Its a long hard road regaining lost fitness

For the past 6 years I have trained solidly for triathlon and for the 10 years before that I trained solidly for Canoe Polo. So back in March I decided on a change in focus. I wanted to just do something to see if I could... so I trained for and ran a 59.8km running race. This took some massive running weeks- up to 145km of running some weeks.

That training and the race itself took a lot out of me, both physically and mentally (this was on top of well over a decade of top level sport). So after the race I had a bit of down time from training and racing, and a bit more, and a bit more. Suddenly I realised 12 weeks had passed- 12 weeks without any real training and a non-structured eating regime. This 12 weeks also coincided with an extremely busy time at work with heaps of catered meetings and late nights. So low and behold... here I am at the most unfit I have been for years.

So two weeks ago I decided that I was over being unfit and a some (undisclosed) kilos heavier than I really want to be. So I started back on the exercise bandwagon... and boy its hard to get the fitness back. I also struggled with running for running's sake, so I entered the City to Surf half marathon for 7 weeks time. Its good to have a goal again (just to finish and have fun) and its good to be back running again.

Jason has said that I seem to sleep much better now that I am training again- which is great news as I had been having some very broken nights of sleep. Which, for those of you that know me, is very odd for me!

So the first proper week back I ran just over 40km.... and it hurt. I was unfit, struggling for breath and my legs felt REALLY weak. The week just been saw a good increase in my mileage, up between 60 to 70 km for the week (I even had Jason out with me for a run on Thursday night). My breathing has eased somewhat while running but my legs are still weak- especially on the hills.

The goal for the coming week is to get to about 85 - 95km of running which I aim to hold for the next couple of weeks while my body re-adjusts to regular exercise again.

Lots will tell you that with a reasonably quick uptake in running comes a risk of injury, but I have been good- the knees, ankles and hips are all feeling ok. BUT... I did have a small mishap. When Jason and I were running I misjudged the distance between me and a pole... I ran into it and gashed my thigh (see below)... I hit it good and proper by the depth of the bruising!
So I'll keep you posted on the progress towards the city to surf and regaining the fitness!

Things I love right now...

After getting an idea from Megan Maloney, a ex workmate from M-co in New Zealand and fellow blogger at M.N.M.s, I have decided to do a "things I love right now" blog post.

So the things I love right now:

1. Colours. I really love the amazing contrast of the winter trees against a winter sky in Perth (blue.... much like summer hehe).


2. Perth Winters: I love Perth winters, its not a miserable time, there is no horizontal rain or gale force winds (or both at the same time). From a Perth tourism website " ...the mild Perth winter begins at the start of June and finishes at the end of August. It is generally a rainy season, mingled with cool sunny days. There are however occasional storms, characterised by downpours of rain, lightning or thunder".

So here's a Perth winter first hand- We do get cool mornings, Monday was just 0.7 degrees, however I was only wearing a cardigan and a scarf still, no jacket, gloves or hat. It warms up to about 17 - 21 degrees during most days and on the weekend Jason and I were both just in t-shirts and jandals and we enjoyed lunch in the sun and sitting on the beach- by the way there were people swimming still.

The evenings are deliciously cool (compared to the 20's of the summer months) which means that (finally) I can sleep under a duvet- although we still have a window open.


3. Picassa. I love picassa for my blogging. Picassa is an application (its a free download from the web) for organising and editing digital photos. Apparently the name "Picassa" is a blend of the name of Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, the phrase mi casa for "my house" and "pic" for pictures (well according to Wikipedia anyway). I use picassa to create collages for my blog posts. It cuts my blogging time in half, means I can display more pictures and I really like the way it looks.

4. Slow cooker food. I love my slow cooker, coming home after a long day at work to steaming hot, beautiful smelling, deliciously cooked beef and lamb casseroles, Moroccan chicken or pea and ham soup. Its just so easy and so yummy.

A weekend in Perth: 2009 and 2010 in contrast

Its now been 8 months since the World Triathlon Championships and 3 months since my ultra marathon, and since then I haven't been following a structured training programme. I do what I feel like and when I feel like it. Which lately has been very little. However, my body is now craving some hard physical work now and I will start some more regular training/exercising now.

However, it has made me stop and ponder how life has changed since this time last year... This time last year my weekend consisted of:

Saturday 2009:
My day started at 6am with a 5 hour cycle in the Perth Hills at 80% of my power threshold, this ride included 6 * 5km tempo efforts with 5 min recovery. This was immediately followed by a 5km run off the bike at 4.20/km pace. I arrived home about midday-ish and immediately nourished my depleted body- I took a look in my food diary for that day and I had poached eggs, silver beet and tomato salsa on soy and linseed toast.

After just 2 short recovery hours I dragged myself down to the local pool and swum am easy 4km set... all with a band and pull buoy, so a major arm workout. Funnily enough the swim helps the recovery. I wrote in my training diary that I felt better after 2.8km and that I got some tan lines in early July!

While I have no record of what I did on this Saturday evening, I can guarantee that it entailed a DVD, nourishing food, a couch and not much else.

Sunday 2009
Sunday started a little later than Saturday with a 2 hour 15 min bike ride and a 75 min run off the bike. The run included 4 * 2km intervals at 3.55/km and 3 min recovery at 4.40/km. So a shorter session, but generally harder on the body due to it being the end of the week and the running intervals.

After resting my wearied legs in the Swan River for about 10 minutes I can guarantee you that I would have bought a diet coke and the Sunday paper on the way home from training... lunch was 2 minute noodles (baked not fried version) mixed with frozen veggies, a can of lemon pepper salmon, sweet chili and soy sauce.

I would often rest for a couple of hours and then head out to do our weekly grocery shop with Jason.

This year's weekend couldn't have been more different...

Saturday 2010:
My day started at a leisurely 8.15am, the only reason it was that early is that I had a hair appointment. By 9.15am I was sitting in at my hair dressers in East Perth on a massaging chair having my scalp massaged. Following my haircut I visited Farmer Jacks where I picked up some fresh bread, fresh coffee for Jason, a paper and diet coke.

From here I flicked through the paper while waiting for my friend Sandy to pick me up. We were off to a Vintage Sale (see below) and a lunch of bread and dips and refreshing white wine.
After the lunchtime outing Jason and I went and scouted out a car he is considering buying (see below). This was about an hour round trip for us.
After checking the car out, Jason and I stopped in at the claremont shops for some new ink for my printer and a birthday present for the party we were heading to on Saturday night. We got home in time for an afternoon nap for me and a couple of games on the computer for Jason.

On Saturday night we went out for Richard's 33rd Birthday, dinner and drinks at the Oxford Hotel in Leederville (see below). We got home around 11.30pm and stayed up to watch the Tour de France prologue. Finally heading to bed around 1am.
Sunday 2010
Sunday started a little later than Saturday considering the late night. I think that I got up around 9am. My morning started with a quick trip out for some milk (normal for tea and chocolate for Jason), the Sunday paper and I'm sure there was a diet coke in there :-)

The rest of the morning was spent reading the paper for me and pottering on the computer for Jason.

Around midday we headed into Fremantle for lunch- prawn and avocado salad for me and a red beef curry for Jason. We topped this off with a treat (mini apple pie for me and mini chocolate mud cake for Jason) on the beach. It was a stunning day on the beach and we just sat there for around 1/2 and hour.

I watched a movie during the afternoon while working on a creative photo project (which will be revealed in a few weeks time) and Jason played Battlefield with his clan. Finally around 5pm we headed back to Farmer Jacks for some groceries.

So there you have it, two contrasting weekends!!! My how things have changed.

Drum Tao- I want to be a Japanese drummer

On Friday night Jason and I went to a performance of Drum Tao at the Perth Concert Hall. We were treated to an amazing performance: from powerful drumming, to athleticism, to to simulated fight scenes, to playful drumming all of this interspersed with soulful flute work.

The drummers are incredibly strong, graceful and skilled. Some of the drummers look like the aren't moving their body at all (including their forearms) yet the drumming is going a hundred (or more) beats a minute!! At times I was totally spellbound and others I was tapping my feet along with the rhythm. One set of drums was so deep and strong that I felt it in my heart during the performance.

Unfortunately no cameras were allowed so no photos for you. I am also struggling to explain how fantastic the show was. So here is a link to where you can see some promotional clips on Drum Tao.

A day in New Norcia

This weekend just been Jason and I decided to head out of town. We headed north east and found ourselves in New Norcia. New Norcia is about a 2 hour drive from Perth and is a little piece of Spain that emerges from the Australian bush. New Norcia is home to the Benedictine Monastery (founded in 1847) and is still home to a community of monks living a simple life of prayer and work within the monastery. The town's motto is Pax, see below:
The town of New Norcia has buildings in a Spanish style of architecture, along with some other historical sites. Among these are the two old Boarding Schools, St Ildephonsus' and St Gertrude's (both now used for accommodation and various social functions), the Abbey Church, an old mill, a wine press, a hotel, and the monastery itself. Below is some of the architecture found at New Norcia...as you can see we had a beautiful clear day, albeit a little cool for Western Australian standards, we only got to about 17 degrees...from top left going clockwise: the monastery (first two photos), St Ildephonsus (Boys Boarding School), the Abbey Church (*2), St Gertrudes (the girls Boarding School), and the Abbey Church again.
We started the day with a visit to the art gallery and the museum, which is housed in the Old Convent. This is where the nuns lived and looked after the Aboriginal orphans. Unfortunately no photos allowed from this section of the visit. We bought some New Norcia bread (wholemeal and fruit) and some macadamia and almond panforte. We should have bought some of the local olive oil as well. As an aside, the last Spanish Benedictine monk of New Norcia died in January 2010, aged 99. He continued to prepare the bread for the monks and olive oil almost upon his death.

Following this we headed out on a guided tour of the town, firstly visiting the Monastery Chapel and the Abbey Church. The Monks prey 6 times a day as well as holding a daily Mass. The prayer times are: 5.15, 6.45, 12pm, 2.30, 6.30 and 8.15. Following the 8.15 mass the Monks descend into silence until 8.30 am the following day.

The Abbey Church was home to a unique depiction of the stations of the cross (as well as other pictures). These were etched into the stone walls. Check out the purely Australian nativity scene in the bottom left- grass trees, a kangaroo, the stars from the Australian flag and the Aboriginal.
The public is free to walk around the village, but by taking the tour we got to see inside some of the buildings not actually open to walk ins. See below for some of the stunning architecture and beautifully frescoed interiors.
At the end of the tour we wandered up to the New Norcia Hotel for lunch. I had a salad of Honey roasted butternut pumpkin, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, and baby spinach leaves drizzled with a honey, mustard and lemon dressing. Jason had a beef burger and fries and also enjoyed some of the Monk's own specially brewed Abbey Ale. A good end to a good day.

A little bit of homesickness

So yesterday Jason and I went round to a friends place and watched the All Blacks vs Wales Rugby game. As the All Blacks ran out through the tunnel I had this overwhelming sense of homesickness. This led me to think about the things that I really miss about New Zealand, and in particular Wellington.

Firstly, I find Wellington to be a stunningly beautiful place. Check this out:It has huge contrasts. Its not a place everyone wants to live due to the weather, but that was what I loved about it. Wellington taught me to be thankful for the good things- a core saying of Wellingtonians is "you can't beat Wellington on a good day" and its true, on a good day Wellington is superb. In Wellington you had to make the most of the good days as sometimes they were few and far between. In saying that it was the character of Wellington that I loved, the forcefulness of the weather, and the uncertainty over what each day might bring. Check out the waves at Lyall Bay during a Southerly storm. Another advantage of Wellington's weather is that the wind, the hills and the cold made me a very strong athlete. I was happy in the knowledge that during a race I would not be faced with anything worse than what Wellington dished out on a regular basis. This held me in good stead for a number of races, in particular the 2008 World Champs in Vancouver where we experienced 11 degree water temperature with lots of chop... just like Wellington Harbour really.

One of the biggest things that I miss from Wellington is our house, the glorious deck on a summers day, the wood burner in the winter. I miss the view from our house over some of my favourite running areas: Otari Wilton Bush, Karori Cemetery, Johnstons Peak, Makara Peak, Wrights Hill, the Wind Turbine and the Radar Ball. I miss waking up to the alternating sounds of the tuis and sounds of Sunday morning rubgy wafting up from Ian Galloway Park. I miss pottering in the garden at the end of a hard training day. I miss the privacy that we had from being set in the bush. I just miss having a place that's ours. I think that a first home will always be special and 100 Pembroke Rd was special.
WA has some beautiful white sand beaches but I miss the sheer ruggedness of Makara Beach and the South Coast. I loved running anywhere around this area and some of my fondest running memories are of night time runs up the tip track and back via Red Rocks. Mind you the night running means that you miss out on the stunning views. Jason and I often went walking out at Makara when we were short of something to do and Makara was the scene of my first ever foray into photography.
I said earlier that you can't beat Wellington on a good day and photo below is one of them. Check out Wellington's harbour. This photo was taken from Jason's office on a cell phone, so doesn't really do the harbour justice at all... but how beautiful is this.
I have spent many hours on and in this harbour, from canoe polo training, to swimming to a few sailing trips. I also lived on Oriental Parade pretty much just behind the fountain in this photo. I have so many great memories of Wellington Harbour and I miss the camaraderie of meeting my training buddies at Freyberg pool.

I consider Wellington to be my home town although I only lived there following University. I have fantastic memories of all of Wellington- From my first apartment on Vivien St with 5 girls and 1 boy to living on Oriental Parade in a massive 5 bedroom house to a cute 3 bedroom house in Normanby St, Newtown. Following this I lived with Jason's parents and then Jason and I moved to Tawa. Finally, after a 2 year stint in Tawa we bought our own house in Northland.

To me Wellington means a place of beauty, a place of character and passion, a place that helped shaped me into the person that I am today. Wellington is rugged and not everyone understands it. I have cycled and run over much of Wellington and know it inside out. So as I sit here with tears running down my face I think I'll leave my post at this, because I just miss it all so much. Thanks for letting me ramble and post my musings about a place very dear to my heart.

My next post will focus on the things I love about Perth and will contrast Wellington and Perth.

Reigniting the love for Bikram Yoga

Bikram Yoga, commonly known as hot yoga is a system of yoga that was developed from traditional yoga techniques . Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class runs approximately 90 minutes, incorporates a series of 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises, and is practiced in a room heated to 40 - 42°C.

Bikram yoga aims toward general wellness and claims the heated studio facilitates deeper stretching, injury prevention, and stress and tension relief. Bikram yoga is claimed to systematically stimulate and restore health to every muscle, joint, and organ of the body.

I used to do bikram back in wellington but its been 2 years since I last practiced a class. Perth is sometimes in the 40s outside and I haven't been that keen to do hot yoga to date. However, this evening I was talked into doing a class in the newly opened Scarborough Beach studio. I REALLY enjoyed it but it made me realise how weak my body has got over the last two months without proper training. Time to get back on track I think!!!

Here are the 26 poses practiced in Bikram...I am good at poses 3, 4, 20 and 25. I really need to work on poses 8, 22 and 24. The rest I am ok at.

Now, rather than going into a long spiel about my experience with Bikram, I'm going to list a few first-hand pointers for those of you who are curious and may be interested in exploring Bikram.

1. Bikram is HOT. I mean really hot. As soon as you open the door to the studio, your face will slam into a wall of hot air. Get to the studio early so your body can adjust to the temperature.

2. You SWEAT a whole lot. Be prepared to sweat a lot. Bikram says that you shouldn't wipe it away either, you need to be disciplined to let the sweat keep dripping.

3. Bikram STINKS. Bikram requires that all studios use carpeting - no wood flooring. Why? Because it's the only flooring approved by Bikram... and because they're crazy. Sweat soaks into the carpet and the smell builds over time. The studio I visited tonight was brand new, so it did not smell.

4. HYDRATION. Drink lots of water before and after your session, but not during. Too much water during upsets your stomach and makes the remainder of the class uncomfortable.

5. Bring a LARGE TOWEL. Lay the towel over your yoga mat, aligning the top of the towel with the top of your mat. This is so it catches your marvelous yoga sweat.

6. Wear VERY LITTLE CLOTHING. Clothes get in the way with Bikram. No large shirts or long pants. They'll be a soaking mess five minutes in. Keep it light.

7. DO NOT EAT for a couple of hours before class. At least nothing heavy. You'll be twisting, turning and flexing those stomach muscles. If you're storing too much food in there, it may want to make an exit.

8. TAKE A BREAK when needed. Seriously, if at any moment you feel dizzy, faint, weak or like you're about to hurl, just sit down on your mat.

9. TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. After you're done, relax. Take it slow. Drink a lot of water. Take a shower. Eat something. Go to bed. Sleep.

After today's session, I felt completely wiped out. I also felt like I have removed a layer of residue and toxins from my body. Time for me to start looking after myself a little more again, I miss being really fit and strong.

Searching for a little soul...

So the hunt for a second car is on it our household at the moment. We have been needing a second vehicle for a while now and its going to be "Jason's" car. So instead of the nice sensible small economical car that I had in mind to supplement the 4 wheel drive Jason is now in search of something a little less sensible. He wants a car with character, a car with some soul... a car that sings to him as he drives it. Call me a girl, but I just don't really get it...

So if Jason had his ultimate non-sensible car it would be the 1969 GT500 Mustang Fastback... shown below:However, the budget doesn't stretch this far quite yet, so Jason has decided he would like to buy the car that he learnt to drive in (only slightly better). So he is after a 1983 VH Holden Commodore, but with a V8 in it. Luckily enough for Jason Holdens aren't too hard to come by in Australia so for the last 3 weeks I have had regular emails from Jason with links to potential cars for me to comment on. I think so farI have said "that's a nice colour" a few times, haha. Anyway, I'll keep you posted on the search for the car with soul as it progresses.

Singapore 2010

Well I was lucky to be sent to Singapore recently for a work training course, I have never been to Singapore (or anywhere is Asia before for that matter) so it was an exciting trip for me.

First things first, the work side. I was on a Competitive Electricity Markets course. 3 days on markets. We had a wide variety of course participants from many backgrounds and nationalities (which made the lunch breaks fun). There were students from Australia, Singapore, the Philippines, Hong Kong and Malaysia. The difficult thing was the differing levels of knowledge within the group, for me the course was pitched too low for my level of understanding. Not a bad thing though as it consolidated a few things and also made me realise how much I know about electricity.

Ok, work stuff done. Now onto the rest of the trip.

I flew out of Perth on the red eye, leaving at 1.10am and arriving in Singapore at 6.35 am. The good thing is there is no time difference between Perth and Singapore which makes it easier, however the night flight is a KILLER. I slept a couple of hours before I left Perth, and had an hour or so on the flight, but its not enough and Saturday was a tough day for it.

My first impressions of Singapore were largely around the heat and humidity, followed by the beautiful scenery. It was green and lush!

I had to kill around 4 hours before I could check in at my hotel so I went in search of some food... I walked, and walked and walked. I sweated, and sweated and sweated as well. Finally I found a random 7-11 and got a diet coke and litres of water, these provisions made me feel better pretty much straight away. What I didn't know at the time was that Singapore basically sleeps in till about 10am and stays open late.

In my travels I visited Clarke Quay. Clarke Quay is a historic riverside quay, in the past dozens of bumboats (small boats used to ferry supplies to ships) used to moor here. However, this caused high levels of pollution and eventually the cargo services were relocated. After a river clean up Clarke Quay was developed into a commercial and entertainment area. The development retained much of the historical landscape. Currently, there are numerous restaurants and nightclubs, as well as Chinese junks (ancient chinese sailboats) that have been refurbished into pubs and restaurants. This photo shows Clarke quay (the main shot is a night shot).

After Clarke Quay I continued along Boat Quay. This is another historical area in Singapore, it used to be the busiest part of the old port of Singapore. The bank of the river here resembles the belly of a carp, which according to Chinese belief is where wealth and prosperity lay, therefore many shops were built, crowding the area. These shops have been conserved and the area now houses lots of bars, pubs and restaurants.
Some sculptures near Clarke and Boat Quays.


Finally, I made it to Merlion Park (with the new Casino in the background). The Merlion is an imaginary creature with the head of a lion and the body of a fish, used as a mascot of Singapore. After this I wandered back to my hotel on the other side of the river, taking in the sights but not taking photos as I was tired and fading fast. My new camera lens is great, however, it is really heavy and it just contributed to my overall tiredness.

Finally I was able to check in to the hotel for a nice shower and a rest. Revitalised, I headed off to Chinatown. I really enjoyed it here, I bought a new skirt $12, a wall hanging $20, 4 scarves for $10 and 2 dresses for $40. I also had satay chicken, rice and diet coke for $6.80. After walking for a large part of the day I was feeling pretty shattered so I treated myself to a $20 hour long foot reflexology massage- bliss. The first photo below is of the temple and surrounds and the second photo set contains general chinatown photos.After a long day I was done! Sunday started very early with a short taxi ride to the Botanic Gardens. It was beautiful there, however I really didn't explore the whole garden as it was just so humid. I really loved it and I think that it was one of the most beautiful areas I have been to for a while. Much more beautiful than Perth!My main purpose was to visit the National Orchid Garden, and boy I am glad that I did. It was such a beautiful area (and I must admit to loitering in the cool house - for the Orchids that don't like the heat). Over 1000 species and 2,000 hybrids are now found in the Gardens' collection, with about 600 species and hybrids on display. This is the largest display of tropical orchids in the world.I gave the rest of the gardens a miss as I was getting hot and bothered. From here I made a short trip to Little India, but didn't stay long as I didn't feel very comfortable there at all. Here is the only photo I took there.

After the short detour I was more hot and bothered than before, so I mastered the underground railway (MRT) and went off to Orchard Rd, one of the many shopping areas in Singapore. I was totally overwhelmed. So many shops everywhere. I just don't know how people get around them. I didn't buy anything at all, and decided to head home. On the way back to my hotel I stopped came across the following temple.

Later on Sunday I moved to another hotel, visited ex-colleague Vanessa (recent arrivals in Singapore) and had another foot massage!

Monday was the first day of the course, and after the course I met Vanessa for dinner. Following dinner I went on the Singapore Flyer- a giant observation wheel, at the top it is 165m from the ground. I did take photos from the trip but no tripod and lots of glare meant no good photos.

Following the course on Tuesday I headed off to the Butterfly Farm on Sentosa Island, struggling with my camera lens fogging up in the humidity. I also realised how hard good, clear insect shots are!!!

The butterfly park also had some birds ...On my way back to the hotel I stopped in at Vivocity- Singapore's biggest shopping centre. I really didn't know where to start though so I caught the MRT to Chinatown for dinner (see below) and then home.

After the course on Wednesday I met an ex colleague from the Commission (Anthony and his wife Wei) for dinner. They have lived in Singapore for about a year and Wei is Chinese so we visited real Chinatown not tourist chinatown... and it was an experience as well. I let Wei choose dinner, we had Hainanese chicken (dipped in boiling water twice to cook it), fried rice, vegetables and lime juice. Fantastic. After dinner we had a mango sago dessert.... yummm. It was great hanging out with locals as it gives a different perspective on a city.

All in all I had a great time in Singapore and really would like to take Jason there. I won't miss the humidity or mosquitoes however.

Glass bead making

On the weekend I attended a course at the Fremantle arts centre on glass bead making. I went to the course with my workmate Fiona and ex-workmate Sharon.

The arts centre is housed in what was originally the first purpose built lunatic asylum in Western Australia. It has also been a home for "hysterical women". During WW1 and WW2 it was used as a naval base, following as a technical college. It has a colourful history and it is a great setting for arty courses.

Onto glass beadmaking, apparently glass bead making dates back over 3000 yrs... I bet they didn't have the fancy gas burners we had though! We were making wound glass beads this entails getting the glass at a temperature high enough to make it workable and then winding around a steel wire or mandrel coated with graphite. The wound bead, while still hot, can be further shaped by manipulating with graphite, wood, stainless steel or marble tools and paddles. It can also be pressed into a mold in its molten state. While still hot, or after re-heating, the surface of the bead may be decorated with fine rods called stringers of colored glass.
We tried all these techniques... here I am at work and concentrating very hard...The course was all about learning how to do it so the outputs weren't really pretty or uniform, but it was a lot of fun. I only cut myself twice (as my favourite bead broke) and burnt myself once (as I tried to grab a bead hot off the press)... here is the outcome of my day...not too bad really, although in Jason's words I "could do with some practice" hehehe.
A nice way to spend a weekend day though and I would recommend girls having a go. It was lots of fun and it gave me a whole new appreciation of beads!!!