Final Countdown!

3 MORE DAYS! Did my last run today, 4km. Haven't really been eating that much this week, just as normal. Didn't want to gain any extra weight just before the race ....it would be more difficult to run with all that added weight! Will start carbo loading proper tomorrow..although I had some rice today, I wouldn't really say I am loading up yet. But will eat more tomorrow and the day after.

How do I feel? At this moment, I am not having any jitters yet. Don't want to think about it until the day arrives. Infact, I'd like to enjoy myself, even during the race...until the point where I start to question myself "Why on earth am I doing this?"

Just heard a song called "You can Get it if y ou Really Want" by Desmond Dekker - it's an oldie but somewhat inspiring for the race!

Singapore, here I come!

Chicken rules!

There's nothing like a bottle of Brand's Essence of Chicken to perk you up! I have been feeling tired since my HK trip, as I've not had enough rest..started hitting the books the day after I came back and I've been studying every night. My weekly long distance run (which I'm cutting back anyway) has suffered also but I'll not worry about my run until the day itself! No point worrying now..I can't do much about my physical strength anymore at this stage.

Thanks to TA who wanted some Brand's essence of chicken bottles, I was reminded that I have quite a few bottles left. Decided to take a bottle last night and it made such a REMARKABLE difference this morning. Felt more energetic than usual this morning, and I was able to run at a decent speed without feeling tired.

Must remember to pack a bottle of Brand's in my bag for the Singapore run.

Mental over physical

It's tapering period. Since I got back fom Hong Kong, I don't think I've rested enough. Can't seem to run as well as I did before I left. Now mental strength will have to take over physical strength.

and prayers....i'll need a lot of that.

Starbucks girl

My most frequented Starbucks stores (in order from most to least)

1. Jln Telawi 3
2. Bangsar Village
3. Section 14 (Jaya)
4. Amcorp

I've been told that Starbucks in Hong Kong sucks.

No Men Allowed

While I was away in Hong Kong, my gym had made an announcement that they were going to convert to an all ladies' gym effective 1 December 2006. Lifestyle had been one of the pioneers in the fitness industry in KL, but unfortunately lost out to many mega gyms over the years. I continued to gym there for the last 8 years, as I was comfortable with the fact that it wasn't a flashy gym and they don't push personal training, which most gyms do (and on top of that most so called personal trainers in those gyms are inexperienced and know nuts about fitness)

Celebrity Fitness will be opening in Bangsar Village 2 in February 2007, and Lifestyle made this change of direction so as not to compete head on with Celebrity. Instead they are trying to look for a more niche market,but unfortunately this message was not communicated well to the members. Members were left disgruntled and unhappy, as there are several male members, and even the female members are happy to have the men around. I myself am affected, as I have a joint membership with my brother, and we had paid our fees upfront until March next year. So my brother's membership will be terminated, and I do not want to be left in the gym by myself. If we were to join another gym, it will obviously be a joint membership as it usually works out to be cheaper. So at the moment I do not know what the gym's decision is, whether the ladies with joint membership with men will be compensated at all.

In my opinion, this was really a bad move, as they did not consult existing members, and existing members are the ones paying them and keeping them going. It would be much easier to build the business from within, than to start recruiting new members. In any case, I would have to start looking for a new gym. The options I have are:

1. Fitness First ( parking isn't exactly great here and I'd have to bring own towel)
2. True Fitness (I don't mind this gym but it's not that accessible)
3. Celebrity Fitness ( I don't like their marketing oriented style, but it seems to be the most convenient)

Although I am not into flashy gyms, in a way I am kind of looking forward to joining a new gym...hopefully I'll be more motivated and challenged.

Foretaste of Hong Kong Marathon

I'm back from Hong Kong!It's good to be back to clear blue skies! It was extremely hazy in Hong Kong, it was quite difficult to snap nice photos. All you see is a blanket of grey in the background.

Only 3 weeks more to Singapore Marathon. I only got back from Hong Kong yesterday and I had to miss the run this morning as I was too tired. Anyway, I've done my long run last week and I'm beginning to taper off. I did a lot of walking in Hong Kong, but I did not bring my orthotics along (in case I did something silly like leave it behind, which I absolutely can't afford because I desperately need them for Sing marathon). Walking around without the orthotics caused my feet to be sore most of the time, and what made it worse was not wearing proper footwear (I only wore sandals and not running shoes as it was hot).

Did a lot of walking daily, and in the sweltering heat it was really tiring. I did manage to go out for a run one of those days, on Tuesday morning. I stayed with my friend in a suburb called Shau Kei Wan, which is pretty good for running, as the streets are less busy, and there's a courtyard just down the road where you can see senior citizens doing taichi every morning. The only thing I didn't like was, i had to run on the pavement because it was quite dangerous to run on the narrow streets, and the pavement was hard on the feet!

So, if I ever decide to run the Hong Kong marathon, there are a few things I have to take note of:
1. Hong Kong is pretty hilly (oh ya, my butt feels worked out after all those uphill walks)
2. It's quite polluted (someone DIED from the run last year)
3. It will be quite cold to run sometime in February


HK Marathon will be on 4 March next year..should I?

34km!

I ran 34km today. Now I feel at peace to go to Hong Kong! That will be my last long distance run before the race. After this I will be tapering. It took me 4 hours to complete 34km, as I went very slowly. I didn't feel exactly in tip top condition, considering I was feeling anaemic the last 3 days. I had to take a break from gym yesterday, so that I could compelte 34km today.

An unfortunate event occurred today. One of the men in our group met with an accident. While crossing the Jalan Duta highway, he got knocked down by a bike and suffered fractures in his leg. After completing 20km at the Petronas Station in Jln Hartamas 1, most of us decided not to do the extra loop but this uncle decided to do the extra loop. As such, he was behind us, and I was quite far ahead. I did not know about the accident until I got back. It was a good thing that there were other runners with him at the time it happened, and helped to call for ambulance.

The last time I heard, his condition is stable and he's resting in hospital.

The dangers of running..

Me, quit? Never.

This is a line I got from Bethany Hamilton's website. Bethany's a teen surfer who had her arm bitten off by a shark back in 2003. Yet today, she's still riding the waves, and living her life for the Lord. It's an inspiring story for athletes, with the message or never giving up. She's even go ther own devotional book, called "Soul Surfer", in which she said she was very calm even after that incident happened, as she knew God was watching over her.

Quotes of Bethany:
"I might not be here if I hadn't asked for God's help"

"I look at everything that's happened as part of God's plan for my life"

She attends North Shore Christian Church, an evangelical church in Kaua'i, Hawaii.

I've got to do my long run this weekend despite feeling weak and anaemic in the last 2 days. Oh well. I guess I have to remember: "Me, quit? Never."

Sun's in my eyes

HURRAAHHH!!! What fantastic weather today. For the first time in weeks I am so glad to see the sun bursting right out of the sky. Haze has cleared in the last 2 days..I hope it will remain this way. Pity today I'm not running outdoor, as I'd decided to do it yesterday - my usual 6.6km. Thought I'd rest and go to the gym instead to recover for a long run over the weekend.

Legs day today.

Hurricane Preferred

I had a good 7km run this morning. Tested out my Saucony Triumph. Very sturdy shoe, but C-Cube is quite right in saying that it's quite tight. Although I bought half a size bigger than my usual size, I still found it pretty tight initially. It's definitely better than New Balance 1060 in my opinion, but Hurricane fitted me more like a glove. I just love how sturdy Saucony shoes are. It even feels like it stabilizes your knees. And I believe that even when you're tired, a good pair of running shoes will help you run fast. Today my calf muscles were still pretty sore from Sunday, but yet I ran the fastest 7km I have ever run (Aiya wasted, I didn't time myself..but I knew for sure Jin and Hsiung were far behind and it's VERY RARE they dont catch up with me after 7km)

So I've decided. It's Hurricane for the race.

28km

Ran 28km last Sunday. Due to my indiscipline of late night on Friday, I woke up on Saturday morning feeling sick, and to make things worse, I had thosai and curry for breakfast (made by my neighbour for Deepavali). Lunch time i popped over to a friend's and had overdose of curry as well. I ended up feeling quite sick on Saturday and could not work much. Not to forget I missed my usual run.

But as a result of overeating, I had to force myself to run on Sunday. Woke up feeling not-quite-recovered but nevertheless went for a run..and I achieved 28km without dying! 2 points - point no 1 i think i was well rested from Saturday
-point no 2: it was much easier to achieve this 28km compared to the first time i did it in 2004.
Thanks to KC, who ran with me until about 15km before I decided I was going to U turn and do a longer run.

Hopefully the HK trip won't foil my training much.

Bombed

Had a nice foot massage this morning. Despite all the stretching I do, it's still good to go for a massage once in a while to loosen up all the tight muscles. Ran 6km on treadmill indoors today..haze is worsening, there's no improvement despite heavy downpour. Overdid it at dinner yesterday. Had dinner at Lake Club, in the Orchid Room.

I had grilled salmon with baked potatoes and vege, and then had the killer: Bombe Alaska...a sponge cake topped with diced fresh fruit and vanilla ice cream, encapsulated by merangue drowned with rum and set aflame.

I'm so disappointed in myself, it's already so difficult to lose weight and now I'm even packing on the pounds. Sigh. Need to discipline myself in my diet.

Here Comes the Rain Again

RAIN!!!!!! Hurrah!!! (no, not the Korean popster)

Ran 9km Pantai Hills + Terasek. This is crazy, with the haze and all. When will it come to an end??

4km run on treadmill
Push ups
Upright row
Cable row
Cable pullover
Crunches

Hmmph. Haze not cleared yet. >:(

25km

Failed miserably today. Had planned to do 28km but all I could manage was 25km. Well, I suppose that's 1km more than last week. But I was in poor form today. I think it's because I haven't had any rest since last Sunday.

Wasn't sure if I wanted to run today as there was still some haze, but I figured out it's not going to get that much better by tomorrow. Anyway better to do it today so that I have a full Sunday to do my studies. The first 10km was tiring, the 2nd 10km was even more tiring, and the last 5 km I just died.,..had to go very very slow. Even the Power bar didn't help. Rest is really important, because it helps your muscles to recover so that they can perform better. Struggled a bit with my running belt, as the water was getting very heavy and at the same it kept slipping down.I think I took nearly 3 hours for the whole run. Baaadd.

Getting Clearer

The haze has cleared up quite a bit! There's still traces of it, but I would consider it quite "normal"...it's one of those days that look a bit hazy but I wouln't hesitate to go out for a run. I think runners' tolerance to haze is quite high. Or maybe we are just justifying ourselves because we can't go without running.

Ran 6.6km today. I think my speed has improved a little. My mental strength has also improved a little. I'm doing pretty well in my running now, I dread to think what the 1 week in Hong Kong is going to do to me. I think the trick is to just take it easy and not put too much pressure on myself. When I return from Hong Kong, I will take it slow, and just treat any LSD as my usual exercise.

Of Hurricanes and Haze

Tested my Saucony Hurricane today on an 8km run in Pantai Hills. If I had to use one word to describe Hurricane, it is STABLE. Very firm and sturdy. This is my 3rd pair of Hurricane, and I get maximum satisfaction out of every pair I have owned. The sole is a lot thicker, which is good because I am more heavy set, and it helps a lot with shock absorption. I love it! I love it! 99% satisfaction guaranteed.(I don't believe anything is 100%.. i think.)

Since the haze was still quite bad this morning, I decided to run indoor(treadmill). I consulted Jenny and even she, who would usually run in ALL conditions, suggested we do indoor. Hsiung on the other hand, has been slacking and for the life of me I can't understand why he is so keen to run outdoors today. I think he was guilty because he missed his run on Saturday. So somehow, after running on the treadmill about 5 mins, Hsiung came along and persuaded us to do outdoor. Against my better judgment, I agreed to go.

I nearly died. At the peak of Pantai Hills, I could not even see KL Tower nor Twin Towers. That's how bad it was. I'm getting sick of the haze. Year in, year out.

It's raining now. I hope the haze clears.

Over the Weekend

Here's what happened last weekend:

Saturday
Decided not to run on Saturday as the haze was still quite bad. As I opened the door I was welcomed with a whiff of smoke and thick acrid haze. (Actually I was still quite down so had no mood to run, coupled with the depressing haze). Anyway, my friend's mom invited me to go for ALAN TAM concert in Bukit Jalil. What a joke! A banana in a Chinese concert.

I ended up enjoying the concert, although I didn't understand a single word he sang except for "pang yau". I understood him when he spoke but somehow I couldn't understand him when he sang - I guess the language is more poetic in the songs. Mandarin songs - worse still - don't understand anything. We got the RM340 VIP seats , which was quite near the stage. I thought Alan was a little tubby, and as a result couldn't hop around as much. The stage and special effects were wonderful, with fireworks and streamers bursting. Even the dancers were really good. Costume - Alan's costume - so so only. Despite the banana I am, I recognised some of his really old songs like Fantasy and Lorelei (if those are the actual titles). Also recognised the English songs which were translated, like "THe Look", "Hand in hand" and "All out of love".

The concert was value for money - 3 full hours of excitement and entertainment. Good thing I wasn't busting to go to toilet. One thing I don't understand about the organisers is that, they don't permit us to bring bottled water in but they permit people to bring in cigarette lighters. Some bozo's were smoking during the show - that was SO annoying. I had a great time and so did aunty. My first Chinese concert ever and I enjoyed it thoroughly! Jesscet - can burn some Alan Tam songs for me ah?

Sunday
OK - felt guilty about not running yesterday, so decided to join Jenny for a run today. Clocked in 24km...it was a great run. I was in top form considering I didn't eat well on Saturday. All I had were 2 sandwiches, 1 glass of red bean soup and 2 slices of banana cake the whole day. But I had Power Bar that morning and it really gave me lots of energy. Finished 20km in good time, i took about 2 hours 8 mins when i usually take 2 hours 15 mins. But I DIED the rest of the 4km. Was supposed to do 25km but I cheated a bit and did 24km.

All sore today, could only cycle in the gym. Did a bit of upper body as well.

Mel Boy