He had his sweet... okay, maybe not sweet, but SEXAY SIXTEENTH birthday today.Happy birthday Keith! Enjoy yourself and be a good kid, hehheh.
Friday, 7 May 2010
Whatcha lookin' at?
My little brother... not so little anymore... he's 1cm taller than I now!
He had his sweet... okay, maybe not sweet, but SEXAY SIXTEENTH birthday today.
Happy birthday Keith! Enjoy yourself and be a good kid, hehheh.
He had his sweet... okay, maybe not sweet, but SEXAY SIXTEENTH birthday today.Happy birthday Keith! Enjoy yourself and be a good kid, hehheh.
Wednesday, 5 May 2010
Flight frenzy
It was just by chance when I saw my friend's Facebook status update, saying that Jetstar was having a 2 for 1 sale. I checked the dates and flights for Singapore in March next year were going at A$400 for two people!
Hence, I jumped at the opportunity and booked tickets for darling and myself, with the intention of competing at Aviva 70.3 Ironman next year. And the race registration hasn't even opened yet!
I had been dabbling with the idea but I guess there's no turning back now. Then again, a weekend holiday in Singapore wouldn't hurt. As the last time I've been there was probably nearly 10 years ago!
I also helped my parents booked their flights to Auckland to visit my sis at the end of this year, flying from Gold Coast. So they probably need to get Air Asia flights from KL to Gold Coast.
For this morning's run, I ran the first 4.35km pretty well but hobbled the next loop and decided to call off the third loop. My left calf was pretty tight. Maybe all this flight excitement was getting to me! But my orthotics are currently being modified as well, hopefully it will help ease the tension on my left leg when I run.
Hence, I jumped at the opportunity and booked tickets for darling and myself, with the intention of competing at Aviva 70.3 Ironman next year. And the race registration hasn't even opened yet!
I had been dabbling with the idea but I guess there's no turning back now. Then again, a weekend holiday in Singapore wouldn't hurt. As the last time I've been there was probably nearly 10 years ago!
I also helped my parents booked their flights to Auckland to visit my sis at the end of this year, flying from Gold Coast. So they probably need to get Air Asia flights from KL to Gold Coast.
For this morning's run, I ran the first 4.35km pretty well but hobbled the next loop and decided to call off the third loop. My left calf was pretty tight. Maybe all this flight excitement was getting to me! But my orthotics are currently being modified as well, hopefully it will help ease the tension on my left leg when I run.
Sunday, 2 May 2010
Butt butt
This post actually came from the insistence of Li-Ann, who has been observing my habitual exercises lately. I have been doing these exercises regularly for the past 1.5 years or so, on advice by my physiotherapist and podiatrist.
Apart from my flat feet, another contributing factor to the risk of me getting injured is the weak muscles in my... erm, posterior. Gluteus. Buttock. Backside. Call it what you like. I supposed it's obvious from my (very) flat rear. And sadly, after doing these exercises for so long, I don't think I have gained any mass in that area. But I would do anything to prevent injury, hence, I try my best to do this every other day, if not everyday.
So how would having stronger butt muscles help prevent injury, you'd ask? Well, as endurance athletes, we tend to neglect certain muscles and overuse other muscles and joints to compensate for these weak muscles. Prolonged overcompensation will strain these muscles and joints, increasing the risk of injury.
I'm no sports scientist, but it made sense to me. And I believe this exercise does help. Here's one of the exercises that helps strengthen the butt muscles. I am sure there are many more, and you can easily Google search them. Enjoy!
Apart from my flat feet, another contributing factor to the risk of me getting injured is the weak muscles in my... erm, posterior. Gluteus. Buttock. Backside. Call it what you like. I supposed it's obvious from my (very) flat rear. And sadly, after doing these exercises for so long, I don't think I have gained any mass in that area. But I would do anything to prevent injury, hence, I try my best to do this every other day, if not everyday.
So how would having stronger butt muscles help prevent injury, you'd ask? Well, as endurance athletes, we tend to neglect certain muscles and overuse other muscles and joints to compensate for these weak muscles. Prolonged overcompensation will strain these muscles and joints, increasing the risk of injury.
I'm no sports scientist, but it made sense to me. And I believe this exercise does help. Here's one of the exercises that helps strengthen the butt muscles. I am sure there are many more, and you can easily Google search them. Enjoy!
Wednesday, 28 April 2010
Ironman WA - SOLD OUT
Words can't describe how relieved I am feeling right now for signing up on Friday. Had I gambled and waited just a few days, I might have missed out! If that were the case, I wonder what would I be doing for the rest of the year, with no major race to train for, or to look forward to!
Anyway, a quick look of the confirmed entrants.
A total of 9 of us would be racing under the Jalur Gemilang of Malaysia.
F30-34 Lai, May Senn
M35-39 Blanarik, Miroslav
M35-39 Oakley, Denis
M35-39 Ratchaga, Ezer
M35-39 Sidek, Nik Arif
M35-39 Tang, Richard
M40-44 Frenz, Tobias
M50-54 Ismail, Mohamed (Sofian)
and myself in M25-29
It seems there is a biased distribution of entries towards the M35-39 category... and May Senn will be our sole female representative!
And not far from home, another friend of mine from Brunei (and the only one) will be doing this as his second Ironman.
M25-29 Junaidi, Ahmad Fathi
A few more friends in Perth (not that many as I don't have many tri friends here).
John Cooke M45-49, whose blog I follow regularly and I had the pleasure of meeting during a Craig Alexander appearance.
Viv Oldfield M25-29, my podiatrist, of which our sessions always overrun into the next appointments as we find ourselves talking away about Ironman races and training.
Shao Wu M35-39, who swims in the same group session as I do. Very quick on the bike as well as the run, and is making tremendous improvement in the swim as well.
Sam Goh M25-29, from ECU who trains with North Coast Tri Club and is representing Singapore at this race. I met him at Busselton Half last year.
For the full list, click here.
It's more than 7 months away, but I can't help getting excited! So excited that I finally broke 58 minutes for my 13km run this morning. Still a long way from my usual pace, but definitely getting there!
Anyway, a quick look of the confirmed entrants.
A total of 9 of us would be racing under the Jalur Gemilang of Malaysia.
F30-34 Lai, May Senn
M35-39 Blanarik, Miroslav
M35-39 Oakley, Denis
M35-39 Ratchaga, Ezer
M35-39 Sidek, Nik Arif
M35-39 Tang, Richard
M40-44 Frenz, Tobias
M50-54 Ismail, Mohamed (Sofian)
and myself in M25-29
It seems there is a biased distribution of entries towards the M35-39 category... and May Senn will be our sole female representative!
And not far from home, another friend of mine from Brunei (and the only one) will be doing this as his second Ironman.
M25-29 Junaidi, Ahmad Fathi
A few more friends in Perth (not that many as I don't have many tri friends here).
John Cooke M45-49, whose blog I follow regularly and I had the pleasure of meeting during a Craig Alexander appearance.
Viv Oldfield M25-29, my podiatrist, of which our sessions always overrun into the next appointments as we find ourselves talking away about Ironman races and training.
Shao Wu M35-39, who swims in the same group session as I do. Very quick on the bike as well as the run, and is making tremendous improvement in the swim as well.
Sam Goh M25-29, from ECU who trains with North Coast Tri Club and is representing Singapore at this race. I met him at Busselton Half last year.
For the full list, click here.
It's more than 7 months away, but I can't help getting excited! So excited that I finally broke 58 minutes for my 13km run this morning. Still a long way from my usual pace, but definitely getting there!
Monday, 26 April 2010
Slowly but surely
I hope you guys like the new look of my blog. I've always wanted the layout to show my archives with drop-down buttons and my blog list to be arranged in accordance to most recently updated. But I never knew how. But thanks to Li-Ann, I found out it was just a matter of upgrading my blog template and adding in some widgets!
And the new template is SO EASY TO USE! Well, better late than never, I supposed.
It is the ANZAC Day long weekend. A good opportunity to spruce up the house a bit. We borrowed a grass cutter to tidy up the overgrown weeds in front of our driveway. I gave the new car a good wash.
Training wise, Saturday's ride had some pretty challenging winds, blowing at about 20kph. But the tailwinds at the end helped, I finished 82km in 2:43:11, averaging 30.1kph. On the course, I could see some guys putting in their last few miles before Busso Half this coming Saturday. Complete with aero helmets and disc wheels.
I did another two 13km runs this week. 58:12 on Wednesday and 58:21 on Sunday. I keep telling myself not to worry, my running legs will be back eventually. The recovery is improving though. When I did first run in five weeks last Saturday, I was sore for days.
The public holiday on Monday allowed me to sleep in a bit. I did an hour swim session at midday. But I struggled to meet my interval times when it came to the pedals with pull buoy set. Perhaps, I'm a bit overtrained and needed some rest.
Wishing all of those competing this Saturday the best of luck! Tear up the fast, flat course of Busso!
And the new template is SO EASY TO USE! Well, better late than never, I supposed.
It is the ANZAC Day long weekend. A good opportunity to spruce up the house a bit. We borrowed a grass cutter to tidy up the overgrown weeds in front of our driveway. I gave the new car a good wash.
Training wise, Saturday's ride had some pretty challenging winds, blowing at about 20kph. But the tailwinds at the end helped, I finished 82km in 2:43:11, averaging 30.1kph. On the course, I could see some guys putting in their last few miles before Busso Half this coming Saturday. Complete with aero helmets and disc wheels.
I did another two 13km runs this week. 58:12 on Wednesday and 58:21 on Sunday. I keep telling myself not to worry, my running legs will be back eventually. The recovery is improving though. When I did first run in five weeks last Saturday, I was sore for days.
The public holiday on Monday allowed me to sleep in a bit. I did an hour swim session at midday. But I struggled to meet my interval times when it came to the pedals with pull buoy set. Perhaps, I'm a bit overtrained and needed some rest.
Wishing all of those competing this Saturday the best of luck! Tear up the fast, flat course of Busso!
Friday, 23 April 2010
New ride (not the two wheel kind)
As some of you may recall, from an earlier post, Li-Ann's car got written off after the hailstorm.
So here's the new car we've got. 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer, 2.0L 4 cylinder engine, constant variable transmission, auto cruise and auto stabilization. Low mileage of 11,000kms. Got it for a pretty reasonble price from a private seller.
With this expenditure, maybe I would hold off from spending anymore on tri related equipment and apparel... temporarily.
Having said that, I just registered and paid for my entry in Ironman WA. I heard that there are only about 200 places left, and I didn't want to miss the boat! So for those of you still contemplating, be quick!
So here's the new car we've got. 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer, 2.0L 4 cylinder engine, constant variable transmission, auto cruise and auto stabilization. Low mileage of 11,000kms. Got it for a pretty reasonble price from a private seller.
With this expenditure, maybe I would hold off from spending anymore on tri related equipment and apparel... temporarily.Having said that, I just registered and paid for my entry in Ironman WA. I heard that there are only about 200 places left, and I didn't want to miss the boat! So for those of you still contemplating, be quick!
Sunday, 18 April 2010
Tired legs and a full stomach
After 5 weeks of layoff from running, I decided to do a 13km run (as opposed to a 30 minute one as suggested by my podiatrist, my bad!). The new orthotics have slightly higher arches but are softer and more flexible too. It allows more rolling inwards, to balance out my current over pronation.
I completed the run in just over 58 minutes. A far cry from my usual mid 55 minutes and my personal best of 54 minutes. I started off pretty well but couldn't sustain the pace. Looks like I have to ease back into my running regime.
In the afternoon, we did a bit of gardening. I never did have a green thumb. But I'm pretty pleased with our effort.
Moses in the cradle... hope these little plants will brighten up our barren grass patch a bit.
The next morning, I did my usual 80km ride. It was pretty windy, blowing at above 20kph. And I was feeling pretty sore from the run the day before. The Red Bull Air Race was on, but honestly I didn't see any planes flying that morning. I finished the 81.83km ride in 2:44.22, averaging 29.7kph. Slightly slower than last week, but I can't complain.
For lunch, darling and I treated ourselves to a buffet at Atrium, Burswood. It was a promotion - $20 per person for a weekend meal. Apparently, the restaurant will be closed from mid May until end of the year.
The place was packed! Good thing we had a reservation. But there was a queue to get a table, a queue for the seafood and even a queue to pay! Nevertheless, there was enough food for everyone, so we stuffed ourselves silly. And after Entertainment Book discount, it turned out to be $30 for the both of us, very worth it!
I completed the run in just over 58 minutes. A far cry from my usual mid 55 minutes and my personal best of 54 minutes. I started off pretty well but couldn't sustain the pace. Looks like I have to ease back into my running regime.In the afternoon, we did a bit of gardening. I never did have a green thumb. But I'm pretty pleased with our effort.
Moses in the cradle... hope these little plants will brighten up our barren grass patch a bit.The next morning, I did my usual 80km ride. It was pretty windy, blowing at above 20kph. And I was feeling pretty sore from the run the day before. The Red Bull Air Race was on, but honestly I didn't see any planes flying that morning. I finished the 81.83km ride in 2:44.22, averaging 29.7kph. Slightly slower than last week, but I can't complain.
For lunch, darling and I treated ourselves to a buffet at Atrium, Burswood. It was a promotion - $20 per person for a weekend meal. Apparently, the restaurant will be closed from mid May until end of the year.
The place was packed! Good thing we had a reservation. But there was a queue to get a table, a queue for the seafood and even a queue to pay! Nevertheless, there was enough food for everyone, so we stuffed ourselves silly. And after Entertainment Book discount, it turned out to be $30 for the both of us, very worth it!
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