5,150 meters and "Chase Your Dreams"

View of Gu Shan from the Love River, Kaohsiung. I just love looking at the symmetrical relationship between the actual mountain itself and its reflection in the still water.

Today I made an effort to start swimming a little earlier as I will have to miss the next two mornings of swimming as I travel in Taiwan. So I got started at 6:10 am, and by 7:53 am I had completed 5,000 meters, all freestyle, and mostly relaxed swimming except when I occasionally "burned" by someone when passing. I did not try to do anything particularly hard. Once or twice when passing someone, the extra surge in energy and effort made me feel my right shoulder and triceps a little and so I mainly concentrated on swimming smoothly. While at times I was joined by slower swimmers at other times I had to maintain a pretty good pace just to fend off a reasonably good (and perhaps fresher) swimmer. So there was a certain amount of variety. I was not just on my own.
After a couple of minutes break, I raced three other guys over 100m. I did about 1m 3os, coming in second behind my friend who went about 1m 26s. I guess I did not feel very strong on the swim, my arms feeling a little tired. 50 meters more of easy swimming brought me up to 5,150 meters.
My former coach in Hawai'i, let us call him "Steve-O", was training at the pool there a few years ago for the Masters' world championship 100 & 200 fly and freestyle. I noticed he would do a lot of steady freestyle swimming, as a kind of conditioning as it were. Then, near the end of the workout, he would rest a little, and then a friend would time him on a few all-out sprints, or else friends (who were also very accomplished swimmers) would race him over these short distances. So I guess the slowish steady swimming is all helpful and, at least for people like me, there are no short cuts to getting faster.
Macca has a slogan on his website that reads "Chase Your Dreams". While it is easy for someone like me to think that such a statement only applies to world changers like him or Bree, I think it is well worth anyone spending time to think about. For me, it is not just about entering and finishing an Ironman race. Of course, doing well in a race of some kind is an important goal for me. However, being able to make a living for me and my family doing something I generally enjoy and also having the chance to combine interests (like learning an East Asian language and getting healthy exercise and seeing beautiful scenery all at the same time) are also worthy goals. It is not a matter of waiting until I retire to do things. In fact, I will never really retire, and I don't want to either. So I am now in a kind of state of semi-retirement, keeping busy doing things productive and that I like, and trying not to let my life be run by other things, be they jobs, volunteerism, training schedules, or debts.
With the necessary travel over the next three days, I will have less time to train, but perhaps a little more time to reflect, even though the nature of my work means that I can get on with it even when waiting at a bus stop or train station. Certainly, to "Chase Your Dreams" is important for all of us and I thank Macca for blazing the trail and giving me the inspiration.

"Have bike, Will travel." Don't wait for that US$6,000 bike. Just use whatever you have, and start biking and enjoying the outdoors.

Starting the Day with a "Normal" Swim

As I mentioned yesterday, the Martyrs' Shrine in Kaohsiung (壽山上的忠烈祠) is a place with much historical significance. The Japanese-style architecture is a legacy of Taiwan's Japanese colonial past, when Taiwan was ruled by Japan for a period of fifty years (1895-1945). After that it was transformed into a shrine to remember the many patriots who fought and lost their lives in various wars, including resistance to the Japanese occupation.

Ever aware that there are many things that I need to do today (like most days), I tried to make the most of the relatively limited time I had to swim today. I started swimming at 6:21 am, and was up to 2,950 meters within one hour. I continued at that point, since there were fewer swimmers in my lane and I was able to keep up the momentum, until I reached 4,000m. Earlier on there were about 5 people at one time in the lane, and occasionally I had to stop at one end of the pool and just wait ten or more seconds while the ones in front of me got further away.
I generally felt relaxed the whole time, and mainly focused on an even consistent stroke, that remained the same even though I had been swimming almost non-stop for over an hour. In Kona, years ago, I would often swim fairly well getting out to the King's buoy, but often after I started to come home, due to weakness and being a little fatigued, my stroke would be poor, in that after my right arm entered the water, my hand would go down, and then up again so that I sometimes caught air bubbles before I pulled through. Sometimes when I pass another swimmer swimming freestyle, I see the same mistake that I used to make (and hopefully do not make now). No wonder they don't get much forward propulsion.
The last 15 minutes or so today were spent in the jacuzzi (about 5 minutes), and then a few easy "warm-up" swims, and then a 100m race against my friend. He was not that committed or focused today, and we finished together within 1m 31s. I got a pretty fast start today, but kind of lost it the second half and he caught me up. My total distance today was 4,425 meters. I still felt I could have continued, but the pool had to close as is always does at 8:00 am on these early morning swims.
Yesterday there was a huge 7.9 magnitude earthquake in Sichuan, China. I did not really notice anything while at home at 2:28 pm local time when it happened, but my wife who was attending a meeting on the 14th floor elsewhere in town felt a little dizzy, thinking she might be about to faint until she realized what it was.

Day Off - Some Relaxing Biking

I took this picture about 20 minutes from our house by bike in the middle of the city of Kaohsiung! To reach this point, I mostly followed cycle paths alongside the river. The small mountain to the left is Gu Shan (鼓山), which I partly climbed on my bike further on in the ride.

This morning I left the house only at 7:00 am, and as the pool was shut, rode my bicycle to a part of town I have not visited for many years, and the first time by bike (seen on the right). To get there, I only occasionally had to ride with the other traffic. Most of it was along bike paths next to the Love River in the main part of town, and then up a very quiet road as I climbed a small mountain. As you will see from the pictures, some of the scenery was quite beautiful. In the past I wondered if I would get a trainer and just bike on the lanai at home. However, unless I am really so concerned about what time I do in a race, maybe I will just go for rides like this.

I am used to seeing a lot of purple bourgainvillea (九重葛) here, but I don't see orange flowers quite so much. If you look in the distance, you will see large ships (click on the picture to enlarge). That is Kaohsiung harbor in the distance.

As I rode along the windy roads up the mountain, I reached the Martyrs' Shrine, again a place with a lot of historical significance. It was also interesting to meet a group of Japanese tourists who were visiting this quiet and restful place. I had the privilege of saying おはようございますand おげんき です か to a few of them. If I spoke more Japanese, it would not be hard to find opportunities to practice here.
Going up the hill, I was passed by a few mountain bikers, all of whom had nice bikes. Maybe I could eventually get a better MTB, and at least I could try to push it up the hill a bit harder. I also hope to look a little at the off-road trails and try and have a bit of fun without breaking my neck.

4,200 meters and Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Breakfast: Hsiu-chin, Bruce, Morrison and James celebrate in our home with pancake, fried bananas, sausages and other delicacies all prepared by James.
This morning I got to the pool about 6:15 am, and swam comfortably (no shoulder pain), but generally slower. I tried what was to be an almost moderate 200m early in on, but my pace was barely what I would normally be doing 1,000m. So today was a little sluggish, but I clocked up the laps and did quite a lot of flip turns, some better than others. At least I am getting a little less fearful of banging my head on the wall. At the end of the swim, my friend challenged me to a 100m race, but I clearly could not really move, and he beat me by about half a length. I guess my arms just felt a little tired. According to my calculations, I swam 28,100 meters in the last six days (tomorrow will be my day off due to the pool's closure).
After about two months of swimming, I feel and maybe look a little stronger. Today, in spite of feeling a little tired from training, I felt really good. I know if I had more time to indulge in training, I could do more like bike and perhaps run, but I have noticed that I have not been so serious about my work in recent weeks and my income has dropped. At least I suffered from workaholism before, so a bit of triaholism will probably do me some good.
I have also spent time reading more people's blogs in recent days and weeks. Unfortunately, I don't know many people of my generation who have blogs that I can read, and so I have looked at a lot of blogs of people almost half my age. With all the pics and stories of what triathletes have been doing thousands of miles away I have often wondered where my reality is in life. I guess some of the people on whose blogs I have commented have also wondered who this old guy is who keeps looking at their blogs. So, to introduce myself a little more, here is a picture of me and my family. Our two sons prepared a sumptuous breakfast for my wife, Hsiu-Chin, for Mother's Day, which we ate in the kitchen of our new home. This is the reality of life for me, despite my believing that anime is real and that achieving some elusive goal as a triathlete is real, too. And, for the many mothers, who are also triathletes, housewives, career women and the rest of it, let me thank you all for being the extraordinary people you are. My life is basically very simple. I just swim, eat, do some work and rest, blog a little, and that's all.

Saturday: Long Swim (5,700 meters)

One of the traditional buildings one sees biking around Cheng Ching Lake. The red color, which is popular for this style of building, enables the building to stand out when surrounded by trees and a lot of greenery.
This wasn't expected. On Saturdays I usually get to the pool at 9:00 am, since it is also open then besides during the early morning and there are quite a lot less people at the second session. Coming later I can also stay until 11:30 am, and so it does not feel so rushed as in the early mornings.
I started off with 4x500m on 10 minute (or slightly more) send offs, where I mostly focused on technique and smoothness, paying particular attention to the catch and final push with my right arm, where I need to develop a more fluid and consistent stroke. Then I did 4x250m, with nothing particularly fast. At around this time there were about three other people in the lane and so I had to adjust my speed at times. Then I went back to easy, slower swimming, but from 4,000m on I tend to do 100m at a time with rests in between and with flip-turns at least half of the time. I reached 5,000m after I had been in the water just over 1 hr 50 mins. Then I went to the jacuzzi where I massaged my shoulders and triceps for nearly 10 minutes. That felt so good. After that I put on my hand paddles, and did 500m of slow and controlled freestyle. trying to achieve balance between my left and right arms. I finished with 200m of easy to moderate freestyle. The lifeguards were getting ready to close the pool, and so I called it a day.
Given that I have done quite a lot of swimming this week and had earlier in the week been a little sore in my right shoulder, I focused on smoothness and efficiency. After all, if I were to run, I would not deliberately bang my feet hard on the road, but gently. I am not a youngster anymore (although I often feel like one when swimming).
In the middle of next week, I will need to travel in Taiwan a bit (our son has an exam in Taichung and I need to go up to Taipei after that), and so I will miss a couple of swims at least. So I will just make the most of it when I can.
The weather here in Kaohsiung is pretty hot. 88F (31C) in my upstairs office even at 6 am. We need AC at night. The swimming pool, being indoor, may be sheltered from the sun's rays, but the air is humid and hot, and so after a hard swim one feels like one is in a sauna.
This Sunday on Mother's Day, there is the Peaman Mother's Day biathlon. I will be missing it for the first time since 2001. A great race and great fun and one I would certainly train for if I could do it.

A More Normal Swim Workout (4,350m)

The northeast portion of Cheng Ching Lake. Biking takes place along the road to the right of this picture. One can also run along the road, or else run along the trails on the other side of the lake provided one gets through the park entrance before 6:00am. Our home is less than two miles to the left of the Chinese tower perched on the horizon as the crow files. I can also reach the place where I took this photo within about 15 minutes by bike from our home.
One reads of people who get addicted to triathlon or just training of some sort, and while it is not very clear what this actually means, yesterday I certainly came close to it as by lunchtime I had done nothing but train, eat breakfast, and write my blog. Should I not be doing something more important with my life?
Yesterday ended up with my having to finish a job for a client and so I did not get to bed until 11:30pm, which is relatively late if you plan on getting up around 5:30am. Anyway, I was in the water at the pool at 6:22am, and swimming conditions were relatively good most of the time. Maybe I look a little intimidating and so perhaps fewer people join my lane. I don't know. While I tend to swim faster than most here, I don't splash as much as several others, preferring to apply force under the water and not before my hands enter it.
So the first 1,000m was fairly steady and reasonably paced, and then the next 700m or so was slower. After that, a relatively consistent freestyler entered my lane and I had to work pretty hard just to make only very slight gains on him. When I got to 2,500m, he was more a less done, or was at least resting every couple of lengths or so.
Today I had planned to do more speed work and so I did two 250m leaving on 5 mins at a moderate pace (4m 30s, 4m 20s), then a little very easy swimming and then some 50s, slow then fast, slow then fast, etc. (fastest 44s). Then more easy swimming, then 2 x 150m moderate (about 2m 32s each), and some easy swimming until I reached 4,000 meters. Then into the jacuzzi for about one minute (until the water jets were switched off as they always are at 7:50am, then back to very slow motion swimming, and then the 100m race.
Today 4 of us raced, and while I felt a bit stronger and better prepared today, I was still no match for my friend. He went about 1:26, then me 1:29 or 1:30 and our friend who was still several strokes behind and timed himself at 1:33. So improvements are coming to me slowly, inch by inch as it were. "HY, here I come, boy!"
I did minimal biking this morning, although it was another great morning for it, with sunshine, hot weather and a breeze. Just as every kid in Taiwan needs to study rather than do exercise or have fun, I also need to get on with my work. Fortunately, I still have work I can do.

Swimming and then the Bike Course

This morning I entered the water at the pool at 6:15 am. The first 1,000m I swam reasonably solidly, but for a while after that due to several people in the lane and a loss of focus plus my shoulder feeling a little sore I just swam easy until 2,000m. Then after a minute or two in the jacuzzi (to massage my shoulder), I came back and did 4 x 500m "light moderate" going faster with each one so the times ranged from 9m 25s on the first one to 8m 53s on the last one. While I tried to relax a little after that by kicking easy, etc. when the 100 m race came I found I was pretty tired and I finished a distant second equal in about 1m 32s. I finished off with a little relaxed swimming for a total distance of 4,500 meters. The fact that I had little left at the end meant that it must have been a pretty good workout. About 15 minutes later after showering and drinking my "Ensure", I was on my bike.
Today's bike ride was more of a picture taking trip. The weather was sunny, but clouds were building up and visibility was not as good as yesterday. After about 10 mins of biking (going by the Golden Lion Like, across the freeway and round the back of the huge trash incinerator, I passed the graveyards and rice paddies (see the above photo), as well as a mix of corrugated factories and elevated roads in the distance. More "ghetto", but at least quiet. I then reached a bigger road, climbed a small steep hill and a little further on turned down a road with a golf course to the right. Then more windy and hilly roads (but not much traffic at this time), until I got on to a bike path.
While this bike path (on the right) was not very long, it did provide plenty of shade. To the right of this path there is a busy four-lane road that connects Kaohsiung with some of the suburbs and there is a hospital, a college and a baseball stadium nearby (fortunately all on the other side of the road). After riding on a fairly narrow sidewalk for several hundred yards further on, for which you really need the mountain bike and have to go slowly as it is narrow, I reached the bottom part of the Cheng Ching Lake (pictured below). On a clear day with good visibility, this is the breathtaking view I referred to yesterday.


The bike I am riding has an aluminum frame and three chain rings on the front, which are usually necessary. Often the hills are not very big round here, but they are often steep. By riding such a bike, I am not going to get any fast times, but I trust by regularly pedaling, I won't be incapable of riding a real bike should I get to visit Kona.



To the right (about half way up the east side of the lake), one can clearly see the little Fu Kuo Island with the suspension bridge that I wrote about last month. It is certainly nice climbing a longish hill on a bike and getting to see so much water. Since it takes me about 20 minutes to bike one loop of the lake (in clockwise fashion), to run one loop would probably be four to five miles. It is quite doable if I am up to it. I would then bike to some place by the lake, lock the bike up and then run round once. Still, I will leave that until later, as swimming is already taking up a lot of my time.

Finally, after a longish and picturesque uphill climb passing about a mile of the lake to the left, and again with some shade from the trees in places, the road levels out, and after a couple more minutes or so I reenter the road with the rice paddies and tombstones. To the left is a traditional Chinese house. In fact it does not consist of just one building but at least three, arranged in a kind of inverted "u" shape. In an earthquake, you at least have more of a chance of getting out of one of these.

From this Chinese house, the little lane leads back around the trash incinerator, then to a bridge across the freeway, then a few minutes later I am back home. The whole ride, from pool to past the rice paddies to around the big lake (counter-clockwise) and then back home probably needs about 50 mins. If you go clockwise around the lake you can save at least 5 minutes by staying on the roads and usually only having to turn right. The distance can be increased by adding loops or riding along the trails within the Golden Lion Lake which one passes in both directions.