adiNation Training Run – 20 July 2011 & Lake Gardens Run – 21 July 2011

adiNation Training Run – 20 July 2011

Attendees:

a) “Boss” Ronnie

b) Group Lead Kei Ming

c) Aron

d) Vijay

e) Adam

f) KK (met him after the run)

g) Lai (met him during the last lap)

Distance: 7km loop through Planetarium and 1 lap of 2.3km = 9.3km (Garmin: 9.33km)

Timing: 49:32 for 5:19 min/km pace

I suggested a change of scenery and Vijay took the team through a “new-to-us” route through Bird Park, Planetarium and the National Mosque. Most of the route was hilly – Carcosa, Bird Park, Planetarium – slightly more challenging than the usual 4 laps around the lake especially now that the gradient on the upslope at the end of the lap is flatter due to the resurfacing of the road. Poor Ronnie – he was probably “dying” inside since he had to run at a slower pace so as not to end up in Holland. LOL! The guys were slightly ahead at the Planetarium climb but I was able to catch up with on the downhill; all the guys except for Adam who sat out on this portion. This was about km4. Then it was onwards to the Al-Hijrah TV station and the National Mosque and the portion where we had to run on the pavement since being road kill isn’t that palatable! Yup, we were quite close to the main road here. We made our way back to Lake Gardens after this – Vijay and Aron were leading the pack, about 20-30 meters in front with Ronnie trailing them until the gate to the lake. Kei Ming had dropped back slightly but picked up speed closer to the gate – understandable since Aron and he had done 2 laps before we started. Guess the faster pace towards the end coupled with the hill climbs were more than enough for an evening run because Vijay, Adam and even Ronnie stopped when we got back to the lake. I plodded on for another lap to make it closer to our Wednesday’s run clinic distance (9.2km/4 laps) to stimulate a back-to-back ahead of this weekend’s double dosage.

Bukit Aman to Lake Gardens Run – 21 July 2011

Distance: 1km from Bukit Aman and 4 laps * 2.3km = 10.2km (Garmin: 10.2km)

Timing: 54:41 for 5:21 min/km pace

Kenny and I had planned to cover about 12km this morning (3 laps around Seputeh) but he had to bail out due to scheduling conflicts. Oh well, I could either head to the gym and reacquaint myself with the elliptical or call up any of the guys for a morning run. The former is easy and convenient but the sound of a stationary 60 minutes was too much to bear; the latter was too late to arrange since it was past 11 when Kenny called. I spotted Malcalm when I got to the BA car park; a quick wave before his group took off in the direction of the Bird Park. The Garmin took a fair bit of time to pick up the signal – BA jamming communication signals perhaps? Coz there was definitely more than enough juice in the Garmin.

Lap 1

This was a warm up and I did consider going entire run at this pace – this was a recovery run after all. The morning was cool with a low humidity – a completely different story if you hit the tracks after 12 hours. A few waves and “Good Morning” to the few seniors who were out for the morning walk and lap 1 was done.

Laps 2 - 4

These were a bit tough due to the faster pace (at the back of mind, I was secretly hoping to do a quick fast pace run) and fatigue. I tried to distract myself with tuning to my breathing (it was steady), making up to-do lists, listening to the birds chirping, eavesdropping (yes, guilty as charged! Don’t tell me you don’t do that! LOL!) etc. So looking forward to the finishing at lap 4! Back-to-back done and dusted before 7:30 this morning – and back-to-back can be done, albeit at a slower pace but I thought this morning’s pace wasn’t too shabby.

Now it’s time to rehydrate and refuel!