• Friday, 14 Mar: Still down with flu and cough, fever's gone. 16.8km run after work.
• Saturday, 15 Mar: Has' wedding at Shah Alam.
• Sunday, 16 Mar: Still at Shah Alam. Took the night bus back to Singapore.

A wedding in Shah Alam - 15 and 16 Mar 08

Decided to go for this as i will not be able to make it for the celebrations in Singapore come end of March. So Ed, Has' bro Sab and I took the late Friday night bus and headed to Shah Alam. The only thing i knew about Shah Alam prior to this trip was the Stadium that looked like Huddersfield Football Club's stadium. I also knew that Shah Alam has the biggest mosque in Malaysia and a velodrome.

So after close to 8 hours on the bus, including 2hours at Tuas checkpoint thanks to tri_mas, we finally reached Shah Alam bus terminal at Section 17. Took a cab to Quality Hotel and rested until lunch with Stan.

Fast forward to evening. I contributed my 2 cents worth of thinking into the planning for this wedding, all because i don't like the idea of travelling all the way there just to be a free-riding guest. Therefore, my job was to remind Has and Sab, all the small little things about the ceremony, things that people tends to forget; like arrangement of transport, copies of prayers etc.

We left the hotel just after 7 and headed to a surau near the bride's place. After Maghrib, we slowly walked to the house, with gifts in hand. The kadi arrived soon after and relatives were all excited. A microphone was placed where Has was supposed to be seated. Don't remember that being around for me. Anyhow, everything went well, groom looked calm and oath was clear.

Everything else was just like any other typical Malay wedding. A little variation from the ones in Singapore here and there but everything else was similar.

Next day, Sunday, was the "sanding" day. This is where the groom appears at the bride's place to take her back to his. I checked to ensure that Sab had the toll money (commonly used to gain passage to the stage, where the bride normally wait at). No toll was present however, probably because the bride waited and joined the groom outside the ceremony, another variation from that in Singapore. As the ceremony went into full flow, Ed and i sat around watching, making funny faces at Has everytime he looked at our direction.

Good experience this trip. The thing that impressed me most about the event, was the camaraderie of the neighbours. The bride's place was a semi-detached house, and the recemony area was on the road in front of the house. This meant that the road needed to be closed. Stations for other essentials like drinks counter, dishes washing area, music booth were also set up in the neighbours' varandah. Honestly, no way will you get that in Singapore, no way at all.

Ed and i took the late night bus back to Singapore, as neither of us took leave from work on Monday.

Congrats to Has and Yati!!

Friday Evening Run - 14 Mar 08

Taking the night bus up to Shah Alam for Has' wedding so i thought a little run will help me sleep. Right on 6pm, i left office, wearing white Adidas tee, black shorts, USK in my newly acquired Nathan's bottle pouch, 2 packs of powergel, a bottle of Ultraman's recipe diluted 100plus, Creative Zen, white Nike cap and NB 735 blue. Started the run right on junction of Beach Rd and Jalan Sultan. Planned for a 26km in 3hrs, rather daunting, via the same ol' Crawford - Kim Seng but with Marina South Pier sandwiched in between.

My last run was a while ago so i decided to take this slow. Took a while before my legs warmed up and by then it was time for pit-stop 1 at Esplanade. Continued towards Kim Seng, by the river, passing by Clarke Quay, Robertson Quay and finally u-turning at Kim Seng. Choosed to go Kim Seng first as the Quays may be crowded as the moon rises and due to the weather too.

Felt a slight discomfort at Robertson Quay but slowly jogged to Esplanade, stopping by Clarke Quay toilet for pit-stop 2. Had my first pack of Powergel before continuing on. Got to Esplanade and the clouds seemed heavy. Decided to continue but turn back as soon as i feel the first drop of rain. Indeed, the sky opened up, lightly, when i reached Maxwell Rd. No Marina South today so i turned back and was contemplating on taking a bus to office when the rain got heavier. Thankfully, no need for EZLink card as the sky started to clear when i reached Raffles Place.

Thought about continuing to Marina South but ran back to Crawford as time was already 8pm. Meeting Ed and Has' brother at 945pm but i will also need to shower first. Had to slow down everytime i feel cramps creeping in on left calf.

Distance: 16.8km (according to MapmyRun.com)

Shoe: NB 735 Blue

Feelings: Good to have completed the run and distance. A little worried about the cramps on left calf, never had that before.

Man down

Have not been feeling too good for a while now. Last Monday after swim class, i was really hurting. Sore muscles, fever, flu and cough. Thought i could fight it off with vitamin C and cough syrup but guess i lost that fight.

After 10 days of trying, i gave up. Took piriton for the flu. Adding that to the cough syrup, vitamin C, glucosamine and anti-histamines i have been taking regularly, and i can probably start my own pharmacy.

What went wrong? Did i over-exerted myself? Going to the doc tomorrow. Hope i can sleep tonite.

Raining cats, dogs, elephants and buffalos

As the saying goes, when it rains, it pours. Rainy season started rather late this year. It has been raining cats, dog and everything that comes in between for the last 2 weeks, disrupting my training schedule.

Tuesday, 11 Mar

Was contemplating between CBD Run, yoga with the BRF gang, ENR ride or a ninja run after sending my bike to Rodalink for servicing. After much ding-dongs here and there, which i can't seem to recall much about, i decided to go with ENR.

Sky started to clear by 6pm at Beach Rd but someone posted in the Trifam forum that there was a storm at Tampines. So ride was off. No training again. Should have just gone for the Yoga.

Wednesday, 12 Mar

Took pm off. Initial plan was to get home, and bring the bike out to Rodalink, collect Ed's new Helios 500 and go for a practice ride at ECP. SKy disagreed so we collected the bike, took a taxi home and watched CSI and WWE Raw on tv instead.

Badly in need of training now, but feeling very much under the weather.

Swim lessons: 10 Mar 08

Crawling forward with every pull

Good session today, though it ended rather weirdly. Got to Bishan pool at 7. It was raining cats and dogs so i guessed the water will be uber cold, and cold it was indeed.

Did the normal warm-up, then refresher of the pull and recovery with kickboard before staring on the thumbs together forward crawl. Managed to do full laps, though my legs were swaying from side to side on every pull. Breathing wasn't relaxed. Hell, i wasn't relaxed at all. More of struggling i must say.

Graduated to side strokes after that and i felt weird, even groggy. As if i'm suffering from motion sickness. Motion sickness!! Me??

Anyway, guess i need to do homework on the forward crawl and side strokes, with 2 months to go to Bintan Tri.

Summary for period of 3 - 9 Mar 07

Monday, 3 Mar: Swim lessons

Tuesday, 4 Mar: Strained triceps, shoulders and back. Rest day.

Wednesday, 5 Mar: Travel day. Down with flu and cough. Physio Jai did his stuff, commenting that i seemed bigger now. Got a shock when i weighed myself at Coach Suhaimi's room; 10kg above my ideal weight. HHmm... good? bad? ugly?

Thursday, 6 Mar: Travel day again. Still suffering from flu and cough. Had a craving for Chillis.. the mexican kind... so got home, toasted then pounded some cumin, browned some minced beef, threw in onions, garlic, tomatoes and paste, roasted some potatoes and toasted bread for a nice dinner.

Friday, 7 Mar: Travelled again. Had a nice facial treatment before meeting IAS for boys-nite-out dinner.

Saturday, 8 Mar: Dreamt that i was riding at Coastal Rd. No training, still coughing. Went to Rodalink, Ed bought a Helios 500. This 10-speed bike is fitted with Shimano 105s. Guessed her bike will be better than mine? Nah.. its not the machine that matters, its the engine. Continued our shopping spree at Sim Lim. Got her a PSP for her birthday. Bad move? Verdict to be out in 2 months....

Sunday, 9 Mar: Dreamt that i was striding along ECP, waving at fellow runners coming from opposite direction, stopping at NSRCC for the sunrise. No training, still coughing. Ed's birthday, so had a family dinner, her family, after watering plants at my dad's place. About the dinner...?? Nevermind.... need some getting used to... all of us that is. Managed to end the night with a surprise for Ed. How can a birthday be a birthday without a birthday cake? That's actually just my excuse to eat a cake. The surprise...... nah.... not sharing my ideas.

Swim lessons: 3 Mar 08

The day i crawled forward

Took am off and after running a few errands, got to Bishan stadium. With close to 2 hours to go before lessons begins, i did some swim of my own. Breaststroke swim. 20 laps, with rest after every lap.

Distance: 20 x 50m

Continued to swim lesson by warming up with the chin-on-water, hands-on-kickboard, kick-till-you-tire routine for 6 laps. Coach told me to continue with pull-and-recover with kickboard. I was starting to get real frustrated but remembering Coach's words [it is harder when using kickboard, but when you are ready i will take it away, and you'll swim very fast], i persevered on.

Indeed, a short while after, Coach took my kickboard and told me to swim without it, breathing after every 3 pulls [means breathing from one side then the other], thump together before every pull. I recovered my enthusiasm, and perhaps must have overdid it, as i felt strain of my triceps. Could the breaststroke swim have played a part in that?

Lessons ended with me on a high. But my kicking still sucked.

Summary for the period 25 Feb - 2 Mar

Monday, 25 Feb: Swim lessons

Tuesday, 26 Feb: CBD Run

Wednesday, 27 Feb: Vertical marathon training.

Thursday, 28 Feb: No training.

Friday, 29 Feb: No training.

Saturday, 1 Mar: On duty at NATAS Fair.

Sunday, 2 Mar: Got up late for National Vertical Marathon, hence missed it. I didn't feel like going anyway.