Mid-Year Wrap

Swim : 6.3km
Bike : 351.5km
Run : 236.4km

Overall, I am happy with myself.
The figures may pale in comparison with a lot of my fellow runners, but I am exercising. :)

CBD Parking

Sigh, got a $10 parking ticket today.
What to do? I dun work in town and whenever I park at Tanjong Pagar during Tuesday's CBD Run , the rates are $1 per hr.

Haiz, they are not collecting ERP on Saturday, so why the double charge on Saturday?
And the charges are effective upto Saturday 5pm....

Feel like appealing against the summon, but will it help???

Happy Days

Was driving home , when I started to reflect on the things that has happened during past week.

The bike accident.
Had never got hurt such badly before. Not during my army days nor my soccer days in secondary school.
But it has really touch a nerve.
I am considering myself lucky to be able to wake up from the blackout.
Dehydration and pushing yourself over the limit is not something to be trifled with.
After the incident, I promise myself that I will be looking for a hydration pack.
Not sure of what to get yet though.
Options available are Camelpak, Nathan fuel belt and bike saddle twin cage.
Bike saddle twin cage is the least desired as it will take up valuable real estate. Also, that will means that I cannot use it on the run leg.
Will listen to more options before I make up my mind.

Wednesday is Dennis and Siau Yan's wedding.
I have never smile so heartily for a long time.
I am very glad to have attended the wedding dinner of a very close friend.

Friday.
I noticed myself smiling when I see my colleague Yen Yen walked home.
So happy for her. Being 2 months pregnant just a few months into her marriage must be a blessing for her and her hubby. :)

Suddenly, it dawns on me that I have never been happier for the people around me.

This bike incident must have made me look at life from another perspective. :)

Recovery Day #3 and #4

I am recovering well.
No exercise felt so strange.

Bruises on my forehead is fading fast, although I can still feel the pain underneath the skin when I rubbed on the bruises.

Somehow getting harder to eat recently but should be okay soon.

Helmet Destruction

I have to replace my bike helmet soon.
It ain't cheap, but I really have no other choice.

Just imagine if this is my skull. I must count my lucky stars that the helmet could have saved my life.

Scared

I realised that when I am on the expressway these 2 days, I start to hyperventilate.
Also my fingers tend to throttle on the gear stick. Urgh.....

Is it an after effect of the bike mishap I had last Saturday?
I only blacked out, why is it having such an impact on my driving?
Cos in both cases, I am in control of a fast moving vehicle.

Let's hope this problem goes away quickly.

Recovery Day #1 and #2

Spend the last 2 days recovering from my fall on Saturday.

The bruises were really bad on Sunday, but it is starting to get better today.
I am having problem drinking, the swollen lips make me drool quite a lot.

Brisk Walking is painful as it threaten to rip the knee wounds open.

Overall , I am a total wreck.

I was supposed to be Dennis best man for his wedding on Wednesday, but decided that I am not the best person for the role right now. Called Dennis to apologise.
Sorry , Dennis.

A lousy week

Had a real lousy week, but glad that the worse is finally over.

Started with the wasted trip for the Beep Test.

Then followed by knee pain during swimming. Sianz. Whoever heard of swimming can kena knee pain.

Knee pain the day after at the Velocity Run should sum up the whole week of bad luck, but it did not.

It all had to come down to the last day of the week.
First time I ever blacked out.
The last time I almost blacked out was during NS days, but I just see white spots that time.

This time, my vision started to glazed and I started to see black and white flashing.
It really frightened me during the moments before I passed out.

Really have to take care of my body from now on.
I must admit I tried to push it over the limit for a while.
Given my obesity, that is a dangerous thing to do.
Will not let it happen again.

BLACKOUT

Today is Saturday's Triathlon Clinic at ECP.

After meeting Stacy at the Thomson Road's LongHouse, we took the Novena route.

But sad to say, I never reached ECP.

Just 5km from Thomson Road (just before Novena Square), I blacked-out!!!

I knew something was amiss when I stopped behind a bus.
My vision starts to turn black and white and my breathing become very fast.
Slowly, I made my way to the pavement and took a few deep breaths.
It never got better.

Next thing I knew, I started praying... I do not want my life to end this way. Not like this. Please........

I literally stood on the pavement , still holding onto my bike for probably 30 seconds more.

"Sir Sir, are you alright???"
That was the next thing I heard.
I have fallen together with the bike and got cuts on my upper , lower lips and my left knee.
Severe bruising on my face and forehead.
My sunglasses was in pieces.
My helmet..... well it is intact, but......

I do not know how long I was lying there.
But when I woke up, there was about 20 passer-bys all around me.
They started looking for water for me.
I do have water in my backpack and took mine out to sip.
Some kind soul was pouring water onto my head.

Most of them mentioned that I do not look good and advised me to move to a shady area.
I insist I am okay, but after many hands started to help me, I moved under the shades.

The sweet lady, the first voice that I heard when I woke up, told me I looked better and after I insisted that I am alright, she left.

At this time, Stacy called. I told her to go ahead as I feel that I am in no condition to cycle anymore.

A couple of other passer-bys stopped to check on me.
Next thing I knew, a lady was standing in front of me.

She is a certified first-aider. To her , I looked like a wreck.
She had wanted to called the ambulance, but I stopped her.
Thus she mentioned that she will walk with me to Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She will not leave until I seek some treatment, so after a few moments of hassling, we proceed to TTSH.

Went directly to A&E under the advice of the TTSH staff.
While waiting at the consultation room, I started to feel very sleepy.
Walked around a few moments.
Decided that I am okay and left the premises.

Went to Novena Square to looked for a clinic but was told that the clinic is now closed.
Went back to Running Lab where I dropped my bike.
While trying to get some circulation back, I started to browse through the products.

Still comptemplating to get the North Face BOA.
At 30% off, it looks more and more tempting.
It is the same price as a Asics Kayano.

In the end, I got Cho-Pat and Lock Laces.
My race belt will have to wait.
At $19 , the race belt is definitely too expensive.
I remember seeing a $10 race belt, so that will be the only price I will be comfortable with.
Hopefully the Sacouny Race Pack Event has a cheaper Race Belt.

Nike Pro Compression T

Bought a Nike Pro Compression T last Friday at VivoCity.

There are a few models available, but I went for the sleeveless one with vented sides.

It was supposed to be used as a baselayer during exercise, but also recommended by Nike to wear it on its own (model is a guy with 6-packs though).

Put it to good use on Saturday when I bike to East Coast Park last week.

It was raining and the wind is just so chilling.
Then I noticed that the torso which is mainly covered by the T feels warm and cosy.
(You can still feel wind through the vents , though)

This piece of fabric really work wonders. I arrive at my destination still feeling good. Without it, I guess I would have felt very miserable from the cold.

Next, I wore it like a tri-top for the swim leg.
Together with my Nike Running Tights, I have a Nike Tri-Suit. Hehe.
Being seamless, the T does not hinder my movement at all.
But not purely of swimsuit material, it does not repel water as easily as it should, although you cannot feel it in the water.
You can feel the water hanging onto the T once you are on land.

On Tuesday, I wore it for the Velocity Run.
Although I was wearing a white T over it, I think none of the guys noticed it at all. :)
Again, I feel that I does reduce fatigue.
As a added bonus, I feel myself running straighter throughout the whole run.

All in all, I give the Nike Pro Compression T 10 out of 10 for

1) Reduce fatigue
2) Keeping me from the cold
3) Make me run straighter

Feeling Good

Phyiscally I feel great.

My tummy has grown from that of a "8 months pregnant" to a "3 months pregnant" one.

A lot of my pants are getting loose. Time to get out the smaller size pants. Yeah!!!

In Time of Crisis

Sigh, why is it always in time of crisis does people reveal their true colours.

I just dun understand why no one wants to stay back to help out when my colleague's window got smashed by a flying rock.

Those that requires to take public transport to go home, I can understand.

But the guys who drives, why din you stay back to help especially since our dear colleague is pregnant and her hubby happens to be working overseas?
Why din you show that little bit of concern and say some kind words?

Why? Why? Why?

I am not complaining that I am the only guy left behind helping, but it would have really helped if I had more assistance.

Ouch, it hurts!

An update with regards to my knee injury.

Today it really hurts. Whenever I turn on the spot, the pain is so acute that I actually winced in pain.

Have to really watch out. Sigh....after so many happy months of exercising, why does this have to happen.

This week really starts on a bad note for me.

Novena Velocity Run 19th June 2007

Picked up Jancy on the way to Novena Velocity for the Running Lab Run.She is interested in the talk that will be conducted by a certified Osteopath after the Run.

Me? I am interested in both the talk and the free PowerGel that will be given to all attendees.

The run starts @ 7pm promptly. Route is the 8km Route #1.

Thomson Road > Chancery Lane > Dunearn Road > Whitley Road > Malcolm Road > Chancery Lane > Left turn @ Thomson Road > U-turn @ SLF Building > Novena Square.

Everything is fine. I feel great.

Tricia, acting as the sweeper, ran with me.
Energetic girl who keep egging me to go for the longer route.

Sadly, 5km into the run (just before the junction of Chancery Lane and Thomson Road) , my right knee starts giving me problem again.

I tried to ignore the pain, but it only got worse.

I ended up walking the rest of the way back to Novena Square.

The rest of the runners arrived soon after. The Osteopath clinic started almost immediately after the last runner comes in.

Learnt quite a bit about our physique during the clinic.

Must say that I am glad that I joined today's run and attended the clinic.

Oh yeah, and the PowerGel that was given out. That's so cool :)

Only bummer is the knee injury.

Hope I get well soon.

A Short Swim

With the rain staying away, I was able to continue with my swimming plan after work.
Had wanted to do all the laps in freestyle, but after just 2 laps, I was exhausted.
The barrel roll (aka high elbows) method looks easy on land, but it is really hard to master.
After a while, with sufficient body roll, things feels a bit better.
Nonetheless, I gave up and continue my swim using breaststroke.

After swimming 15laps, I changed to swim economically.
Have to build up my endurance for long distance swim.
Everything was fine till the 32nd lap. Felt something amiss at my right knee.
Just 10m into the 33rd lap, I know that it is time to call it quits.
Must stay injury free.

Walked away from a satisfying swim.

Murphy's Law

Murphy's Law - "Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong."

Murphy really rears its ugly head today.

I woke up early, thus without hesitation I decided to go for the Beep Test.

Worried that I may have read the details wrongly, I open up Philip's PM to double check again.
So certain that I have the information I need, I left the house.

Only after the unsuccessful trip to Kallang, did I re-read Philip's PM.
Car Park C , Gate C.
OMG, where did my Car Park E comes from???

My mind is really in 2 pieces right now. What is wrong with me recently?

Wasted Trip

Went down to Kallang this morning for the 20m Beep Test conducted by Philip.

Reached Kallang McDonald's at 8am and it was raining pretty heavily.
Judging by the road sign, I have assumed that Car Park E would have been the public car park besides McDonald's.
Being in the rain wasn't fun, so I did not went exploring.
After waiting till 9.15am and still no one in sight, I decided to move out since the rain has become a drizzle.
Drive around Kallang, I finally found Car Park E in front of Singapore Indoor Stadium.
The entire car park was deserted.
I went to ask the Security if he happens to see a group of people gathering or a group training around the premises? He was not certain.
Disappointed, I made my way home.
A wasted trip...

Satay Bee Hoon

Intended to start the day at TYR Warehouse Sales and Queensway Shopping Center.

Was biking down to Bukit Merah via Lornie Road when it started to rain heavily.

No choice , have to stop by the bus stop at Bukit Timah.

After being stuck there for a good 1.5 hours, shopping plan is off.

It was still drizzling, but I still made my way down to East Coast Park for the OSIM Triathlon training.

Reached there at 3.30pm and the training has yet to start. It started only around 4pm.

My intention for these training is the chance to do the brick training , not really there for all those talks which is the same week after week.

As it was still drizzling, the bike leg was cancelled.

Tried on my "tri-suit". I know I look damn ugly in it. But who cares, as long as I feel comfortable in it.
Wore it straight from home, and I must say that it really helps in keep the core temperature in, as I was really feeling miserable and cold from all those biking in the rain.

Had our swim in surprisingly calm water. A lot of us were expecting choppy waters due to the rain.
I tried the high elbow method, not much effect in propelling far although u can really feel that it take the strain off kicking, which becomes almost non-existent. I guess I have to try it in the swimming pool to see if it really helps my freestyle.

After the swim, it was the run. Been a long time since I did that.
It feels much tougher, the legs just cannot get going.
Wonder if it would had be different if I had not bike down to East Coast Park.

After the training, which ends around 6pm, I made my way down to East Coast Park Hawker Center.
Hehe, 6pm...meaning I can finally get a chance to eat the much touted Satay Bee-hoon.

After queueing for a good 30 minutes, it is finally my turn. Being the greedy one, I order 2 x $2.
Must say that for $2 , the ingredients is plentiful. Dun think we can get that amount anywhere else. The gravy is very nice, that I slurped up everything single bit of it.
After that, I went for my sugar fix.
Ice kachang. Wow, the prices here are really inflated. $2 for plain old ice kachang.
Luckily, the ice kachang did not disappoint.
The ice is so fine that it melts in your mouth. The syrup was so plentiful that you won't be able to taste any part of the ice that is not covered in it.
The only disappointing portion is the red bean, dun taste fresh at all.
Washed it down with the last bit of ice.

After my stomach is satisfied, I made the long bike ride back home.
Dunno why, but it is always demoralising biking home. And I always seems to take double the time to do so.
Took the shorter and easier route home. Fort Road > Mountbatten Road > Tanjong Katong Road > Paya Lebar Road > Boundary Road > Ang Mo Kio > Yishun.
Still it took me ages to reach home.

Now ready for tomrrow's beep test.

Distance travelled : 63.79 km
Average speed : 19 km/h
Time taken : 3:20:42 hrs

15th June

Had a long day ahead.
An appointment in town at 9am. It was quick. Everything completed by 9.30am.
All of us were supposed to go our own ways after that, but due to the heavy downpour, we adjourned to Maxwell Hawker Center for our breakfast.
Had the famous Loh mee. Yummy.
It was a long wait for the rain to stop. Almost 2 hours before we were able to leave the place.

As my next appointment is at 1pm at VivoCity, it does not make much sense for me to go home.
Thus went to Bike Boutique to while my time away. Talked to Choon Wei, only to know that their cheapest bike is going for $3,500 (frame only)!!!
After looking unsuccessfully for my sunglasses and tri-suit, I made my way to Tanjong Pagar Hawker Center.
What better dessert can u have there than Annie Ice Kachang.
After slurping up the first plate, I feel like going for seconds. But I am sure I will not enjoy it as much as the first, thus I refrain for ordering. :) Especially since I had coffee, tea, prata and Loh mee only hours ago. :p

After my tummy is satisfied, I make my way to VivoCity.
Normally I would not have stepped into B.I.R.D. , but being GSS, it is worth a try.
First thing that catches my eye is the Nike Pro Compression T-shirt.
Intend to use it as a baselayer for my training sessions.
After going through the different designs, I bought the sleeveless Vent Pro.

Dear arrived soon after.
As it is dear's birthday, we decide to spoil ourselves.
Went for an Italian lunch at Modesto's.
The portion is small, but it was still very filling.
Was super full after all the makan sessions.

Next treat on the menu?
Cinema screening. Been a good 4 years since our last cinema screening together alone.
I choose GV Max as it is touted to have the largest screen in Singapore, and one of the largest in Asia for good measure.
Fantastic 4 : The Silver Surfer is the only show for the entire day.
Nonetheless, quite happy that it is a good show.
There were even people clapping when the show ends.

Haha, what do you normally do when 7pm strikes? Dinner!!!
When lunch was only 5 hours ago and still swimming in the stomach. I decided to forego my dinner and settle for dessert only while dear had her main course.
Given that it is Chocolate Banana slice and Iced Mocha, it was still pretty sinful.

Fun day out. :)

With all the training and outings, June is turning into the best month I have yet. :)

Food Indiscipline

Had gone a bit off my diet for the past few days and it really tells.

Feeling bloated, seems to put back some weight.

Must start all over again.

Must bit the bullet and really be disciplined.

Novena Running Lab Run Route 2

As I was pretty near to Novena , I decided to drop by Novena Running Lab for their weekly Tuesday Night Runs.(Sorry CBD guys, I totally forgot that the regular tumpang service is not available today, else I would have made my way down there.)

The group was much smaller than the one I joined during the inaugural run.Around 15 of us of which 1/3 are school-going teenagers.

Tercen leads the warm up and brief us on the running route.I have not done the route before thus I was a bit lost during the briefing.

The run starts promptly at 7pm. We went through Chancery Lane to Dunearn Road > Kheam Hock Road > Evans Road > Cluny Road > Napier Road > Tanglin Road >

Orange Grove Road > Stevens Road > Bukit Timah Road > Newton Road and back to Novena Velocity.

At Bukit Timah Road, I was a bit confused. As I initally thought that Bukit Timah Road starts from Serene Centre. Now I know better. :p

The run seems like a sight-seeing tour for me. Discovering parts of Singapore which I normally zoom past without know where I really am.

Took me 1.5 hours just to complete 11.5km. Pace of 7:45min/km is really lousy.

I wonder what really happen to my pace after my February fever. I never seems to recover from that.From a sub-7min/km pace which I can keep constant for 8km; 1:10 hr for a 10km run. I never re-discover that pace anymore.

Pace aside, I am glad that I completed the run.

Was a bit high after the run, as though I was drunk. Is that what ppl term as Runner's High???

Safari

For all the IT geeks out there, you should have guessed it right the first time.

Kudos to all those non-IT if you get it right too. :)

Yeap, it is the internet browser by Apple.

There is a new version for Windows.

Oh gosh, it is real cool.

I can use any fonts that I want and it really does load much much faster than any of the browser that I have used before.

The interface looks cleaner , the whole browser just give you an awesome feeling. 

I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to escape from the grasp of Microsoft Internet Explorer, Firefox.

Osim Triathlon Training Clinic #1

This is the first Osim Triathlon Training Clinic that is open to public.

It was a huge turnout with close to a hundred people from the public attending it.

Started with a VO2max talk from a doctor from Changi Hospital.
After which there is a Swim Bike Run proper. It is of a shorter distance, mostly to let everyone get a feel of the race.

The public really took it seriously, treating it like an actual day event, especially on the bike leg.
For me, I took it easy. Chatting with Fahmy and Francis on the bike leg and skipping the run leg entirely. :p Keke, cos Mabel have some issues with her bike, thus I stayed behind to catch some tips from the coaches.

After the event, got a chance to borrow one of the road bike from Cannondale and took it for a spin.

It is a totally different experience for me. Everything feel so different.
I was apprehensive at first, but once I get used to the bike, it was a wonderful experience for me.
The uphill seems so easy and I find myself travelling greater distances with less leg power. (Michael from Cannondale mentioned that it is because road bikes have larger wheels than MTB)
But aerobars wise, I dun think I need them at all. It is more of a fashion statement to me.
I will probably get a entry level bike with 105 or Ultegra groupset.

Distance travelled : 20.30 km

Long Distance Triathlon

This is not a half-Ironman per se, but the distances are pretty close.

There is only one cut-off time for the entire race and that is 6.5 hours to complete the whole course.

As compared to the Half-Ironman, you can be weak in two disciplines (not recommened) and still finish the race in time.

Keke, there is a slight chance that I may be doing that now.

Have got the chop of approval from MHA. :)

Digital Age

When talking to LR yesterday, I was pretty surprised that she started chatting to her friend on the phone since Primary One. How time have changed.

Then it occurred to me that she may not have seen a rotary type phone before.
Really bring back the memories in an instant.
It seems like yesterday that Singtel uncles is pushing the cart along the corridor to set up a push button phone to replace the rotary phone.
It was like a huge event, with the adults and the kids lining the corridor waiting for their turn and see which colour that they have. Haha, those were the days where Singtel dictates everything. There ain't phones that can be bought off the shelf. Now we see all sorts of shapes and sizes.

Keke, now I wonder if she had play five stones and zero point before?

Pink Race Bike

Hehe, I am sure that our Triathlon Wannabe will love to have this.

Energised

Woke up still feeling the effects of Tuesday's CBD Run.
Definitely not used to interval training.
Luckily, these bunch of SGRunners always got something up their sleeves, else my muscles would have gone to waste.

Woke up early, thus decide to go for a spin to see if it will help ease the ache.

Went straight to Simpang Kiri Park Connector.
Was surprised that there are only a few runners there.
Make full use of the space given to do laps within the park connector.
It was really shiok, with the wind in your face and without having to worry about the traffic.
Did as many laps as I possibly can, before I have to come back and prep for work.

Good workout and the muscle ache is gone. Yeah!!!

Distance travelled : 20.30 km
Average speed : 22.01 km/h
Time taken : 55:21 mins

Pleasant morning surprise

Hehe, 2 things that make me glad this morning.

One, my weight is now close to 2 digit figures.
Two, I am now able to fit into a smaller size work pants. :)

I sincerely think that cross training helps me a lot in achieving that.

CBD Interval Training

Starting from Tanjong Pagar MRT, we did a 2.5km slow jog to our starting point at Marina Promenade to do interval training.
Interval training consists of 4 sets of 1km.
My splits are 6.09, 5.52, 5.40, 6.20.
Lap 2 and 3, I have a pacer.
Bee happen to be in front of me and I did my very best to catch up / keep pace with her.
Even in her injured state, she is still a lot faster than me.
The rule is that we rest 3 minutes starting from the last guy who reach the end point.
Needless to say, I gave the guys a lot of resting time. Haha.

Timing per lap is at least 2 minutes slower than the rest of the guys, but it is good lor.
Can feel that the legs really worked hard.

Guess I really need to lose another 20kg, before I can catch up with the guys in terms of pace.
After the fourth set, we made our way back to Tanjong Pagar MRT.
Good workout.

20.20 Unfinished Business.....Done

Right after work, went to complete the route that I did not took last week.

Cycle all the way to the end of Mandai Road, where the Shell Petrol Kiosk is.
Exactly 10km from home.
Took the reverse route back home. Had wanted to complete 30km, but seeing how bad the traffic is, I decided to cut it short and return home safely.
Satisfied with the workout.

Distance travelled : 20.20 km
Average speed : 23.2 km/h
Time taken : 52:19 mins

74.74

Went for First Tri Club training at East Coast Park Carpark F2 today.
Took 1 hr 20 min, distance covered 30km.
Must say I make pretty good time. :)

Did not learn anything from the training.
Another huge disappointment.

After the training, have a short chat with Fahmy.
The guy just bought a Cannondale!!!
Cost him a bomb, but his MHA signed off the purchase.
How I wish I have that kind of spare cash to spend.

Make my way to the hawker center to have my dinner.
Pity, I was too early for peanut butter bee hoon. Some other time lor.

Took the East Coast - Siglap - Bedok Reservoir Park connectors in an effort to reach home.
Once I reach Bedok Reservoir, I continue on to Old Tampines Road.
Saw that Paya Lebar Expressway is almost complete.
Keke, took a ride on the empty expressway.
Hehe, yeah. After so many years I did it again.
But the route is a bit dumb, cos I am exiting at Old Tampines Road again!!!
Hopefully, it will ease the traffic from Sengkang. Cos there is a route leading in and out to Buangkok, but it is in the midst of construction.

All these detours really take up time.
So I decided to take a shortcut, or rather I thought it was a shortcut.
Went off-trail and got myself hopelessly lost for an hour.

After getting myself back on track , I continue to Serangoon Park Connector.
Feel like giving National Park Board a piece of my mind, cos the Serangoon Park Connector leads to a dead end.
I have to back track ard 1.2km to reach the main road.
Continue onto Sengkang -> Anchorvale -> Fernvale.
Fernvale is the meeting place for Suzuki Swift drivers.
At least 12 cars are parked at the LRT.
Think there are going to use the seldom used Fernvale Road to do some fast driving.

Took the shortcut to Jalan Kayu and cycle through Seletar Camp to reach Yishun Dam.
OMG, the whole place sure is packed.
Both sides of the road are jam packed with cars and ppl.
They are enjoying the cool breeze and the scenery.
See a lot of lovebirds there.

Took me 4 hr 20 min to reach home.
Have not cycled for such long distance before.
Now my legs feel like jelly.
Wondering if I should skip WHR tomorrow.
See decide in the morning. :p

Distance travelled : 74.74 km
Average speed : 15.6 km/h
Time taken : 4:46:18 hours

Cut-off Times

What are the cut-off times for the race?
Swim – 1:10 after your wave start in the swim.
Bike – 5:30 (4:20) after your original wave start.
Finish – 8:30 (3:00) after your original wave start.

I am still ages from training under such intense timing.
Given my current performance, my timing seems like borderline.
Must keep faith. 4 years and counting.