"Singapore Zoo Keepers Dissolve in Water" & "Cold Feet"

Yup, that's the conclusion that I have come to - the Zoo Keepers in Singapore dissolve in water! Ol' nitrox volunteered to be one of 3 parents accompanying R1's teacher and his class of 35 7-year-olds to the zoo yesterday (hurray for taper period) and as you can see, it wasn't exactly a beautiful sunny day. So here we were standing in the rain, the animals were standing in the rain, but they cancel not one, but two animal shows due to the rain, and I cannot fathom why except that the Zoo Keepers are soluble. Some kids were whinning when it was time to go, "But we haven't seen anything yet?!?!"...

On a totally unrelated note, I am starting to get cold feet about the OSIM Triathlon in less than 2 weeks. I found out that my wave starts at 11:15am, which means that I will be swimming, biking and running through the HOTTEST 3.5 hours of the day, and this is no laughing matter in tropical, HOT (80-90F) and HUMID (80-100%) Singapore. Had I known this earlier, I would have spent more time training in the early afternoon to condition myself to the heat. Did I prepare enough for this?? I am 4 days into my 2-week taper, which so far has meant sitting around and getting fat, and I am pretty sure that is not what tapering is about. So I betta get off my (fattening) ass and figure what I am supposed to be doing...

Train safe and God speed everyone!

Week 12 of 15 - Bubble Baths & TT week

Something occurred to me while I was giving R1 & R2 a bubble bath this weekend... Like all kids, R1 & R2 loves bubble baths, so once in a while, we fill up the big bath tub in the master bedroom bath and give them one. R1 & R2 love taking baths together, but now that they are getting older (6+ and 4+ respectively), they are starting to want their own space. This time in particular, they were so busy hoarding the bubbles on their respective ends of the bath tub, and fighting with each other over who has more bubbles, that they totally forgot to enjoy the bubble bath. As I was watching them, it occured to me that sometimes, we are like that too. God, in His love, blesses us with good things, but how often are we so busy hoarding them that we forget the simple act of enjoying the very blessings that He has given us? As I watched the bath disintegrate into a fight, I realised that when God blesses us out of His love, it must be incredibly frustrating for Him to see us fighting over the very things that He has blessed us with. When we do that, we take the good things that He has given to us, and turn them from blessings of joy into seeds of enemity. Let's take the time this week to simply appreciate and enjoy the many blessings He has put into our lives - family/children, health, fitness, material well-being, the ability to race, etc...

On the training front, I have decided to call this week a TT week. Some of you already know that I had the 10km race last Sunday, but on top of that, I decided to also do swim and bike TTs this week:

• Mon: Tempo Run. 20 mins warm-up, 20 mins @ 10.3km/hr (quit laughing, that's tempo for ol' nitrox), 20 mins cool down.
• Tues: Swim Intervals - 550m Warm Up, 5 X (220m sprint, 30s recovery), 550m Cool Down.
• Wed: Long Run. 15.1km, 1hr 44 mins. Yups, that's my longest run yet!
• Thurs: Strength Training - Leg Press, Seated Row, Bent Elbow Lat Pull Down, Push-ups, Bicycle (Abs).
• Fri: Bike TT. 40.2km in 1hr 19mins. (It was a very flat course, but that's as fast as ol' nitrox can go).
• Sat: Swim TT. 1.65km in 40 mins. Following Rachel's very informative swim post, I was concentrating on using the top of my head to point ahead, keeping my finger-wrist-elbow straight and using it as a paddle, pulling a full stroke, and it seems I made a breakthrough in the swim! 1.65km in 40mins ain't fast for you ironmen/women out there, but it's 1-2 mins faster than ol' nitrox had ever done it! I'm so hoping that this is not a flash-in-the-pan fluke. (If you are heading over to Rachel's blog, remember to check out her HAWT new Tri Bike.)
• Sun: Run TT. Saucony-100Plus Passion Run 2007 - Official results just out - 62mins chip time (my watch says 61mins) which is slower than more than half of the guys in the Men's Open. Either way, I did NOT meet my target time of 60mins. Still, it's 6-8 mins faster than when I was running 10kms as long runs back in March, so I guess I can't complain. I'm lousy with race reports so I'll just say that overall, I'm actually pretty happy with the run, as I managed to meet my secondary objectives of (1) running at a steady rate, (2) getting a negative split, (3) test out my el cheapo racing shoes (they worked great - can't say that I noticed the weight difference when running, but I had no problems with them at all), and (4) being able to get to church on time after the run. :-)

This week (week 13 of 15) is my last training week before tapering for the OSIM Olympic Tri. I will be travelling to Bangkok this week, so again I will have to juggle my training schedule a little. Still can't decide if I should go for a mock O. D. Tri this weekend, or just do a long brick (50km bike / 10 km run). What do you think? Also, do I need to do any swim/bike bricks? Have not done that at all this time.

Until next time, train safe everyone, and God Speed!

Long Weekend in Malaysia

There it is, ladies & gentlemen, I am doubly blessed these 2 weeks - R1 & R2 (yellow hats) has got their cousins T1 & T2 (blue hats) visiting from the States. :-) This is them going up the commando net in one of the nature parks in Malaysia and I am looking forward to a few more excursions in Singapore in the coming week!

On the training side, I managed to get both the long brick and swim in last week, so Week 8 of 15 was another 6/6 week! All thanks to my Father-In-Law, who was kind enough to bring me to his club on Sunday. Can anyone tell me why there is a empty pool in tropical (read: hot) Malaysia on a Sunday morning? I was initially worried that the pool was abandoned - the pumps were not working and there was algae on the bottom and sides. Yuck! But sure enough, halfway thru my swim, other swimmers started appearing and I felt a bit better. Instead of swimming 2km, I decided to do a 1.6km time trial and finished in 40mins, which is a confidence booster, given that the swim cut-off for OSIM Tri seems to be 40 mins (1.5km). I would love to be faster, but will be happy to just make the cut-off this time. :-)

Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Week 7 of 15 - Unscheduled Rest Week

Sigh... 2 pieces of bad news this week.

1. Yup, week 7 is officially an unscheduled rest week now, thanks to this runny nose / cough thingy that I caught. Thanks for the prayers, I am actually feeling much better now and even managed a short swim (500m warm up, 500m with paddles) yesterday. Was hoping to go for my weekend long brick today but woke up feeling a little nauseous, so I decided to rest one more day. Either I am pregnant or it's all part of the virus working itself out of my system. :-) I know some of you train through minor sickness, but ol' nitrox usually stops all training once I am sick, with the hope of getting to full recovery sooner. With my first Olympic Distance Triathlon only 8 weeks away, I hope to get back to training starting today, and make some changes to my 15 week training plan - week 8-9 will now be training weeks, week 10 a rest week, week 11-13 training weeks, and then week 14-15 taper. Let's hope that works... Prior to falling sick, I was starting to get comfortable with the distance, so I will repeat my Week 6 training volume/intensity in Week 8 (next week), and start putting a bit more focus on speed.


2. To make matters worse, any chance of boosting my slow bike leg with a set of 'em sexy FlashPoint FP60s for the OSIM Olympic Distance Triathlon(July 29th) is now officially zilch. My dear sis-in-law coming next week from New Jersey is already carrying too much much stuff for R1 and R2 (we are talking about suitcases of toys, books and clothes here), and confirmed that she cannot bring anything else into Singapore. :-( By the way, since I can't get them in time for the race, any advice on aero wheels (choices) would be much appreciated - e.g. What do you use and do you like 'em? Clinchers/tubulars? Are they sturdy enough to be used also for training rides weekly (instead of just on races)?

Only 8 short weeks before my first ever Olympic Distance Triathlon. Probably laughable to you ironmen/women and marathon runners out there, but I must confess that I am starting to feel nervous...

Until next time, train safe and God Speed ya 'all!

I am NOT a runner...

... I am NOT a swimmer either... MANY years back I cycled a bit, but I am NOT a cyclist either, as proven by this experience I related in my comments to Robin's post sometime back (by the way Robin is such an accomplished cyclist now that she does NOT clip out going 'em hills anymore):

~~~~
Maybe this will make you feel betta about clipping out in the hills. Singapore is so FLAT that when I was in the university in Vancouver, I went for a leisure ride with the cycle club and was DEAD last. Turns out they went to an island with rolling hills and these Singapore legs just could not cope. There was one particular hill, where I REFUSED to clip out (1st generation LOOK pedals back then), but got into a full on cramp midway and could not move a muscle (literally). I slowly toppled to the side, which thankfully was grass, with my back on the grass and my legs still locked in position above me holding the bike up. To make things worse, I then proceeded to slide ever so slowly all the way down the hill, upside down. Since then, I have had no issue about clipping out when I need to. :-)
~~~~

So why do I train for triathlons? I attempted an answer last year, which is still very valid, but I still get frustrated at comments from my runner friends like "Doesn't EVERYONE run a sub 1 hour 10km?". No, I don't. Not even when I am fresh. Yes, I run 3 times a week now and I train 8 hours a week, but I still do not run 10 km in less than 60 mins. I am also frustrated at the 40 min swim cut-off in Singapore for 1.5km - I can only just make it, barely, but it feels disappointing to know you will be one of the last, and there's always the risk of missing the cut-off... Maybe I am expecting too much too soon, but I get discouraged when my buddies seem to just head out and swim/bike/run so much faster than me when they are not even in training. Sigh... Must be a beginner thing...

Anyways, I have signed up for the OSIM International Triathlon (my 1st ever Olympic Distance Tri) on 29th July and also the 10km Saucony 100Plus Passion Run on 8th July to "blow out the carbon from the pipes" before the OSIM Tri. It should be fun.

Oh and if you are praying for me, please continue to do so. My sore throat has indeed become a runny nose / cough thingy. I am getting depressed from the training and family time that I am missing (don't wanna pass on the germs to my boys). :-(

On the home front, I am incredibly proud of R1. He has been asking for a set of roller blades as a reward for doing well in school, and we finaly got him a pair. He's been on 'em every chance he gets and has perservered despite falling countless times. In just 2 days, without anyone teaching him (besides some advice from the older neighbourhood kids) he is up and skating. I am so proud of him that I feel like I am about to burst! As you can see below, R2 seems a little unimpressed with the fuss we are making about his big brother. Maybe it's time to get R2 some skates too. :-)

Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Week 5 of 15

Week 5 of my 15 week Olympic Distance Triathlon Training Plan was tough, and I scored myself 5.5/6, but before that... please allow me to take detour thru the "Hill of Foreskins". Yup, that's Gibeath Haaraloth, where Joshua circumcised all the Israelites with flint knives - ouch! (Joshua 5:3). ;-D

Sometimes when I read a Scripture passage, it seems to jump up at me and shows me an immediate application or area of sin/rebellion in my heart. Other times, it just sticks in my mind for weeks/months... This is one of the latter. The situation is this: God has just stopped the Jordan river mid-flow and brought His people over the river into the promised land (Joshua 3:15-17). Only problem is that the promised land was still inhabited with its native population who are not thrilled that a whole army has crossed over to take their land. So imagine the entire Israelite population dressed for battle and hyped up about their God stopping the entire river to bring them over. Victory has been promised, the natives of the land are trembling with fear (Joshua 2:8-11) and the Israelites are ready to kick ass. But then, God reminds them that the entire generation of Israelites has not yet been circumcised! Talk about a let down. Talk about being vulnerable. The people had to literally lay down their armour and arms, and get themselves circumcised - I would imagine that movement alone would be tough for a few days, let alone defending themselves against any sort of attacking forces or wild animals (Exodus 23:29) now that they are literally behind enemy lines.

Has that happened to you before? All ready to go and then there's this soft, persistent voice at the back of your head reminding you that perhaps you might have missed something even more important? It's happened to me too many times now. After a long day of work/family/training, I am all ready for my 8 hours of recovery sleep, only to remember that I had forgotten about my QT (Quiet Time with the Lord) - so what's it to be? Trust in the recovery from 8 hours in bed, or trust God to honour my QT? Another one I face pretty often goes something like this: Back from a week of business travels and missed work-outs, can't wait to head out the door for my run, and R1/R2 says "Can you play with me Papa?". I still struggle with these sort of decisions, but one thing for sure is that AFTER the Israelites were circumcised behind enemy lines, nothing came to attack them, until they have re-committed themselves to the Lord, and we all know that they then went on to capture much of the promised land. Praise God!

Okay, back to week 5:

• Mon: Rest (Just too much going on at work, and the office gym is closed for a month due to the merger and re-locations) :-(
• Tues: 12km Run - Dark clouds started forming from the point that I left the house for my morning run. As I ran, I was praying hard that God will hold back the rain so I can finish the run. And you know what? God has a sense of hunour - the rain started coming down at exactly the mid-point, where I had no choice but to run all the way back. This was not a drizzle, this was a tropical storm, where the rain goes side ways. It was the first time that I ever felt cold running in Singapore, and I think it helped speed me up, as I was running harder just to get warm!. :-)
• Wed: Swim Intervals - 550m warm up, 6 X (110m sprint, 30s recovery), 550m cool down
• Thurs: Another unscheduled rest day - work is really getting busy.
• Fri: Run Intervals - 15 mins warm up, 3 X (3 mins sprint, 3 mins active recovery), 15 mins cool down
  Strength Training - Squats, Seated Row, Bent Elbow Lat Pull-down, Push-ups, Bicycle (Abs).
• Sat: 50 km Bike / 6 km Run (Brick). I bonked on the run - had lunch too early and got hungry in the run. Probably pushed too hard on Fri too. Had to walk/run a bit after 4km or so. Terrible cramps when I finally got back. Felt better after I stuffed myself with raisins, almonds and peanuts.
• Sun: 1.9km swim.

The sliver lining is that the parent teacher meeting confirmed that R1 is doing well at school (that's my boy the Star Student on the right). He has also discovered some new found interest in sports this week - football (soccer) & badminton, which is encouraging, as I have been starting to worry that he may be a bit too much of a "home body". :-)

Next week I go to Indonesia again, so again the training plan requires some tweaking. Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Week 4 of 15 (Rest Week)

The reason why I have this photo of an empty airport lounge is that all the other passengers managed to get on the flight except me and my colleague. :-( That meant another 3 hours in the lounge without even Internet access, and no chance of getting back early on Fri to get some training done. That just about sums up last week for me - I read that we are supposed to keep to the same number of sessions in rest weeks, just reduce the volume/intensity, but I was not able to do that with the travels to both Indonesia and Phils in the same week.

All I could manage the entire week was Swim Intervals (6 X 55m sprint, 30s recovery) and Run Intervals (10 X 1min hill sprint, 2min active recovery). With all the travelling (and probably also the stress of the huge merger and missed financial targets at work), I have not been sleeping well, so despite the lapse in training, I don't particularly feel refreshed, so when it was time to do my weekend bike/run and it was drizzling, I decided to spend my 2.5 hours on this instead...Yup, that is Luke Sykwalker at the front with his light sabre, while Chewbacca, R2D2, Hans Solo and Princess Diana chill out behind him (there's one other character in the cockpit of the X-wing fighter, but I can't figure out who he is). This Lego set was R1's birthday present last year and the poor kid has been waiting 6 months for his negligent papa to fix it with him. Now that R1's exams are over and it's rest week, there really is no excuse for us to put it off any longer, so Voila! We are proud to report that, despite being only 6+, R1 built all of that himself - all ol' nitrox did was to help him find the lego bits from the hundreds in the box. R2 also helped by taking a nap so he wouldn't be tempted to go running off with the tiny Lego bits. :-) As you can see, R2 was a little over-whelmed by how much got done while he was napping. [ BTW, the picture on the right was also taken last weekend when we went shopping for MORE TOYS! :-) ]

So all in all, I can only score myself 2/6 for the rest week (only 2 of 6 training sessions done), but given the work commitments, I think I did well to spend time on what's important - family. :-) Praise God!

Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Week 2 of 15

Week 2 went well, considering I had a business trip to Jakarta. But before that, please allow me to share R1 & R2's latest creations of which I am immensely proud. On the left is R1's attempt at Pop Art, while R2 painted a duck who loves his boots so much that he wears them even on sunny days. :-) (sorry for the formatting, can't get the pictures to aligh properly...)

• Mon: Long Run 11km (Yes, that's a long run in my books.) :-)
• Tues: Swim Intervals 8 X (110m sprint, 30s recovery) (Yes, it was a pool with a weird length)
• Wed: Run Intervals 6 X (1min hill sprint, 2min active recovery)
• Thurs: Long Swim 1.8km, Strength Training (Leg Press, Seated Row, Bent Elbow Lat Pull-down, Push-ups, Abs Crunch with Twist)
• Fri: Rest (return trip from Jakarta)
• Sat: Unscheduled rest day (family commitments)
• Sun: 52.2km ride / 6.2km run (Brick)

So in short, I am thankful to report that Week 2 of 15 is again 6/6! :-) I had to take my scheduled rest day last Sunday on Saturday instead - BEFORE my Week 2 bike/run instead of AFTER, which should make this week's training interesting... Also adding to the challenge this week is a 4 day business trip to Bangkok, which will again push my swims, long run and ride to the beginning and end of this week. I will be travelling with my boss, who is recovering from bronchitis, so I will be praying for good health this week!

Thanks for following me on my 15 week journey. I also did a bit of shopping, and got some new rubbers and gels (sorry, no kinky stuff, I am a Singaporean) this week, but more on that next time. Until then, train safe and God Speed!

Olympic Distance Triathlon Nutrition?

Taking a cue from IronPol, I am reminded to ask if I need any special nutrition plan for an Olympic Distance Triathlon? I am aiming for 3:15-3:30 finish time, which means I will be using good ol' Staminade, but do I need gels and energy bars?

I take Staminade with me on my 2 hour ride - 2 bottles, approx 1 litre which is about 222 Cal (kcal) - because I read that I should take in 150-250 Cal per hour on the bike. But my Polar HRM says that I burn >900 Cal in my 2 hour ride, what's with that? Am I supposed to replenish only a portion of the calories I burn or all of it?

Based on my weight, RunThePlanet says that I am burning 800 Cal per hour when I run (my Polar HRM says approx 650 Cal, close enough I guess). I never take any sports drink or gels during my run because currently I am running less than 80 mins. Should I be?

Recovery drinks - do I need them? This is one area where I am totally confused. I started with Accelerate last year, but found it expensive. Then I read that low fat chocolate milk or even skimmed milk with some sugar works the same. So I started taking low fat chocolate milk / low fat milk after work-outs (I read that the 30mins after work-out is a good time to take in some protein and carbohydrates). After a few weeks, I started suspecting that I may be lactose intolerant (a condition I had in my teens). So now I try to take soy milk (reduced sugar) instead.

Of course on top of all that I am trying to eat right - more veggies and fruits, green tea instead of the 2nd cup of coffee, more fish/chicken, etc... But I am certainly not on any sort of diet. In terms of weight, I am hovering at 80-82kg (1.85m height), which puts me at 23-24 kg/m2 (which puts me just below "overweight" cut off at 25kg/m2 for Asian populations).

While we are on the subject of nutrition, R2 is getting so thin that some neighbours have asked us if he is sick. :( He is a finicky eater, so we are doing what we can to get him to eat MORE - including bribing him with a brownie-on-a-stick. :D

Quick update on training front: Week 1 of 15 was indeed a 6/6! I managed to get the planned bike/run in on Sat. This week I am travelling to Indonesia, so I will push the long run and swim to the start of the week and leave Strength Training and Intervals to the hotel gym. I will be back in time for my weekend bike/run, so God Willing, week 2 looks to be on track too.

Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Week 1 of 15

The inaugral week of my 15 week Olympic Distance Triathlon training plan has gone reasonably well, considering that I was off track from day one due to work commitments:

• Mon: Plan - Run Intervals. Actual - Unplanned rest day due to work commitments.
• Tues: Plan - Swim 1.5km. Actual - Run Intervals (4 X 1km run, 500m recovery).
• Wed: Plan - Run 10km. Actual - Swim Intervals (6 X 110m, 30 sec recovery).
• Thurs: Plan - Strength Training. Actual - Run 10km (on dreadmill, due to heavy rain), Strength Training.
• Fri: Plan - Swim Interval. Actual - Swim 1.65km.
• Sat (tomorrow): Plan - Bike 52.5km / Run 4.5km
• Sun: Rest

So in short, I managed to catch up on the week's training plan today (Fri) and hope to get in the Bike/Run tomorrow as planned to make it a 6/6 training week. :) I am feeling a bit tired as I have not done so many sessions in a week before, but still hopeful that I will stick to my 15 week plan.

Judging by how much fun R2 had with the neighbour's pedal kart, the need for speed must run in the family. I have been reading about speedwork in Triathlete Magazine and have decided to follow their "ladder system", which means starting with much shorter intervals (100m X 6) and gradually increas the interval durations. Apparently it increases neuromuscular capacity so that this ol' brain can fire off more muscle fibers when fatique sets in... Sounds good to me! :)

Met an ol fren 2 days ago. We have not met in years so he has not seen the new, lean me...

• Ol' Fren: What happened to you? You lost so much weight! Are you sick?
• Ol' Nitrox: Em... No... I have been exercising.
• Ol' Fren: But you LOOK sick. Is everything okay? You can tell me, it's okay.
• Ol' Nitrox: I have been doing some triathlon training.
• Ol' Fren: I have never seen anyone do triathlons and lose so much weight. They tend to stay the same size and just do triathlons. Are you sure you are healthy?
• Ol' Nitrox: Buddy, I assure you that I am very healthy (exasperation made me say it). It's normal to lose weight when you train 5-6 times a week.
• Ol' Fren: 5-6 times a WEEK?!?! Is something wrong? It sounds like an obsession. Why are you so obsessed with it?
• Ol' Nitrox: I guess I'm just the kind of guy that likes to put 100% in what I do. I think guys that play golf put more hours into golf than I do.
• Ol' Fren: Ya, but they don't do it everyday! Are you sure you are okay?

Sigh.... Some people just DON"T GET IT. In hindsight, I could have talked about the freedom and fullness of life that Christ came to give us. Ol' Nitrox has always had blindingly brilliant hindsight. Sigh... Until next time, train safe and God Speed, y'all!

2nd Try...

Thanks to the last bout of cold, my 17-week Olympic Distance Triathlon Training Plan has become a 15-week O.D. training plan. :-) I am not sure if it was an allergy, but I was coughing out nasty green/yellow stuff and I thought I better stop and recover. Anywayz, I am glad to be finally rid of the cold and able to start training again.

Some of you may have noticed some revisions to the previous plan, my current thoughts are:

• Instead of trying to increase the interval distances, I will keep it to 1-1.5km but keep increasing speed and incline. Will also mix in some Strides.
• I will gradually increase my long run from 10km to 18km or so in 10% increments.
• The weekend brick has also been modified to a more reasonable length to keep my max workout time to below 3.5hrs.
• I have put in 2 mock races where I intend to do the full O.D. distance - I think I need that confidence boost, and to practice transitions, nutrition, etc...
• Every 4th week is rest week, where training volume is cut by half. If I am feeling tired I won't be too fussed about skipping work-outs.
• Strength training is reduced to once a week.
• Flexibility is key especially since this is my 1st "serious" training plan - no idea how well my body and my personal schedule will take to this plan, so I will probably modify the plan as I go. E.g. if I feel comfortable about the training volume, I may add one mid-week short bike to work on speed, or if I am feeling tired even after rest week, I may cut down on volume/intensity. Still, I believe it is important to have a plan as a baseline to make sure that key training objectives are met.
• I may introduce some "work-up" races as I go along, depending on availability and my own readiness (e.g. there is the Oakley City Duathlon - 1okm run / 40km bike / 5km run - would the 5km run at the end be too much?)
• I have yet to figure out what I am going to do in the last few weeks to race day. Right now, I have a rest week, followed by a single training week, and then straight to taper, which is kinda weird. Will sort that out as I get nearer to the race, but once again, would very much appreciate any insights you can share with me.

On the home front, primary one for R1 is getting more "serious" than I thought. There is so much pressure from the school in terms of the coming May and Nov examinations and this is just his 1st year in primary (elementary) school! I can't believe the school actually gave us a manual for how to prepare R1 for his coming Chinese (Mandarin) oral examination. What happened to SLOWLY introducing the kids to the rigours of academia? I am trying hard not to get too caught up by the pressure from school and from other parents, and to make sure that the boys have time to be boys, but sometimes I really wonder if I am doing the right thing to bring up my kids in Singapore... Being the appointed Chinese teacher for R1 & R2 - poor Mrs Nitrox has every other subject, I think I will need to become a morning person and move all the training to the early morn so that I will have more time with them. Something I have planned to do but never done for months now...

Okay, back to the daily grind then.... Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Freaking Out

Sorry for the picture quality - that's a dragon fly on Mrs Nitrox's finger that has R1 & R2 freaking out. Sigh, I am the father of 2 true blue city kids... :-)

Sorry also for freaking about the 17 weeks to my 1st O.D. Triathlon. What can I say? It's been a rough week by all counts... (By the way, if you have any advice for my O.D. Tri Training Plan, I would very much appreciate it!)

• One of our pastors (whom I have come to dearly love and respect) had a terrible family tragedy, and all we could do was pray for him and give him a hug...
• The HUGE merger at work is now underway, and there is STILL no news about what our roles are in the new company months from the start of planning. As expected, some folks have been busily building "empires" while the new organisation is being formed, and it really ilks me that the rest of us seem to be at the receiving end of their posturing and "land grabbing". I KNOW God is working to prepare the path ahead for me (just as He has always done), but my lack of faith makes the journey more than a little unsettling. What a clear example of the difference between HEAD knowledge and HEART knowledge! Lord, help my unbelief and restore me to the fullness of life in accordance with Your perfect will!
• On the training end, I finally had a break through last Sunday in the 50km bike / 5km run - for the 1st time ever, I actually felt strong on the bike AND the run, and got some respectable timings. And then the very next day, the familiar "runny nose, sore throat, cough" feeling came back. Sigh, what a let down! :-( It's been stressful since then trying to toe the fine line between meeting my training commitment and getting enough rest to fend off another full-blown infection. Not a good thing to start my 17 week plan by missing work-outs, but it looks like this is exactly what's gonna happen.

However, in spite of the cloudy skies, I have been totally OVER-WHELMED by the outpouring of love, advice and encouragement from all of you via comments and email in reponse to my shameless plea for help - Thank You RobTheRunner, Tri-Mama, IronPol, PapaLouie, NancyToby, Cliff, Tryathlete, Tammy, IronJenny, Wylee, Tri-Dummy, Lisa, Annette, Commodore, TriFeist, Flatman, and other kind bloggers who have yet to offer wise words to my O.D. Tri Training Plan. Thanks again guys/gals, you really made my week!

Quite a few of you reminded me that I did not state my goal for the OSIM 2007 Triathlon in my last post. Well, it was semi-intentional. ;-) My timing for the last Sprint I did end 2005 was swim 21:36, bike 41:56, run 32:22 (inclusive of transitions) so I figure that I should aim for 2 X my Sprint timing which would take in account the on/off training I did in 2006. So my goal for OSIM 2007 is swim 40mins, bike 1:30, run 1:05 for a total of 3:15, which at this stage looks pretty much like a S-T-R-E-T-C-H target. So there it is, I have publicly declared my time target, now it's SERIOUS BUSINESS. :-)

Some initial thoughts/changes to my training plan after all that great feedback:

• My original plan is probably too ambitious, will have to scale down the distances somewhat and accept the fact that I will probably miss some sessions due to travel, family, etc...
• TriFeist reminded me that my ambitious Saturday bike/run distances will take a LONG time - I had forgotten to take training time per session into consideration. Duh... So some weeks I'll do 60-70km bike/5km run, and other weeks do 40km bike/10-12km run. I'll probably keep it random based on how I feel. I hear it is good to shock the body sometimes. :)
• Will limit run intervals to 1km or so and increase speed and/or number of repeats progressively. Will also introduce some stride work as suggested by IronPol. I also like Tryathlete's idea of running 2.4km time trials (like in the army).
• Will try to increase my long run and long swim distances - I think I'll need that extra boost of confidence come race day.
• Cliff made time during his vacation in Hong Kong to give me some pretty specific advice. My favourite being to week one in each 3 week training block with a lower volume and progressively add until rest week. I like that idea very much, my previous plan to rack up the mileage from week one was probably a little too unrealistic.
• I am also seriously looking at how I can insert a mid-week bike ride, maybe in place of a strength training session. Hmmm....

So it's obvious that the training plan needs more work and I will try to put up a revised plan this weekend. Meanwhile, train safe and God Speed! I will be going for Maundy Thurs service tonight and going to bed straight after, hoping to wake up feeling good enough to go for my missed 12km run.

Happy Easter everyone! Remember that Christ died to buy us fullness of life, so don't let the world rob you of the freedom you already have!

Character Building Week

Sorry, I am reporting late on the week past again, and yes, it was a "character building" week. You know those weeks where you come back from being away from training and it takes an extra effort to get out the door, and even more effort to finish the tail end of the workout? That's been my week. "Character building" sounds a lot betta than "painful", doesn't it? :-)

• Mon: Still recovering from the last virus attack
• Tues: I knew it would be painful character building getting back, so decided to jump in the deep end and start with intervals in the office gym - only managed to do 4 of the 5 planned 1km intervals.
• Wed: Just in case there is more character building I have to get out of my system, I did a 10km run. Yes, it was slow and uncomfortable, but I got it done.
• Thurs: In Indonesia, and I rested.
• Fri: In Indonesia, but managed to get in some character building strength training in the hotel gym on Fri morning.
• Sat: Family day, so I went for a very easy bike ride with R1 & R2. This time, R2 decided to ride his own bike with training wheels (instead of being ferried on my bike) and got a good workout in the 7km or so ride. R1 claims that he did not even really work up a sweat. :)
• Sun: 50km ride / 5km run. This was easily the highlight of the week. I have steadfastly refused to name my bike, but I am starting to understand why many do, because I was so proud of my steed - we caught up with a young guy riding a Cervelo P3C and managed to keep up with him! Sure, he kept pulling away but we kept catching him at the lights. ;-) Not often that I can say that about someone half my age (okay, maybe 2/3) riding a bike that costs twice as much as mine, so I'll take life's little victories as they come. :-D

While on the subject of character building, my car got towed to the workshop for the second time in 7 months. :-( Seems it is the clutch this time as the transmission was slipping very badly. The mechanic was kind enough to let me use a flaming red Mazda 3 in the meantime - it sure is humbling to see the Nitrox clan getting excited to exchange the family mover to the loaner. ;-) I am bracing myself for when I have to tell R2 that we are returning the shiny new car...

In the same vein, I have had to return my flashy test phone as it has now been productised. So there may be no more kewl pics from me for a while until I get my paws on another test phone.

OK, that's probably enough "character building" news for now. Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Zero Training Week

Yup, it's been 10 days with ZERO training and counting...

By any measure of the world, this week has been a wash-out. It was the one week mid-term school break, but the entire Nitrox clan has been down with the flu bug all week. (Okay, technically it is a viral attack and not an infection, and hence not the flu as such, but ...) It started on Monday with Mrs Nitrox having high fever and R2 having cough/runny nose, slight fever and vormitting. By mid week, R1 got it bad - high fever off and on for 2 days(despite Panadol and Ibuprofen), totally clogged up (had spells of difficulty breathing - R1 has histroy of asthma), and the runs. My symptoms also got serious enough to warrant two days of medical leave.

BUT, as Mrs Nitrox and I were just musing, if we do NOT use the measure of the world, it actually turned out to be a pretty good week, and we have so much to be thankful for:

1. If Mrs Nitrox and the kids had to get sick for a week, it's probably better to have happened in the week of school holiday then a school week. It would have been too much hassle and pressure otherwise - re-arranging for car-pool to school, getting medical leave for R1 and then helping him catch up with school work afterwards (yes, we get school work even at Primary/Elementary school in Singapore), stressing out about how much school the boys are missing, etc...
2. R1 and R2 are blessed with "peds" (doctors) who really love kids, and who are also close friends in church. So quite literally, instead of getting antibiotics for the viral infection, we get good medical advice, prayers and follow-up calls to check out how the kids are doing! Thanks Dr(s) TK & Dawn, you truly are a blessing!
3. We are blessed with a Care Group who PRAYS, and prayers always help!
4. I got to spend just about the entire week with the kids, and for someone who travels so much as part of my job, this was a huge bonus. Mrs Nitrox was sick in the initial part of the week, and had a Sunday School retreat over the weekend, so I got the boys ALL TO MYSELF pretty much for the whole week. Yup, it was a little stressful at first coping with 2 grouchy sick boys, but I felt that the 3 of us really BONDED this week. Best part is, I only used up 2 days of Annual Leave (the other 2 days were Medical Leave). :-)
5. In retrospect, R1 and R2 did get to do most of what they wanted to this week - not much schoolwork at all and lots of play and rest time. :-) We napped a lot, acted silly, flew paper airplanes, rode our bikes, watched "Open Season" & "Happy Feet", played "Battleships", bought some kewl new toys, and generally had loads of fun together.

PRAISE GOD!

Well, it's back to school for the boys and back to work for me tomorrow. I'm praying that we get over the tail end of this virus attack real soon and things get back to normal. For me, this means a "back on the saddle" week after almost 2 weeks of no training at all. From experience, it would be slow and probably quite painful... I'm looking forward to it! :-)

Until next time, train safe ya'all and God Speed!

Hair Spray

Confession time: Ol' Nitrox is follically challenged, and I have been carrying with me a travel sized pump action hair spray dutifully in all my travels, believing that if I keep at it, one day, beautifully healthy hair would start growing again. (If only we were as consistent with our medication/treatments as our Quiet Time with the Lord - but that's another story.)

A few weeks ago, the hair spray got clogged up somehow. It would work once or twice, and then the whole thing would get clogged out. I would then dutifully take the spray bottle apart, clean out the spray mechanism, assemble the whole thing, only to have it work for one spray and then get clogged all over again. Some nights I do the whole dissemble/clean/assemble process 3 times a night just to get some of that precious fluid on my bald pate. All the while, feeling frustrated with the bottle, and more than a little unhappy that more of the precious fluid is literally going down the drain than onto my head. :-(

Last night, I noticed another similar bottle on the counter top, so I picked it up, and hey presto, the new bottle worked just fine. The sense of satisfaction that I got from having the new bottle freely spray the precious stuff onto my head is simply beyond words - I went to bed with a smile on my face, amazed at how a simple thing like a working spray bottle can make or break my night. (Okay, so I don't have much of a life, but that's also another story.) Just then, it ocurred to me that in a lot of ways, I am like that blasted clogged up spray bottle. As a child of God, I am filled with His love and Spirit, but my efforts to share His love through ministry are like the impotent putterings of the clogged spray bottle!

When I started out as an ursher in church, it was all great and rosey, but after some months, I started dreading my ministry. It came to a point when I contemplated switching church so I would not have to ursher! Then when R1 & R2 were toddlers, I started serving in the Toddler's Playgroup in church. It was great at first, the kids and I had a lot of fun, some of the parents were amazed that a father would bother to come and teach the toddlers (it's still very Asian for the fathers to leave parenting to the moms). But now that R1 & R2 have both "graduated" into the kindergarden classes, I catch myself wishing sometimes that I could stop serving at the Playgroup. Some of you know I lead a Care Group, and when we were doing a structured Intentional Discipleship program last year, it was great - I learnt lots and looked forward to Care Group meetings. But nowadays, I catch myself wishing sometimes that I was just a member...

So in my service, I am like the clogged up spray bottle. Imagine God's frustration that each time He would take the time and effort to "clean" me out, just so that I would work like I should only once or twice before it happens all over again. Wouldn't be long before He finds another spray bottle that is working fine, and I miss out on being used by Him. What a scary thought! I guess the lesson here is really to guard my heart against the euphoria and drudgery of service - both are just as dangerous, because both may be symptoms of serving for the wrong reasons. Just as in Cain and Abel, God looks at the giver and not the gift. When our eyes are not on the Lord, we cannot please Him with our service. Conversely, when our eyes are on Him, we cannot but please Him. It really is as simple as that!

Talking about being clogged up, the Nitrox clan is pretty clogged up with the flu. Mrs Nitrox has got high fever, and R2 is all clogged up and has a bit of difficulty holding his food down. R1 and I are both having some of the runny nose, scratchy throat symptoms ourselves. So the planned 50km ride / 4km run last weekend got canned, and I did what all cyclists do when they cannot ride - I brought my bike for some much needed tuning and then cleaned my bike. (Don't let the WD-40 scare you, I spray it on as a chain cleaner, dry it, and then lubricate with the expensive Teflon chain lubricant.) :)

• Tues (6/3): 11.8km run (longest run yet!)
• Wed (7/3): Strength Training in office gym - Leg Press, Seated Row, Bent Elbow Lat Pulldown, Push Ups, Ab Crunch with Twist.
• Thurs (8/3): Intervals on office gym threadmill - 1 km warm up, 3 X (1km run, 500m jog), 2 X (1.5km run, 500m jog)
• Fri (9/3): 1.65km swim
• Sat (10/3): 7km fun ride with R1 & R2 (R1 is the grouchy one - R2 is happy as he got to be a passenger on my bike) :-)

This week is school holidays week, so I am taking some time off work to take care of R1 & R2, especially when Mrs Nitrox is down with the flu. Looks like will be a light training week for me then. Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

No Skate Scootering...

... No Skate Scootering?!? (is there even such a word?), No Roller-blading, No Pets, No Skate-boarding, and even No Studying?!?! This sign we found at the Airport (viewing gallery) is a classic - I can't help but take a picture of it because it reminds me of just how "anal" Singapore can get. Good thing it did not say anything about screaming kids playing "A-E-I-O-U". :D (Have you played A-E-I-O-U before? Kewl game - you freeze after the "catcher" shouts "A-E-I-O-U" and run like mad once someone touches the catcher)


On the training end, I almost met my training plans at the bottom of my last post:

• Mon: Rest
• Tues: 7km Fun Run with R1
• Wed: Strength Training - Leg Press, Seated Row, Bent Elbow Lat Pull-Down, Push-ups, Abs Crunch with Twist.
• Thurs: 10km Run planned, but ran 9.2km instead (primarily because I got up late) :(
• Fri: 2km Swim planned, but skipped in lieu of dinner with friends at the airport (see video above)
• Sat: 50km bike / 5km run planned, but did swim drills instead - kicking and Stroke Per Length (SPL) drills
• Sun: Fun Run or Ride with R1 planned, but did 53km ride / 4km run instead

I am heading to India tonight for the entire week, so I am aiming to run Intervals on the hotel treadmill and maybe get in a strength training session. Travelling to India always wears me out, so this trip I will try to rest a bit more. Was hoping to get in a swim before I leave, but R2 found some poo in our apartment pool last night, so I am a little apprehensive about getting in the water before the cleaners come tomorrow. Maybe I will drive out to the club pool later...

Until next time, train safe and God Speed!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Yup, Chinese New Year is on 18 Feb (Sunday) this year and this is the year of the PIG! If you were born on 1947, 1957, 1971 or 1983, there's a good chance that you were born in the year of the pig, which is really not a bad thing, as the Chinese associate the pig with being happy and honest (straight forward).

Chinese New Year (CNY) is a huge thing in Singapore. You literally cannot get any of the Chinese race here to work on CNY eve and the 1st two days of CNY. Some local businesses will even take the entire week off as this is the only time of the year that they take a break.

In line with Chinese New Year festivities, R2 made this nice dragon for us in Art Class - a very handy decoration as it is traditional to put up some decorations on our front door, and I really don't like the rather "gaudy" red and gold commercial items. :) The poor boy has got the fever and the runs today - he may have to skip most of the Chinese New Year goodies (sweets & cookies) this year. In fact, we may not be able to do the usual visits to relatives tomorrow unless he gets much better very soon.

R1 made this slightly more sophisticated version (of the dragon) - we're keeping this one indoors. He has got a chesty cough, so may also be missing most of the goodies too this year.

With the kids being sick (and me still having that tiny bit of sorethroat and runny nose), this week has been a rest week. All I did was intervals in the hotel gym on Wed (4 X 1.6km run / .8km recovery), and aiming for some strength training tomorrow. Perhaps the silver lining is that next week (CNY week) could actually be a training week instead of the planned rest week, since we may not be doing too many visits and gatherings this year.


Well, we're off to our CNY eve Reunion Dinner at my parent's place. It's a bit like Thanksgiving, where the entire family comes together for dinner and grandpa/grandma whip up all the family's favourite dishes. A good time is usually had by all and I'm looking forward to it! :)


Until next time, train safe everyone and God Speed in the Year of the Pig!

Why You Should Never Swim with a HRM...

... at least not on a hot sunny day. And yes, it does go all the way to the front, but that would be indecent exposure. ;)

Quick training update then...

• I managed to get in both the swim and the bike/run last Sat and Sun as planned, but the distances were a little shorter than planned - I did 1.6km swim and 53km bike / 4km run against the planned 2km swim and 50km bike / 5km run.

This week may also slip from a training week into a semi-rest week as I am feeling a tiny bit of sore throat and runny nose. My plan is to do run some intervals in the hotel gym and maybe some strength training this evening and see how I feel after that.

Mrs Nitrox and I have always thought of Valentine's Day as an artifical occasion created to boost cards, chocolates and flower sales. :) Well, this Valentine's I will be alone in Manila, but my thoughts will be with those who are dear to me.

Train safe, God Speed and hope you have a great Valentine's with your loved ones.

Faith is so much more than coincidence...

... It's my evidence!

I've been having these fanciful thoughts in my head about getting the Toddlers (3 years old and below) in the playgroup at church to kick start our worship service with a dance. So last Sunday, I taught them to dance to "You're The One" from Hillsong Kids, Jesus Is My Superhero CD (track 9) and the best part is, some of them actually did pretty good! :)

Come Monday, I sent my fellow teachers an email saying "... There is something very innocent, joyful and powerful when kids worship..." and suggesting that we get the toddlers in front of the congregation. Then Tuesday, I started having doubts - "What was I thinking?!?! That's gonna take a lot of time and practice! I don't have time for this.." - and I started thinking let's put the whole thing off. And that's when it hit.

First, I got word that one of my fellow teacher's kids are down with chicken pox, then shortly after I got word that another of my fellow teacher's 1+ year old son has got a bad case of the stomach flu and is hospitalised and on drips as he cannot hold down any food/water. Then when I got home, R1 started having a fever, and R2 fell while riding his bike (yes, he still has training wheels on so I am not sure how it happened), and got a nasty cut on his head! (Given that there are only four regular teachers for the Toddler's Playgroup, that's a pretty good "hit rate"!)

We rushed R2 to the doctor's, blood dripping from his head onto his T-shirt, Mrs Nitrox and R2 both in some level of shock... Praise God for tissue glue - no stitches needed, the doctor just glued the gaping wound together. We got home to discover the next day that R1's fever has grown to a high fever and a full blown stomach virus attack!

Later I found out that a number of other kids in our extended Care Group were also down with sudden high fever... Wow, what happened there? Coincidence? A bout of nasty stomach flu? (Wouldn't explain the other sick kids and the nasty cut on R2's head.)

Sometimes, you know you are on the right track when things seem to start going bad. Psalm 8:2 says:

"From the lips of children and infants

you have ordained praise

because of your enemies,

to silence the foe and the avenger."

I still don't know if it is my pride talking (please pray for me!), but I reckon that if the foe and the avenger is trying to discourage us or distract us through the little ones that are dear to us, he must be really worried about what we are doing with the Toddlers. :) PRAISE GOD! Not sure if we will go ahead with putting the toddlers in front of the congregation soon, but this Sunday I am "subbing" for the teachers with sick kids, so I will be getting the toddlers to DANCE! HALLELUJAH!

On the training front, I managed to get in both the 10km run and the 50km bike /3.5km run last Fri and Sun as planned. This week, I got a little side tracked by what happened to the kids, so here's what I did:

• Mon/Tues: Rest (and frantic rush to doctor's)
• Wed: 10.6km run (PR this year - 1:09, ok not fast but a PR is a PR, and I got it while praising and worshiping the Lord as I ran!) :)
• Thurs: Rest
• Fri: Strength Training - Leg Press, Seated Row, Abdominal Crunch with Twist, Chest Press, Standing Bent Elbow Lat Pull Down
• Sat: Swim 2km (Planned)
• Sunday: DANCE with the Toddlers, 50km Bike & 5km Run (Planned)

Next week, I travel to Manila and then week after is Chinese New Year, so I will try to push myself a little harder this week and especially the next, and call Chinese New Year a rest week. Train safe and God Speed everyone!

Warp Speed

Seems like everytime I am away from Blogger, life flies by at Warp Speed (or is it vice versa?). :) So much has happened that I will just give some quick snapshots:

• Polar "Resurrection"
  Totally unrelated to the latest software upgrade, but my Polar S625x sprang a leak (one of the retaining screws came loose) and died in the midst of a swim. Product-wise, this is not good, especially as this is the second leak I have experienced in about a year. Thankfully, the folks at Polar Singapore continue to be excellent at customer service and I now have a new front case and motherboard (despite having an expired warranty). I simply have to give a shout out to Mr David Loy, service technician at Polar Singapore. His professional and helpful demeanour has restored my confidence in Polar despite the problems I have had with my HRM (2 leaks, 2 motherboards and 1 front case replaced). This is truly a case where customer service makes up for product qualifty - my next HRM will still be a Polar! :)



• R1's Missing Front Teeth
  Yup, R1 has finally come of (elementary/primary school) age and lost the other front tooth, to make it a complete gap. :) He is reasonably proud of this latest development and is quick in telling everyone about the big news. Poor kid has to go to bed at 7:30pm and wake up at 6am daily - Mrs Nitrox gets him ready for bed while Ol' Nitrox here snoozes on to a more decent hour. Yes, yes, shame on me, the plan was for me to drag myself out of bed, help a little, and get in some training before going to bed. I'm stil working on it... :(
  


• Daily Bible Reading
  While I am still in "confession" mode, I am still not consistently reading the Bible daily. I am keeping up with prayer, but still struggling to make bible reading a daily routine. It feels weird that last year I was okay with bible reading but not praying enough, and now it seems to have gone the other way. Sigh... "'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty." Zechariah 4:6
  Holy Spirit please help me grow in intimacy with you!
  


• Training Update - Last week
  Only managed to get in a 6km run (intervals) at the gym, a 1.6km swim and the usual weekend 50km bike followed by 3km run. :(
  


• Training Update - This week
  Monday & Tuesday: Rest
  Wednesday: Run Intervals in Office Gym - 1km warm up, then 3 sets of (1km @ 10.5km/hr, 500m @ 8.5km/hr), and 2 sets of (1km @ 11km/hr, 500m @ 8.5km/hr). I think I might have gone too slow in the 1st 3 sets, so the last 2 sets I sped up abit. Could it be that I am finally running a little faster now? ;)
  Thursday: Strength Training (still in Anatomical Adaptation phase) - Squats (with dumb-bells) 20 reps X 3 sets, bent elbow lat pull down 20 reps X 3 sets, leg raise (knee extension) 15 reps X 3 sets, plain old push ups 20 reps X 3 sets, seated pulley rows 20 reps X 3 sets, suspended abs crunches 15 reps X 3 sets
  Friday: 1.6km Swim or 10km run (plan)
  Saturday: Rest (plan)
  Sunday: 50km Bike / 3.5km Run (plan)

That's all folks. Until next time, train safe and God Speed!