Recovery Day

Ouch, 2nd day is when the full effects of DOMS and soreness set in. Ouch indeed. Had to support my knees just to go down the stairs.

Recovery 1 - Massage my precious legs!

Recovery 2 - an ultra slow 5km trot around Safra. It was supposed to be a swim, but oh well, social pulls were stronger and I ended up trotting along. Nonetheless, it helped to flush out some lactic and I managed to stretch properly after the trot.

Recovery 3 - eat eat eat. Ate so much at dinner, it was unbelievable.... *guilty*

MR Ultra 84km

Ecstatic to come in 2nd for the annual year-end MR ultramarathon. Surpassed my previous record of 7 rounds to complete 8 loops in good timing. :)))

The MR ultra-marathon was a 12h race where runners attempted as many rounds of the 10.5km route from 7am - 7pm, each round averaging less than 2h. Alber and I were 23min late for the run, no thanks to an overdose of xmas-y gatherings. Felt a little gan-cheong and we tried to go at a steady pace. By the 2nd loop, we caught up with some friends. It was the first time we managed to run together and keep in pace, for a good 42km. Mighty pleased with the effort. We ran together for half of the 5th round and split up. The timing looked good and I felt like there was sufficient time to aim for 8 rounds if I could maintain the pace.

So my routine went something like this - Ran without stopping for the first 3 rounds. Then run 1 lap, toilet & food break 4-5min, start next lap. My aim was to cap each round at 1:30h (incl break). It started drizzling slightly on the 4th & 5th round, with thunder rumbling in the distance. The past days saw heavy downpours in the late afternoons. Likewise the forecast for today. The weather on the run thus far had been cool with a slight overcast, shady & breezy. I was praying so so very hard for it not to rain. In exchange for continued good weather, my promise was to complete 7-8 loops. Miraculously, the weather held up and we even had a glimmer of sunshine around 4pm.

I told myself running 5 rounds was the minimum. The race was just starting now, go on! I was still feeling ok on the 6th round, managed to run fairly strong, even though I was already walking up the slopes to save my legs. But the fatigue in the legs really set in on the 7th round. That was when I could feel the back of knees tightening and locking up. For once I ran without my water bottle and relied purely on the water points. I was so worried that they would pack up before I was done, and kept asking them not to 'close shop' yet. I met Rima on the 7th round and she said, "It's mind over matter now, go another loop."

The guys were still waiting at the end point when I reached. Results update, 5th if I stopped, 2nd if I ran. But it was not about the win. I did not start the run with a podium aim. It was a personal challenge to complete 84km in the trail. Friends would know that I never go into a trail with expectations. I only modify my goals along the way, depending on how I felt during the run. You have to feel at ease and as one with the nature in order to run well, go with the flow. Looking at the watch every minute is stressful and wrecks the running rhythm. Skipping on the rocks was a good fun distraction, daring to run downslopes when others held back, and shuffling on the grass even though there was a tarmac road. Those were just some of the joys of trail runs.

The 8th round was pure mental perseverance. I felt like my legs had reached their limit - I could not imagine 100k of trail. There was a certain high knowing that it was the last loop, I just had to endure and force through this. I remembered my promise for good weather and there was no way I would give up and forfeit all my effort in the day. The organizers had informed the volunteers at the water station that I was the last runner because they were looking out for me. Oops, felt bad they had to wait. The light opening at the end of the trail exit was the sweetest sight ever, there was just a little stretch of 3-4min tarmac to the finishing point. Alber was waiting near the carpark end, took photos and ran with me to the end. :) It was pure happiness to finish that distance. I honestly did not think I could run that well on the roads (flashback to Sundown 84). Love love love the trails! :)

Net timing (official minus 23min)
1lap - 1:11h
2lap - 1:10h
3lap - 1:14h
4lap - 1:31h (2 toilet breaks) -- 42km 5:08h (half a powergel)
5lap - 1:29h -- 52.5km 6:37h (faster than TNF race!) (half a powergel)
6lap - 1:32h (quarter of Gardenia focaccia bread, tks Jack!, half a powergel)
7lap - 1:36h (half of my turkey sandwich, iced-milo, orange juice, thanks Alber!, half a powergel)
8lap - 1:31h (mouthfuls of sandwich, milo)
Grand total - 11:18:30h yoohoo!! 2nd prize women

Could barely walk and climb the stairs to my room after the race. It was worse coming down. Gosh, guess I would have to hobble for a few days.

Xmas Ride

The guys went for a 430am ride. What unheavenly hours on a xmas day! I dragged til 11am to start my ride. Alber and I went 1 loop of Mandai and then to Kranji to have lunch with the morning group. And then back to Mandai for Loop 2 and home. On the way back, we stopped at a coffeeshop along Upp Bt Timah Road that had pretty decent char siew and crispy roast pork. New pit stop for next ride. :)

Brought my family to Sakuraya for fresh sashimi. I ordered an entire fish - some reddish looking plumpish fish, in addition to an assortment of salmon belly, fatty hamachi, tuna & scallop sashimi. :) Heavens!

So this is xmas... a day with family & close friends, workout and great food. :) A rest day tomorrow before attempting the MR ultra on Sunday.

Brick Swim-Run

Met a couple of friends at Safra for a swim-run brick.

30 laps - Felt very tired & heavy in the pool tonight and took long than usual to cut the waters.
12:41min, 13:42min, 13:12min = 39.37min

Run - Morse Rd up to MF, 1.5loops, and down from Kg Bahru. The distance seemed relatively short ~8km?, 46min.

Tired...

Short Leisure Run

Had to go off early for a dinner and could not join in the Safra run. Instead we did a very slow leisurely run around Canterbury. Brought SL & KM on the run, together with Alber. Distance ~11km. Took a long long time...

NTU Combo Ride

Plan was to do many loops in NTU. Alas, survived only 3 loops and nearly died of boredom. So we went out to Kranji/ Neo Tiew. Rode hard for that 30km out & back. Met WH & HS back in NTU and we went for another loop. Total distance was only 50km but I was totally spent...

Then we did a brick run. Supposedly 5km, but I was so tired I jogged and walked a lot and ended up taking 50min! zzzz......

MR Plant Flowers

Did an easy 10+ loop with Yean in the morning, with a slight detour out on the trail towards Rifle Range, and back.

Off Rhythm Tracks

5x 1200m @ Queenstown stadium

My last track workout must have been around August in preparation for Desaru HIM. Thereafter it was a mad rush of trips, climb, ultras etc.

Back to current, it was a painful track intervals. I struggled to get back the feel and rhythm of speed work.

1- 5:50min
2- 5:45min
3- 5:42
4- 5:36
5- 5:41

And panting all the way, legs almost cramped.... Definitely off-form.

Mini (Iron) Biathlon

Swam 20laps and my arms were heavy after only 8laps. The result of gym weights last night.

500m - 12:19min
500m - 12:40min
Total - 24:59min

Did a slow jog with Alber & Melvin. It was abt 7min pace for me, too stiff and tight to run better. 50min of run.

Yawn, so tired and sleepy now....

Swimming Day

Went to Safra to swim. Some lanes blocked off (crumbs....) so all the swimmers were squeezed into 2/3rd of the pool. I ended up with many old aunties & uncles in a section of the pool and they were all using breaststroke and swimming off-lane.

500m - 12:19min
500m - 13:08
500m - 12: 30
Total - 37:58min

MR Leisure Jog

Back in the trails, woohoo! Did a leisurely jog in MR this morning. It was nice to be out there, no pressure, just trotting along and enjoying myself. It was late morning by the time I started and the sun was blistering, but it was nice and cool in the trails. My Asics trail shoes were mended and re-mended so many times, I wondered how much longer they would last. Sadly, the model was out of production. The replacement models did not feel as 'connected' as these. :(

1:15min trot. Lovely. :)

Quick Swim

Had some time in between D&D which was near the clubhouse. Needed to clear my mind so I took a quick 20lap swim. It was the first 'workout' I did since IMWA. It was simply nice to swim short & slow. Just getting into the rhythm.

25min 20 laps.

From Perth & Busselton

1/2 Dec 2009

We arrived in Perth almost midnight. There was a sizable group of IM participants on the flight. When the customs officers saw our 10 giant bike cases, they simply waved us through. *whew* no need to open up the wheels and luggages for checks. By the time we settled in our apartment, it was 3am. Yawn. Tested my brand new running shoes in the morning in the gym treadmill. Nice, did not have to break them in. We had a late lunch of fish & chips, did some grocery shopping, wandered around King's Park and had dinner at a friend's house. Chicken rice in a foreign land. Bliss. :)

3 Dec 2009

The drive to Busselton took about 3h. We arrived rather late at 12noon & headed straight to the registration tentage. It was a great IM ambience at the IM-Village, with lots of merchandise and athletes milling around. Went to our resort & set up our bicycles. Managed to do a short 45min test ride. Gosh, the winds are free! We went for the athletes' parade and caught the Singaporean group along the way. There was a moment of national pride with the Flag proudly displayed and our anthem being played during the carbo dinner. :)

Last Swim Class

Last class of the season.

100m - 2:22min
400m - 10:03min
350m - 9:02
350m - 9:05
250m - 6:43
250m - 6:46
100m - 2:25
50m - 1:07

Various relay games to end the class.
Busso here we go!

Tapering Run

Became a fat bird this morning with a tapering 18km run at ECP. Saw many friends training there for various races. We were going with the 4:30h group. Good to see Nigel after a long time. I got dropped after the 2nd toilet break and had to go doubly fast to catch up with the group. Bummer.... Managed to chase and re-group. 1:45hr.

Time to rest those legs til next weekend! :)

Leisurely Swim

Finally dipped into the pool after a week of rain and temperamental weather.

3x 500m
12:58, 13:.., 13:... = 39:39.

What a nice number, can buy 4D!

Slow slow run

Let's see, in typical PS-fashion, I have to hurt something somewhere before a major race. Right foot from US trail marathon. Right thigh from Sunday's long ride. Left toe from (of all silly things) my work shoes. How clutzy! Massaged all of these today and hopefully they will recover in a week.

Did a slow jog around Canterbury-Harbourfront in my new Asics. Shoes were a little stiff initially but broken into after 30min. Legs and body though were terribly tired and uncooperative. So we just trudged along very slowly. It was one of those runs just for activity, not training. Heck, I was not even timing myself. Thankfully, all the problem zones did not hurt as much as last Saturday. Whew! Enroute to recovery.... *fingers crossed*

Relay Swim

Late for swim and missed the drills.

400m - 9:21min
350m - 8:13
350m - 8:23
250m - 5:54
250m - 5:57
200m - 4:39
200m - 4:41
Relay front crawl, aka, sprint x1 - 57sec
Relay front crawl next set, aka, sprint x1 - 54sec (!! yeah)

Windy Ride

Another insanely early morning ride, which of course we were late for. Terribly apologetic. As usual, my mind and body do not function well in the dark or before sunrise. Rode very conservatively in the beginning.

The winds were free today - all sorts - headwind, tailwind, crosswind.... Buy 1 get 3 free. Never experienced such strong winds in Singapore as this morning. So many times I was almost swept away, wobbly. And the winds in Busselton are stronger than these. I was so petrified that I would be blown off course during the race! Craps.

A couple of new guys joined us today. They were fast. Chased as hard as I could, but was still dropped within sight of them. Went really hard along Jln Ahmad Ibrahim to Tuas. By the time we exited Tuas, I was spent... Getting back to my car was another challenge.

Total 145km.
Legs aching, eyes drooping... Time to sleep.

Painful Run

Joined in Fatbird's long run this morning. 28km. Not very long, but it felt like 50km after I was done. Ouch. Leg pain, back pain, stomach pain. Haha.... That did not sound promising at all. After weeks of running on trails, the tarmac was very hard on my knees and legs. My injured foot felt problematic again. Sigh. Walked, ran, walked, ran with a few other runners, and finally managed to get back to the start/end point. Whew....

Super tired.

Non-stop Swim

For some strange reason my watch was totally reset tonight and I could not record the timings properly. It was simply a non-stop 1-speed swim for 1.5hr tonight. I was in Lane 2, there were various drill sets of moderate, fast and sprint speeds. But for me, it was simply 1 speed. I was dropped big time and almost lapped by 1 lap, so much chasing! *pant*

A warm-up set that I missed. Was 350/ 400m I think. Swam abt 200m cos late.

7x 100m 2:45min I think
400m moderate
8x 100m 2:30min
400 moderate
10x 50m sprint

Total: 3km
Aching shoulders and back.

Kat brought a surprise cake so we had a little celebration. Lots of snapping photos with me in messy swim wear holding the cake. Eeeks!

Infinite Swim

Water was cold today after the downcast skies and wet weather for the past few days. Brrr...

Coach: "All of you very cold right? Go swim 500m to warm-up."
Okayee....

Then it became somewhat of an infinitely sadistic swim.
500m, 7x 100m 'sprints', 400m, 7x 100m 'sprints', 400m, alternating 50m. No drills today! Maybe Coach deliberately forgot.

500m- 11:45min
7x 100m- 2:14, 2:16, 2:15, 2:13, 2:15, 2:16, 2:15
400m- 9:47min
7x 100m- 2:17, 2:22, 2:22, 2:22, 2:21, 2:21, 2:25
400m- 10:08min
8x 50m- 1:08, 1:11, 1:06, 1:05, 1:07, 1:06, 1:14, 1:03
(easy, hard, moderate hard, repeat)

Good night!
Such magical words to the ears!

Cruising Ride

Alber and I headed out for a morning ride. Not one of those insanely 4/5am rides, but one which started comfortably at 800am. It was 2mths since I last got on my bike. Every time I laid off cycling for a long while, it took a little getting used to. And each time I would be momentarily stumped over the gears and brakes and recalling which cleat to clip in first.

We did the Mandai loops. Legs were fresh, obviously after such a long break. I even managed to pedal standing on the upslopes! :)) Well, somewhat because I would then wobble and sit down. Today I had no patience for incompetent drivers. I think I showed hand (not finger) to about 3 drivers who were so irritatingly slow and hesistant, I would have crashed into them from behind.

Total distance: ~100km

One more long ride and then time to taper. :)

Miracle Class

I call tonight a miracle class because the rain actually stopped for class. It was still raining and drizzling as I drove to the pool, but stopped once class began! Drills were harder than swimming. :(

Training- Coach said go slow, it's Friday, don't sprint, watch the arms and strokes.

Warmup 2x 100m= 2:13, 2:14,
7x 100m= 2:11, 2:15, 2:22, 2:23, 2:19, 2:21, 2:22
6x 100m= 2:20, 2:24, 2:21, 2:22, 2:19, 2:21

Sprints:
57min, 59, 58, 1:00 (yeah!)

Thursday Happy Swim Class

There was such a huge turnout today, the lanes were crowded. People must be doing their make-up or utilizing the 4 free sessions because the class season was ending soon.

Coach moved me and Vanu to Lane 2.
Coach: Vanu & PS go to Lane 2 last swimmers. I think you can catch up.
Me: Huh? Don't want lah, so fast.
Coach: Up to you. But PS, you doing WA right?
(my sheepish nod)
Coach: Then go get some intensity!
(suitably chastized....)

Life in Lane 1 first set of 7x 100m in 3min intervals:
2:17, 2:22, 2:20, 2:23, 2:13, 2:14, 2:15

Life in Lane 2, 7x 100m, 2:45min intervals:
2:05, 2:06, 2:07, 2:12, 2:11, 2:12, 2:14

5x 100m, 2:30 intervals:
2:08, 2:09, 2:15, 2:14, 2:16

7x 100m, 2:45min intervals:
2:14, 2:21, 2:24, 2:22, 2:22, 2:22, 2:20

6x 50m 'sprints' (no rest after previous 100m set!):
1:12, 1:12, 1:13, 1:13, 1:12, 1:07,

Recovery Run

I was very lazy, did not feel like training. In the end, went with a few YF folks for a slow jog around Botanic Gardens. Then we crossed over to Dempsey, Ridley and connected back to Tanglin Rd and returned to the SMU tracks. Total 56min. I think it was only 8km? Oh dear...

Stinson Beach Marathon, CA (7 Nov 2009)

Event- http://www.envirosports.com/events/event.php?eventid=2638
Photos- http://picasaweb.google.com/simsps/StinsonBeachMarathon7Nov2009#


It was my 2nd trail marathon in the USA. This time it was in the scenic cradle of Marin County and Mt. Tamalpais national park, across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The place yielded a special meaning for me. As a young student in Berkeley 13 years ago, my first orientation camp was in the Marin County Muir Woods. Coming fresh from tropical Singapore, I was totally unprepared and under-dressed for the cold and winds of the seaside campground. Yet I stayed outdoors and huddled next to a huge campfire the whole night. It was the first time I saw high waves hitting the shores, and a vast unbroken horizon of the ocean and city landscape from the trails.

Thirteen years later, I am back on the shores, waiting for the start of a marathon. The Stinson Beach Marathon was a community event, limited to 300 participants across 7mi (11.2km), 25km and 26mi (42km) categories, with a course-wide 6h cut-off time. The route took us from sea level to 1,800ft (550m) where we ran along the mountain ridge with a spectacular view of the glittering ocean. The weather was glorious with clear skies and sunshine. Runners gathered as the race director gave instructions, and then headed for the beach where the start point was. That would be the only time we were at sea-level.

The run began with a steep climb on the Dipsea Trail. We went up 1,500ft (460m) in the first 3mi (4.8km) on wooden steps, slopes and rocks. That averaged 500ft/mi (~110m/km). Brutal! A guy tripped in front of me and twisted his ankle. Ouch. It took me 50min to clear that section. Everyone was immensely relieved to see the water station at 3mi.

There were no distance markers on the trail, only orange guiding ribbons. The only estimates we had were the four aid stations at the 3mi (4.8km), 11mi (17.6km), 17mi (27.2km) and 20mi (32km). Runners were encouraged to carry our own water due to the large and uneven distance gaps between the stations. I took my trusty Salomon hydration pack.

The route descended to 200ft (60m) for the next 5mi (8km) until it was time to climb again. I ran and walked with 2 other runners as we tackled the unforgiving slopes for another 3mi (4.8km). I looked forward to the next station at 11mi and was having problems converting the measurements to metric. The climb seemed never-ending until I heard vehicles and figured that the road and aid station should be nearby. This time we reached the maximum elevation of the marathon at 1,800ft (550m).

Each aid station had trays of nutty trail mix, energy bars, bananas, pretzel mix, Gatorade and water. I spent 3min at each station, taking my time to munch on the nuts and refuel. This was the only marathon where I did not consume a single powergel. I was totally enjoying myself and the cashew nuts.

With the hard climbs behind us, we continued along an exposed ridge that snaked high along the mountain curves. The sun shone and the ocean resembled an endless soft flowing mirror. The breathtaking views and the gently rolling slopes made for a very pleasant run. I was distracted with my camera and almost fell flat on an uneven ground. It was difficult to keep my eyes down on the trail as the scenery unfolded by my side.

Soon I reached the 17mi aid station and there was another 1.5mi to the u-turn point. The path narrowed considerably, with thick dry grass growing on one side, and a drop on the other. There was only space for my left foot to land flatly, while my right foot struck the uneven mound at an angle. After a few minutes, my right ankle was strained from the constant lopsided impact. We also had to share the narrow trail with marathoners who were returning in the reverse direction. We often had to stop, step aside and let the other runner pass through.

The u-turn point was nondescript, with only an arrow signboard. It was a race based on runners’ integrity. We headed back on the narrow path to the previous aid station. I was making good timing, 3:45h by 20mi (32km). There was hope for a sub-5h completion, since the last stretch was essentially downhill to the beach.

I picked up pace, motivated by that thought. Alas, going down wooden steps and rocks on the Matt Davis trail was more difficult than it looked. It was a zig-zag path that wound its way down. The flat section was paved with fallen leaves and provided a soft bouncy run. The challenge was to brake in time around the corner and not fall over the steps. I checked the time, 4:40h. Gosh! I had no idea how near or far I was from the end point. I literally made a mad dash for the last stretch, while trying to avoid hikers along the way. Finally, the tarmac came in sight. I kept an eye on the orange directional arrows and reached the Finish sign. A personal best of 4:53h! J It was slow relative to the local runners, but a huge improvement from my previous 6h trail record.

Gear: Trusty Asics GT-2130 Trail shoes
Nike long-sleeved dri-fit shirt
2XU compression tights
Polar HRM
Oakley M-frame
Salomon Raid Revo 20 pack
Platypus hydration set

Miami Beach Jog

So I finally finally managed to head out for a run early this morning. The sun was already up. I ran along the Boardwalk and caught my first glimpse of the famed Miami Beach & ocean. After 20min, I headed onto the sand. It was surprisingly hardened and my shoes did not sink in as much as I thought I would have. It was tougher running on sand than tarmac, I thought it was quite a good training. Managed an 1h run. The sun was so hot by then, I almost got tan lines! I must try again tomorrow morning. :)

Miami First Impressions

I'd been musing over the last few days - that if Florida succeeds as a tourist destination, perhaps our heat & humidity won't put people off too much. I've been thinking abt tourism since I'm staying in Miami South Beach, supposedly the hip happening area, with the historic art & pub culture. I'm one street away from the beach front, and 5min car from the more exclusive resorts.

I can't comment on other cities in Florida (afterall home to DisneyWorld). I feel Miami is really about real estate and retirement or vacation houses. The prime beach front are mostly condo-like developments. The entire boardwalk along the ocean is very manicured, every other swaying palm tree or pebbled walkway is planned. Think The Caribbean condo extended 3-4miles. It's hotter but less humid than SGP. But likewise have the same problem with over-powered AC on buses and in conference rooms. Nights are cooler, 24degC. Still able to stroll down a shopping stretch the length of Orchard with no sweat.

Florida works as a tourist destination because I think it's driven largely by domestic tourists escaping the harsh winters. I met a couple of conference participants very happy to be here because it's snowing or approaching 0degC back home. The organizers were deliberate in their choice of venue. Participants were seeking the heat. I'd rather be in Californian weather.

I'm not sure about SGP's 'weather proposition'. None of our close neighbours have cold winters they need to escape from. Those countries that do also have their escape routes. Koreans to Jeju, Chinese to Hainan Island, Japanese to... I don't know (Hawaii & Jeju?), Australians to Bali.

But Miami feels empty, souless. Shopping doesn't count as an 'authentic experience'. Seeing the Everglades was boring because we have Jurong Crocodile Farm in SGP, and Msian rainforests diversity nearby. (Nonetheless, I carried a baby alligator & took an obligatory tourist pose...) Miami reminds me of high drugs, high life & wild parties. Probably over-stereotyping. A Chilean cab driver I chatted with told me that he is an engineer but came to Miami to earn more money. I think Chileans have to pay to work here, the labour market isn't easily accessible to them (unlike Cubans). Driving a cab earned more than waiting tables. He's been here 3 years, doesn't like the place at all, and eager to return home next year. He said that the young girls come to find rich old men. The young men come to peddle drugs to the party crowd. And summed it up best I think, "I don't like this place. It's all plastic and fake."

Well, so much for first impressions. :)

Nice Recovery Jog

We were supposed to do MF loops x7. But my legs were still tired. So Jimmy and I ran at a very chatty leisure pace and yakked all the way, exchanging stories about TNF race. We did 3x MF loops, and headed down Morse Rd towards Harbour Front and back to club. The pace felt almost like my TNF race pace! Haha.

Ah, a slow enjoyable no pressure jog. We ended just as my knee began to feel painful. Ok, have to take care of those legs since I have another trail marathon coming up next week! Suddenly the date seemed too close for comfort. *eeeks*

And.... Go!

Late for class. Coach asked if my legs were ok to swim, and advised me to do some breast stroke kicks for a start. For a moment, I thought my calves were going to cramp.

Swim:
500m - 12:41min (trailing far behind in Lane 2)
400m - 10:20min (voluntarily switched to Lane 1, whew!)
300m - 7:46min
200m - 5:11
100m - 2:27
200m - 5:13
300m - 7:55 (by this point, 3 of our Lane 2 swimmers had crossed over to Lane 1! Life in Lane 2 was too breathless, leaving only 3 swimmers there. Oops.)

Sprints:
1 - forgot to time
2 - 1:06
3 - 1:04
4 - 1:08
5 - 1:07
6 - 1:03

There were 3 waves per lane, x 6 sprints. Coach must have shouted "And.... Go!" at least 18x within 10min! Nightmare.... Good night everyone!

I Love Trails

I recall a friend sharing with me his 'wisdom' of cycling on both road and off-road. He said that mountain-biking gave him confidence in bike handling on the road, while road cycling boosted his cardio in the trails. Yesterday I found that insight coming true for me after the TNF 100 race.

My dear friend, Linda's, comment in response to my win, 'you really enjoy doing this right?' set me thinking. I guess as opposed to chugging in the open sea and gulping salt water? Yes, I would much prefer to be cruising across the open fields and jumping over rocks. The more I explore, the happier I get.

I love the mountains & trails, and I like long long runs. Putting the two together for trail ultras seems a natural step to take. So I am slow in road races, but the runs give me a strong cardio base, and I can endure. Afterall, one cannot really go too fast in the trails. I trek and climb, so footwork is not an issue. As a climbing friend puts it, trail involves a certain sense of balance of knowing where to put one's foot, transfer our body weight, and the confidence to go. That is something that the road does not train us for. That said, of course there are many outstanding road runners who do well in the trails too.

But perhaps the greatest difference lies in the mindset. I guess I approach trail running with the same attitude as climbing. One has to appreciate the nature, and meld with it. Expect the unexpected and learn to enjoy and deal with it. No trail is alike on any two runs - fallen branches, rearranged rocks, and mud pools. Enjoying the stones and puddles and that sense of exploration keeps one happy and sane on the run. Sure, there are parts where we curse the terrain and wonder why we ever paid to torture ourselves. But there is also a sense that it is pointless to grouse because nature is not going to budge. There is no bailout option either, especially if one is in the middle of nowhere nor near any evacuation point. Unlike a road run where life is a lot easier and comfortable. Sit down, report position, and a vehicle will pull up.

Looking at my experience with runs, I have a much better track record in ultras than normal runs. Especially trails. 3 out of 4 within the recorded rankings, of which 2 were trails. Perhaps I should just stick to what excites and fascinates me. :)

TNF 100 (24 Oct 2009)

Julie and I teamed up for the TNF 100 today - Women's 100k duo. Pleasantly surprised to come in 2nd, when we were just aiming to complete. We even sliced almost 1hr off our target time! I think it was a classic case of heavens, people, time and stars aligned. :)

Photos- http://picasaweb.google.com/simsps/TNF10024Oct2009#

Position : 2 Team: CHILLI PADI Total Timing: 13:08:04.22
Tag No Name Team Timing Pos
2030-1 Julie Ong CHILLI PADI 06:29:02.31 004
2030-2 Sim Phei Sunn CHILLI PADI 06:39:01.91 005

The flag off was 7am. We started in the middle and ran at a steady pace. For the first 30km, we were consistently ~1:15+h per 10k. And then I started to slow down, and tried to avert abductor cramps.

Start - BT water & time checkpoint: 1:18h (after drinks)
To 20k mark: 1:11h (2:30h)
To 30k mark: 1:17h (3:47h)
To 40k mark: 1:24h (5:12h)
To End: 1:25h (6:39h)

The run was along familiar training routes, except for the Mandai/ Lor Asmara section. That was the army training grounds, and oh gosh, was it really tough. The area was typically closed to public, so we had no inkling of what the route was like. The slopes were long, steep and never-ending rolling. One passed and another loomed. The worst was a section called Hill 265. It was literally a 60-70deg red mud slope. Even as we trudged up, we had to pull on roots and anything in order not to slide backwards. I could imagine soliders in full battle packs chiong-ing up the hill. Whew! At that point, I had utmost respect for the 100k runners, who had to pass through that area twice. I could not wait to get out of the place!

I generally felt good, in high spirits. My legs were surprisingly fresh, possibly the result of a long break and few runs. But cramps set in along Rifle Range Road, around 5h+. :( I spent a good 10min walking, finding my Nuun tablets to suck on, and fishing for my muscle rub to smear all over my knee. The last 20k was a lot slower than my 30k, with a lot of walking.

Since we did not see any female runners ahead of us, we should have a good chance of a podium placing. Indeed, we came in 2nd with a combined time of 13:08h. The 1st team's timing was 15min ahead - 12:53h. Hmmm.... that meant we were about 7-8min each behind them. Wow, that was close!

I just realised that all my winnings came from ultra runs. Of the 4 ultras that I had ran, I managed to get a prize or placing for 3 of them, and of which 2 were trail events. Hmmm...! Maybe I should switch 'vocation' and do more trails or ultras. Haha.

Sauna Class

Thursday Lane 1 1st swimmer. There were so few swimmers in class today. The pool was so so very warm, I felt my palms heating up as I swam. Gosh. And even during dinner after the class, my palms and fingers still had that heated tingling sensation. It was terribly hot.

Medley drills. Again.

100m - 2:19min
200m - 4:57
300m - 7:27
300m - 7:33
400m - 10:12
300m - 7:37
200m - 5:06

50m easy - 1:07
50m sprint - 1:05 (haha, not much difference)
50m easy - 1:21
50m sprint - 1:03
50m easy - 1:23
50m sprint - 57s (whew, finally! my first sub-1min since I came back from my climb)

Queenstown Track Intervals

Training menu: 5x 800m, 7min per set incl rest. It was quite a luxury actually to have such a long rest time.

I had not done track intervals for a long time, let's see, since August? Was apprehensive if I could complete them tonight. But I did, and in decent timings too. :)

1- 3:31min
2- 3:32min
3- 3:32min
4- 3:27min
5- 3:25min

Meanwhile, Alber & WH were practising for their Beer Mile run post-Busselton. 4x cans of beer, 4x 400m. Drink a can, run a round. It was ridiculously hilarious.

Post-OWS Class

Aching heavy arms tonight. Oh gosh. Recovery class didn't quite feel like recovery. After some medley strokes drills, Coach had us swim laps. Many sets. I was like half a lap behind the 'new' guys in my lane. Oh lane 2 swimmers, where's everyone?!?

100m - 2:17min
200m - 4:52
300m - 7:20
400m - 10:28
300m - 7:37
200m - 5:06
100m - 2:25

4x 50m sprints - 1:03/ 1:07/ 1:04/ 1:05

Died.

Yellowfish OWS

Today was the day I tried on the wetsuit in an open water sea swim. Coach organized the Open Water Swim (OWS) this morning. All of us doing Busso registered for the 4km swim, and most of us showed up in rubber.

The route was 8x 500m loops, with a short segment running on the beach and re-entering the water so that the volunteers could record our times. Cut-off was 2:20h.

So could not make it. The wetsuit aided buoyancy, but not speed. At least not for me. I mentally endured 6 loops, but it was already 2h. Not enough time to complete another 1km by the cut-off. :( Each loop got slower and slower. I was a good 15min slower than my usual 1.5km in the pool!

Oh dear, panic.

Last Recee Run

We tried the route from Rifle Range to BT to Mandai today. The last section of the TNF route that was most unfamiliar to me. Ran from home to RR Road to meet the other runners. It was a leisurely slow run, with lots of stop-walk in between. Total distance about 20km. Took a bus home after the run. Finished all my 1L of water, sucked totally dry until I got the air...

It was a good run at a nice pace. Looking forward the the full 50km race next week.

Rubber Seal Wetsuit

Tried on my wetsuit in swim class tonight. I felt like a rubber seal, blubbering around. Bouyancy was good, but after so many drills and laps, my arms ached. It was hot though under that insulation. It was weird jumping into the water and not feeling the water against my skin!

Wetsuits are not designed for slow drills, like catch-up drills. There was another drill where coach asked us to deliberately go slowly and 'sink'. How to?

We swam a couple of 50m. Consistently ~ 1:04min
400m - 9:35min
400m - 9:10min
300m - 7:20min
300m - 7:20min

Then some 50m sprints. Again consistently ~ 1:01 - 1:03min.

Oh aching arms....

400m - 9:

MF 14km Run

Route was 14km down Depot Rd, Alexandra, HarbourFront and then the usual MF 10km loop. Wore my mizuno for the run this evening. Felt different obviously from my Asics. Run was ok initially, then overtaken by some guys. But I overtook them again up the MF slope. Legs surprisingly could ascend decently after Tuesday's intervals. I took my time to slowly wind down Morse Road - save the knees! Then took my leisurely pace to enjoy the run. It did not feel like 14km. Time clocked 1:15h.

Labrador Hills by the Minute

I was accustomed to the slow pace and counting time by the hour in the mountain. Today at Labrador Hill, everything was fast, chiong, by the minute. Oh what a culture 'readjustment'. Menu for the night was 7 rounds in 1hr.

Improved by a grand total of 1 min....
Loop times- 7:38, 8:00, 8:15, 8:24, 8:20, 8:22, 8:01 = 57:03 min

Tired.

Swim & Float

My first swim after a 3-week break from the pool. Coach was very lenient and nice tonight. Swim at my own pace.

Drills. Then swim.

350m - 8:38min
400m - 9:48min
300m - 7:31
250m - 6:23
200m - 5:02
100m - 2:29, 2:32, 2:36, 2:34
50m - 1:04, 1:07

Oh dear, still can float.....

Short short ride

While my other IM friends are out doing their long long rides, I was content with a much discounted ride. Not that I didn't plan on riding, but the bed was simply too alluring. Afterall, I haven't been spending much time on it. :)

So the alarm went off and I was oblivious to it. In the end, we went out to ride the Mandai loop. After 1 round, I was utterly bored. It seemed so tedious just to ride an hour. But in the mountain, it took only a few steps and an hour would have passed. Oops.

Bored, decided to stop. Called friends and they were riding nearby. So the most logical thing to do was to meet for lunch! :)

What a slacking weekend......

MR No-breath Jog

Home sweet home finally after the Mt Chola climb.

Headed to MR this morning for a run. Omg, could not breathe for the first 10min. It was like sucking oxygen through a wet face mask. So humid! I gave up and walked along. All body systems were still shut down. Told the guys to go ahead.

Met George & co at the ranger station and ran with them. We were caught by the sudden torrential downpour, which surprisingly cleared the humid air and I could breathe properly again!

A day of extremes. From 6000m to 0 altitude. From 0 humidity to 100%. From sub-0 temperatures to high 30. And from knee deep snow to ankle deep rain. Gosh.

Tourist in Jeju (II)

Joined a day tour group today to go around the Eastern side of Jeju Island (it's 2.7x Singapore). There was a Singaporean couple, as well as a girl working in Singapore. Had not been on a 'planned' tour for a long time, the experience was, ummm, adaptive.

Itinerary from Yeha Tour: East course:
1. Sangumburi - The only crater in Jeju located at ground level
2. Seong-eup Folk Village - Currently, more than one thousand and three hundred people live in the village and continue in old Jeju custom and tradition.
3. Seopjikoji - The best view in the Eastern area and the location of the popular
TV series 'All in'
4. Seongsan Ilchulbong(Sunrise Peak) - "A symbol of Jeju". It was registered as a World
Natural Heritage Site by UNESCO. (Enough time for trekking to the top is given.)
5. Manjanggul - The longest lava cave in the world. Registered as a World Natural Heritage Site
6. Mysterious Road - Cars without power appear to go uphill by themselves

Tour was well organized and on time. The manager who followed us spoke 3 languages rather fluently - Korean, Japanese & English. The group was a random mix of tourists from everywhere.

I enjoyed 1, 3-5 most, because they were natural heritage sites & allowed us to do some walking along scenic routes. Returned to the hotel & went for a seafood dinner buffet with CP. Lovely place by the Jungman yacht marina. Overdose on black pork & seafood. Think of all that calories & cholesterol! Oh dear...

Heading out to Seoul tomorrow. I just learnt that Korean Ironman is held annually in Jeju Island! Ahh.... could definitely consider coming to race! :)

Tourist in Jeju (I)

Woke up early for a run. Had wanted to climb Mt Halla, the highest mountain in S.Korea located in Jeju, but was feeling a little sick, under-geared, and did not want to kill myself. Ran from my hotel to ICC and onto the Olle Route 8 behind. Passed the Jusangjeoli Rocks, and chanced upon a cluster of raw fish little eatery shops. I was the only weirdo running on the streets.... Did about a 1h 15min run, little discoveries along the way. :)

Had a quick breakfast and went with CP to join in a post-conference tour. The programme was arranged by a certain Mrs Kang - someone quite well known in Jeju - and included a meditation session in the Seogwipo Natural Recreation Forest, and a little trek to the Bubjungnak Observatory (760m) which gave a decent view of the coast, Mt Halla, and city.

Next we had a really late lunch at a place called the Traditional Restaurant. In addition to the usual spread of Korean kimchi appetizers, each diner was served an entire grilled mackeral. It was so fresh and succulent. Oh oooh.... I polished my til the bones. Delicious.

Then we took a leisurely walk around the Women's Diver Village. Mrs Kang hailed from a family of women diver. Her mother is a retired, and subsequently started a shelter for women & children, which she is now running. Mrs Kang herself recently qualified as a master diver. The women divers in Jeju are legendary for their amazing diving abilities, staying underwater without oxygen for up to 20min! We saw a group of boys swimming in a constructed pool filled with sea water. Really scenic.

The day ended late. It was almost 830pm by the time we returned to our hotel, for a programme that was scheduled to end at 430pm. It was a very different experience strolling slowly and not be rushing from site to site as I normally do on trips.

Short Run in Jeju

Went out at 7am for a run. Did not get too far as I got distracted by sights along the way. Climbed up a long flight of wooden steps to get onto some nicely constructed trail, which led to an observatory deck. I later realised that there were many many such decks around Jeju. The trails are part of the Jeju Olle trails - a series of well-marked walking routes that people could explore by themselves. There were 12 Olle routes which covered all the scenic and spots of interests on the island.

Even though the run time was brief, there were so many many rolling slopes that added some challenge to the run. They were somewhat like Desaru slopes, or Mandai (but steeper).

Hazy Hill Intervals

Very hazy this evening. Could smell the smoke in the air! Running up the Telok Blangah hills was really a struggle - tired legs from last few trainings, and limited lungs-air! 5 sets of hills with rest in between. Not good.

1- 4:50min
2- 4:45
3- 4:40
4- 4:55
5- 4:40

Home to pack for trip. *headache* too much logistics....

Moderate Class

Tonight's class was 'heavily discounted', thanks to the Tri-factor-ers. But still, I found it tough. Must be the long training weekend, could not glide at all.

Drills-
8x 50m of alternate kick, pulls, almost non-stop
8x 50m of palm drag, finger drag, fist drag

Training-
8x 50m - 1:09/ 1:36/ 1:07/ 1:09/ 1:09/ 1:08/ 1:12/ 1:11
8x 100m - 2:17/ 2:21/ 2:23/ 2:20/ 2:19/ 2:21/ 2:18/ 2:22
7x 100m - 2:25/ 2:24/ 2:31/ 2:26/ 2:29/ 2:22/ 2:23
8x 15m sprint

We all died....

Baked Long Ride

I planned a long training ride today, target 140km. The guys kept complaining along the way of being 'tekkan-ed' by me. :( But they still rode on anyway. Yeah.

0 - 40km
Home to Mandai Shell - 10km
Mandai Shell - Seletar - Mandai Shell loop - 25km
Mandai Shell - Kranji Way coffeeshop - 5km
Stopped for food, the guys had breakfast. Distance = 40km

40 - 100km
Kranji Way - Neo Tiew - Jln Boon Lay - Junction of AYE & Jln Ahmad Ibrahim - 18km
Strong headwinds along the Lim Chu Kang cemetry stretch, I got dropped far behind...

Jln Ahmad Ibrahim - Tuas West Drive (last turn before Tuas checkpoint) - 10km
Headwind loop x 2 = 16km + 11km = 27km
(Tuas West Drive - Tuas South Ave 1 - Tuas South Ave 3 - 5km
Tuas South Ave 3 - Tuas Power Station - 3km)
Low on water and ate half a power-bar. Whew, enough of the strong winds.
Tuas South Ave 3 - Pioneer Road - Tuas Amenity Centre - 5km

There were new coffeeshops in the Amenity Centre, food! Had lunch and drinks before the ride home. Distance = 100km.

100 - 140km
Pioneer Rd (Tuas A. Centre) - Jln Buroh SPC - 5km
SPC - Jurong Pier Road - Jln Ahmad Ibrahim - 2km
Jln Ahmad Ibrahim - Jln Boon Lay - Neo Tiew - Kranji - Mandai Shell - 23km

There was a strong tailwind along Lim Chu Kang. We flew at 40-42kmh. Wheeee! Rode strongly in Neo Tiew area until the Kranji reservoir/ dam when the winds grew as dark clouds loomed. We were caught in a passing shower and sought shelter at a bus stop. The rain stopped after 10min or so, and we continued.

Parted company at Mandai, we cycled home. Still felt steady enough to cycle on. I was thinking of the IM race, and how on earth to run a 42km after the ride. Eeeks! *shudders*

Pluck-flower-run

Attempted a long run in the trails. It was meant to be a pluck-flower pace, slow. The usual stretch to Rifle Range and Zhenghua Park. Legs were very tight, and had random sharp knee jabs. Oh no! Contemplated taking a cab back, but continued anyway. Thankfully the tightness went off after some DIY pounding, massaging, whatever.

The fun began after Zhenghua Park. Gary brought us through a trail that went by the central catchment area. A new sense of exploration took my mind off my legs and tiredness. We were running alongside the water. Brought a camera and we stopped for photos. :) It was a fairly technical trail, with lots of shallow and loose tree roots, and stumps everywhere. It was easy to trip over them, or be hit by a low hanging branch. The trail ended at the dam/ water treatment plant. Nice scenery! Many MTBrs stopped there and simply lazed on the grass. We took more photos. Haha... Continued the trail following the MTB trail. We ended up facing the BKE and crossed under it to the HDB flats & park connector. Blk 210 Petir Rd stared at us as we tried to figure out whether to turn left or right on the park connector. A helpful uncle pointed us the way towards Upp Bt Timah and we headed off. Saw Ricci and his group back at ZH Park. The additional trail section was approximately 5km.

My legs felt better on the way back and I was more energised. 2-3h for a warm up? Haha. It was a long long run with many stops along the way. We ran 28km in a superbly long duration. It was the trails afterall! Very important to enjoy the natural environment and not rush through it.

My pluck-flower-run became a plant-flower-trot, and at some points became a topo-hike with map reading. Fun!

Recovery Swim & Run

So tired this week, decided to swim & relax some muscles.

Set 1 - 12:51min
Set 2 - 12:55min
Set 3 - 13:01min
Total - 38min++

Tonight was the Newton shoe trial run. Heard and seen much about the shoes, but never tried them. Tried on a pair of Women's Stability Racer. Felt very light. Technique wise, I was surprised that I just eased into the shoes and running, no adjustments needed with the landing or posture etc. I only felt the difference when I stopped & was slightly off-balanced on the -4 french fries' on the soles. Hmmm.... The shoes probably made one more aware of one's running posture, there's no way you could slouch & run in those shoes. The lightness of the shoes contributed to speed.

Did the MF 10km loop, slow and relaxed. 1:03h. Recovery run. :)

Tired Legs @ BT

Totally no form today. Too slow to even complete 4 sets. :(

S -
1- 2:28/ 2:00
2- 2:32/ 2:04
3- 2:55/ 2:13
4- 2:50

R -
1- 5:55/ 5:18
2- 4:31/ 5:04
3- 4:43/ 5:32
4- 4:57/ 5:32

JF -
1- 5:19/
2- 5:27/ 4:21
3- 5:26/

*bummer*

Telok Blangah 'Trot'

6x TB Hills. Tonight we tackled the steep end near the carpark, plus the usual loop.

1- 9:05min
2- 9:14
3- 9:28
4- 10:05
5- 9:55
6- 10:06

Died....

Bluff Swim

Coach said tonight would be easy swim (cos of Tri-factor race on Sunday), and we would get long rest in between sprints. Bluff! Hardly easy, and little rest!

After the drills....

8x 50m sprints (interspersed with drills like sight a few times, or heads-up swim):
58/ 1:01/ 1:02/ 1:08/ 1:06/ 1:02/ 1:01/ 1:05

3x 400m:
10:02/ 9:49/ 9:46

Medly of strokes.

Last sprint: 58sec

Unfriendly Skies

Woke up to heavy rain. Wondered if sea swim was still on. Drove over nonetheless. True enough, the skies cleared up for our swim. The sea always felt 'cleaner' after the rain. We had a smaller swim course today because the safety patrol boat didn't show up.

Warmup - 2x 200m
Sets - 3x 300m x2
Then we did some simulation of beach start.

And the rain resumed.... Ditched the running plans and went for breakfast with some of the folks.

Mandai Loops

Had a good long ride today. Rode from home to meet up with the guys at Mandai Shell. Managed to complete 4 loops, each going to Seletar Rsvr. 124km in total.

Home - Mandai Shell - 10km
Shell - Seletar - Shell - 26km x4
Shell - Home - 10km

The 7-11 @ Shell was opened today. Did not realise that it (and the toilet) closed on Sundays. No wonder I never got to use the facilities. So it served a good pitstop point today.

Tired run

Legs were still heavy and draggy. Took forever to run the distance (Portsdown-MOE route). Walked, strolled, ran, whatever.... 14km felt like 20km.

Wobbly BT

Tired from yesterday's run. BT felt like a real climb today. :( In the end, managed a 4-5-3 set, 18kg. Uh.. ?? Gone case....

S-
1- 2:21/ 1:58 (first set already so slow, bad omen)
2- 2:33/ 2:09
3- 2:45/ 2:19
4- 2:50/ 7:15

R-
1- 5:06/ 4:00
2- 4:37/ 3:44
3- 4:35/ 4:09
4- 4:47/ 4:01
5- 5:20/ 9:04 (gone gone....)

JF-
1- 5:09/ 3:48
2- 5:14/ 3:30
3- 5:07/ 16:42

MF Loop PB

Had a superb run at MF Loop tonight, largely due to the perfectly cool weather and low humidity. It made all the difference and the run enjoyable. Target was 1h or 6 rounds. I managed 7 rounds, slightly past an hour.

1- 4:10/ 4:57min (9:07)
2- 4:26/ 5:08 (9:34)
3- 4:18/ 4:59 (9:17)
4- 4:18/ 4:51 (9:09)
5- 4:13/ 4:46 (8:59)
6- 4:12/ 4:46 (8:58)
7- 4:15/ 4:39 (8:54)
Total - 1:04hr

Wow! Loved the consistency. Never had such consistent timing before. Normally the ups were much long at 4:20 - 4:30 plus range, and the downs were 5:30.

Gliding Swim

We did some drills, kicks, pulls, one-handed pulls, catch-ups. In one of the drills, I suddenly felt a glide! That feeling of moving forward and actually cutting through water while head was turned and breathing. Thus far, I had never been able to glide properly, if at all. That forward motion was quite intriguing!

So for the rest of the class, I just focused on the glide and tried to replicate that feeling. We swam quite a fair bit tonight. Wasn't it Teacher's Day tomorrow? Maybe Coach should take a holiday. Haha.

10x 100m @ 3:00min
2:15/ 2:13/ 2:13/ 2:12/ 2:14/ 2:14/ 2:17/ 2:17/ 2:17/ 2:22

400m easy swim - 9:51min

6x 50m @ 1:45min
1:02/ 1:03/ 1:00/ 1:04/ 1:02/ 1:04

8x 50m @ 1:30min
1:02/ 1:04/ 1:02/ 1:04/ 1:04/ 1:06/ 1:05/ 59sec

Pleased with tonight's gliding and consistency. :) *self pat*

Another Aborted Long Ride

We attempted another 5am ride today. 6 of us this early morning. Unlike the last ride, I was not very awake yet. Yawn.... I'm not a strong cyclist, and even worse when it is dark or wet. The slow going speed + my orange shades + arm-warmers/ sleeves made it all too conducive to sleep! We managed to hit coastal for a toilet break. Still yawning. Picked up speed at coastal to get some adrenalin pumping and hopefully wake up. A quick pitstop at B1 and off we went towards west coast. Breakfast was my motivation. The ride over the Telok Blangah highway was good, strong tailwinds that pushed us up gentle slopes at 35kmh! Then we passed a TP standing at a side bay with a handheld speed detector. I thought he was taking photos and almost gave him a V-sign! Was he going to scold speeding cyclists?! Haha.

Going down the highway at Clementi Rd, we could see the very dark clouds across the entire horizon in the west. The short distance to West Coast Mac was fraught with very strong crosswinds as the storm was coming in. I had never physically felt such strong sudden sways as today. Literally swerved by the wind, almost felt like I would fly off. Made it to Mac, parked out bikes and ordered food. And the rain came gushing down, relentlessly.

In the end we waited for almost 2.5h before surrending and began to ride back in the drizzle-rain, which kept pouring intermittenly. I hated it. Cold, wet and miserable. And the very slippery downslopes along the way. Argh. Went home directly while the guys continued their ride to Casuarina. Would just have to go and retrieve my car later.

The Look-see-run-hike Trail Session

Spent an ultra long morning in the trails. Ran with Eddy, HeeShen and Heng and brought them along the route we did last week. Loved skipping around the rocks, so alert, so alive. :)

Alas, it started pouring heavily along Rifle Range road and we were thoroughly drenched. We experimented with a new route towards Bt Timah Nature Reserve. I had only hiked through that trail in the reverse direction many years ago, and was trying to recall the way. It was not a good section for runs though, too many steps and roots. Quite impossible to really run through many of the sections. The rain made it worse. It was more a hike than run.

Wet, squishy and soggy. We turned around back up Rifle Range road and crossed onto the field towards ZhengHua. Met some of our Safra runners - the early & fast group (all sub-4ers!) on their way back. HS and Heng waited while Eddy and I ran all the way to the park and out.

On our way back to MR, we decided to stroll across the TreeTop Walk. Enjoying the cool weather and view. Slight detour in the gameplan, pity I did not have a camera. Ran the last 5km back to MR-carpark with Eddy. It was his first time running in the trail and he had to endure the almost 5hr look-see-hike-run with us. Haha. Total run time 2:50h, not sure about distance, possibly 20plus.

Oh I so love the trails!

Swim-Run Brick

Tried to glide for 30 laps, it was harder than it looked. Gliding should not feel so hard or stiff. Must be doing it wrong somewhere.

3x 10 laps non-stop: 13:00/ 13:30/ 13:50 - 40:20min

Dark clouds threatening to pour anytime, so we changed the running route to stay near the clubhouse. Down Alexandra, Harbourfront, Kg Bahru. Took 45min, so I guessed the distance was about 8ish km.

Looking forward to the rest tomorrow, and a weekend of long trainings!

BT 3-4-3

Rushed to BT but was quite late. Didn't think I would have time for 4 complete sets. Indeed, only managed 3-4-3 before it was dark and I had to hurry out of the place. Even so, the sets felt tougher today than last week. Pack still the same, 18kg. Hmm... will have to think about upping the weight or the sets next time.

S-
1- 2:27/ 2:02
2- 2:36/ 2:06
3- 2:39/ 6:38

R-
1- 5:00/ 3:51
2- 4:50/ 3:59
3- 4:53/ 4:18
4- 5:13/ 8:55

JF-
1- 5:11/ 3:13 (?? that's way off timing)
2- 4:55/ 3:09
3- 4:35/ .... end

Labrador Hills Intervals

1h, OTOT, Labrador Hills. Target 7 rounds.

Asked Alber to pace me. Went out way way too fast on the first round, and died! Argh.... Because all the subsequent sets just went nuts (just look at the erratic timings!).

1- 7:34min
2- 7:48min
3- 8:15
4- 8:40
5- 8:30
6- 8:49
7- 9:00 (heavy rain)
Total: 58-59min

After the 3rd set, could no longer complete all the upslopes at one go. Had to stop, pant, and walked a bit for the remaining sets. How disappointing. :(

It started drizzling on my 6th set, and poured on the last set. Yikes, slippery slopes! The jog back to clubhouse entailed another long slope at Henderson. Gosh, my legs felt so tight after the run. Sleepy after run - which meant good effort?! Haha.

Relaxed Class

Swim class was surprisingly relaxed today. Maybe it was because I slacked off yesterday with only a sea swim.

Started off with some drills - 4 laps of kicking, 10 laps of pulling.

Sets:
400m easy - 9:46min
8x 200m in 5:30 - 4:45; 4:47; 4:42; 4:42; 4:43; 4:43; 4:49; 4:37
4x 50m sprints - 1:00; 1:01; 59s; 54s

Stayed as the last 3rd swimmer in Lane 2. I was happy to stay at the back, following. I was trying to focus on gliding, experimenting with how to roll. So being behind was good, no time pressure, just getting a feel of the pulls and entries.

Training to increase lung capacity

Read this interesting nugget from AC newsletter on training for climbs. But it probably applies for other sports too. :)

http://www.adventureconsultants.com/adventure/newsletter/

No matter what training routine you follow it is always desirable to train to increase your lung capacity. A really good place to do this is in the pool. It doesn’t matter whether you are a regular fish or a sinker, we can all increase our lung capacity to increase our performance. This is going to pay dividends at altitude and aid the acclimatisation process. Why? Because we are putting our lungs under pressure through this training and they will become more effective in the uptake of O2.

How? During a swim training session do some ‘blocks’ where you focus on your breathing. Check how often do you breathe? It is fairly standard in swimming to breathe every 3rd stroke on alternate sides. To increase our lung capacity we train ourselves to swim longer with less breaths. Start your first lap on your regular pattern, let’s say every 3rd breath. On your second lap breathe every 5th stroke. Do the return lap every 3rd, then back to every 5th. Keep going until you are struggling for air and push yourself until you have to stop. Rest and let your pulse and breathing rate return to normal. Once this becomes easy, increase the number of strokes until you are being pushed again.

Play around with the blocks, begin with a breath once every 9 strokes for as many laps as you can do without having to stop, then drop it back (so you can just handle it) and do as many lengths as you can in oxygen debt but without stressing yourself too much.

This is a very good way to learn to control your breathing and activity rate in preparation for altitude. On top of that, swimming can be one of the most accessible activities for those who cannot easily escape the city for hill training. Swimming also enhances your aerobic fitness and reduces the chance for injury. Add it to your program and you’ll notice the benefits almost immediately.

Wet Sunday

Supposed to ride at 5am. Rained. Grrrr.... The guys called to abort ride. Yeah, sleep!

Went for sea swim. The water was choppy today, the tide was changing and the sea full. It was like getting sloshed in the washing machine of ECP. Argh, swam in zig-zag all the way. We did only 2 sets of swim and time was up. I think we took forever to swim!

Came home, planned to ride in the afternoon. All arrangements made. Then.... the clouds opened up again! Sheesh.... heavy downpour. Cancelled ride. Had lunch and went to run errands. Then bright sunshine! Arrrgh! Fed up with the hide-and-seek with the weather today. Scowl....

Heck, jelly making session Part2! It seemed successful this time. :)

New Trails!

Had fun this morning discovering new trails from MR to ZhengHua Park! What a lovely way to spend a gorgeous Saturday morning. A relaxed exploratory run with a few friends. No rush, no time, just trot along. Legs felt fresh after yesterday's magic touch by Victor. Nice.

Was supposed to meet with the Safra group at 7am, but only woke up at 705am! Shoots. Made our way there and started running by 745am. Met Kops-Henry along the big trail area leading to Rifle Range, and got directions for ZhengHua. Then met HH, Joyce & Ham who were training for KK Climbathon. Fab! We ran together along Rifle Range until the big open field. The girls went left towards Bt Timah Nature Reserve Visitor Centre. We went right towards Bt Panjang. It was the MTB trail, and we encountered some bikers along the way.

Saw Colleen and William heading back. They said the rest of the runners were right ahead. We managed to meet them at ZhengHua Park. They had gone into BTNR, up to the summit, then took the trail out. No wonder we were able to 'catch up' after a 45min lag.

The run back was equally enjoyable. A couple of stops at strategic spots to give directions. Total ~23km, 2:45h.

Tried the new outdoor shower facilities. Much better than the cannot-make-it shower cubicles, but the water pressure was not strong enough. It was bewildering. Why do people design showers at sports/ recreation places the way they do for spas or resorts where users were generally clean and fresh? Dirty muddy runners would really appreciate strong jets of water, no fuss, just wash and clean. Headed out for lunch refuel.

It was really lovely to be out in the open fields, rolling hills, just running. Like a child not knowing what was ahead, and discovering with each step. That already put an extra skip in my steps. :)

Another Sports Massage

Finally had a chance to try out Victor's massage, after coming highly recommended by Jan and Mileage runners. To my surprise, I also bumped into a couple of SG regular runners there. Looks like Victor has a good referral reputation.

Session was good. The feeling (aka pain) was familiar. Very similar to a China lady that I had years ago, but who had since returned and I could not find an equivalent replacement since.

I told Victor to loosen up my ITBs and quads (totally dead after all the BT and hills and stairs). I laid face down. He first tackled the butts/ glutes. Pressed hard on the big muscles there. Which was correct, but few people do that. Normally when you said pain in the quads, they would attack the quads straightaway. Then he worked his way down the entire back of legs, including the hamstrings and calves. Very strong and firm => bearable pain (my threshold is quite high....). Flipped on my side consecutively, more hard pressing on the quads/ abductors (inner thighs) and ITB sides. There, done. 30min but efficient and effective.

Hmmm.... if I went to him before AHM, I might have run better?! *wistful*

Contact:
http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2009/08/contact-list-for-sports-treatments.html

Killer MF Loops + Stairs!

6 rounds MF loops:
1- 4:24/ 5:00
2- 4:22/ 5:09
3- 4:20/ 5:24
4- 4:21/ 5:36
5- 4:41/ 6:23 (knees starting to hurt from the downslopes, really could not move)
6- 4:50/ 1:50

3 set of stairs:
1- 2:17/ 2:50
2- 2:28/ 2:47
3- 2:27/ ....

Died, sleepy, tired.

Upped BT Pack

What should I do today? More sets? Heavier pack?

Settled for an increased load. 18kg. Almost fell backwards when I was putting on the pack. Targeted 4 sets as per last training. Today I brought a camera, to document the trail and my training.

S -

1- 2:24/ 2:03

2- 2:44/ 2:03

3- 2:38/ 1:54

4- 2:53/ 12:04

R-

1- 4:44/ 3:47

2- 4:52/ 4:10

3- 5:00/ 4:11

4- 5:17/ 10:38

JF-

1- 4:27/ 3:40

2- 4:58/ 3:22

3- 4:47/ 3:45

4- 4:55/ 16:45

Recovery Run

Today's route - KR park and back. 12km.

Was trying to do a recovery run. 1:13min.

Yawn....

AHM Results

AHM results according to the interactive website:

Total: 2:01:44 (8min after the gun time.. wow, that late?!)
Avg speed: 5:46min pace
0-9km: 51:55min (5:39min pace for 9.2km)
9-17km: 45:42min (5:52min pace for 7.8km) (hmmm.... slacked)
17-end: 24:07min (5:53min pace for 4.1km) (ultimate slacker!)

Ranking in Women's Closed: 58
and ahead of 82% of male finishers! (haha cheap thrill)

Bubbles Bubbles

First swim in 1.5 weeks. Was so tired, it was quite a flop. First set of training and I got dropped. At a speed that I could typically keep up, but I was struggling to just maintain it tonight. Oh bummer.

450m and I did only 400m - 10:13min.
Then a whole series of 100m. 10 sets x 2.

First 10 sets was a mixture of normal swim, fist, mixed, etc.
2:21/ 2:27/ 2:33/ 2:33/ 2:34/ 2:33/2:41/ 2:40/ 2:34/ 2:38

Second 10 sets was supposed to be sprints, but everyone was so tired, they became moderates.
2:27/ 2:25/ 2:33/ 2:21/ 2:26/ 2:29/ 2:34/ 2:27/ 2:35/ 2:32

Super duper tired and sleepy. Zzzzz.....

AHM/ SBR 2009

The annual Army Half-marathon, aka Sheares Bridge Run 2009.

Thought I was right on time for the start-line, but apparently it was already flagged off before 530am?! Just followed the walking crowd in the start-pen, and the next thing I knew, was across the timing mat. The run was all over the place, runners everywhere, and my rhythm gone to bits. Drank so much water & 100plus, it was very humid. For the first time ever too, I downed an entire can of 100plus post-run. Did not even drink the icy cold 100plus post-Desaru, and there I was this morning, gulping water like a tank. *shake head* But the supporters and cheers were quite happening this year actually. Bands, stilt-walkers, belly dancers, etc. The roadside atmosphere was an improvement. Felt bad that I could not really clap or thank them.

Alber was sick, so I took his champion chip as well to clock the time. But bombed big time. Oops. Think my split timings were also all wrong. Anyway, I ran without looking at my watch, not even when recording the splits.

2km - 16:01 (?!!?)
4km - 11:54
5km - 5:28
6km - 5:27
8km - 13:16
??? u-turn? - 4:25
5:43
1:35
4:52
11:19
5:10
7:34
5:25
23:47
...... oh whatever, I can't make sense of the splits. Heck.
Total: 2:02h. Bummer....

De-brief with Self:
1. Need to lose weight to run faster
2. It seems impossible to do a sub-2h in Singapore, managed only once in my entire race repertoire
3. Local races losing appeal, boring route, narrow roads, not a most desired experience
4. ..... when I think of more

Crappy race, horrid run. But a decent active recovery as a friend suggested. There, a different perspective to make me feel better. On to greater plans ahead.

New Boots!

Realised my current boots have started peeling, oh my! And I found out only because one of the lace eyelets dropped off and I wanted to fix it back. Did not actually look at my boots previously. Gosh. Time to get a new pair.

My RIP boots - Mendl Air, that have weathered well and held up under totally abusive environments. Trainings, Mustagh Ata (2007), Naya Kanga (2008), KK (2009).

And my brand new boots - Lafuma, cheaper, lighter. Let's see how many expeditions it would last me.

CSC Run (13 Aug 2009)

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/simsps/CSCRun13Aug2009#

Today was the annual Public Service run at Bedok Reservoir, where Women are limited to only 5.8km, and Men 10km. I saw many friends - runners and triathletes - mostly there for a fun run. As usual the gurkhas dominated the Men's Open top poles. The Women's categories - Open & Senior - were closely contested.

It was a hot afternoon. Running on the pebbled reservoir paths was draining. Or was it my legs that were heavy. Did not feel as light or could fly. Haha. Started in the middle pack, followed Elvia to cut through the crowd in front, before she took flight and I hopped my way around. Managed to overtake a couple of runners, until the running-queue spaced out about 2km. Then out of the blue, a Mindef lady overtook me at 3.5/4km mark, and I could not catch her after that. Her pace was consistent, but ahead. That was quite a negative split if I did not see her at all in the early distances (striking tee, hard to miss). She went on to overtake my 'target' female in front of me as well.

I clocked 29min for the run. If the distance was truly 5.8km, then it was exactly a 5min pace. But I doubt the distance. Anyway, I think long runs are more enjoyable. This was a pure sprint all the way - well since I can't really sprint, it was like doing trackwork non-stop! *pant pant*

And I continued my annual tradition of just missing the women's rankings. This time by 10sec! The 10th position was 28:50min.... Oh bummer.... That was $40 gone. In consolation, I won a bath towel in the lucky draw.

BT 4 Sets

Went with 2 friends to BT. Crumbs.... one of top lace eyelets on my boots came off! Never knew that part of boots might spoil, usually it was the soles that broke off. No choice, had to skip that top row of lacing.

Managed 4 complete sets. :)

S -
1- 2:14/ 1:54
2- 2:26/ 1:45
3- 2:40/ 1:50
4- 2:32/ 6:43

R -
1- 4:21/ 4:03
2- 4:41/ 5:06
3- 5:00/ 4:34
4- 4:52/ 11:15

JF-
1- 4:48/ 4:18
2- 4:57/ 6:10
3- 5:27/ 4:55
4- 4:42/ 20:35

Trooped down to the car park and the monkeys were having a party on top of a car near mine. There was a little SGP flag and the monkeys were fighting over it. A few of them looked menacing as I unlocked the car, and advanced towards us. One fiercely eyed a handphone and we had to use the long trekking poles to fend them off. Then the monkeys started jumping across from car to car. It would be prudent to close all doors and do things one by one, like putting down pack, taking off boots, getting towels, preparing the seats, getting slippers etc. All the while keeping an eye on the rascals....

One was always reactive toxic after a session at BT. Everything that could be soaked would be drenched. Went home for a nice clean shower, and headed for a Javanese full-body massage. Ahhh bliss. Did not manage to rest properly since Desaru, so this was my first decent massage. More to come, as AHM loomed this weekend.

A Nice Slow Recovery

Was supposed to have swim class tonight, but after getting 3 travel jabs on my arms, they were too achy to survive Tues mileage swim. Went to Safra for a nice easy jog. One of those runs where the stopwatch was non-existent and the pace was irrelevant. It would be so stressful if every run had to be to a stopwatch to clock a PB! *shudders*

Did a loop around Canterbury and back from Depot Road. Legs needed a nice stretch to flush the lactic. Last week was to be a chill-out week after Desaru, but in the end, only 1 rest day. The long weekend also meant long trainings. So by tonight, legs already felt heavy. Rolling along....

Wobbly BT Extra Sets!

Slept a full 13h since yesterday's ride, and wanted more. Ooh the lovely cool weather made it even cosier to sleep in. If the rain continued, I would have the perfect excuse not to train! *evil thought to self*

Unfortunately the clouds parted and the sun came through. Dragged my pack to BT. Had wanted to increase the load or weights, but decided not to be overly ambitious. Let's just start with increasing the sets first. Wanted to target 6 sets, but did not think there was enough time (or fuel in me!) to complete. Which was a good thing, because I would have flipped.... Every set was a lot slower today. L said do until thighs burnt.... they were burning all right. I was the last to leave the car park, gate would close at 730pm. Oops, next time, better planning.

S - 3 sets warmup
2.19/ 1.33
2.30/ 1.39
2.35/ 6.31

R - 5 sets
5.05/ 3.49 (?? start of decline....)
4.39/ 3.51 (a bit more like it)
5.09/ 3.54 (back to slide)
5.06/ 5.06
5.26/ 8.44

JF - 5 sets
5.22/ 3.25 (total decline)
5.20/ 4.12
5.28/ 4.14
5.13/ 3.11 (better chiong last set or get locked in the carpark!)
4.55/ (hurry back down, it was almost totally dark....)

*Thought backtracking JF-R-S would be a faster way down. Wrong... it was longer but faster to take the main road out since it was sloping down anyway.

Super Ultra Early & Long Ride

I survived! My first super early morning & ultra ultra long ride!

Slept early & woke up rather fresh. Ate my triple decker peanut-butter-nutella-kaya-cheese wholemeal sandwich. Sounded like a mouthful huh. :) Meeting time 5am (but I got lost driving and we only started at 530am). Considering that I was a wreck of nerves yesterday, all jittery over the ride, I arrived in a decent shape. Last evening I managed to fix my bike sensor and put on brand new bike lights, all thanks to the wonderfully helpful chaps @ Rodalink.

HS led the way in front, and WH was the sweeper. I started off very tensed actually. The whole experience was new to me - cycling in the dark with early traffic, using my brand new Oakley persimmon lenses (thumbs up!), new route (I get super conservative in unfamiliar terrain). I think the ching-chiong-gan-chiong-ness kept me wide awake! But HS was very good, gave all the advanced hand signals, and kept a nice slow pace that I could follow. Felt so safe! Slow and steady. Hopefully also fat-burning HR zone? :)

Part 1 (25km) - We went from Upp Thomson Road -> Yio Chu Kang -> Hougang -> Old Tampines Rd -> Pasir Ris/ Loyang -> Changi Village -> Coastal Road. Toilet break ~25km near the start of Coastal Road.

Part 2 (cumulative 77km) - Then continued half the Coastal loop -> Fort Road -> another quick water break -> Kallang/ National Stadium -> Flyer/ Esplanade -> (met our Safra runners) -> Harbourfront -> up the long carriageway across to Clementi Rd/ Pasir Panjang -> West Coast Park MacDonalds for breakfast! That was my main motivation. I was hooked when HS told me yesterday that we would stop to eat. :) Now to find the next motivation....

Part 3 (115km) - After a good & much needed refuel, I brought the guys to "loop" around Tuas. West Coast Highway -> Jln Buroh -> Jln Ahmad Ibrahim -> Bird Park must be having some National Day promotion, there were so many taxis blocking the road! -> all the way straight to Raffles Marina -> Ecstatic when my speeedometer clocked 100! :) -> Tuas West Drive -> my favourite headwind section -> Power Station -> u-turn -> Pioneer Road -> Tg Kiling -> SPC for drinks. The "loop" unwittingly became a 40km loop, headwind blasting. Oops. We were far far away from our end point! And we set out this morning wanting only to ride 100-120km... WH said this section was very similar to Busso terrain.

Part 4 (130km) - Jln Boon Lay to NTU. WH's favourite loop so we had to do it. Everyone got a choice of a 'favourite'. Oh dear.... It was my first time going into NTU, not sure what to expect from the infamous hills. They did not disappoint. It was smooth sailing downslope until a sudden point where everything went uphill! The slope was endless, and the headwind, gosh! Gears dropped to the lightest possible and cranked my way up. The guys had long disappeared after the climb. We stopped at a bus-stop, got drinks from a vending machine, and contemplated the route back. Approximately 30km more between us and lunch...

Part 5 (160km) - NTU -> Lim chu Kang Tengah -> Now it was HS' favourite time trial section, to escape the stench from the chicken coops -> Neo Tiew -> all the farms and rolling slopes -> Kranji Dam -> Woodlands Road -> Mandai Road. Took a break at the bus stop opposite Shell. Whew... I was just 10km from home! How tempting! Then HS pointed out that I was also 10km from my car.... Aiyoh... Pressing on! Mandai -> Zoo -> Upp Thomson/ Columbarium -> Springleaf/ Shell -> Food!! Hallelujah! We stopped for lunch. Wolved down a platter of mixed roast and Ampang yong tau foo. Oh much needed comfort food. The ride back to my car was a little digestion exercise.

Ahh... what a fantastic long ride. The haze was useful for once in keeping out the sun for most part of the ride. We would probably do it a few more times, adding on sections or doing more loops, to clock the mileage for Busso. Slowly... never chiong-ed at all. But for now, my butts are aching and I need my deserved beauty sleep. :)

Fatbirdies

Dragged myself out of bed to join in the last of Fatbird's AHM training run. Not sure if I could run properly, after the BT yesterday. Sort of a recovery run I guess

Whole bunch of runners waiting to collect their Newton shoes for trial run. We started about 730am. 15km from Playground-Sailing Ctr toilet. 1st half went fairly strong & steady. Waited for the guys at the toilet. 2nd half return was a mess. There was a blister on my left arch! But those weren't new shoes or socks. I had worn them countless times with no problem. Hmmm....

Then I remembered, fat burning zone. HR 60-70%. Ok, slow down, don't rush. Need to burn some fats. Have not seen Esther for the longest time, and the first thing she shouted when she saw me this morning was 'De Kah!' (pigs trotters)....

Total 86min. Time to go home and sleep....

Bt Timah Stairs (again)

Managed to complete 1 extra flight of stairs today! Thanks to Linda for coming along and entertaining me. :)

Summit
1- 2:30/ 1:48
2- 2:27/ 1:56
3- forgot to stop watch....

Rengas
1- 5:00/ 3:43 (see lah, cannot talk during climb, drained an extra 20sec)
2- 4:37/ 4:19
3- 4:39/

Jungle Fall
1- 4:45/ 4:08
2- 5:27/ 3:36 (again, shh no talking, haha)
3- 4:52/ 4:32
4- 5:10/ ....... (ok, this from tiredness, not talking)

We packed dinner and came home to eat over a Mt Chola DVD done by our guiding friends in China. Awesome... felt like wanting to hit the ice straightaway.

Recovery Run of-sorts

14km Henderson - Ridley - Dempsey - Holland - Margaret Dr - back
1:21hr

Was supposed to be a recovery run. My pace and rhythm was all over.... messy. In the end, dictated by the concrete pounding, knee quite sore.

Have not done this sort of mid-dist run on a weekday for a long time. Come to think of it, have not been doing such runs for some time! It had been weeks of hills and track. Quite refreshing to be out running, idly. Ouch, but knee still hurts and back stiff after run. Forgot how 'stiffening' long runs can be for the body.

Baby Steps @ Bt Timah

The long awaited (or rather long delayed) stairs training began today. Stairs would be a boring cop-out option. Decided to ease into the training at BT instead. Psychologically better. :)

Packed my backpack last night. Time to take things (pack, weights, boots, trekking poles, bottles etc) out of storage, pat off the dust and load up. Happily filled up empty 2L bottles with water and stuffed everything in. Squeezed in a small sleeping bag, my bag of harness & karabiners, and some newspaper (for stuffing deadweight space) for good measure. La-di-da... pack pack pack.

Picked up the pack to weigh. Horrors, nearly fell backwards, could barely lug it! Stood on the scale - more on measuring later - and *18kg*! That was excluding my 2L water bag to be filled during training. Wow, really?! But my mental calculation of the content was not so much. Re-weighed a few times, different machines, same reading. Ok... offloaded 4kg. Much more manageable.

*How to weigh - Don't bother putting the pack on scale. If it stood upright, it would block the scale reading. If it laid horizontal, it would not be balanced properly on the scale (& not fully weighed). Weigh yourself, then weigh again carrying pack, take the difference.

So back to BT with my 16kg pack & poles. Did S-R-J 3 sets.

Summit x3 - the warm-up steps
2:25 min (up)/ 1:57 (down)
2:29/ 1:44
2:31/ 6:40 (incl walk to Rengas)

Rengas x3 - the high steps
4:40 (up)/ 3.58 (down)
4:59/ 4:11
4:42/ 8:04 (incl walk to Jungle Fall)

JF x3 - the 183 steps
4:50 (up)/ 3:42
4:48/ 3:42
5:12/ bye-bye....

There, mission accomplished & got out of BTNR before dark. Lots of monkeys in the car park. Was almost afraid to open my car and pack up, lest they jumped in and snatched things away!

A good start. :) *self-pat*

Contact List for Sports Treatments

My contact list for the treatments I have personally tried repeatedly for all sorts of injuries and strains etc. There are other random ones that I had been, but did not think they were effective enough for me so I have excluded them from this list.


Sports Solutions (Gino)
http://www.sportssolutions.com.sg/
Fees, services and contacts are listed on the website
Running Blog- http://weloverunning.blogspot.com/

I finally saw Gino on my friends' recommendation after 1 month of nagging knee pain that did not subside even when I scaled back my runs. Prior to joining Physio Solutions and starting up Sports Solutions, Gino Ng worked as a senior sports physiotherapist at the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) for 10 years. He also travelled with many national teams and treated our national athletes. Gino did a few assessment tests on me & diagnosed my problem. He taught me some strengthening exercises and also gave me some tips to correct my running form. Although Gino does not do sports massages now, his clinic has therapists who do that. Gino also conducts running clinics every Thurs from his shop.

http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2010/09/gino-physio.html
http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2010/09/pain-free-run.html
http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2010/10/shuffle-shorter-strides.html


Andrew (private physio)
$80/ 30min; $120/ 45min; $160/ 60min
81 Carlisle Rd, Mera Springs condo, #14-02
Tel: 98258689

Andrew works out of his apartment, but he was very good with his hands-on deep tissue massages. He was also very proactive with following up on clients' progress. He has many massaging gadgets and really uses strength to ensure an effective massage. Hence, the expensive rates. I am a regular of physio and sports massage sessions, but Andrew's style was very different. He also taught me how to self-massage to knead out the very very deep knots, and a fascinating way to stretch my ITB!
http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2010/09/andrew-physio.html


Kinesis
$120 first session Philippe Steiner (swiss old gentlman)
SMU Li Ka Shing Library Bldg, B1-27 (next to food court)
Tel: 63520800

A very dear and stately Swiss gentleman. :) It is usually very difficult to get an appointment with Philippe, must wait 1-2 weeks. He is extremely experienced though. You will get pulled, jerked and cracked in all sorts of places. Eg. did u know calf tightness is linked all the way to the back of our head/neck (just behind the ears)? He loosened that for me as well. http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2008/09/physio-ed-knee-hurray.html


Chinese Accupressure Centre
$24-36 per session, cash only
Tel: look for Frankie - 63720409/ 90071484
71A pagoda street (behind lucky chinatown macdonalds, above a bee cheng hiang bah-kua shop, 2nd flr)

My regular dose of weekly maintenance tui-nas. Good for easing out the cranks and general maintenance & treatment of sprains, strains etc. Great for target treatment of specific sprains, Frankie can spend an entire 30-60min just working on a particular spot.


Victor Ong/ Rosa
$55 for 1hr; $40 for half-hr, cash
Tel: 91459654/ 63540717 (Rosa: 96465096)
55 Newton Road (Revenue House), #05-02 (inside the Recreation Club on 5th floor; exchange for visitor's pass at security counter)

Good, firm sports massage. Experienced, many running clients. Be ready for painful kneading, but rewarded with loosened muscles and limbs. :)
http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2009/08/another-sports-massage.html

His colleague, Rosa, is equally effective but double the pain. Rosa is so petite that she puts her entire body weight on you via her bony elbows and fingers. Be sure to turn blue (from holding your breath) and scream in pain.


Gian Min Medical Centre
~$36 cash only
152 Mei Ling St #01-16 Singapore 140152. Tel/Hp : 64759621
Close by 9pm; call to check; no pre-apptm, walk-in to get Q-number (u can tell them don't want medicine before they issue it) usu v crowded, gotta wait 30min-1hr after u get Q-number.
The electricity acupuncture. They will also massage or twist/crack you in the same session. They decide what sort of treatment after they see you.
http://psescapades.blogspot.com/2008/10/acupuncture.html


Chinese physician Lee Heng Long
$30 per session, cash only
M: 9675 4306
Blk 39 #10-2412 Upper Boon Keng Road
Closed by 6pm and on Thurs; call before going
The spinal chiropractor - he loosened my back, and I could feel my entire hamstrings and calves loosen.


Chang Jiang Acupuncture (closed/ relocated - unsure of new address)
$40 per session, cash only
Physician CK Soh
Blk 150 Bt Batok St 11#01-232 S650150
Tel: 65665909
9am - 9pm weekdays & sat. sun til 5pm
I've been going for many acupuncture sessions. usu just walk-in. You can treat entire body in one session, just add more needles only, fixed $40.But if u want the tui-na, better to call in advance. There's a different Chinese guy doing tui-na and he's quite good. Also $40.

Tuesday Swim Class (make-up)

Tuesday swim class. Coach made it a recovery class since many had raced over the weekend. *phwew*

3x 400m slowly (9:41min, 9:59, 10:05)
1x 200m slowly (5:05min)
3x 200m faster (5:03, 5:03, 5:18min)

Desaru LD Triathlon

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/simsps/DesaruLDTriathlon1Aug2009#

Pre-race (Friday 31 Jul 2009)

It was our annual pilgrimage to Desaru for the long distance triathlon. Supposedly a half-ironman, but the distances were mostly estimates (ie. shorter this year). Swim 1.9km (think it was only 1.5/1.6km), Bike 90km (~85km), Run 21km (~20+km).

We drove up on Friday afternoon with Kahan, Winnie, Richard, Henry, Lucille and Kam Meng's family. 4 cars convoy. It took us about 2h to reach Desaru, with a pitstop at Petronas to buy water and snacks. Henry and us stayed at Pulai Resort, whilst the majority of YF folks were at Golden Beach. Pulai's a lot nicer.

Had dinner at our favourite Good Luck restaurant (instead of the usual bigger place at Jade, where cyclists normally stopped to load up). The steamed garlic baby lobsters, ooohh!

Race Day (Saturday 1 Aug 2009)

It was one of those races that started late, 9am. Ample time to sleep in and prepare. The morning sun was bright and strong, oh-oh, heat wave. We cycled to the race site, did body marking and set up the transition area. Uncle Chan (organizer) announced that the swim distance was shortened. The sea still looked like the washing machine of last year, but the currents were not as strong. I actually enjoyed the swim a lot more than last year, and after a while, caught the rhythm of swimming in the waves! Swim time & confidence had to improve, after all the YF classes I had been taking! 2 loops of swim and I was much surprised by my time. (Post-race comparison saw many of my swim-mates clocking much faster times, well-done! But hey, I was happy with my swim. *pat pat* :))

Bike was 3 loops. It went ok except that my speedometer was not sensing anything. Oh well, just had to keep pedalling. I changed my bike setup and tires a week before the race. I had to keep reminding myself to watch my pedal stroke and style. The new tires were thinner and more responsive. The winds (cross & head) were strong (although Khina said last year was worse). On the downslopes, I could literally feel the bike 'swaying'. Eeeks! Mental note to self not to waste money on fancy Zipp-like wheels with deep rims, and get blown off by the crosswinds! Needed a strong rider to balance that sort of bike setup. The rolling slopes were quite a killer, though still managed to hold on to the big gear combination for majority of the ride. I ate 2 powerbars during the ride, usually on the flat or slight upslopes, and stopped at the water point during every loop to refill my aerobottle. I saw so many friends in the opposite direction, inspiration to continue and finish the ride.

Run 2 loops. I reached the transition point and Alber was there putting on his shoes. I asked him to wait and run together. We started off and I went on the high cadence shuffle. But felt the abductors threatening to cramp up. Alber passed me half a Nuun tablet to suck on. Shem shared that little tip with our runners and Alber tried it once. It worked quite well, the cramps dissipated very quickly. We ran together for a while. Last year, it rained during the run and I could do a decent run. This year, the heat was such a killer, I stopped at every water point to drink and get a wet sponge and stuffed it down my back. At one point, I went into a public toilet and just poured water over myself. And I walked up the steep killer little slope. It was too much energy wasted to run up. I kept stopping, took a few steps, and ran along, and stopped again. For some reason, my run was bad, I could not find the right rhythm. When I did, the cramping sensation reappeared, and I had to slow down. I saw friends in the opposite direction, but could not close the gap. :( Sadly, of all disciplines, I died on the run. Sigh.

Still, happy with the overall race. About 6:22h in total (way down from my 7:03h last year). Swim improved the most by almost 30min (given the shorter distance and weaker waves). Bike and run went down a little.

Everyone gathered for a massive dinner at Jade Restaurant. We booked 16 tables. It was such a rowdy affair, it was almost like a Chinese wedding dinner! Everyone went around talking to everyone else, and pouring drinks for one another. The party continued after that at Kat's command centre. Whoa, super well-stocked support crew! They had almost everything that one could think of!

Post-race (2 Aug 2009)

Slept in late. Woke up with aches all over. Especially the abductors that were cramping up yesterday. Ouch. And foot, seemed like an old injury. Had a lazy breakfast. It was funny how everyone at the buffet breakfast was checking out one another. You know because you could feel the eyes on you even as they continued their meals, and vice-versa! Haha. You could almost see the thought bubbles in the air - This one did the race, this one looks like triathlete, wow that one wearing Busselton-IM tee, over there a China-IM shirt,...

Checked out and joined the convoy to Kota Tingi for bah-ku-teh. I think we wiped out all the BKT soup in the shop. They served out the last portions of innards, trotters and meat etc to us!

Safe drive home. Had a great weekend, but was tiring. Would need to lay off and recover.

Easy Swim

Easy swim, no run, tapering. Oh gosh, it was harder to swim slower than normal. I tried to practise the gliding... not successful. Somehow used more strength to slow down than the usual 'cadence'/ stroke cycle.

20 laps slowly. 28min. Did another 200m with Alber. Supposed to draft easily, but lagged so far back. He said he had to try and stay stationary for me to catch up! Grrr.... But ya, my slowest 2x 100m thus far, and I already felt tired. Oops.

We soaked in the jacuzzi for a while. Lazily, waiting for the runners to return. Ouch, hot water! The jets sprayed relentlessly. Flabby parts were pinpointed, exactly! Cos they felt different from when the jets hit the muscles! Eeeeks!

Last Track Session

Did an easy warm up loop. Tried my Mizuno race shoes for the warm up. I could not remember the last time I wore the shoes for a race, and they felt uhmmm unfamiliar. Oh dear. In the end, I switched back to my trusty Asics for the workout.

15 sets of 400m - 10x easy, 5x moderate, 30sec rest interval. The only problem was I think I did everything @moderate!

"Easy"
1- 1:58min
2- 1:50
3- 1:48
4- 1:51
5- 1:48
6- 1:50
7- 1:53
8- 1:52
9- 1:54
10- 1:56
11- 1:57 (??? unknowingly did an extra set?)

"Moderate" (no difference in time! but certainly increased effort to maintain)
1- 1:49
2- 1:50
3- 1:49
4- 1:46
5- 1:42

Tonight was the last session we had with Shem. It had been a fun group training that happened quite randomly. Will miss it. Awww.....