It's PB time!

Yes, it's PB time!

No I'm not talking about Peanut Butter Jelly time, this PB here refers to Personal Best.
Last afternoon, at about 3.15pm, Lenney Fuad, My Dad and I set off to do one clockwise loop around MacRitchie. As it has been some time since I last did the clockwise route, I kinda forgot about some uphills, espcially the one after the Ranger Station. I was running at a very easy fat burning pace of about 7 to 8 minutes/km, I was also trying out my new hydration bag that Abang Sam bought for me. It is pretty good and snug fitting, it does make a little noise when running, but that is perfectly fine with me. I ran bare-bodied as I wanted to try how it would feel like with a hydration bag on too, it was fine and I didn't get any abrasions. The run was very enjoyable as Fuad shared many interesting stories with me. Fuad used to weigh 140kg, and he has lost almost 70 kg through regular exercise and monitoring of his diet.  I will be running alongside Fuad for the TNF 25km run.

As he likes to put it, ''It is as tough some one stepped out of me!'"
Well that sure is true. He lives to his motto of enjoying what you do. He didn't take any pills or supplements during his weight loss period, he preferred the natural way. Well, although it did take about 2-3 years for him to shed off the 70kg, it was a fun journey that he enjoyed. He is a person who mantains a very low-key, but he is very knowledgeable, friendly and wise. It was a great pleasure to have join us again after almost 3 months, we last ran with him in the 2XU Compression Run. Fuad was contstantly monitoring Lenney's Pace and at the 9km mark, Fuad asked Lenney to push for his PB.

"Think of something that makes you angry, GO FOR IT LENNEY!"

That's a great way to fire yourself up for the final stretch of runs, and yes, Lenney did achieve his 10km PB with 1:10, a great achievement for him. And I'm sure he will achieve an even better timing at flat road races. It is an added bonus in addition to the 13kg he has lost since he has started running last year. It is really inspiring to see people around me defying the odds, and making jaws drop to the floor.

After the run..

I'm proud to call these brothers my fellow Maverickz. Maverickz is a new community that Lenney, Fuad and I are honored to be part of. We'll fill you guys in about Maverickz in the posts to come, in the meantime, like their Facebook Page to keep updated.

Well, it's Monday again, hang in there till you can say TGIF.

Cheers,
Ariffin Sha

MH Runners Hit The Trails!

Men's Health Magazine, or MH for short, organizes monthly runs for the running community to run together and have a great time together.
I first joined the MH Runners during their Labrador Park Run last year in October, it was my first group run. You can read my review of the run here!

I had a great time running with them at Labrador!

After the run, my Dad won two dining vouchers in a mini-lucky draw which was
customary after all MH Runs!

The runs are usually led by Leonard and Din and the sweeper would be Sherwin, the MH staff. They are very friendly and encouraging and ensure everyone has a very fun and safe running experience.


The composition of the MH Runners is very diverse, from the experienced veteran runners to young novices. All differences would be set aside as everyone would enjoy the run together! The MH Runners welcome new runners to join them with open arms, every month new faces join the runs, and they will keep coming back as they certainly did have a lot of fun running with the MH Runners.


I have joined 3 MH Runs thus far, together with Lenney and my Father. And next Saturday on the 19th of March, I'll be joining them for their next run! We're going to be ripping up the trails of MacRitchie!

Here are the details:
Date: May 19, 2012 (Sat)

Time: 1545 hrs. We'll begin the run at 1600 hrs.

Meeting Point: At the MacRitchie Amenities Centre, near Mushroom Cafe. You’ll find us in our Men's Health Urbanathlon 2012 black T-shirts.

Distance: 10 km, MR amenities centre to the northern trail, then to Venus loop, and back to the start point. 

Things to note:

We will be running at an easy pace – runners of all standards welcomed! But do come prepared for a fun workout!

You’ll be able to store your belongings at the lockers, located in the washrooms of the Amenities Centre. Alternatively, just leave your stuff in one of our colleague’s car. Do travel light!

Also stand a chance to win attractive prizes in the post-run lucky draw! :-)

See you on the 19th, do come on down to run with the MH Runners, you'll certainly have a lot of fun and a good workout in the company of great people!

I will be bringing some of my schoolmates along for the run too, it'll be their first time and I hope they'll have a great experience running in the trails!

This was taken at the last the MH HPB Healthy Coffee-shop Run on the 17th of March. It's my personal favorite among all the MH Runs. You can read Leonard's great review of the run here.

I met Lance at this run too, he is in the black Urbanathalon singlet!

See you on the 19th!

Running on the Sun

Today was the last day of our examinations, and what better way to celebrate then to rip up the trails!
And that's what we did, immediately after school Lenney and I went to MacRitchie Reservoir at about 1145 for a run. We originally planned to do 10km, but since the sun was boiling down on us and Lenney was feeling dizzy, we gave ourselves a discount and did a 5km run. It was also in preparation for our school's 4.8km cross country in October, but for now we did 5km, following the MR25 Time Trail Route. Where you start running from the Zig-Zag Bridge untill Fitness Corner B, run 100m towards the Lornie Road exit, then U-Turn.

Since the sun was boiling down, I went for a bare-bodied run. And I was wearing my Bikilas too, didn't face much problems with it, but it did get submerged in the mud and gunk at times, but it dried up fast and didn't enter the shoe. The run was a good one, took advantage of the downhills on the return leg and finished with a time of 23:27, about half a minute faster than my Time Trial in February, a good run! My calves were aching too, after my 30 minute anaerobic stair climbing workout followed by 30 minutes of conditioning yesterday. But nonetheless, I felt good after the run despite the sun boiling down. I think once you get accustomed to running in hot weather, you can use it to your advantage too.

Lenney, went for a 5km recovery run with a slow and steady pace. He got familiar with the cross country route too. The heat got the better of him as he felt dizzy towards the end, but being the fighter he was he did complete his recovery run in a steady 42 minutes.

After a warm-down, we headed back to the Amenities Center. It was supposed to be a walk back, but I ended up sprinting there as I was barefooted and the black asphalt roads were boiling! I wonder how barefoot runners cope with the heat, it'll be interesting to find out.'

So yes, now I have washed up and later at 1830, my friends and I will be catching the Avengers! It's gonna be kickass! I can't wait. Oh yes, and if you're catching it, do remember to stay after the credits to watch something special! :-)

Have a great evening guys! The weekend's coming real soon.

Run Safe, Run Strong, Run Free