What's on Your Ipod? Care to share your mix.

What are your "Power" songs?

Hey I bet you already know that I rely heavily on my Ipod for inspiration, motivation and as a de-stress tool. I listen to it when I'm running, training, working, reading, shopping, in the bus/ train etc.

So here's my current playlist. It's mostly upbeat . I like Rock, Hip Hop, Alternative & Indie.I hope you guys will share your favourite tracks with me as well.

Playlist Name: Running Away

Songs - Artist - Album

1. Save Our Soul - Electrico - We Satellite
2. Decode - Paramore - Twilight OST
3. Reconnect - Director - Reconnect (singles)
4. Fighting - Yellowcard - Paperwalls
5. No, It Isn't - +44 - When your heart stop beating
6. Afraid - Yellowcard- Paperwalls
7. Liberation - Electrico - We Satellite
8. Misery Business - Paramore - Riot!
9. Return the Favour - The Hives - Black & White
10. Great Escape - Boys Like Girls - Boys Like Girls
11. Right Side of the Bed - Atreyu
12. Almost Easy - A7x - Avenged Sevenfold
13. The Adventure - Angels & Airwave - We Don't Need to Whisper
14. Diary of Jane - Breaking Benjamin -Phobia
15. Only Where I'm Going - Electrico - Hip City
16. Check Yes Juliet - We Are King - We Are King
17.When Your Heart Stop Beating - +44 - When Your Heart Stop Beating
18. The Rock Show - Blink 182 - Take off your pants...
19. Thnks Fr Th Mmrs - Fall Out Boys - Infinity on High
20.Under The Gun - The Killers - Hot Fuss
21. Hello - Electrico - Hip City
22.Make you Smile - +44 - When Your Heart Stop Beating
23. Little Wonders - Rob Thomas - Meet the Robinson OST
24. Holly Wood Died - Yellowcard - Lights & Sounds

Yeah, this is just one of my running playlist songs. I prefer songs with very heavy drumming that gets the heart pumping faster. +44's When Your Heart Stop Beating is awesome as it does just that.. Travis Barker rocks!

... So what's on your Ipod Playlist?

Review: Valentine Day Run 09 - 8.6km Bedok Reservoir

Event Name: Valentine's Day Run 09
Organiser: Kampong Chai Chee CC & PA Associations
Date: 15/02/2009 7am
Venue: Bedok Reservoir Park
Category: Couple race, Competitve & Leaisure

Bottom line: I feel that the run as a whole was well organised with prizes and events. Each participant only had to pay a fee of $5.

It started at 7am, Almost everyone had their dry fit event tee on. Couples, singles, family and even pets, turned up for the race. The organisers conducted a warm up session with the participants for about 20mins before the start of the race. Flag off was at 7:20am, there were road marshals at about every 0.5km, cheering & motivating the participants to push on to complete the 2 rounds around the reservoir. There were about 3 water points along the route.


At the end of the run, everyone was given free towels, Milo and bananas as we waited for the last participant to cross the finishing line. There was even a "after run singing concert". It was followed by the prize giving ceremony for the top 2 female and male runners, each of them brought back a trophy which was followed by lucky draw; 1st prize was a 16GB IPOD touch; I felt envious... maybe next time I'll be lucky.

It certainly was a interesting Valentine's day morning where participants were able to spend time with their loved ones or do what they love the most - running.

I was a bit annoyed at the start of the race as the organiser did not clearly specify the actual venue/ meeting place of the race. Some participants including myself ,reported on the other side of reservoir near the fitness corner, only to be informed that the starting point was at the floating platform.

My Rating:
Difficulty: 3 (1- Beginners 10- Superhuman)
Organisation : 9 (1 - stop organising 10-Encore plz)
Will I run this run again?: Definitely! Great fun for all even for singles.

Check out the rest of the photos on Facebook.

Anaerobic exercise - Buffet of Pain!

Anaerobic exercise, is exercise intense enough to trigger anaerobic metabolism. It is used by athletes in non-endurance sports to build power, body builders to build muscle mass and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) practitioners to build strength & stamina. Muscles trained under anaerobic conditions develop differently, leading to greater performance in short duration, high intensity activities,


What are the Benefits of Anaerobic Exercise?
Anaerobic exercise uses your muscles at a high intensity for a short period of time. As a result, it can help:

* Develop stronger muscles
* Improve your VO2 max (the highest amount of oxygen one can consume during exercise) and thus improve your cardio-respiratory fitness/ Stamina
* Increase your capacity to withstand the buildup of waste substances (such as lactic acid) and remove them from the body. This means your endurance and ability to fight fatigue will improve.

How to Add Anaerobic Training to Your Program

Anaerobic interval training is primarily reserved for those who are very fit and desire to increase speed, lactate threshold, and overall aerobic power. This training usually results in greater lactic acid concentrations in exercising muscles and will result in greater muscular discomfort. This can be very intense type of training and should not be attempted by a beginner.

Interval training is a great way to incorporate anaerobic exercise. It can be done with many types of exercise (for example, running, biking, or swimming). An interval is done by increasing your pace for a short period of time (for example, between 10 to 60 seconds) then having a slow recovery period that is at least 3 times as long as the interval.

* If you are new to exercise, do not immediately start with high intensity activity like anaerobic exercise. Beginners should start with lower-intensity aerobic exercise for several weeks to build a base level of fitness.
* Always seek advice from doctor before adding anaerobic exercise to your fitness program.
* Anaerobic exercise is not recommended if you are pregnant.
* Always warm up before starting a anaerobic exercise, and cool down for 5-10 minutes after your workout session.


What I do? " Buffet of Pain!!"
Train every part (full body, moving from one body part to another. I start with 10 to 15mins of cycling or running then move to weights. Every set increases the weight used(progressive overload) 4 to 5 set per exercise. 24reps (warm up) - 12 reps - 10reps - 8 reps - 6reps (heaviest load). Taking only a break of 10 seconds per set and taking a break of 30 to 60 seconds before moving to the next body part. Training about 5 out of 6 major body parts a session. - Ask Ash how he feels after the workout!

click here to watch Rich Franklin MMA Workout - this was the video that inspired me.

Good luck!

Training: Fartlek

Fartlek

Fartlek, which means "speed play" in Swedish, is type of conditioning workout that puts stress mainly on the aerobic energy system due to the continuous nature of the exercise. The difference between this type of training and continuous training is that the intensity or speed of the exercise varies, meaning that aerobic and anaerobic systems can be put under stress.

Most fartlek sessions last a minimum of 45 minutes and can vary from aerobic walking to anaerobic sprinting.


Sample Fartlek Routine

Watson Fartlek

This is good training for 10k, 5k, 3k and cross country.

* 10 minutes warm up jog.
* Stride hard for 4 minutes with 1 minute jog recovery - repeat 8 times
* 10 minute cool down jog

Saltin Fartlek

This is good training for 1500m, 5k and 3k.

* 10 minutes warm up jog
* Repeat 6 times - Stride hard for 3 minutes with 1 minute jog run recovery.
* 10 minute cool down jog

Astrand Fartlek

This is good training for 800m.

* 10 minutes warm up jog
* Repeat 3 times - Maximum effort for 75 seconds, 150 seconds jog run, maximum effort for 60 seconds, 120 seconds jog run.
* 10 minute cool down jog

Gerschler Fartlek

This is good training for getting fit quickly when combined with steady running.

* 10 minutes warm up jog
* Repeat 3 times - Stride hard for 30 seconds, jog 90 seconds. Repeat with 15 second decreases in recovery jog e.g. 30-90, 30-75, 30-60, 30-45, 30-30, 30-15 and 30-15-30
* 10 minute cool down jog

Hill Fartlek

* 10 minutes warm up jog
* Select a 2 mile hilly course. Repeat 3 times - Run hard up all hills twice before moving to the next hill, jog run between hills
* 10 minute cool down jog

Whistle Fartlek

The coach, using a whistle, controls the session over a 1200m circumference grass area.

* 10 minutes warm up jog
* When the whistle is blown the athletes run hard until the whistle is blown again. Pyramid session of 4 minutes, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minutes, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 4 minutes with a 60 second jog run recovery between each run
* 10 minute cool down jog

Source :http://www.brianmac.co.uk/fartlek.htm

Fitness benefits

One of the main reasons for the success of fartlek training is that it can be adapted to the needs of the individual. It develops aerobic and anaerobic capacities which are both used in running or MMA. To take this a step further, athletes can make the most of the flexibility of fartlek training by mimicking the activities which would take place during their sport.

Tuesday Night Run - Work (UBI) to Safra Tampines

I'm back.I've been running every day for the past 2 weeks. It was Tuesday, so it was time to run back home after work. Today was special as I was joined by my running buddy, who will be one of my team mates in the Sundown marathon this coming May. We started running at about 6:23pm from our workplace and we reached SAFRA Tampines at 6.58pm. 5.52km. Good Job Mr. Bolt! & good luck for the Valentine's day run this coming Sunday.

My Route (10/2/09) : Comfort Driving Centre (UBI) ->Eunos Technolink -> Enterise One Building -> Kaki Bukit industrial -> Kaki Bukit Prison -> Alkaff Mosque Kmpg Melayu -> Bedok Reservoir -> Temasek Polytechnic -> Tampines SAFRA.

Total Distance : 5.52Km

My Time: 33mins
Average Pace: 5.68 min/km
PowerSong: No it Isn't - +44

Newton Active Run 09 - Race Expo

For collection of Race Kit - competitive runners only
Date: Saturday, 21 February 2009 and Sunday, 22 February 2009
Venue: Sengkang Community Club
Address: 2 Sengkang Square, #01-01 (Next to Sengkang MRT Station)
Time: 10am-8pm

Free Running Clinics - Tips on running and stuff

There will be a total of 3 clinics that will be running in conjunction with the SubUrban Run organised by NECDC and HiVelocity - but I think, even if you guys are not running the races, you still should attend it. It will be a very good educational seminar to attend.

1) Running: Benefits & Staying Injury-Free

Date: 22 Feb 09 (Sunday)
Time: 4pm - 6 pm
Location: Sengkang CC Auditorium
Registration limit: 150 pax
Speaker: Dr Jason Chia, Consultant Sports Physician, Changi Sports Medicine Centre & Singapore Sports Medicine Centre.

2) Running Preparation & Training Plans

Date: 1 Mar 09 (Sunday)
Time: 4pm - 6 pm
Location: Sengkang CC Auditorium
Registration limit: 150 pax
Speaker: Philip Tan, Strength & Conditioning Coach, Changi Sports Medicine Centre

3) Shoe Selection

Date: 8 Mar 09 (Sunday)
Time: 4pm - 6 pm
Location: Sengkang CC Auditorium
Registration limit: 150 pax
Speaker: Ms Jessie Phua, Podiatrist, Changi General Hospital

Register here : http://www.suburbanrun.com/

Registered:The Suburban Run @ North East race 15/03/2009

This year, to celebrate my 23rd birthday I've decided to run the The Suburban Run (10km) with one of my best friends. I foresee it will be very memorable.


Race Event Details

Date: Sunday, 15 March 2009
Time: 8am to 12pm
Venue: Sengkang East

Running Route : http://www.suburbanrun.com/uploads/images/suburban_map.jpg

Located in the North-East Region of Singapore, the Start / Finish point and Race Carnival area will be held at Sengkang East Drive.

Category I will be running:

Two-in-a-Team Category	Early Bird Till 31 Jan	Normal Fee
10km Two-in-a-Team Run (10km x 2 persons) - Both Males - Both Females - Mixed	$42 (for 2 persons)	$48 (for 2 persons)

Race Pack Collection

Date: 7 - 8 March 2009, Saturday & Sunday
Time: To be announced
Venue: Sengkang CC

Each participant will receive an Event Running Top worth $20.

All participants must collect their race pack containing essential race items at the Race Pack Collection.

Register here: http://www.suburbanrun.com/

Registered : Bedok Reservoir Park Valentine Run - 15 Feb 2009

So what will you be doing this Valentine's day ? Go out with you loved one or do what you love - spread the love. I've registered for the Bedok Reservoir Park Valentine Run - 15 Feb 2009 organise by the PA association (community club). I guess this is what single people do. They do what they like or love.

Date: 15/02/2009 (Sun)

Meeting Time: 7am

Route: 2 rounds around Bedok Reservoir Park (8.6km)

Meeting Venue: Bedok Reservoir Park Activity Mall

(near Blk 742)

Start and End Pt: Bedok Reservoir Park Activity Mall

(near Blk 742)

Registration Fee $5

3 Categories :

• Leisure

• Competitive

• Couple

Route:


Race Pack collection on the 6/02/09
Register at : Kg Chai Chee CC ( bedok MRT near ansar Mosque)

Lesson learnt: Run with Front & Rear LED light - Save life

Just the other night, I was running one of my normal routes. The weather was almost perfect.It had just stopped raining.

I had tonnes of energy. My run started from Ubi at6:30pm and I was nearly at Tampines JC by 7:20pm. I was confident that I'd reach home by 7:40pm. Then... as I was crossing a zebra crossing while engrossed in my Power song, a white MPV sped towards me. Its a zebra crossing for crying out loud! Isn't a motorist suppose to give way to pedestrians? (Basic Theory epic fail I guess).

I jumped to the side of the road avoiding an accident. It was so freaking close. I could actually feel my hydration pack getting scraped by the car. I was panicking wildly but was pumped up with adrenaline, kinda felt like the movie "Cranked". The car E-break ed and horned like crazy as if it was my fault. I sprinted and when into some blocks. That was some crazy, life changing shit and also my very first near death experience.

Lesson learnt.
1) Even when you are obeying the road law by safe crossing some people may not actually give a crap about it.
2) Run with flashing lights so everyone can see. Thus there is no excuse for the driver to say " But I never saw him leh"
3) This sums up everything : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjjsF5dRfaI
4) Pray & Run everyday as if its your last day. - cherish your love ones.

The route : Comfort Driving Centre (UBI) -> Enterise One Building -> Kaki Bukit Prison -> Alkaff Mosque -> Bedok Reservoir -> Temasek Polytechnic -> Ngee Ann Primary-> Tampines Interchange/ MRT -> Tampines Polyclinic -> Eastview Secondary -> Tampines JC -> DNF

Total Distance : 9.52Km

My Time: 0:56:24
Average Pace: 5.12 min/km
Calories Burn: 641
PowerSong: Hail To The Friends - Electrico