yes. IPPT again.

i specially came home from 10-12 lecs just to get my deepheat, painkillers and kneeguard for my IPPT near campus. yes kinda bad planning on my part, but i din realise the importance of the matter until when i started climbing the stairs along the aisle of the LT, the excruciating process of which jarred me into a worried state. i really can't afford to not do well, cos the deadline is like on fri, and i dun have any time to do it the next 2 days, given my 6-8pm lecs. ha.

it was the 1st time i kinda missed having a rm on campus. the convenience. the ease of getting stuff u need. the ready company of accomodating and caring friends. but to everything there's a tradeoff. i do value the life i now lead, for it has proved enjoyable in its own small ways. i have always valued a close-knit family, a few close friends and solitude at times, and i have all the above right now. hall life will remain a fond memory of the past, a process by which i have learnt alot from, and during which i have made friends which may last a lifetime.

2.4km

had a trial run at the SRC today. stepped onto the track with trepidation; haven't run a proper 2.4km since like 2 years plus back. and should i do badly i would still have to attend the IPPT knowing i'm gg to fail. it'd be akin to the feeling of gg into the exam hall hoping u'll pass, somehow. after a deep breath, i walked towards the starting point, grim determination glinting in my steely eyes.

and i started my timer. the 1st rd really reminded me of back then when the entire company begun their run together and i whooshed off at the initial stage. felt superb with the wind running thru my hair, and the rhythm of my steps felt just right. looked at the time after passing the line once: 1:32. the pace i aimed to go for in the past when i was gunning for gold.

but back then i could maintain it for 6 rds. and it wasn't gg to be a fairytale ending today, what with me not having trained proper for years. my next few rds averaged 2mins (for a rough gauge, a silver timing req roughly 1min56sec on average per rd). the last 2 laps in which i gave it quite my all was decent, and i ended up with a commendable timing of.. 11 mins 31 secs.

hey! it's still a silver k. and it's great considering i only spent like a day training for it. but then again it's quite embarassing. even my sec sch timing was like 10.5 mins or smth. ok. deep heat and rest for the next 2 days. wed - the day where i get my $200 monetary incentive for silver. heh. simple! what's with most of my guy friends man. can't even pass with a few wks' of trg in the bag. hahaha!

ok. let's study harder. u can do it.

pre-IPPT

just popped by my cousin's rm and to use e pull-up bar he installed near his door. jumped and hanged on the bar for a few seconds, in anticipation/trepidation of the next few moments. 1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6! (rest.. but the previous 6 was done at a good frequency continuously so my target of 8 for silver should be met) then 7! 8! .. 9! .... 10! nicely done. and given i haven't touched the pullup bar since ages ago when i meet wormy for supper near our area and he's late, i think it's a commendable achievement! some pple train like forever and they still can't do what i just did. hehhhhh.

ok. lest i get too confident about my chances, time to get realistic about the other events. sit-ups could be an issue - haven't tried any since i left the army. but if i could do 40 in primary sch. doing 36 now shouldn't be too much of a problem. e shuttle-run and standing broad jump may pose an insurmountable obstacle to many, but given that my muscle fibres are naturally inclined towards power-based sports (for more info, read up on short/long twitch muscle fibres) and i always do well in them i doubt they'll pose much trouble.

the 2.4km run. my biggest fear. gave up running, soccer, triathlons and impact-based sports after sustaining a knee ligament injury in the army. and even 3 years later, i experience excruciating pain when i exert my knees too much in a given time period. kept fit mostly through swimming since then, and it's still unknown if i can do well in it like i did back then when i was younger. we'll see. shall do a time trial ard 11am tml at the SRC after lectures. yeah!

starting again

i always like to tell others that my not blogging constitutes a better and more constructive outlook on life, given that most of my entries are often written at times when i'm emotionally down or simply bored with nothing much I wish to perpetrate. however, it does allow me to keep track of the going-ons in my life should i wish to look back in the near future. so here goes. blogging for the purpose of preserving memories.

hmm yesterday. early at the tennis court at 0730, awhile b4 the mtg time w ethel (no-one else wanted to wake up tt early to play). decided to just browse thru my notes since my trg balls were with her and i really had quite a bit to catch up on. subconsciously reduced the distance btw my notes and eyes gradually due to decreasing visibility as time passed. realising the situation after awhile, i looked up in mild annoyance and saw dark clouds looming over the horizon. packed up and ran back to hall - the only exercise i would have for the day.

some time b4 dinner with lalaa (lol!) so attempted studying in et's rm. it was really quite constructive whilst it lasted. then studies were put aside for discussions on random topics (mostly flag or flagger-related) and photo-viewing/commenting on her laptop. ha. thought it was all quite amusing the way she hid my shoes in the shoe cabinet / her opening the door and giving the 'oh no' look when brenda spotted me inside from the corridor and started talking to me. hall rumours can get kinda annoying even if it has little or no truth to it. well. i'm over that alr.

lunch with gimsy,4K and ame (inadvertently) then abit of revision at HSSML. then waited for lalaa at PS since she was late - dun really mind pple being so as long as there's a bookshop / library near the mtg place. so many books i want to read, and so little time to. manhattan fish was gd as usual; but i was kinda sick of the damn fries by the end cos i was eating most of them. ah. then tried e old-sch frozen throne campaign style cos she seemed quite enthusiastic abt it. shouldn't take the loss too personally. otherwise with my competitive nature i'll just end up not studying and reading up the forums for strategies so i'd beat her next time. ok. it's kinda embarassing i know.

IPPT on wed. juz discovered i have to take it b4 my b-day last week and wed's the only time i can do it. most of my guy friends are telling me from personal experience tt i'm gonna fail it cos 3 days ain't enough to train up. but i'm gg to prove them wrong by gg one up and getting a silver. i do keep fit thru regular exercise after all. but ok, i think it'll be one uphill task, given i'm not exactly the athlete i used to be.

sometimes i do wonder if my way of handling personal matters is flawed. i've not done the things i should have, and done things i shouldn't. i do get confused over issues, then try to solve them in a short-term way, which likely causes more confusion and hurt for all parties involved in the long run. i cannot thrive on instant gratification. more patience, more planning, more efforts. less digressing, less wavering, less indifference. maybe i just can't decide on what i really want. i can't just sit on it and hope it'll tide over. it won't. and even if it will, it wouldn't be ideal. i need to take proper action.

my mum casually commented that she hoped that i'd be able to get the allowance for my scholarship next yr as i just did a few days ago. i didn't reply immediately. it's not an option i wish to take if possible, but it seems imminent unless my attitude changes. i need to change.