from Faizal Ariff Abdullah's FB update - Runners: 1 of the main differences btw elite and amateur runners is their running cadence. Elites will always have the same cadence (but changes stride length to change speed) while amateurs will change cadence to change speeds.

yeap, its been a while.

ive been in and out of bootcamp. that changed my life. pushed me even deeper into this fitness pit and im loving that. im currently out of that for now. just couldnt find the time and energy to do it (yes, i generally finish work at 12, i need my rest). unfortunately, the lame excuse of "too busy with work" became reality. i am one of those people. i succumbed to work and slave myself, ignoring all the things that i practiced and preached to others before.

however, after the first day of hari raya, i just told myself, if i am able to do it before, i surely can have that repeated. it might not be me going gaga over dumbells, weight plates and all things gym-y, nope. not this time. i have a new goal.

i. just. want. to. run.

and yes, i have a marathon in mind. but for now, ill take things easy. ill just jog and progressively expand my horizon from there.

i was too inspired, after months of being miserable and unhealthy. the one thing that really got me inspired to run, aside from all the youtubes, magazine articles, internet pieces and all that was when i saw Opstupe ran with his wife somewhere along the roads near the hartamas mosque. that sealed the deal. i was on my to a buka-puasa gathering at a friend's place. i shouted quietly in my heart "I WANT TO RUN!"

i kept to my words. second day raya and im already running. sure, a turtle can beat me at that moment... but competing with myself (and not to the old uncle who passed me several times or to the teen girl who made me feel like im a sloth) has definitely made me a better runner compared to that first run.

here's to more running. cheers!!! (finally got myself a proper running shoe, woohoo!!)

Entering my second month of bootcamp.

So far everything's good. I got upgraded to SEAL!

During the first session of November, we had our assessment thingy. I definitely felt the change in the way I run. My time improved and I think its awesome! Stamina went up! Reached one goal already! (at the sidebar)

Still trying to perfect my jack knives and grunts... so far those are the only thing that the trainers correct me. Better buck up.

Am I missing the usual gym stuff? Not at all.

A fellow bootcamper who happens to be my school mate from high school commented that I looked aneroxic. Damn. Not what Im going for. (Some on the other hand told me I gained la, Im bigger than before la... what the hell) Maybe people see better. I know I lost weight, but I still have that mental image that Im slightly fat. I know that Im thin currently with a gut hanging loose. I believe that that is because of the weight I lost around that area that left major space unfilled. Im working towards just that to be frank. Im not sure if it will go naturally, as some said that some surgery work is the only thing that can take those flabs out. I still don't want to resort to that (not just because it's expansive and unnecessary) because I dont believe in ruining what God gave us.

Im am getting excited with running nowadays. So that's good. Found a jog partner, and hopefully the Friday evening sessions will be ongoing.

Later.

After using short poles (pipes?), sandbags, tires and all three, we carried backpacks today. My only regret was that I shouldve asked for the senior's (SEALS) weight. Not bragging, but the one I carried was doable. And doable, in this scenario, is not pushing the limits.

Lesson learned.

Im in love with bootcamp.

*Theres this chick, in my group (RANGERS) who ran fast. Im going to try and beat her next round. Good motivation.

I binged on cookies, cekodok and pisang goreng during my 4 pm coffee break. Regretted it a bit. But what the hell. It's one of those slip.

I feel OK.

FINALLY!

I took the challenge, from myself. Im proud I actually went and not backing out since two other friends cant make it. A former colleague was there to have her final session before she leaves to Australia. So that helped a lot. And yes, I am motivated just by seeing her do the thing.

DAY 1
It was good. I think my body is in a state of shock (up till now). Left the fitness field for few months already, so Im expecting aches all over the body later on. Anyway, we had the assessment thing going today, to measure the our capability (and time result will be used to place us under different groups). Im not big on running and I suffer shortness of breath after few minutes of jogging. But seeing the group work, it mentally forces me to just keep on going and thats the best part of working in a group. Compared to when Im in the gym, mostly alone, its easy for me to lose my motivation when I 'feel' that I cant do anymore... I am my own trainer so I rule my own workout.

We had to run two laps and do push ups, grunts and sit ups and repeat the whole thing thrice. I accidentally did four because thought we should take turns with our partners, instead of doing the whole in one go. But I did not regret the mistake that I made.

Good day, I can say. Cant wait for another session. Excited. Never felt this good for such a long time.

"Your training partner's name is pain. You start out trying to ignore him. Can't do it. You attempt to reason with him. No way. You try to strike a bargain. Hah. You plead. You say "Please stop, please go away. I promise never ever to do this again if you just leave me alone." But he won't. Pain only climbs off if you do. Then you're beaten. " - Scott Martin

"A path with no obstacles doesn't lead anywhere." - Unknown

Trouble Sleeping? Just Breathe

(from LIVESTRONG.COM) By Brad Kearns

If your mind is racing and you are having difficulty falling asleep, a few minutes of simple but effective breathing exercises can help calm your nervous system on a chemical level and lead to greater success in hitting the sack. The awareness and control of breath has been a central component of yoga, martial arts and Taoism for thousands of years. There are dozens of different methods and exercises you can explore through a good teacher or book. The practice of breath control in yoga is called pranayama. I'll detail a simple pranayama exercise here that is particularly effective for falling asleep called alternate nostril breathing (that's "nadi shodana" for the Sanskrit posse out there).

Alternate nostril breathing is a great way to clear obstructed nostrils, balance the yin and yang energy of the body and focusing the busy mind on the present for a deliberate and calming exercise. When our nostrils are unobstructed, we involuntarily alternate breathing through one or the other about every two hours. Breathing through your right nostril stimulates the left side of the brain (intellectual, analytical, rational thought) and prepares the body for physical action (yang energy). Breathing through your left nostril stimulates the right side of the brain (creative, emotional thought) and prepares the body for passive mental activity (yin energy). If both nostrils are not clear, breathing will become imbalanced and so will the energy in your body.

When you are feeling restless at bedtime, head outside (weather permitting obviously, but even in wintertime, you can certainly spend a couple minutes on a balcony or porch in brisk air), sit in a comfortable chair and begin the exercise. You will likely have a really hard time focusing your mind on only the breathing exercise. Establish a rule that whenever your mind wanders away from the breathing exercise to other random thoughts, you have to start over. With practice, you'll develop the esteemed ability to relax and center -- not just to calm the mind for bed but any time the stresses of life are closing in.

Alternate nostril breathing is performed as follows: Take one hand up to your face for blocking nostrils. For example, your right thumb will close off your right nostril while your right index or middle finger will close off your left nostril. Block off the right nostril and inhale fully (notice how your inhale and exhale will be slower since you are only using one nostril). Pause at the completion of your inhale and switch nostrils by using your finger to block the left nostril and releasing your thumb from the right nostril. Exhale through the right nostril, inhale through the right nostril, then pause and switch to exhale through the left nostril. Thus, you switch nostrils in the middle of the breath cycle. To complete a cycle of 10 breaths, count each inhale/exhale as one. After your complete your breathing session, you can return to bed with a calm brain and hopefully induce a good night's sleep.