AHM run

AHM army half marathon - Last Sunday

raced 3 races in a week, 2 before the ahm.. din think i could do well too.
coach had something planned for us. JJ and me:)

before he went to Beijing to watch the olympics, he actually emailed both of us regarding the race plan for us. He knew that I had 2 races before that and that was not able to use my full force to race.

he asked us to start very slow at 24min for first 5km...

i could remember i did a 23min for my first 5km in gold coast..my mistake was starting too fast in a marathon or half marathon.

as per said, we went off at an easy pace. but felt really too slow for me.. was running at 24min 39seconds for first 5km...

in my mind, something told me to keep and hold back the pace. The instructions was : run together.

it was a race strategy.
along the way i wanted to sped up but i realised no point speeding up. i held back again.

it was a great motivation to run with JJ because she is a top veteran runner of singapore and a very good pacer.
We had good company and we took turns to take water for each other. It was really comfortable. we were racing according to time and not for positions. I did not bother to chase anyone in front of me. they just fell back to me one by one.
but it was a totally different race for me because i felt so comfortable at the end.

nearing the last 1km of the race, i saw a veteran runner who was racing in JJ's category and i called to JJ to speed up, I told her to overtake the runner in front. She was having a little cramps and she asked me to pull the pace for her and that she will then follow up. I did as told and sped up, turning back to encourage her...
and in the end, she caught up and overtook that lady. JJ emerged as 2nd in her veteran category and i came in 5th in the woman's closed category.

although i was 6min faster than my previous timing and did a PB, but i was still 3mins off from target.

I knew that if I had sped up and increase the pace, i would be able to do 1 hr37mins.
but there are reasons why coach had wanted to me hold back.

2 races before AHM, then AHM then NIKE 10km race and then 70.3 half ironman and the KPE 10km race.
it was too much.
i have to lay off for more than a month without training.
no point.

anyway Vivian did really well! and JOe did his PB of 1hour 24min:) i promised to beat him in 2 years time:) ahhaa!

patience is the keyword:) i am only 23 years old...:)

Pearl izumi run series-2

Pearl Izumi run series 2

Kallang park:)
it was supposed to be a 20km run:)

I was suffering from a bad hamstring pain all the way. really wanted to stop. but managed to finish it in 1 hour 30min i think:)

it was a great race but tiring because I had training the day before...finished the race strong and also regretted packing soo many races together

run/walk assessment 2008

Run/walk assessment 2008
it is a yearly assessment done for teachers who wanna keep fit and earn money at the same time.
teachers who can run under 12min 30 seconds can get gold and receive $100. as for those who can do around 11 mns plus for ladies, they get silver and thereafter:)

we were greeted with a heavy downpour . it was also one day before my AHM and one day after my Directors relay run:) legs were feeling a little sore

the rain stopped and we started off.
I had a 2.4km run to complete at an easy pace. Saw the caucasian gentleman who was running quite fast!

I did not try to chase as I knew that I had too many races coming up, not the best time to risk injury:)the above gentleman is my boss - principal of keming primary schoolin the end... i ran a 9min 35 seconds:)

NTU BI team

i went for coaching at NTU- the biathlon team:) they had a mini biathlon with 400m swim and a 3km run ... they had about 20 participants:)
not too bad.. really nice organisation.. they even had water point, sandwiches and bananas:)
thanks to my captain.
i was basically there to supervise:)they are a great team. i have a lot of guys in the team from Navy:) divers and swimmers too:0
but most importantly, i focus on attitude during training:)

directors relay!

Directors' relay. Used to be a 12 hour relay when i took part 2 years ago. that time i still remembered my team .. it was a lovely team made up of all mid distance runners from NTU ..

however, this year, it was a big difference. and a wonderful one. We from the Athlon Running team, the group of runners under coach Guy, had teamed up for this event. It was nice to have 2 marathon runners - Fab and me, Mid distance runners - Marcus, Joe, Illyas and a sprinter - Atiqi...
it was so fun because after training for so long, we finally get to race together.

Anxious filled me as i stood on the start line. I knew that my 2.4km was not that fast and i may pull the guys down. it started off and i started running... it was not easy as hatred for short distance run came in! :) I came in 4th lady, at 9min 28seconds... and then passed on to marcus who sped off... but he was actually relaxing! he did an easy run and only sped up at the end.. then Atiqi, Illyas, Joe and Lastly fabian went off...

we were racing with 2 groups. one is F1, the other the SP group which all came from mid dist runners:)

we were rather happy with the timings except for marcus who knew that he could have done so much better! but it's fine:) i guess it's the team spirit that made us really happy within us:)
Joe, Illyas and marc and me went for a short dip after that:) went for prize presentation to collect our 3rd prize!

photos speaks a thousand words...
before the race
after the raceshoes unite!
and this is the NIKE Lunar racer I wore for the race... i felt really light while running with it:)
it gave me minimum cushion but minimum weightage:)
it felt as though I was running barefooted.
the colour is yellow and green.
the laces are soft and easy to tie.
most importantly, it suits people who like to race in light shoes:)

I wore them for my Army half marathon too! my shoe is the one on the left:) the princesand i forced them to lift the heavy me!!!and the last pic! whiy is marcus hiding behind!!

Jackie ROM:)

Jackie's rom was a pleasant surprise.
knew him from hall 3.. and the weird thing was that... I forgotten how i got to know him. but i do remember that we used to be really close. he was my LAO DA... and he calls me ah neh because i was really tanned when i was in NIE-NTU...

he had his rom at an arsenal club at elizabeth hotel:) his wife is a teacher and they actually went thru lots of ups and downs, broke up and patched up before they finally tied the knot.. really happy to see this couple together:)

Lao Da, can you hurry give us a god son or daughter soon:) hehehe:)
its soo nice!

back after 2 weeks

have been off from blogging for more than 10 days.
busy with work, training and obviously race... Had a few races. Directors relay, run/walk assessment and AHM.
received my 3 pairs of shoes too:) love them

had a pair of NIKE Air Zoom, And a pair of Lunar Series training shoes as well as a pair of the NIKE Lunar Racer.

they were great shoes. Will upload the photos of them at night later and recommend as per usual to those avid runners.

As I walk through my second year of teaching, I asked myself, is this the job i really want. Is this going to be a long term commitment or am I interested in other areas?

I ask myself, why do I run till now.

I ask myself, is it a torture.

I ask myself, do I have close friends

I ask myself, who do i depend on..
and the answers were..

I run because i love running.
It is not a torture but a joy.
I have one close friend - SHU

Thursday training: venue at CCAB

Reached late for training due to swimming coaching which ended only at 545pm...

din do much warm up.. regretted... Hurried my way and joined JJ in the 1.2km workout..

My body din feel well at the start... menses is causing me trouble .. always the case every month. My cramps are really bad, I could feel my legs and lower body from the abdominals downwards started to react to the pain. They cant move, they are non existence on this particular day.

The workout has immerged from marathon to half marathon: meaning that we will have to run at a faster pace..

supposed to do 1.2km sets at 5min 6secs each with a 1 minute rest.

These are the results:worst results i ever achieved...

1) 5.00min

2) 5.03min

3) 5.06min

4) 5.11min

5) 5.08min

and thereafter i had to stop.. it was too painful.. my mind had kept telling me to stop the workout. my body was not functioning as per normal. I had given up.

JJ stopped after 4 sets, Melinda stopped after struggling to finish the 6th set with me. Natalie was unable to finish the 600m workout that was planned for her...

only Vivian managed to finish the 1.2km workout and the boys 15 x 400m...

JJ and me felt really bad. Like weak. We were thinking whether the 20km on sunday had taken the toil on us. We felt like we were not performing and deep down inside, we wished that we could have finish the workout.

I knew that on a normal day, I would be able to complete it..

I ran in my fav racing shoe...the Kantana Air Zoom...the same shoe I wore for my gold coast marathon. It is my favourite racing shoe.. I use them for speed work on the track and races only. Its very light and quick in reaction. However, it is wearing out already... its time for a new racer!

Last but not least... I really wish that

...Menses... please go away...

Tuesday:

went to NTU CCA fair to meet up with the biathlon team. Suddenly it brought back memories when I was in NIE. the place has revamped into another nice and yet cosy area. The people have mostly graduated leaving a few familiar faces. However, I still missed studying there.

Met up with Faizal and Rachel and had a short chat. Work has been piling up for them too. Happy that they are both dancing in NIE now. Great!

My swimming coaching was cancelled due to the heavy downpour that was expected to follow on.
Went to Mount Faber Safra to watch Olympics while waiting for the rest to slowly turn up for training after their work.

645pm: training at Safra was announced to be a 8 x 800m workout at telok blangah hills.

to my pleasant surprise, Lai Chee arrived. I had earlier received a message from her informing me that she was not coming. However, her last message informing me she eventually can make it, did not make it to my phone:(

nevertheless, we did a good training session. Not too fast and not too slow..was running right behind JD in the first 7 sets... clocking timing about 3min, 3.01min, 3.04min, 3.05min, then i slowed down because of an irritating stitch.. had laichee to run with me for the next 4 sets...
did 3.08min, 3.10min, 3.11min and lastly 2.56min...

lai chee and me went for cool down together up the other side of the hill and headed back to join the rest.

It was a good workout!

dinner with the usual 6 tri pple whom 3 of them are riding CEPPO bikes now... hahaah...
dinner was at the coffee shop at Clementi which sold Botak Jones western food:)

we had pasta, pizza and i had fish soup. The soup was not really appetising... and so in the end i ate 2 slices of the thin and crispy and delicious pizza...

had a long talk about insects and creatures, snakes and reptiles... reached home around 811pm and taught my sister oral examination for O levels:)

really yearn for a hair cut... hair is dropping and balding soon...stress level is going up.

happy to hear from Sunny that he has gotten the President's Sports Award... felt really honoured to be asked to attend this ceremony in Sept. Have been a loyal friend, fan and supporter of him all this while. Never once doubted him of his ability:) you deserve it bro! great job! thanks to the NUS Bi team that

recommended him:)

From this entry onwards, will put a photo of the shoe i am wearing everyday! whether is sports shoe or high heels.

Wed:7am to 3pm

Work: Air pegasus

Comfort and cushioning. For long distance training. I wear them to work and training during long runs.

speech

speech by Adrian Tan. forwarded to me by P.S.

> Life and How to Survive It

> Below is a speech to the graduating class of 2008 at NTU
> convocation ceremony last week by Adrian Tan, a litigation lawyer
> and the author of The Teenage Textbook.

>>> I must say thank you to the faculty and staff of the Wee Kim Wee
> School of Communication and Information for inviting me to give
> your convocation address. It's a wonderful honour and a privilege
> for me to speak here for ten minutes without fear of contradiction,
> defamation or retaliation. I say this as a Singaporean and more so
> as a husband.

>> My wife is a wonderful person and perfect in every way except one.
> She is the editor of a magazine. She corrects people for a living.
>She has honed her expert skills over a quarter of a century, mostly
> by practising at home during conversations between her and me.

>> On the other hand, I am a litigator. Essentially, I spend my day
> telling people how wrong they are. I make my living being
> disagreeable.

>> Nevertheless, there is perfect harmony in our matrimonial home.
> That is because when an editor and a litigator have an argument,
> the one who triumphs is always the wife.

>> And so I want to start by giving one piece of advice to the men:
> when you've already won her heart, you don't need to win every
> argument.

>> Marriage is considered one milestone of life. Some of you may
> already be married. Some of you may never be married. Some of you
> will be married. Some of you will enjoy the experience so much, you
> will be married many, many times. Good for you.

>> The next big milestone in your life is today: your graduation. The
> end of education. You're done learning.

>> You've probably been told the big lie that "Learning is a lifelong
> process" and that therefore you will continue studying and taking
>masters' degrees and doctorates and professorships and so on.
>You know the sort of people who tell you that? Teachers.
>Don't you think there is some measure of conflict of interest?
>They are in the business of learning, after all.
Where would they be without > you? They need you to be repeat customers.
> The good news is that they're wrong.

>> The bad news is that you don't need further education because your
> entire life is over. It is gone. That may come as a shock to some
> of you. You're in your teens or early twenties. People may tell you
> that you will live to be 70, 80, 90 years old. That is your life
> expectancy.

>> I love that term: life expectancy. We all understand the term to
> mean the average life span of a group of people. But I'm here to
> talk about a bigger idea, which is what you expect from your life.

>> You may be very happy to know that Singapore is currently ranked as
> the country with the third highest life expectancy. We are behind
> Andorraand Japan, and tied with San Marino.
> It seems quite clear why people in those countries, and ours, live so long.
> We share one thing in common: our football teams are all hopeless.
> There's very little danger of any of our citizens having their pulses raised by
> watching us play in the World Cup. Spectators are more likely to be
> lulled into a gentle and restful nap.

>> Singaporeans have a life expectancy of 81.8 years. Singapore men
> live to an average of 79.21 years, while Singapore women live more
> than five years longer, probably to take into account the
> additional time they need to spend in the bathroom.

>> So here you are, in your twenties, thinking that you'll have
> another 40 years to go. Four decades in which to live long and
> prosper.

>> Bad news. Read the papers. There are people dropping dead when
> they're 50, 40, 30 years old. Or quite possibly just after
> finishing their convocation. They would be very disappointed that
> they didn't meet their life expectancy.

>> I'm here to tell you this. Forget about your life expectancy.

>> After all, it's calculated based on an average. And you never, ever
> want to expect being average.

>> Revisit those expectations. You might be looking forward to
> working, falling in love, marrying, raising a family. You are told
> that, as graduates, you should expect to find a job paying so much,
> where your hours are so much, where your responsibilities are so much.

>> That is what is expected of you. And if you live up to it, it will
> be an awful waste.

>> If you expect that, you will be limiting yourself. You will be
> living your life according to boundaries set by average people. I
> have nothing against average people. But no one should aspire to be
> them. And you don't need years of education by the best minds in
> Singapore to prepare you to be average.

>> What you should prepare for is mess. Life's a mess. You are not
> entitled to expect anything from it. Life is not fair. Everything
> does not balance out in the end. Life happens, and you have no
> control over it. Good and bad things happen to you day by day, hour
> by hour, moment by moment. Your degree is a poor armour against fate.

>> Don't expect anything. Erase all life expectancies. Just live. Your
> life is over as of today. At this point in time, you have grown as
> tall as you will ever be, you are physically the fittest you will
> ever be in your entire life and you are probably looking the best
> that you will ever look. This is as good as it gets. It is all
> downhill from here. Or up. No one knows.

>> What does this mean for you? It is good that your life is over.

>> Since your life is over, you are free. Let me tell you the many
> wonderful things that you can do when you are free.
>> The most important is this: do not work.
>> Work is anything that you are compelled to do. By its very nature,
> it is undesirable.

>> Work kills. The Japanese have a term "Karoshi", which means death
> from overwork. That's the most dramatic form of how work can kill.
> But it can also kill you in more subtle ways. If you work, then day
> by day, bit by bit, your soul is chipped away, disintegrating until
> there's nothing left. A rock has been ground into sand and dust.

>> There's a common misconception that work is necessary. You will
> meet people working at miserable jobs. They tell you they are
> "making a living". No, they're not. They're dying, frittering away
> their fast-extinguishing lives doing things which are, at best,
> meaningless and, at worst, harmful.

>> People will tell you that work ennobles you, that work lends you a
> certain dignity. Work makes you free. The slogan "Arbeit macht
> frei" was placed at the entrances to a number of Nazi concentration
> camps. Utter nonsense.

>> Do not waste the vast majority of your life doing something you
> hate so that you can spend the small remainder sliver of your life
> in modest comfort. You may never reach that end anyway.

>> Resist the temptation to get a job. Instead, play. Find something
> you enjoy doing. Do it. Over and over again. You will become good
> at it for two reasons: you like it, and you do it often. Soon, that
> will have value in itself.

>> I like arguing, and I love language. So, I became a litigator. I
> enjoy it and I would do it for free. If I didn't do that, I
> would've been in some other type of work that still involved
> writing fiction – probably a sports journalist.

>> So what should you do? You will find your own niche. I don't
> imagine you will need to look very hard. By this time in your life,
> you will have a very good idea of what you will want to do. In
> fact, I'll go further and say the ideal situation would be that you
> will not be able to stop yourself pursuing your passions. By this
> time you should know what your obsessions are. If you enjoy showing
> off your knowledge and feeling superior, you might become a teacher.

>> Find that pursuit that will energise you, consume you, become an
> obsession. Each day, you must rise with a restless enthusiasm. If
> you don't, you are working.

>> Most of you will end up in activities which involve communication.
> To those of you I have a second message: be wary of the truth. I'm
> not asking you to speak it, or write it, for there are times when
> it is dangerous or impossible to do those things. The truth has a
> great capacity to offend and injure, and you will find that the
> closer you are to someone, the more care you must take to disguise
> or even conceal the truth. Often, there is great virtue in being
> evasive, or equivocating. There is also great skill. Any child can
> blurt out the truth, without thought to the consequences. It takes
> great maturity to appreciate the value of silence.

>> In order to be wary of the truth, you must first know it. That
> requires great frankness to yourself. Never fool the person in the
> mirror.

>> I have told you that your life is over, that you should not work,
> and that you should avoid telling the truth. I now say this to you:
> be hated.

>> It's not as easy as it sounds. Do you know anyone who hates you?
> Yet every great figure who has contributed to the human race has
> been hated, not just by one person, but often by a great many. That
> hatred is so strong it has caused those great figures to be
> shunned, abused, murdered and in one famous instance, nailed to a
> cross.

>> One does not have to be evil to be hated. In fact, it's often the
> case that one is hated precisely because one is trying to do right
> by one's own convictions. It is far too easy to be liked, one
> merely has to be accommodating and hold no strong convictions. Then
> one will gravitate towards the centre and settle into the average.
> That cannot be your role. There are a great many bad people in the
> world, and if you are not offending them, you must be bad yourself.
> Popularity is a sure sign that you are doing something wrong.

>> The other side of the coin is this: fall in love.

>> I didn't say "be loved". That requires too much compromise. If one
> changes one's looks, personality and values, one can be loved by
> anyone.

>> Rather, I exhort you to love another human being. It may seem odd
> for me to tell you this. You may expect it to happen naturally,
> without deliberation. That is false. Modern society is anti-love.
> We've taken a microscope to everyone to bring out their flaws and
> shortcomings. It far easier to find a reason not to love someone,
> than otherwise. Rejection requires only one reason. Love requires
> complete acceptance. It is hard work – the only kind of work that I
> find palatable.

>> Loving someone has great benefits. There is admiration, learning,
> attraction and something which, for the want of a better word, we
> call happiness. In loving someone, we become inspired to better
> ourselves in every way. We learn the truth worthlessness of
> material things. We celebrate being human. Loving is good for the
> soul.

>> Loving someone is therefore very important, and it is also
> important to choose the right person. Despite popular culture, love
> doesn't happen by chance, at first sight, across a crowded dance
> floor. It grows slowly, sinking roots first before branching and
> blossoming. It is not a silly weed, but a mighty tree that weathers
> every storm.

>> You will find, that when you have someone to love, that the face is
> less important than the brain, and the body is less important than
> the heart.

>> You will also find that it is no great tragedy if your love is not
> reciprocated. You are not doing it to be loved back. Its value is
> to inspire you.

>> Finally, you will find that there is no half-measure when it comes
> to loving someone. You either don't, or you do with every cell in
> your body, completely and utterly, without reservation or apology.
> It consumes you, and you are reborn, all the better for it.

>> Don't work. Avoid telling the truth. Be hated. Love someone.

>> You're going to have a busy life. Thank goodness there's no life
> expectancy.

photos from pearl izumi run series - 1st one

Monday - Holiday day in lieu of national day...

Spend the whole day resting.. leg pain and sore... but did night cycling training with JD and Eddie.. felt really good...

sat training at coach's house was great! was really tired though.. did lots of plyometric drills and lots of lunges... strained my muscles a little. did a 2 hour workout there with the guys, JJ and Vivian...
enjoyed it but suffered with stiff muscles and sore ones..

sunday: pearl Izumi run series.
woke up shouting in pain. Was suffering from a sore pair of legs with muscle pain from the hips to the hamstrings to the thighs... due to sat workout. was contemptating whether to go for the 20km run.decided to go ahead as JD was going too...

suffered - started too fast. saw my watch at the 3km mark and realised i was way too fast for a training run... slowed down and waited for JJ to come up and we ran at a nice pace for the next 5 km together... after a water point, she sped up. heh she is fast man! she is singapore's top marathon runner for the veteran category.! aah..
i maintained till the 10km mark.. and felt a slight strained in my right hamstring..decided that if we were to u-turned at the start point i would just stop.. but we did not.. we u-turned at the stadium... and twice!...

after that i slowed down to make sure my leg dun suffer a pull... at last, i managed to endure the pain and completed the 20km...

position a mere 5th... but to me, a great training run at an a moderate pace.. but to me, marathon is still my main focus:)

GOLD coast article

Gold Coast Marathon Entry: for athlon running website, i wrote an article for the website:)

I just came back from Gold Coast Marathon on 6th July 2008. My coach, Mr Guy and I have planned this race 6 months before hand.

The Gold Coast marathon organization was very different from Singapore. I was greeted with surprise when I arrived 3 days before the race at the race expo. The road closures were already executed and directions to the race expo were very clear. It was very different from marathons in other countries where race expo were usually small and we had to look for the map for directions. It was totally different in Gold Coast. I was also greeted with a howl of cold air! The temperature was about 13 degrees!

The course of the marathon:

It was clear and straight forward. We had to start from the starting line, run straight to broadbeach, then Mermaid beach and Maimi beach, make a U-turn there at around 14km and then head back the same route. As we come to the initial start point, we just had to make our way to Runaway Bay and then make the last U-turn at around 36km and finally run straight back to the finishing end line. It was clearly marked out with 1km signs. We did not join in with other runners from the 21km and 10km category. There was ample space and sufficient supply of drinking water. There was also pacers running with balloons stating specific timings.
Pre-race registration:
It was done as swift as I could imagine. They had all the names printed on a list of paper, all I had to do was to produce my identity card. Within 2 mins, I had received my race pack. No long queues, specific instructions and even a counter to double check my chip.

Pre-race preparation

Mr Guy had planned out my race meals very specifically. Friday afternoon, I had zuchinni. It is a type of pasta which is rather starchy but gives me a good form of energy for the carbo loading and teppanyaki chicken for dinner.
Saturday, I had cereal and egg for breakfast. I had chicken sandwich for lunch pasta at night. It was cooked by coach. The pasta was made of potato and gives me the sufficient energy throughout my marathon.

I hydrated myself with lots of water and Gatorade before 8pm.

On race day morning, I had the same cereal and 2 eggs, and a cup of milk.
I also purchased a think long sleeve top to wear for the marathon. I wore long compression tights too. I even had gloves with me before the race!

Race day registration:

Coach parked his car at a big field, no hassle about worrying to get summons. We took an easy warm up jog to the race start point. We started off right after the 21km runners and in the opposite direction. It was easy to get a spot at the front as people were courteous and kind. There were also no boundaries set at the side and runners were allowed to wave their way into the start area from any directions.

After race:

I had very little perspiration from the race and did not feel hungry during the race. Felt strong and could walk after the race. Coach had also included an after race ice-treatment where I had to soak my legs into a bathtub filled with ice cubes! It was extremely cold, but very effective in recovery.

Previous beliefs and current performance:

I ran a 3 hr 24min 54secs. It was a 10 min pb from my previous marathon in Kuala Lumpur in March 2008. Mr Guy took on a very different approach to my training. I used to believe that running marathons is about how much mileage a person clocks every day. We do not need any speed to be able to do a good marathon. However, he showed me otherwise.
My training had moved to a pure mileage training to include intervals and speed work as well as plyometric drills.

A typical training week:

Monday: Interval training as either turf city or Bukit Brown graveyard where we do 2min, 4min or 6min run intervals with rest intervals about 1-2mins. Every third Monday, we would do slope training at Turf City where we run up slopes ranging from 100m to 200m, 9 times. This is done with variation according to Mr Guy.

Tuesday: Moderate pace long run of 10-12km and swim about 30 laps.

Wednesday: Easy pace long run of 10-12km and swim about 20-30 laps.

Thursday: Speed workout at Singapore Poly or CCAB stadium. We do sets of 400m, 800, 1.2km and 1.6km at a marathon race pace or slightly faster than that. These are done with specific timings and I ensure that I do not run faster than the set pace. We do approximately 10-12 sets of 400m 6-8 sets of 800m, 5 sets of 1.2km or 4 sets of 1.6km.

Friday: Rest day. I swim about 30-40 laps.

Saturday: Woking workout at Mr Guy’ house. We warm up with a 3.2km jog around woking road, thereafter we do leg swings. Next, we go onto 5min of skipping. We then move to a grass patch where we complete one legged hops for a short distance. We then do bounding up a slope. Last but not least, we do weight training which includes lunges, chest press, arm swings with weights, weight ball throwing and also sit ups and push ups. All these are done as a team.

My targets:
2008 - 1 hr 35min half marathon in Cambodia on 7th December.
2009 – 3 hr 10min full marathon in Boston

Advice to beginner marathon runners

Choose a good marathon with better climate. Train for it and not plunge into it. Commit to it fully if you really want to do well for it. Last but not least, get a coach to guide you along!

Appreciation

I want to thank my coach, Mr Guy Ogden for his patience, tolerance and professionalism throughout this whole 6 months. I actually fell ill for 3 weeks just before the marathon. He took really good care of me as a coach and tapered the training programme to suit my ability. He also made sure that my before the Gold Coast marathon was in line with the training so that I have ample time for recovery. Mr Guy’s encouragement to me made me pull through these 6 months of hard training. I also managed to slim down 6 kg and race in a lean body through this training.

Thank you coach

training at mount faber

today training started at 645pm at Mount Faber Safra. met up with quite a lot of friends...
now that i have completed my NCAP course, i can join them every Tues.

Ran from Safra out and headed to harbour front and then ran st to telok blangah and then turn into Mount Faber and up a long steep slope.. and then downwards...

Lai Chee was running with me all the way until we reached the slope.. I just had the sudden urge to go fast... i sped my way up and relax at the top of the slope... legs rolled down and exited fragance hotel near the esso...

Jd was with us all the way too.. he slowed down because his heel was really painful. but he endured it...

after exiting mount faber.. we headed towards harbour front again... went st all the way and headed back for mount faber... at the last 2 km i just dashed off and pulled a dist... felt really good and light... and strong ..

reached the end point, stretching and talk with laichee and then met up with Alber and PS and Alvin and Karen... went off dinner..! COFFEE SHOP at clementi Botak Jones..but i ate noodles instead of unhealthy food!

took a picture with fellow lady runner whom i respect.. humble and nice lady Lai Chee.. my training partner every Tues night.

Training on Monday:

15 sets of 2mins fast and 2 mins rest...at Botanical gardens.. thanks to Ilyas for volunteering to pace me for the last 3 sets...

Training today:

10km run at Safra Mount Faber... will do it slow and easy!

sat and sun

Sat:
Had woking workout at coach house with the guys...went for coaching and then went to support JD at his yearly ICA cross country race! yeah yeah ... he won first! a large margin off the runner-up! iT was burning hot and scorching... but nevertheless he did not disappoint me.. after all the training and intervals as well as long runs, he managed to do well. good job dear!
dinner was with his family at Chong Qing Huo Guo at Tanglin Mall..:) his bro is back from china and leaving on Sunday:)

sunday:
NIKE human training run. Another day of meeting with running friends and kakis, NIKE people, another day of enjoying the day of emceeing:)
Jd went too... saw Uncle Lim, Uncle Chia, Sacha, Benny, Uncle Aik Hock, Andrew from NIKE, Jon and Ben Pulman... yup it was nice!
the event was a 6km run. the leading runners were as usual from MR25.
They had a booth to borrow NIKE shoes and sports band out to interested runners.
they also had free flow of Hundred Plus and plain water and bananas... the runners just had to sign up online or on the spot and join in the run. It was a simple but yet well organised race.

the number of people present was more than 100. and they started off at Big Splash and U-turned near the chalets...to and fro ... ang chee yong of mr 25 came back in about 24minutes:)and then came along the rest of the uncles from mr 25. Jd came back 6th and following on quite a lot of people.

Lucky draw prizes were available and sponsored by NIKE and Racer's Tool Box... great job:)

Mingled with the pple there and then headed off for own training. did 16km moderate pace run and jd did a 50km bike ride.

went down to Bukit Gombak to watch Sunny's 800m race... Singapore Open ... he really did very well! it's his 2nd track race for 800m and he managed to emerge 3rd position with a timing of 2min 1sec or was it 2 min flat?? anyway whatever it is... its just sooo good! congrats bro!

start of school marks a tiring day for me everyday... looking forward to the weekends always.:)

this sunday Pearl Izumi run series...20km

now thinking hard whether not to race army half... should i give up