Wednesday Exercise

9.2kg

Dumbbell curl: 5 X 5

Dumbbell tricep extension: 5 X 5

Dumbbell concentration curl: 5 X 5

6.7kg

Dumbbell kickback: 5 X 5

Lateral raise: 5 X 5

Front raise: 5 X 5

Shoulder press: 5 X 5

9.2kg

Hammer curl: 5 X 5

Shoulder shrug: 3 X 12

adidas Sundown Marathon: A Disaster From The Start

Changi Beach – Coastal Park Connector

10.5km

1hr 24mins

08:01

7.56km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/changi/769124395180618897

Notes:

adidas Sundown Marathon

Well-well!

Had the intention of trying to accomplish an average pace of 7min per km.

But He had other plans for me.

Started the run as per normal.

Things turn awry when my lower left leg started tightening up which was really unexpected as this rarely happened that early especially during my trainig.

To make things worse, or as the Malay idiom says, after falling down the ladder crashed on top, my right knee buckled out of the blue.

And this NEVER ever happened during any of my runs.

Though I have torn or partially torn ligaments in both of my knees that went back to my silat days, my knees never buckled or gave way during a run as the constant cadence never created any imbalance of my bodyweight.

Usually, the knees chose to buckle either during sudden movements or turns or if they need to absorb great impact forces created from jumping.

Thus, my aim for the 7min/km flew away with the little breeze that blew that night.

I had to stop to massage the knee but it never felt the same.

I contemplated to call it quits as the starting point was just a stone’s throw from where I was and the ending point is around 10km away.

But to think that I’ve invested time, blood (from the gargantuan blisters on the soles) and energy into the trainings prior to this, I decided to perservere.

I’ve read countless stories from the running blogs I visited, about the amazing power of the human spirit and the will to endure although the obstacles were great.

Mind you, the distances they covered were much greater than mine.

So even if I was forced to walk the rest of the distance, I would, just to know that I did not take the easy way out.

But before I continued, I assessed that my condition wasn’t too bad, not like I’ve a broken bone or something, so I started to have a slow trot.

By this time, I was right smack at the back of the pack.

Though I felt demoralised, I knew if I could maintain a slow steady pace, I was sure to overtake some of the other slow runners, or worse the walkers.

As my pace was really at snail pace, I could eavesdrop some of the comments among the runners/walkers.

One of the most memorable was, “If short distance, I can run lah. But long one like this, better to walk.”

This came from a couple who looked as fit as a fiddle.

It brought a smile to my downtrodden face as I knew my spirit to finish the race was greater than them, who chose to walk the full length of the distance.

Maybe now I know the real reason I choose to take up this sport; it’s all about me trying to better myself.

Though this time I couldn’t beat my timing goal, at least I didn’t call it quits.

But this doesn’t mean I will still continue in future races if my life is in jeopardy.

It’s all about making a correct, sensible and informed decision.

As the run progressed, the tightness in my left leg started to subside, and my right knee did not present any sharp pain.

I started to increase my pace and eventually overtook a few runners.

I finally caught up with one of my friends and followed his pace to the U-turn mark.

I had a quick bite of my Quaker Oats bar and as I still felt fresh, I increased my pace.

However, things started to turn bad with 1km to go.

My right knee acted up again and I couldn’t really straightened it.

So I limped and wobbled my way through the last kilometer.

By this time, my pace was slower than a baby snail.

But what mattered most I finally competed what I had started.

Felt thankful to Him for the strength that He gave.

Alhamdullillah.

p/s: To my other three buddies, congrats to you guys for overcoming your own personal adversity and our team didn’t end up last in the team category. Woohoo! You guys are great!

p/s/s: Will start to run again once the swelling in my right knee has subsided.

Thursday Easy Recovery Run

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector

4.88km

41m 27s

08:30

7.08 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/singapore/872235299493

Notes:

My training for this Sunday adidas Sundown 10.5km Challenge ’09 was nearly derailed after a series of unfortunate accidents and sickness.

It all started last Saturday, when a sudden attacked of fever and headache caused me to abandon the Singapore Passion Run ’09.

I had intended to treat that 10.4km run as a warm-up for the adidas Sundown 1/4 Marathon ’09 but my health takes priority.

And to stress that point, an article in the Sunday Times reported about a recruit who died after undergoing a stressful field camp.

So I think I made a wise decision.

Then, during that Sunday itself, another freak accident occurred.

After sending my grandmother home and while walking along the pavement, my right foot tripped on the metal cover for rainwater collection.

The sudden change of gravity caused my left knee to twist and gave way.

The knee started to swell.

Only today I started to have a slow run to test it’s responsiveness.

Overall it’s satisfactory and hopefull everything will be good this Saturday.

Wednesday Exercise

9.2kg

Dumbbell curl: 5 X 5

Dumbbell tricep extension: 5 X 5

Dumbbell concentration curl: 5 X 5

6.7kg

Dumbbell kickback: 5 X 5

Lateral raise: 5 X 5

Front raise: 5 X 5

Shoulder press: 5 X 5

9.2kg

Hammer curl: 5 X 5

Shoulder shrug: 3 X 12

Monday Exercise

9.2kg

Dumbbell curl: 5 X 5

Dumbbell tricep extension: 5 X 5

Dumbbell concentration curl: 5 X 5

6.7kg

Dumbbell kickback: 5 X 5

Lateral raise: 5 X 5

Front raise: 5 X 5

Shoulder press: 5 X 5

9.2kg

Hammer curl: 5 X 5

Shoulder shrug: 3 X 12

Sunday Afternoon Run

Tampines – Pasir Ris MRT Track – Pasir Ris Town Park

5.63km

37m 01s

06:34

9.17 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/singapore/411124005871539835

Notes:

Aiyo!

My right calf muscle is still tight as a rusty set of bolt and nut leh.

How to continue training like this…

Friday Exercise

9.2kg

Dumbbell curl: 5 X 5

Dumbbell tricep extension: 5 X 5

Dumbbell concentration curl: 5 X 5

6.7kg

Dumbbell kickback: 5 X 5

Lateral raise: 5 X 5

Front raise: 5 X 5

Shoulder press: 5 X 5

9.2kg

Hammer curl: 5 X 5

Shoulder shrug: 3 X 12

Friday Long Dusk Run

Tampines – Pasir Ris MRT Track – Pasir Ris Park – Pasir Ris Town Park

9.66km

1hr 14m

07:37

7.89 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/singapore/-singapore/675124224214571454

Notes:

Nothing major to report.

No major cramps to worry about.

Breathing was easy as the pace was easy.

So everything is good.

Simplefit: Thursday L2D2

Thursday

L2D2: 4mins 52secs

Weight: 77.6kg (Before)

HRbefore: 79

HRafter: 97

Notes:

Started a little bit rusty.

But ended strong.

Hooyeah!

Wednesday Exercise

9.2kg

Dumbbell curl: 5 X 5

Dumbbell tricep extension: 5 X 5

Dumbbell concentration curl: 5 X 5

6.7kg

Dumbbell kickback: 5 X 5

Lateral raise: 5 X 5

Front raise: 5 X 5

Shoulder press: 5 X 5

9.2kg

Hammer curl: 5 X 5

Shoulder shrug: 3 X 12