TLog: swim, workout, aerobic run and stationery bike

Second day of two intense training days. Yesterday was a 32 lap swim in the morning, followed by weight training in the evening.

This morning, a 20 km aerobic run. Decided to go anti-clockwise instead. The usual route (Sundown) is clockwise, which I have done many times. With the change in direction, it is almost a new route altogether. Nice change.

Weather got hotter with the morning, and I struggled a little towards the end. Peet's coffee beans melted in the heat! :(


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Evening was a stationery bike session for super spinning and one-leg pedaling. Distance covered: 20km

Public swimming pool

I confess that I usually don't frequent public swimming pools. But for the last three swim sessions, I went to Bedok swimming complex for the Olympic size 50m lap pool. Some observations:

Dominated by male swimmers. Perhaps female swimmers prefer private pools, and if they do come, they don't stay very long.

Two ends of the age spectrum: Young swimmers - kids usually, taking swimming lessons and elderly swimmers (including me). Young adults usually on weekends.

There was this elderly lady who swam with only one arm. Her other arm does not do the overwater sweep - possibly due to an injury. Slow but persistent.

There was this elderly man who swam in his boxer shorts. He used a vertical style (threadwater-like) but going sideways. I couldn't figure it out.

There were many seniors who are in remarkable shape. They swam laps after laps without stopping.

There was a lap section for swimmers to swim anticlockwise, in circles. No one followed the rules.

Last but not least. The toilet talk. There were two gentlemen talking, while showering, about last night's stock market movements in NYSE (up, then down and finally up 200+ point) and the budget coming out this afternoon. All in hokkien.

TLog: Intervals

It has been a while, but back to interval training. Not my favored training, as I usually like longer slower-paced runs to take in the scenery, smell the flowers, etc. Anyhow, today's workout is for 5x400m fast paced runs, with 200m recovery. This was how it turned out:

Lap pace (min/km) time
1 4.23 1:45
2 4.23 1:45
3 4.23 1:45
4 4:20 1:44
5 4:32 1:49

Slower than the intervals in Nov last year, which averaged about 4:15 pace (4 sets only). But max heart rate: 203!! This is the highest recorded. Not sure if this is good or bad....

TLog: biking on the roads

There are two kinds of drivers - bike-friendly and bike-unfriendly drivers. Typically cars and buses are bike friendly. Thus far, truck and lorry drivers tend to be not-so-friendly. Thankfully, I have not had any nasty encounters so far.

It was bike recovery today. But the breeze and wind that I so favored yesterday became a bane today. Strong headwinds all the way to Changi village. Also of note: three stretches of speed bumps along coastal road. Loyang rolling terrain was a good way to prepare for Bintan. And feeling a little gung-ho, I turned into Selarang where the first incline made me regret my decision. I survived that and the other inclines along that stretch. Traffic was light, so down hill segments were good (max speed of 44 kph).

Short warm down along Singapore expo area. Ave speed: 21.4 kph


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TLog: LSD 18km run

My preference is go go anti-clockwise around Bedok Reservoir. But today is one of the rare times I decided to go clockwise. Perhaps it was just the timing, or that I have never really looked before, but the sight of the waters in the morning light and the clear blue sky was quite one to behold.

The number of runners/joggers/walkers out at BR was also a pleasant surprise. I think there must well be in excess of 150 people around, of all ages. Yes, there was an infant out there this morning as well. Sleeping soundly in his father's arms, with an entourage of four other adults. Walking though they might be, they were certainly a sight to behold.

The morning was really pleasant, with a cool breeze. Made good pace, about 7:15 to 7:45 mostly. I thought my fitness had improved since the start of Jan, when it took a dip after a lazy Dec.


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There was some soreness on the right knee when I started, but it went away after a while. Some tenderness after the run, but nothing that bothered me for the rest of the day. So keeping my fingers crossed.

TLog: Swim sets

Swim sessions are now more intense. Preset on drills. I still do not relish the side swim and legs only drills. The pull with buoy drill is fine. But the main set today was a step forward. Comprising merely 10x50m front crawl, with rest in between, I started to time the laps. Took about 1:27 to 1:30 minutes per 50m lap, and recovery time is under one minute. Overall time for 10 laps, including rest, was 22 min. Overall 1,600m.

Today's session was the second swim session this week. Earlier in the week, I managed to establish a good rthyme towards the end. The same for today's swim. Could feel that the hips were up, which is good. The pull drill with buoy certainly helped.

And BTW, the boys passed their bronze proficiency test today! Really happy for them.

Youth Tryathlon March 7, 2009

A new triathlon event for kids and youths from 8 to 16 years old at Tanjong Beach, Sentosa. Distances for 8 - 11 year olds are:
100m swim
4km bike
1km run

Certainly doable for our boys. But they have to be comfortable with the swim leg. Perhaps a good idea to bring them down to watch this year's event...



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