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Run for Food: Worst and Best Run … all in Week 15

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Have my worst and best run all within week 15.

I would have thought my first run in December last year must be the worst run of the decade. After all, I can only run 500m before dropping to a walk to catch my breathe. But no, after the run on 19th March, I have to say that has to be the worst run. Granted, I ran slightly earlier than usual, at 4pm. It would be hotter than usual, and indeed the heat was a killer. I also felt a strain on both my feet. But it was my mental condition that failed me miserably in that run. 3km into the run, my mind started psycho’ing me that the weather is too hot, my feet are breaking, etc. I gave in eventually, disrupted the run and walked for almost 3km. I picked up my pace again in the last 1km, covering a total distance of 7.41km,  but the fact I surrendered myself totally during the run, was unforgiving.

In the same week later, I stretched myself further to complete a 9km run, the furthest distance I have covered to-date. The run was not entirely easy, although the first 6km was quite comfortable, but perhaps I had over estimated myself and did not pace myself well enough. On the 7th km, I was struggling with my pace that any slower I would be just doing a brisk walking. Fortunately, I regrouped myself again in the last 2km, and managed to finish the run as planned.

a 9km running log

By now, I’ve completed 58 activities, 280.73km and I am just few kilometres away from hitting my month’s 100km mark 🙂

Xperia S – Sony eXperience?

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It has been a while since I blog about gadgets. My current Galaxy S II is probably the first gadget for a long while where I have kept it for more than six months; 8 months to be exact. There is really no new smart phones around that would excite me to change. HTC seems to have over sensationalized its sensation products (although I just learnt that its camera capability has improved since the last HTC phone I have used). That said, there are a couple of products that I am looking forward to.

Xperia

First, there’s Galaxy Nexus, a Google-branded phone made by Samsung. I have always wanted to try “Out of the Box” or “Vanilla” Android phone. Then there’s Sony’s Xperia S, Sony’s first product after their break up with Ericsson. I wonder if the DNA of Xperia S will be “Sony inspired”, or inheriting the mediocre Sony Ericsson genes.

Galaxy Nexus was first released to the market. But the lure of what is considered as Sony’s first Android product in Xperia S, especially upon hearing a reliable news that it’ll be  released 2 weeks later, made me decide to wait for the latter instead. On the first day when Xperia S was sold in the retail,  I went to the outlet and bought a set without even waiting for other customers’ feedbacks.

The first impression of the minimalist-design hardware gives me a mixed feeling. I like the cool looking clear bar at the bottom of the screen. It reminds me of the design found in Sony’s LCD  TV products. However, it is just  bells and whistles, as it just display the icons of the  touch panel functions above it, and nothing else (edit: I was told it could also act as light notification, but am not sure about it).  I wonder what goes behind the mind of the designer. As I figure out eventually, the design is probably meant to align with the new  UI design in Google ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Google Android OS platform). Still, given that the bar takes up a good chunk of the phone form factor, I thought it is a bad design.

Sleeky but not functional Light Bar

The phone feels thicker and heavier than the sleek Sony Ericsson Arc I had used previously. So perhaps it is a sign of Sony trying to get rid of its SonyEricsson DNA, albeit not in the direction I would have expected from a consumer company like Sony. The back battery cover is removable, even though the battery is not and there is no removable storage space. On the other hand, the battery cover fitment is not perfect, leaving an uneven gap all around. In nut shell, the phone does not wow me like the Arc did on first physical encounter.

But I have to say, the phone grows on me after a while, primarily by its superior screen and camera function. First on the screen. The BRAVIA HD technology, along with its high 1280×720 resolution, renders rich colour saturation and image sharpness. The photos and videos look amazingly stunning with the colour vibrants and black deep. While it looks stunning on photos and video playback, I thought in some applications, the screen display looks a bit wash out, perhaps by the brightness and contrast level that is tuned towards HD video playback.

Sony Screen with Bravia HD engine

The camera, powered by Sony’s Exmor R for mobile CMOS sensor, reaffirms my belief that Sony produces one of the best, if not best phone camera in the market. A friend of mine did tell me that Apple’s  iPhone 4S has the best optic lens in the mobile market, but I think Sony’s Xperia S is not far behind, if not the best. Pitting the camera function of Samsung Galaxy S II against that of Xperia S, makes me realize how Samsung has stagnated in its innovation. I remembered I was most impressed by Samsung Galaxy S’s camera function, thinking on how it had the best mobile camera capability in the market then. Perhaps the DNA of the two consumer giants (Sony and Samsung), plays a big part in this gulf.

Ravishing screen and sublime photographing capability aside, Xperia S still has some unfinished work to do in order to be the leader of its pack. Although none of the phone manufacturers has yet launched an ICS out-of-the-box product, it is still disappointing to see Sony releasing a Gingerbread based Xperia S. The phone still experiences random moments of lags, slight enough for me to notice it, and the Sony’s home launcher force-closes on me a few times. That said, Sony’s home launcher and widgets have gone through some significant improvement, both visually and functionally. But I think they could have channelled their time and resources on improving the overall user experience, instead of bridging the gaps of Gingerbread.

Sony phone with the old Sony Ericsson Logo.

Unfortunately, the deal breaker for me is the Sony Xperia S’s security management. The issue is how the phone handles the “IdleTimeoutFrequencyValue” parameter, part of the security policy enforced by my company’s Exchange Server. Based on my knowledge, the parameter, configurable only by exchange server administrator, implies the longest acceptable time that the device can idle before the phone needs to be locked.  I know my company’s administrator had initially set as “1 minute”  before settled for “40 minutes”, as many employees felt that the policy was “too strict”. Xperia S takes this parameter literally, and will only lock my phone after 40 minutes of idle. There is no way I can force a lock; For all the previous phones that I have used, I could either set a shorter time-out myself, or force a lock by pressing the power button. With this “bug”, I have to bear the risk of leaving my phone unprotected for as long as 40 minutes. A few years ago, this is probably not a big deal for me. However, ever since I experience the loss of my phone within 5 minutes after misplacing it in a public place, I become more conscious about mobile security, especially with more confidential and/or sensitive information stored in our mobile devices these days.

So it is a “Short eXperience” for me, perhaps that’s what Xperia S stands for me. But if you don’t have a strict company exchange server administrator like mine (that configures every parameters of the policy), can live with some of the niggling issues highlighted above, I am sure it’ll be a “Splendid eXperience” for you.

Run for Food: Magic 8

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I have not been blogging for a while. Surprisingly, in my third month of running, I am still keeping to the “run on alternate day” regime. There were a couple of instances where I only run after 2 days of rest, either to give my body a well deserved rest, or my body decided to protest (with a flue or something). And since I’m beginning to run longer distance (i.e. more than 6km), I have started alternating my running between 45-50 minutes endurance run versus 30 mins of interval training.

Since my last blog post, there were a couple of magic “8” moments.

On 18th Feb, for the first time, my weight went below 90, and is 80-something now.

Eighty-Something for the first time!

Then on 5th march, for the first time again, I have completed more than 8km of running route.

First 8km attempt

At this time, I have completed 55 running activities, completed 245.33km. Notably, in February, I have covered 92.6km, despite having 5 fewer runs than in month of January. The motivation “Run for Food” continues.

Run for Food: 6KM milestone

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Following my latest accomplishment on completing a 5km run, I start to alternate between interval training and endurance run (which is probably just a warm up run in the eyes of the fitter ones :))

6.06km route

Despite a hectic week with all the night conference calls every day, I manage to find time to run before or after the meetings (which would usually be 12 or 1am). 2 sessions after, I decide to extend my endurance run from 40mins to 45mins. Given that I am stretching the duration, I start slow, at pace of 8.07min/km for the first 5 minute. Subsequently I pick up the pace, and maintain a steady but still relatively comfortable pace, at 7.20~7.50min/km. In the last 7min of the run, I feel that I have enough energy to push myself further, so I accelerate to an average pace of about 6.20min/km (and as fast as 5.30min/km at one point). Surprisingly, I do not feel any trace of struggle, and I reckon it is due to the body already very well conditioned after the last 5km of running. It is also due to the fact that I am running under a very cooling weather since I started the run at 12.40am. Heartbeat is also averaging at a decent 146 bpm.  By the time I finish the 45min run, I have completed a distance of 6.06km.

Another milestone achieved. By now, I have completed 42 running activities, covering a distance of 161km.

Run for Food: 5KM milestone

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As it turns out, I am continuing my running regiment after my “touch down run” on Sunday, while I am still at Cupertino for my 4.5 days of meeting. Given that the dawn breaks around 7am and I need to leave for office by 8am, I decide to go for indoor treadmill running instead. The 5-6 degrees Celsius weather will be too chilly for me at 6am too, at least not with the kind of running gear I have.

Treadmill could detect my Polar Heartbeat monitoring device

My biological clock wakes me up at 4.30am on Tuesday (7th Feb), after a good 6 hours of sleep.  Yes, I seem to relish the opportunity of being able to sleep and wake up early whenever I am in US. After a quick wash up, I head over to the hotel’s gym. My first treadmill run ends with just a struggling 4.02km as I have a hard time trying to adjust the treadmill’s speed, since I am too used to tracking my pace (rather than speed) and in km  (rather than miles). Struggling as it was, however, I manage to keep my heart rate level below 150 for the first time, averaging at 140.

And it is as though I have addicted to running,  I continue to run daily for the remaining week. By now I am familiar with my pace and speed in imperial units, I carry out my interval training with some deliberate control over my pace. The good thing about treadmill running is that you consciously know and keep to the desire pace. So you cannot afford to slack unless you cheat. On the third treadmill running, I follow a gradual but aggressive pace over the 3 legs  interval training (8 minutes of run with 2 mins of walk or slow jog).  The run ends with the longest distance covered at the fastest pace I have ever achieved — 4.64km at 6.28 min/km.

For my fifth (and last) running supposedly on Friday while in Cupertino, I feel I may not have enough time since I will have to pack my luggage in the morning for the hotel check-out. So following my run on the Thursday morning (8th Feb), I decide to complete the fifth run on the same day evening. At 11pm, I am back in the gym again. Thinking of doing something different instead of the usual 30 minute interval training, I proceed with a 40 minutes long endurance run. Since it is not an interval training, I have to find a pace that I am comfortable to last the entire 40 minutes. So I start with a slow pace at around 7.5 min/km. By the halfway mark, I increase the pace to 7 min/km since I think I still have more than half the energy to continue for another 20 minutes. Eventually, I manage to complete the 40 minutes run, finishing a distance of 5.36km. It is not a pace that I can brag about (average of 7.27 min/km), but certainly to complete a 5.36km run, at a decent heartbeat rate of 145, is something I have never imagined 2 months ago.

So another milestone — the 5km milestone, completed. In total, 39 running activities completed, 145.03km covered.

Run for Food: First oversea run

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For the first time since my maiden run, I postpone one running session this week, as I only run 2 days after the previous run. I blame it on the intense meetings this week but I know it is a lame one. As I will be travelling for a business meeting next week, I tell myself I cannot let the momentum goes down. Worrying that I may not run at all while I travel, I decide to run more  more this week to “over compensate”. By end of the week, I have completed 17.36km in total.

It then occurs to me I should continue to run while I am in US. There is no reason why I should not. Without any hesitation, I pack my running gear with me and off I go (or “fly”) for my meeting in Cupertino at California. When I touch down and check into the hotel at noon, I decide I should run before the sun set so as to familiarize with the route. That was just the “Kiasee” side of me. It is anyway a very sunny but cooling Sunday, with temperature probably around 16-18 degree Celsius.

The run turns out to be a tiring one despite the cool weather. I think much of it is due to the flight fatigue. But it is still a good run, after all, this is my first oversea run, while on business trip.

My first "Oversea" running route

By the end of the run, I have completed 35 running activities, covering 126.67km. More importantly, will I continue to run while I am here at Cupertino this week? Or will I just fizzle out and give the “intense meeting” reasons again?

Run for Food: 4KM Full Run milestone

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Today (28th Jan), I feel it is time for me to do a full run instead of the usual interval training. I have been doing “5 min run, 1 min walk” training for the past 1 week, and think I should be ready for a full 30 minutes run. Obviously I need to adjust my pace to ensure I can sustain through the entire 30 minutes.

Since it is going to be a 30 minute long run, I start the run with a slow but steady pace.  Since the aim of the run is to keep running without stopping, I have to regulate my pace between 7min/km to 7.30min/km at regular interval. Perhaps I could have push myself further, but the run turns out to be a relaxing one. That said, I have to stop at 29th minute due to some logistic constraints.

Most importantly, I have completed a 4km run without stopping. The systematic training that I have been through in the past 6 weeks, which saw 30 running activities, has finally paid off.

Run for Food: 100km milestone

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100km

It has been slightly more than a month since I started my maiden run. Today (27th Jan), it’s a milestone as I complete another run. I have run 29 times, covering 100.64km. How many more 100km will I run again?

Run for Food: Magic 22

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Ever since I started a formal running schedule, I am making a steadfast progress. I am also constantly running (with walking in regular intervals) more than 4km in each running session. It may be just a short run for many runners, but it is something I would never have imagined 6 weeks ago. At the same time, it seems that I am addicted to running; There were occasions where I ran in the wee morning (such as 3am), and there were times where I ran for 3 consecutive days. I also do not feel as much stress on my knees as I did in my maiden run. All in all, everything seems to be heading in the right direction.

Drenched after the 2.2 run

On 22nd Jan, eve of the Chinese Lunar New Year, I “feel” the motivation to run again after two consecutive days of sumptuous reunion lunch/dinner.  Coincidentally, it is also my 22nd run since 15th Jan! Just as I get myself geared up for the running, the sky starts to drizzle. I tell myself, the light drizzle will help to make a cooling run, but how wrong I was! Just less than a minute into my run, the rain starts to pour. I have to abandon my running schedule as it does not seem to be a quick passing rain. But I am very determined to complete a run, so I promptly switch to a 2.2km running route. It is also an opportunity to see how my stamina has improved vis-a-vis to my first maiden 2.2km run.

I remembered 6 weeks ago I had to stop every 400-600km just to catch my breathe. Thus, I aim to complete the run without any stop. The increasing intensity of the rain does help to spur me to achieve this goal, and I am glad I accomplish it eventually! The pace of the run was steady from start till the end. There were moments where I felt I could be struggling, but managed to overcome through controlling my breathing and consequently maintaining the breathing efficiency. By the time I complete my 2.2km run, the timer clock shows a timing of 13.38 min. While it is still far cry from my 12 min target (first goal), it still shows a vast leap from my earlier 14-15 minute timings. Most importantly, I completed the run in a harsh condition (with the rain pouring towards the end of the run) without stopping at all.

Running statistic for period 15th Dec 11 to 22nd Jan 12

With the 2.2km run, on the 22nd of Jan,  I have thus far completed 22 run with total of 70.76km.  Another new milestone achieved for me.

Run for Food: Month One

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After running “aimlessly” in the last 10 runs, I decide that I need to have a proper running schedule to be effective. After some (google) research, I adopt the schedule published by Runners’ World, an 8 weeks plan to complete a 5km race.  I tweak the schedule further though. Since I have already had some head start with some running in the past weeks, I skip the “1 minute run, 5 minute walk”, and go straight into the “2 minute run, 4 minute walk”. On the side note, I import the running schedule into the Runkeeper app, which turns into a coaching tool, rather than just a time watcher. Neat!

The first run, guided through the formal schedule, was motivating. The run is essentially made up of 5 repetitive shorter run, with short walk break in between to overcome the huff and puff. Thus, the 30 minutes session was never anywhere breathless and draggy as before. By the 2nd week of the formal training, I move to the next stage of the schedule, i.e. “3 minute run with 3 minute walk”. It’s also the first time I break the 4km mark (although with walk break in between). That spurred me on further. By the end of the 2 weeks running schedule, I progress to the 3rd stage, which is “4 minute run with 2 minute walk”. In those runs, I was constantly pushing myself to run 4.2 to 4.5km, but I learn later that this is actually counter-productive to my running plan. (More about this later)

Running Statistics (15 Dec 2011 - 14 Jan 2012)

On 14th Jan 2012,  I completed 4.14km, at a pace of 7.32 min/km. That marks the completion of 17 runs, or 51.85km since 15th Dec 2011. A month has gone, and I do feel much lighter than when I first started. I was joking about this; If I felt like I was carrying a fullpack then (given my weight at that point), I must be running with SBO now. Certainly, I feel fitter as well, although probably just 5% of my fittness level 20 years ago. The question now is, will I continue this running habit, or will it be shelved a side once my hectic work schedule is back.

I told myself, think about the food. Hopefully the run continues 😉