Ultra & Trail Running

Trail running has been getting popular in Singapore. Not too long ago, there was only 1 trail race in Singapore and that was the MR 25 end of year MacRitchie Ultra Trail race. Then along came the Salomon Trail run and North Face 100 Challenge and the scene exploded. From 1 in 2007, there was at least 5 trail races in 2012 and now in 2013, the first competitive running event of the year is a, yes, you got it, trail race - the Green Corridor Run!

Not to lose out, ultra running has also been getting popular. Again, apart from the MR 25 Ultra marathon there was no other ultra race in Singapore until the people from Hi-Velocity came up with the Sundown Ultra Marathon. Then in 2011, Running Guild came into the ultra scene and last year, they organised 2 Ultra races of which one was a whopping 168km round the island run! This year, despite the small size of Singapore, there will be more ultra races starting with the Twilight Ultra and culminating in the monstrous 200km ultra!

The scene in Facebook has parallel the running scene with 2 new Facebook pages started within short time of each other promoting trail and ultra running respectively. There is also another group that is organising a series of "Fat Ass" runs, ie a series of ultra runs modelled after those in the US!

And all these when Singapore has not much trail and not much land to run on!

To overcome these problems, Singapore runners are happily packing up and flying overseas to complete in Ultra trail racing. Take the recently concluded Hong Kong Vibram 100. Of the total 1213 participants from 39 countries, tiny Singapore has the 3rd highest number of participants at 111, a solid 9% of the total numbers. I dare say it will be the same at the next Hong Kong Lantau race, the Thailand North Face 100 Challenge and other nearby trail or ultra races.

For those who have yet to take up trail running, give it a try. It is more therapeutic than road running,  with the nature, the green and the fresh air. 

For those who are want to earn the honour of being an Ultra-marathoner, the wait is not too far off. The first ultra race of the year is just 2 months away in March! It will be a doable event as it is held in the relatively cooler night time and runners just need to complete a minimum of 5 rounds of 10km at the East Coast Park within 16 hours to earn the honor.

For those going to the Thailand North Face 100 Challenge, seeya there!

Weighty Matters

A lot of my friends are forever hoping to lose weight. Frankly quite a number of them are already quite slim and almost to the point of being skinny but somehow they still think they are too fat. Maybe that is a sight of anorexic?

For instance, there is this guy that I run with quite often. At one point in time just a few months ago, his stomach was "protruding". One day, he declared that he was going to lose weight and that his stomach will be smaller than mine. Of course that was fairly easy to achieve since he didn't know that cause beneath my loose tee, there is a flabby stomach. Within a few short months, his stomach was gone, his weight was down so much and he looks awfully skinny and sickly. On the plus side, he went from being a fast to a super fast runner coming in podium in a few of the recent races.

Pic from DumBell Fitness.blogspot.com

Then there is this young lady. She is already stick skin but she still proclaim every now and then that she is fat. Truthfully, she do have some muffin side but I guess that is the case with most people and something that cannot be avoided.

Me, on the other hand, have been trying to balance my weight for quite some time. Somehow I feel I am too skinny and need to put on some weight especially on the face but I am mindful that I cannot put on too much especially since I now have a thyroid condition which will automatically cause me to put on weight if I don't watch it. I won't mind putting some more flesh on my quite sunken cheek but I don't think there is any magical tool that can direct the fats there instead of the waistline. Actually if I follow the local BMI standard, than I am slightly overweight which is quite weird since most people wouldn't really think of me as being overweight although there was a point in my life when I was actually overweight.

Anyway, the reason I musing over this weighty matters is that it is now the Chinese New Year period and I will be gorging myself silly on pineapple tarts and more pineapple tarts and hopefully bak kwa as well as much dining here and in Bangkok and I need to really balance the calories intake but its going to be a tough battle and one which I don't think I will win. 

So I going to prepare for more runs from February onwards. There will be long runs in the trails and on the road, short runs around the neighbourhood and in town and long night runs. Its a tough life!

Plus Size Advantage?

Was at the Megatri this morning. This is a triathlon event. Nope wasn't there to compete just to kapo around. 

As I walked around, one thing struck me. There were a fair number of "plus-size" participants. Maybe that why this event is called the Megatri and not Singapore Tri or Changi Tri. Sorry couldn't resist that.

But I am seriously impressed by these people. Despite their girth and weight, they are able to do this swim, bike and run event. I like to think that the extra layer of fat help them in buoyancy and the swim leg but it must be a heavier load for them to carry during the bike and even more so, the swim leg. But somehow they did it! Bravo!

For more photos of the mega, check out Running Shots

Chia Seeds Energy Food - Fact or Myth?

The interest in Chia seed has continued unabated since the publication of Born to Run. Unlike other super food which has been processed into pills, drinks and what nots, at the current moment, Chia Seed is still sold in its seed form. 

So is it really that great a super food? Does it really provide the much needed energy to fuel a run?  Unfortunately, the truth is after 1 and a half year, I seriously still don't know.

After a period of almost 1 and half year of consuming it, I still haven't come to a conclusion whether it is of any benefits to runners. The thing is, unlike the Tarahumara who eats it daily, I am a teeny weeny bit inconsistent in my consumption. The Tarahumara make it into a sort of gel which means they put loads of the Chia seeds into their mixture and when the whole thing coagulates, it becomes sort of jelly/gel like. Therefore, it is likely that the mixture provides a more filling meal than what I usually do.

Typically, I add Chia Seeds to my drinks, (when I remember). But I don't add a lot. Just a sprinkling. enough to cover the surface of the cup. And this is not for my runs. Just a typical after dinner drink. For runs, if I am carrying a water bottle, I will make my own mixture comprising gatorade mix or whatever energy mix available; orange juice, honey if available and water topped with Chia Seeds. But most time I don't carry a bottle while running which means the mixture becomes an after run recovery drink which kinda defeats the purpose and runs contrary to how the Tarahumara uses it.

The past year has also coincide with a year of less intense running, shorter distance, less races and more slacking. So performance and speed has deteriorated. Of course, that could also be the result of ageing. So there has been nothing positive that I can pinpoint as the direct result of consuming Chia Seeds.

So the thing is, is Chia seeds really that good? Does it really provide energy for running? Is it a myth generated by Born to Run, unintentionally? And how do people in this region consume it?

Anybody care to share their own experience?