Before i say goodbye

Listening to Adele's rendition of "Lovesong" is mind settling, soul searching. The perfect mood to just relax the mind and start writing down what has been in the mind for so long. I'm at the place where i was at last year. Never knew that I would be here again. Maybe there's a reason for me being here. 4  more days till the end of 2011. While most are busy enjoying xmas and the holiday season or some might be busy listing down all their wish lists and resoulutions for 2012, I on the other hand had the sudden urge to just reflect at all that things that happened thes past months. What have i achieved so far? Did i managed to tick everything on my resolutions lists for this year?. I know that i managed to tick a few. Not an easy task as I've to endure the challenges, twists and turns just to be able to get the resolution or wishlists ticked on that piece of paper. Bitter sweet moments applied as well.

The most important event that happened to me was me submitting my Msc thesis. How I have gone through my 3 1/2 years of postgraduate life just to get it done. Big challenge i must say. I even had to defer 1 semester due family reasons. I even had the thought of just quitting. I was quite amazed on how I managed to get it done, the final writing in 1 month while I was really down with my breakup, while mom and dad was away. Maybe i was blessed enough to have people who really cared about me thoughout the whole ordeal. Got a part time job after that. And 1 week after that, my granny passed away. She went to soon. She has always wanted to be at my wedding day. I remember how she described on how "kecoh2" would my wedding be. What i have now to remind me of her is the memories we had and also the gold bracelet and diamond ring she gave me. You've gone 2 months nenek, may your soul rest in peace. Al-Fatihah. 

In between all that, my running and cycling events and also my short trips to some of the places in the world have always "distracted" me from thinking of the unnecessary. I've also made my short holidays as a "healthful'' one by participating in running events. Even though not as far as a marathon distance, well 10km is also a distance worth running. I've been blessed with understanding parents. Eventhough mom is always "membebe" at me on why do i have to go so far for running events. Hatyai and Singapore seems far ka? Hahaha, dekat border Malaysia je kot those two countries. I have friends and aquaintences that have traveled as far as HK, Berlin, New York and even Paris. Anyway, earlier this year I started my travel adventure to Phuket with a dear friend, (I won this in a some magazine contest, yes it was really worth it). Came back and started participating in various running events. From running the 10km at Hatyai and doing my 3rd half Marathon in Singapore which i managed to get my personal best. In between that was running mostly in KL events.  Oh, Ipoh and Penang too and not the forget my 1st Triathlon relay in Port Dickson. Real fun that one. After the Tri event, i got a road bike for my 26th, eh silap, 27th birthday birthday present. Less then a month of cycling and training, I registered myself in Malakoff's duathlon event. 3km run-13km cycle-3km run. It was a good experience.

As I'm blogging this, I'm still reflecting on what has happened around me and in me in the past months despite already having in mind on what my new resolutions are. I hope and pray that next year will be kinder to me. Looking forward to it. 

p/s: To blog more on my running+cycling+travelling adventures. Resolution #2

Here I am again

It has been awhile. Lots of ups and downs. More downs in the past few months. But i believe that everything happens for a reason. Good or bad. The good thing is that i learned to be more stronger at heart, being more independent and responsible over things. However, the bad part is that i sometimes could not handle things or situations well enough but i guess that i will so in time.

Oh, i have finished my thesis. yeay!. waiting for my viva. not so yeay. Got a job at Kumon as a math teacher. interesting. My mom got me a road bicycle. Running routine has been slow lately but yeah, im still running as i have to prepare myself for my second half marathon in Singapore (Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon event). Still depressed over the lost of my grandma.

Yes, i will start rambling more. Will make a point to do so. 

A wish For you

1 year has passed. 1 year of friendship built

1 year of witnessing of your ups and down in life and how you are strong enough to through everything all by yourself

Happy many returns of the day to you . May all your dreams come true. Insya-Allah. Amin

Sacrifice

aku tak faham bila my own family tak faham what it feels like to withdraw from a running event. Yes, i decided to sacrifice my time and all to withdraw for my next 21km event due to family probs. Kerana FAMILY gak aku sanggup sacrifice untuk tak lari in this Sunday's event. Diorang cakap aku memperbesarkan benda yang kecik. Yelah, korang tak training sampai nak demam memang la korang tak tau how it feels like to withdraw from something. Dah la kena prepare untuk oral presentation untuk conference next week. Plan aku semua dah jadi kelam kabut sebab kena bantu family. OK ar, nak pegi jumpa Prof plak. harap2 tak banyak masalah sebab seadanya otak dah serabut

Yang Sebenarnya

Heh. 

Eh hai.

Rasanya macam dah sebulan lebih tak merajinkan diri update blog. Nak kata takde cerita. Rasanya banyak je kot. Cerita pasal study, cinta, lari, frust tertonggeng semua ada la. YANG SEBENARNYA, bukan tak nak update, cuma takde mood la *alasan*. haha. So since malam ni agak free untuk update ape yang terjadi dan bakal terjadi sepanjang sebulan aku buat tak tau kat kewujudan blog ni aku. Baca blog orang sangat la rajin tapi blog sendiri dibiarkan bosan.

So anyway, YANG SEBENARNYA, malam ni sepatutnya siap kan powerpoint presentation thesis untuk supervisory committee meeting dan untuk conference presentation untuk MASO hujung bulan ni tapi macam agak malas. Nak kata tak start buat, dah 80% complete. Cuma tinggal part discussion and part2 edit-mengedit je. Tapi takpe esok boleh sambung buat balik. Thesis aku alhamdulillah, so far ok. Supervisor2 tengah check. So harap2 takde la masalah sangat lagi. Penat beb nak writing ni. Kekadang melangok depan laptop ni berjam-jam pun tak mungkin boleh dapat 1 page of write up yang berkualiti. Belakang citer, bila dah ketandusan idea and bosan, mula la layan fb and dok surf internet jer. Paper untuk publish pun dah accepted cuma editor soh buat some corrections here and there. Tu pun tak betulkan lagi sebab nak siapkan power point presentation dulu. Aku ni jenis yang tak boleh multi-task sangat. Nanti otak macam berserabut. Tapi macam mana pun, by end of the day benda2 ni semua kena settle before the dateline, Insya-Allah. Tu citer pasal academic.

Cerita cinta? Hmm, biasala ada ups and downs. Tapi bulan lepas memang down habislah siap frust menonggeng la. Tapi setelah berbincang, timbang tara. Rasa-rasanya aku dah dapat jawapan yang pasti. Mudah-mudahan lepas ni semuanya akan baik2 sahaja. AMIN. Ok, cerita ni aku save the best for last. Sekian. Haha

Activity running aku so far ok. Last month aku ngn geng Chap Ayam join event running kat Hatyai. Aku lari 13km je. Tak mentally strong and fit enough untuk lari full marathon. Trip sangat best la sampai aku lupa objective pegi sana adalah untuk berlari. So terasa seperti lupa diri sikit masa kat sana. Performance haritu pun macam hampeh je. Tak focus langsung. Sangat bengong. Patutnya dah pegi oversea tu, try la buat personal best, tapi hampeh. But its ok, I enjoyed my running trip. Harap2 adalah lagi trip2 macam ni. Memang enjoy la ;). Next event plak SCKLM. Aku register half marathon. Harap2 boleh perform better then energizer nite run few months back. Tinggal 2 minggu je lagi. So training session pun harus la lebih sikit. Ni pun lately ni banyak training sendiri. Dulu rajin gak turun shah alam training ngn geng2 shah alam. Bukan tak nak pegi, kekadang ada je benda yang menghalang aku pegi ke sana. Takpelah, janji training sendiri dari tak training langsung and since dah masuk gym, dapat gak la training ngn PT yang ada kat sana. Lepas SCKLM plak, aku akan ke Ipoh untuk event Ipoh International Run (10km). Register RM10 je. ok la kot, pastu end of july plak aku join event PD International Triathlon. Team Relay. Macam hebat sangat la kan aku ni. Tapi YANG SEBENARNYA nak experience benda2 ni. Dah minat kan. Nasib baik la takde beskal sendiri. Kalau tak confirm aku register as solo tapi masuk sprint je la. *angan2*. Adoi, sejak masuk running2. Byk betul duit aku belanja. Keje takde, tapi duit keluar banyak. Pengsan la macam ni. Now pun dah start swimming. Mak aku pun dah bising2 soh aku slow down sikit. Tapi seriously, memang pakai duit banyak. Lepas ni event2 tertentu je aku akn register. No more membabi-buta register tu sebab by end of the day aku gak yang sengkek. Aku ingat lagi dulu yang running ni is cheap. Tapi tidak sama skali. Bila dah start lari, nak plak beli kasut yang best, baju yang striking. Yela, berlari pun nak gak macam diva kan. Haih, macam2 la. Lari tak laju mana pun gaya je lebih. Haha :p. Dah minat kan :D. So moral of the story. Untuk mendapatkan financial status yang kukuh. CEPAT LA CARI KEJE. Hm, keje pun susah nak dapat. Mintak keje kat college lama pun tak dapat. Sedih doh. Hmm.. nasib :(

YANG SEBENARNYA, ada lagi benda nak aku blog. Nak cerita pasal the people i met since i started running. Setiap individu yang aku kenal sepanjang perjalanan aku dalam dunia running, semuanya unique and interesting in their own ways. Secara tak langsung membuka mata aku pada banyak persoalan dan perspektif dalam kehidupan ini. Haha. Jeng3!. Will definitely blog about it soon enough sebabnya mata pun macam dah mengantuk and esok kena bangun awal untuk pegi training. Babai!

In the end

It ended up with a heartbreak

Dear god, please give me the strength to go through this rocky road.

From ZERO to HERO

I attended a running clinic/circuit training organized by (sila click link ----->) FROM ZERO TO HERO this morning as part of my preparation for my second half marathon. Yes, i telah berjaya berlari sejauh 21km during the Energizer Night Run last Saturday and manage to clocked 2 hours and 43minutes. Not bad la for a first timer kan. So yea, main reason of me attending this clinic/circuit training is to improve myself in all forms sebab tak berapa puas hati dengan ENR haritu. Lari pun tengah injured so pace pun kena slow sikit. Itupun dah kena tegur dengan mama and my aunty untuk jangan lari malam tu. Ishh. Mana bleh... dah bayar kot. I told them macam cara sekali pun i kena sampai gak kat finishing line first half marathon i tu. And i did it! Ok cerita sikit la pasal experience ENR tu. Summary la eh so here goes...

Sampai2 je Sepang Circuit kena bayar RM10 untuk parking. Memang cekik darah. Amik kesempatan betul. Nak jalan ke circuit tu dah la jauh pastu kena plak lalu entrance yang sangat kecik rasa macam nak pengsan je lalu situ dengan the amount of people yang keluar masuk route tu (bayangkan kalau duduk dalam train atas bas yang penuh. sekian). Nak amik headlight pun dah macam pasar ikan. Gila tak bertamadun orang2 ni. Tsk Tsk. Nak letak bag kat counter kena beratur punya lah lama sebab 2 orang je yang in-charge (gila tak organized). Nasib baik la sempat nak warm up sebelum race. First 10km or running went well. Every water station i stop untuk minum air mineral or isotonic drink. I ni cepat peluh and bila berpeluh maka keluar la juga segala sodium and potassium yang membuatkan kaki i cepat cramp bila berlari (development of lactic acid yang cepat pun satu hal la kan). Nasib baik gak la i bawah GU CHOMPS which i kunyah a few hundred meters towards every water station sebab lepas kunyah gummies tu kena minum air. Alhamdulillah membantu and my first 10km went great. Mental focus went kelam kabut sikit bila lari dalam Sepang Circuit tu itself. I ni jenis tak boleh lari satu tempat berulang-ulang. Masuk je second loop, terus hilang focus and the last 4km tu dah rasa cramp. Dah takleh push. Rasa lagi down bila kawan-kawan dah start potong. Macam mana pun tetap habis run tu dengan masa 2 jam 43 minit. (First 16km i dapat clocked in masa 1 jam 54 minit). Lepas lari tak dapat medal, goodie bag pun tak dapat sebab dengar kata macam ada kekecohan berlaku. Tapi yang paling best certificate, medal and goodie bag organizer akan post ke rumah siap bagi refund lagi sebab orang complain pasal the event. So basically my first half marathon ni kira my experimental try out la. hehe

Ok, back to the ZERO to HERO story. The clinic/ running circuit was conducted by Mr Mark Williams. Elite runner ni. Rugi kalau tak join. So one week before the event i dah register. So yea, pagi tu pegi sorang2. Sampai2 je Mr Williams dah start his talk. Toleh kiri kanan tapi tak nampak any familiar face (that morning runner2 hebat pegi beraksi kat Bidor and Metta Run). Dah half way thru the talk, nampak plak Edan, Abg Shariff, Adznam, Muaz and and Afiq. Ha, cantek la tu, ada gak geng AnR Shah Alam yang datang. Started running at 7.30am. Time tengah lari rasa perut tak berapa best (tak makan dengan betul sebab the day before bedal mee kari, pulut ngan rendang and nasi dagang. Haha, ntah pape. Lesson learnt!). So nak lari pun takde mood dah tapi redah gak la sebab nak praktis my running technique. Pastu nampak plak the guys dok lari laju gila. Haih so cannot kejar ok. Mengah tengok dioang lari ni. Tetiba plak tengah2 lari Mr Williams dok berdiri satu spot nak tengok cara larian runners yang hadir. So i pun lari la macam biasa. So while running towards him , i could see that he was observing my running technique. And you know what he said? "beautiful running technique!, keep it up!". Wei! tetiba i kembali motivated ok!. Tak penah2 la orang comment pasal my running technique. Ni ELITE RUNNER yang comment ok!. I felt so motivated again. Kekadang i rasa down sebab takde sape yang nak observe and correct my running form. Kekadang fikir betul ke tak cara aku berlari ni. But yea, Mr Williams saw it and commented about it. But i took it in a very positive way. More to learn and more to practice to improve better.
 

With the real HERO, Mr Mark Williams

 

These guys here are FAST runners ok! Especially yang kedua dari kanan tu :p

With the upcoming HEROES and HERO-ine *coughs*

Lepas run 4 loop (around 8.8km), sempat tanya Mr Williams on running tips and what plan to follow as a preparation for my 2nd half marathon.  I cakap kat M.W first tapi terkantoi plak bila i cakap i dah lari HM masa ENR ahah. But i told him that ENR was just my experimental race to just experience the feeling of running half marathon. Boleh gitew? LOL.  

Asking for valuable tips ;) and he said " Just stick to the plan and you'll be fine"

Next running event will be this weekend. AnR breakfast run on Saturday and  SCKL running clinic on Sunday. Both events will be held at Kepong Metropolitan Park. So determine to be better as the tag line goes " FROM ZERO TO HERO" . But in this context it's HEROINE la kan bagi saya. Heh

See you all on the REAL race day peeps! Everyone are HEROES in their own ways. Believe me ;)

Nausea attack

Heh.
 
What happened to me was last night was kinda dramatic. After 1 year plus of running/training i had a nausea attack after running 14km with the other team mates of AnR Shah Alam. The first 7km was great. I ran at my own pace since the pain at the quads was still there. Kena tinggal jauh la juga with the others yang hebat2 tu. But luckily there was Hafiz to accompany me. Dah la lari malam kan. So macam seriau la gak kan. So yea, the first 7km went fine for a "siput injured" like me. LOL


Final 7km didn't go well for me. After running about 2km, i was experiencing muscle cramps atvthe abdomens then it hit the calves. Funny thing that my injured quads was feeling not too bad. At that moment I was feeling nauseous. Still standing strong, i continued running/ walking till i reached at the nearest petrol station nearby. Thank god that Amin (our escort) was there and i told him that i could not run further. So i naik la motor budak si Amin ni. Haha. Kelakar. Dah la first time naik motor. Macam best la plak kan.  I asked him to drop me 500m away from the roundabout near the stadium so that i could just walk back to Extreme Park (the point of where we started)


OK, here comes the dramatic part. I was feeling disappointed at that moment. I was thinking a lot that spur moment. Why am i running this far? Why am i TORTURING myself to this extreme although I'm still injured? and why the hell did i registered for Half M marathon? why this and why that. I just felt down looking at how others run so fast.  But by the end of the run i realized its impossible to be running with 3/4km per minute pace like others but it is possible to run with my own pace. I went home early. Rasa cramps all over. Rasa pening. Rasa Oren (menda la aku mengarut ni) and rasa macam2. I felt weird. Driving home felt like an ordeal for me. I pulled over at the nearest petrol station as the nausea became worse (guess what happened la kalau dah loya semacam kan?). Tak penah la i rasa macam ni. I have trained as far as 22km but nothing of this happened. I guess that i was properly nourished yesterday.



Today i got up feeling fine. Alhamdulillah. Didn't sleep well tho last night. Gonna start nourishing myself with good carbs and sufficient proteins and as well as to motivate myself to just have fun during the race and just run at my best. As i normally motivate myself. My Race, My Pace, My Ace. Hoh, better indoctrinate that in my head till the real deal is O.V.E.R

Wish me luck ;)

p/s: walau ape terjadi semalam, team mates saya memang terbaik. i love my AnR Shah Alam Team

That day

You have changed since that day. I think your reflection has blown away.

You have changed since that day. And still wonder why till today

You have changed since that day. May i possibly no why?

You have changed since that day. I think i will slowly walk away.

suka duka

SUKA

Dapat finishers medal masa KEC Unity Run pagi tadi. Rasanya macam dapat top 20 (kot). 7km in 42 minutes walaupun berlari dengan keadaan quads yang tak mengizin kan. Tertarik2 muscle (part tu tak berapa suka)

Dapat  makan sedap harini. Breakfast yang terbaek kat CHONG KOK KOPITIAM kat Klang. 

Belasah makan mushroom swiss kat kat BK tengah hari tadi.

DUKA

Kawan mungkin boleh makan kawan. We might never know what their intentions are

Kena rehab dari lari for few days kot. Quads muscles sakit betul. Perlu tuam dengan ais. Mungkin juga kena pegi swimming untuk kekalkan stamina since rasanya memang macam tak akan berlari untuk beberapa hari. Secret training yang lain perlu stop kejap kot. Ceh, secret la sangat :p. Tapi ENR tak lama lagi. Boleh ke ni?

 

yang terjadi semalam dan harini

Macam biasa, sehari sebelum nak jumpa supervisor memang la kecut perut, goyang lutut. 5 malam i bertapa  dalam bilik sebab nak siapkan discussion thesis. tapi hasilnya takde la sampai berpuluh2 page tapi jenuh sebab i have to meticulously read each printed journal in order to write chapter 5. sampai naik juling mata pandang screen laptop and printed journal articles tu. *ayat nak gak dramatic kan?*.Although semalam tak sepatutnya keluar pegi mana-mana pun, tapi i memang tekad nak siapkan apa yang patut untuk "dihidangkan" pada yang bijaksana. Tapi kaki memang gatal nak keluar berlari. Maklumlah, dah sebulan lebih tak training betul-betul. Main2 je. Pegi training pun seminggu sekali. So memang semalam memang bersemangat gila nak lari. Sanggup turun pegi training session walaupun masih tinggal sipi-sipi thesis yang perlu disiapkan. Tapi hati memang puas la. tapi tak berapa puas la sebenarnya sebabnya bila lari terasa macam berat. terasa kembang macam kentang. tu la akibatnya bertapa didalam bilik untuk buat thesis. exercise memang confirm kurang. makan rasanya mcm biasa. mungkin sebab stress yang menyebabkan hormon cortisol meningkat dalam badan yang membuatkan metabolisme badan berkurangan. tak caya? pegi google :p. So lepas ni perlu happy selalu. Supaya metabolisme badan tidak terganggu dengan kehadiran hormon cortisol yang melampau. tapi dah diet balik selama seminggu lebih ni ada la hasilnya sikit. perlu teruskan usaha!. Energizer nite run tak sampai sebulan lagi maaa. dah ler register masuk 21km punya. hahaha.

tu cerita semalam la kan.

I reached uni early. my meeting with the SV was at 10am. Went up 5 minutes late sebab saje la kan nak tunjuk macam rebel sikit. Meeting habis around 11.30am. borak2 sampai sejam, check keje aku setengah jam je. SV i ni memang sangat suka borak2. layankan je la. Pastu tetiba kluar plak citer pasal Facebook

Dr: my undergrad students seems to not understand the subject that i teach. i dont know what seems to be the problem. those who failed i suruh diorang datang jumpa i tau

Cik Fira: pAstu dr tanya ape kat diorang *dengan nada kepochinya*

Dr: I asked them "how long do u spend on the internet esp on FB?" and and they told me that they only spend 2 hours in a day. pastu ada lagi dia citer. tapi cam panjang la plak kan. so yada yada yada.

Cik Fira: u know what? i penah tau deactivate my fb for like 1 week and i buat keje agak cepat la. i think u should tell your students to do that as well especially nak dekat exam

Dr: Yaya, good idea. *ceh, konon macam bangga la kan idea yang baik diterima SV*. I think you should do the same too la Fira for a least a month to put full concentration on your final work.

*terkedu sekejap*. hahaha. haaa! tuu diaaaa!.padan muka. sape suruh pandai2 bagi idea cenggitu. ha, amik kau fira. bukan setakat seminggu kena suruh deactivate tapi SEBULAN. MOLEK SGT!

tu cerita tengahari tadi, petang tadi plak pegi meeting ngan sorang gym owner ni. dia mintak i buat talk pasal healthy eating. mak aiii... task besar tu. tapi insya-Allah boleh buat. Date dah set. so kena prepare ape yang patut je. Lepas meeting tu sempat la gak lari geli2 kejap lepas hujan benti.

Tadi, pegi dinner ngan gang2 lari. pegi makan ketam kat fatty crab. belanja our friend for his belated birthday.was my 1st time there. since dia dah banyak kali hint nak makan fatty crab ni, so all of us decided to have dinner sama-sama kat sana. dah kenyang makan, pastu si bday boy terlajak belanja plak kitorang makan durian yang belanja dia makan ketam. makan durian sorang sikit sebab masing2 terasa nak makan. yang penting semua enjoy semua happy.

alamak, batt laptop dah nak kong plak. till next post yall!. esok nak kena bangun pagi sebab nak pegi berlari. harap2 cuaca OK ;)

sleepless nights

note: 

saya tak merokok dan tak berapa suka minum kopi sebab kadang-kadang kopi buat saya mengantuk. haha

Another round of sleepless nights resumes today as i got THE CALL from my Supervisor's PA earlier today stating that HE WANTED to see me next week with my final chapter. Goyang lutut babe!. Ni pun baru habis betulkan results chapter. Nasib baik la final chapter tu ada la hasil dia sikit masa buat paper to publish haritu so apa yang ada dulu boleh la nak masukkan dalam draft thesis. Tapi serious goyang lutut. Puas dah nangis sebab rasa stress tahap dewa punya. Siap message Jason (rakan seperjuangan under SV yang sama) ngadu nasib. Thank god that Jason was really supportive. Bagus student PhD ni, optimistic sentiasa walaupun dia sendiri stress sebab sampai sekarang tak start buat data collection lagi. Anyway, after reading all his messages i felt calm sebab fikir balik tinggal last chapter je kan? U CAN DO IT FIRA!. Thanks jason for making me feel sane again. Haha. *dramatic*. Haih, kalau buat PhD tak tau la kan. Mmg tobat tak nak buat la kot research2 ni? Hmm, cakap je kan? Kekadang dalam hidup ni yang kita tak nak tu la yang kita akan buat yer tak?. Ok ok, cerita pasal nk buat PhD sangat tak relevent  buat masa ni. 

Disebabkan ini gak, i akan puasa FB kejap. Takde la sampai nak de-activate account sebab kekadang bila kawan2 post info on running ke ape kang tak tahu benda plak. Puasa FB tu maknanya adalah refrain diri dari  kusyuk skodeng page kawan2 sampai leka tak buat keje *kantoi disitu* hahah. So yea, i will stil get notifications on whatever is happening on fb thru my blackberry. So ok, nak meluahkan perasaan je sebenarnya. kalau citer kat my parents confirm la kena lecture and sgt tak sanggup nak dengar. 

Baiklah! Nak sambung menaip. Tapi kejap lagi la sambung. Rasa lapar plak. BYE!

From a far

I'm looking at you from a far right now

And there will be a chance that you will just drift away one day

Forgetting and leaving everything behind

Kacau Bilau

Rasa macam kacau-bilau sikit perasaan tu minggu ni. Banyak je benda yang rasa tak kena. Semalam pegi stadium sebab nak tukar angin, tukar environment untuk training. Pegi tempat baru, orang tak kepochi and bothered sangat with what with do. Paling kuat pun diorang akan bisik2 among themselves nak tau sape kita. Tak kisah la tu. Sampai stadium semalam pun around 5.40pm. Thanks la d1 sebab sudi bagi i ikut u pegi training kat stadium tu. Tapi bila sampai je, terus rasa macam tak nak lari tapi nak tengok orang berlari and observe orang training je. Hahah. Yelakan, kat stadium tu semua pun ala athlete. Sape la i ni kan compared to them. Anyway, lari la gak kat track tu dalam 5 round and at the same time buat sikit core and leg exercises. Pastu dapat la gak buat speed run kejap dalam 100m like that and akibatnya quadriceps muscle belah kanan ku (front of leg, above the knee) terasa sakitnya. Ha padan muka, sape la suruh buat aksi memecut tu?. Bila berjalan terasa the pull. Tak tau la kalau petang karang boleh buat ke tak tempo run masa training session nanti. Hmm, belasah je la kot.

Tu satu hal la, yang buat jiwa kacau bilau ni pun sebab hari2 mengadap thesis sampai rasa nak muntah. kekadang boleh mengadap tapi tak buat ape2 pun. Kekadang baca satu paragraph pun boleh sampai setengah hari gone. Focus tu dah hilang. Mungkin sebab dah terlalu lama buat Masters ni sampaikan nak pegi fakulti pun segan.Yelah ibarat hidup segan mati tak mahu. Tapi macam mana pun KENA habis kan gak. 

Pagi tadi je dah ada orang buat i panas hati dengan statement yang mamat ni lontarkan padaku kat YM . Dah la bagi comment kat FB aku yang aku rasa menguji kesabaran i gak la. Tolong la jangan poyos sangat boleh tak. I memang respect you sebagai orang yang lebih tua dari i but please la don't use age as a medium to say whatever you want. There are certain things are best left unspoken. Tak perlu berlagak macam you know it all. Baik diam2 je. Bak kata orang2 tua. "diam-diam ubi berisi". Kalau yer pun nak share knowledge ada cara dia. Tapi tolong la jangan BRAG. Sikit2 boleh la tapi kalau dah slalu2 tu jemu plak aku nak mendengar.

Kawan-kawan rapai I sekarang ramai dah kawin. Ramai yang bz prepare nak kawin and ada gak baru je nak masuk alam percintaan yang baru. Tetiba i rasa i lost them already. Tetiba semua macam senyap je and tetiba dari tiap2 malam ada kat YM tunggu masing2 nak online, sekarang kalau online pun appear INVI je. *yelakan, nak chatting ngan orang tersayang je kan, tak nk diganggu*. Dan tetiba i tersedar yang umur makin meningkat dan rakan2 rapat i yang lain yang kurang outgoing dari i ni dah bz untuk cari pasangan hidup. Aku ni nama je ada pasangan tapi still tak jadi ape2. Mungkin jodoh tak sampai lagi. Takpela, i'll just wait patiently. Sementara masih tak terikat lagi, baik la i do things that i love and enjoy and be around people who shares the same interests that i have and also spend more time with my family. Tu je la yang i rasa paling afdal buat masa sekarang ni.

Jap lagi ada lunch ngan bakal pengantin. Macam bachelorette party la tapi si baka pengantin ni nak lain sikit. Dia nak picnic lunch. Maklumla kan kat area UPM ni banyak tempat2 picnic yang best (tapi lupa plak nk bawak camera). So follow je la request dia. Janji semua happy.

One after another

Fuhh!. What a weekend! My weekends had never been this hectic  before but it was all worth it by end of the day. 

Saturday:

KL HERITAGE EXPLORACE

I teamed up with my sahabat 8 tahun, Zalekha Yazid to participate in this event. Since I’ve never tried out this type of event so i guess why not just give it a shot. 200 hundred teams were involved in this event.  Even members from the Chap Ayam Community were also there to enjoy the fun. The Explorace kicked-start at the KL Tower.  15 check-points and only 5 hours to finish the race.  We were required to complete the task given at every check points and each task done were given points and a PASS chop to indicate that we’ve successfully completed it and the next clue will be given out.  Check-points were from KL Tower- TM Muzium- Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad (here we were required to the lion dance, kelakar sangat)-Bangunan Dayabumi (complete the puzzle task, this one so kacang haha)- Dataran Merdeka (task failed as we were required to balance up a kayu bendera on our forehead)- Bangunan DBKL (pop quiz)- Jalan Masjid India ( this task susah gila ok, kena ikat bunga melur kat tali. Serious stress. Nasib baik uncle florist tu bagi 8 markah. Hehe)- Wisma Yakin (had to dress up in Baju Melayu complete with sampan and songkok ok!)-Heritage Row (ni senang jer, angkat kacang tanah guna chopstick)-MATTIC (pop quiz and buat tarian ngajat) and FINALLY back to KL Tower for the bonus round which was to do the Abseiling. Nevertheless, our team managed to finish the race before the qualifying time. Tapi macam tak puas hati gak la as i think ramai yang main tipu kot. Haha. Biasa la kan bila dah banyak team yang berkeliaran kat KL tu macam anak2 ayam. Dah ler pakai baju oren kan? Hahah. Pastu dah la start lambat and the weather was REALLY HOT! Anyway, the winning price was RM1000 cash, IPAD and hamper kalau tak silap i. Congrats to Shahrul and Mahirah for getting 7^th place. Hebat betul team ni!. Diorang dapat hamper and RM200 cash. Duit diorang menang tu diorang belanja we all (ruby, sab, kak lily, kak ida, aini, Miss E, Wan and team mate (tak ingat nama) and Fairul makan kat Ampang Yong Tau Foo.  Thanks korang! . Semoga murah rezeki. AMIN.

Hm, lepas ni nak try masuk AMAZING RACE ASIA plak la. HAHAHA ;)

Sunday

ZIGTECH 48-hour TREADMILL CHALLENGE

Supertired with the explorace event but i had to drag my body out of bed this morning to get ready for the next challenge.  2 hari berturut-turut kot bangun super awal. Mana la taknya kan. Siap2 je, nk start kereta my dad Tanya “ha nk pegi mana plak lagi tu”. “Oh ada treadmill challenge kat OU pa”. Jawabnya “ok, take care”. Ha, tak banyak citer. Sgt supportive papaku. Haha. So sampai sana pun awal although my slot was at 9am. Pegi awal sikit pun sebab nak tengok participant sorang ni. I heard he was really good. DAMN ! he was. He was running at the constant pace of 14.8km/hour for the 1^st 45minutes pastu dia paced-up till the end. A friend of mine was already in the lead but unfortunately he lost the challenge to this guy. Didn’t get his name though. Tapi dia memang FIT tahap max. I spoke to his dad and his dad told me this was his 1^st time competing on a treadmill. Kalau dah on treadmill laju, kalau on road? Memang macam road-runner la kan? Ala..speedy Gonzalez tu. Hahah

OK. I started 9am sharp. Oh, lupa plak nak cakap, challengers had to wear the zigtech shoes provided by Reebok. I tk berapa suka la. Kinda berat plus the its more suitable for runner with normal to high arched feet. I have flat foot. Flat macam kaki itik. So tak sesuai. Tapi nak tak nak, kena la also follow their rule. Started the run with a 7.0km/hour pace. Pastu naik gradually. Rasa penat. Slowkan sikit. Tak sampai 5 minutes dan berpeluh macam ntah pape. Panas kot. Management OU tak pasang aircond. Memang mental kena kuat. Yela, lari at one place kot. Memang bosan. Dalam my mind dok fikir pasal benda2 and makanan2 best je. Hahaha. 10 minutes left i increased my pace to 8.8km/hour then the final 3 minutes I increased it till 9.8/km hour. That was the maximum speed i went. It was my FIRST time running on a treadmill ½ hour straight. I think I did pretty well.  Oh Zal Yazid was also in this challenge. She did well herself. Congrats bibik!

Pretty tired right now. But the runs/trainings doesn’t stop here. I’m on the runner’s HIGH right now. Haha.Looking forward for next Sunday’s Adination Breakfast run.  But I guess I'll take a day off from running tomorrow. Jangan marah ok D1! hehe ;)

Will upload pics later. Lembab plak internet connection malam ni

1km further

Ok, a friend of mine BBM-ed me yesterday and told me that the visit to PERNIM was canceled due to certain circumstances and he asked me if i would like to join a 7.5km run organized by PTPL KL SENTRAL. So i said yes I've not kick start the year with any running events. It was a last minute invitation and I knew that I'm not so well prepared for this as the last time i trained was on Wednesday and no running since then. But i told myself to just give it a shot.

Seven of my SUPERJUNIORS from MSU also registered themselves for this run. All pun hebat ni. Basically all of them were in the TOP 10. Hebat tak?. D1, kalau you masuk event ni confirm la dapat 1st ;). So yea, my run started pretty fine but sayang la i didn't start running way front. Haih, lesson learnt!. Next time kena stand depan-depan. Oh lupa pulak nak cakap, route running adalah from *dewan DBKL mana entah* kat Little India (Brickfields)- Taman Seputeh and back to the starting point.

Anyway, first 4.5km was fine although kena run hill route. Started feeling dehydrated reaching 5.5km. Weather was already hot and the sun was "smiling" brightly already at that time. Kept running till i reached the 2nd last check point. I was thrilled. I know that 2nd place would be mine. But unfortunately. i got lost along the way, i ran the wrong route. I was frustrated at the point. I realized that i ran 1km more then i was supposed to.  *mungkin terlalu terpesona dengan keadaan kat Little India yang meriah tu kot sampai sesat route. haha * Eventually, i managed to get 4th place due to the confusion. I was really upset.

Anyhow, i took it at the positive side. Takde rezeki dapat 2nd prize money tu and my running mileage was increased by 1km more this week. Haha. *nak sedapkan hati*. But overall, i was happy with my running performance today. Alhamdulillah. Reebok Threadmill Challenge up next!

The RUNNERS and the PRINCESS. ;)

UPM- Alamanda- Shah Alam

UPM

Went to Uni today. Had a 1 hour meeting/ discussion with the supervisor. It went well. I was kinda relieved when he said " Your chapter 4 is well written just that you've got to add on some more important info". Ha biasa la tu kan. No such thing as kurang kan info malah kena LEBIH kan ada la. But takpela, dengar jela pada yang pakar. Rasa motivated again to finish up my thesis. Hopefully the motivation stays till the day i officially submit my thesis. Insya-Allah. Amin

ALAMANDA

Happy birthday Mysara!. I wish you all the best in whatever you do. I and the other "trolls" (that's what we called ourselves) had KFC for lunch. Though it was just a short lunch. But I was just happy to be around them. Love you my TROLLS ;). To Suri if you are reading this, wished you were here to celebrate My's 26th birthday. Balik KL cepat please? Rindu sangat 

SHAH ALAM

Left Uni for Shah Alam at 4.30pm for the Adination program. Drove all the way from Uni to Section 7 Shah Alam for training. Sanggup betul kan?. Even some was also surprised that i drove the distance just for it . It's a once a week training with the best, so i guess tak rugi la kalau join. Besides, since I still have the time to be doing all this. Why not kan?. Nanti when dah start keje nanti, it will be kinda difficult plak kan? Unless i get a job nearby Shah Alam. Heheh. Lots to learn. Lots to observe. More practice to be done as well.

Today went fine. No complaints. Till next post!

To D1, since you are going for a short vacation, have fun! You deserve a break. Jgn lupa ole2 for me kay? ;) . Oh, kasut running jangan lupa bawak! Lain padang lain feeling dia berlari. Hehe.

15th Feb

I'm well now. Got up this morning with no body aches headaches dan segala sakit la. Alhamdulillah. Today seems peaceful. Lepak kat rumah je. Listening and singing to the songs on my ipod. Cotton fabric hunting. *my mom and I sekarang jual kain cotton untuk baju kurung, handpicked. jangan marah dek non, kalau berminat nak tengok kain2 we all handpicked tu, sila email saya yer affira.khusani@gmail.com* ceh ceh sempat promote. 

I was supposed to go running petang tadi. Hajat di hati nak run 10km la konon2nya. Tapi hujan lebat plak. Blessing in disguise la kot. I just got better kan. Kang kalau pegi "merempit" (tu perkataan fav kakirunner, haha) 10km kang KONG balik. Sepatutnya juga pagi tadi Ruby and the geng pegi hiking kat Gunung Angsi. Tu pun frust tak dapat join sebab i just got better. Kalau i ikut gak diorang this morning , mau i kena marah ngan bonda tercinta. So basically the whole of today menjadi anak dara yang baik duduk rumah je sambil surf internet, stalk fb and blogs orang sket, layan youtube sket, layan kerenah my mom yang nak try dengar lagu from my ipod, kasi dia belek2 barang online sket. That's about it la.  Just felt so good duduk rumah je. Rilex je. Kalau rumah ni depan pantai lagi best kot. Feeling sket. Wow, that would be my dream house. Rumah near the sea.

Gonna just enjoy the final hours of 15th of February ;)

p/s: i was wondering about something today. perlu ker bercinta lama?

Hope all is well

I'm still feeling unwell. I can still feel the pain on my chest when i breathe. Still feeling the joint pains too. No fever tho and i still refuse to go to the clinic. Been taking the normal meds like panadol/panadol extent and such. Ikutkan hati memang la nak tido lagi but I still unfinished business to deal with. However challenging and frustrating this thing (thesis sebenarnya) is, I so have to deal with it. LIKE it or NOT. 

This week has been very emotional for me. Been thinking a lot mainly about my future. Looking at friends who have good job with good pay, dining at fancy restaurants, going to places and driving fancy cars does make me envy sometimes (well in a good way of course). I've also been thinking where will i end up (work related) once I'm done with my masters. Sometimes i feel that i'm going somewhere with no objective. Macam takde haluan je (hm, perasaan je la). 

But this morning i got up real early as i was feeling uncomfortable. Read someone's blog and i was intrigued by this. 

"Bila ALLAH makbulkan d0amu, maka DIA menyayangimu, 

bila DIA lambat makbulkan d0amu, maka DIA ingin mengujimu, 

bila DIA tidak makbulkan d0amu, maka DIA merancang sesuatu yang terbaik untukmu.

0leh itu, sentiasalah bersangka baik pada ALLAH dalam apa jua keadaan...

kerana kasih sayang ALLAH itu mendahului kemurkaanNya" Wallahua'lam.

I'm gonna keep this in mind every single time from now on. Mudah-mudahan all is well for me. Insya-Allah. Amin

unwell

as the title speaks for itself. cik fira is feeling unwell. I'm feeling a sudden pain at my chest. like a muscle pull. sakit sendi also. hopefully is not dengue. gonna hibernate and see how I will feel by tonight

Dissapointment

I just received a call from my friend. My dream to work at Majlis Sukan Negara as a Sports Nutritionist has been rejected. I was told that my background in Food Tech (altho i'm finishing my masters in nutrition) wasn't to their expectation. No words could describe how sad i am right now. 

To D1, if you are reading this. I'm feeling really down right now. I called you earlier just now to tell you this. But I guess you will get the message if you happen to read this.

Yesterday's run

Yesterday's weather was kinda hot. I almost changed my mind to not go out and run but I told myself that i should so i decided to go out lambat sikit. Did my warm up first while waiting for the sun to go mellow. I started off with a 5 minutes brisk walk before taking my first stride of running. My first 1.5km went smooth. I was surprise to see myself running with no stop for a quick breath, So i continued running till my Nike+ sportsband indicated that I've ran 5.5km. I was really excited about my performance yesterday as not only i managed to run 5.5km without stopping but I also managed to run up a hill with no stop as well. I managed to run 6.12km and it has been a while since i could run that far without giving up early.

I believe that  my running form has been improved (i think). Been watching a lot of videos regarding running methods (pose method especially) lately. Been practicing on the method too as well. Well, I know that i won't be as great as Kara Goucher or Craig Alexander but I guess that with more consistent training I could pick up some of their traits of running. I've also noticed that since I've been practicing the right way of running, i noticed that my calves are less painful that it was before. Maybe because due to the forefoot running method I've been following and less of the heel strike. It does make a huge difference. My breathing, arms and hip movement has been modified accordingly. Not everyone is the same. I've experimented a lot and i guess i know how to control it already. I hope that they way I'm running right now will be maintained or to be improved from time to time.

I've also experimented on my dietary intake yesterday. I think bananas did wonders for me because bananas are packed with potassium, magnesium and minerals which helps prevent fatigue. This is a wonder a food for me as i often get leg cramps really fast while running. I'm the type who sweats a lot. So that explains why the important minerals are loss that fast. Oh, it is also loaded with vitamins B which is good to release energy. I had some as post-run snack yesterday and it worked. So gonna stock up with bananas from now and include them in my daily diet.

Lets see if today's run will be the same as yesterday's. Hope to go 1-2km further. Wish me luck!

P/s: 

1) Having a GOOD pair of running shoe helps too. Make sure you are wearing a pair the best suit your pretty feet ;)

2) Make sure that eat your normal meals. Bananas can be included as a healthy snack/post work run or workout snack. Try banana smoothies ( chopped bananas+ soy milk/ milk+ a bit of brown sugar or honey) ;)

My first Half Marathon Attempt

I'm very nervous about this. My very 1st 1/2 marathon

Energizer Night Run

I'm not following my training schedules well. (Waking up late in the morning/ Weather issues/ Stopped going to the gym)

The race is in April and I'm freaking out already. See how paranoid i can be?. I just hope that I'll be in a good physical (no sprained ankles or watsoever) and mental (i hope i don't back out the very last minute) state. I guess i should just run happily and not think too much about anyone else. So yea, have to indoctrinate my mind to just have fun and be happy while running for my first half :) and most importantly NOT to compare myself with others while running as everyone is different and so am I ;)

 

Got Tagged

I should be sleeping at this very time. Tapi tak kenapa la melotot lagi biji mata ni. So dari tadi dok baca2 blog orang. So ter-baca plak blog seseorang jejaka ni. He wrote 25 facts about him.  Pastu dia tag plak kat i. Tapi yang peliknya lepas dah baca 25 fakta pasal dia tu. Ada plak macam sama2 sket. Kebetulan kot. Well, life is full of surprises kan?. So here here goes the 25 facts of me.

1) I'm very emotional. Serious di luar tapi berbunga2 di dalam. kkdg diri ni boleh jadi complicated and complexed

2) I am outgoing and adventurous, suka travel. Sampai my mom suruh i slow down sikit. 

3) I like art and photography. Tak pandai nak lukis tak boleh express kan pendapat dan idea. 

4) I like people who shares the same interest and passion i have. best tau

5) I love the nature. Laut,pantai and pulau2 yang cantek adalah paling favourite

6) My real name is Siti Affira not Fira Tirona. Tapi ramai igt nama betul saya Fira Tirona. Tapi mmg betul la nama Tirona tu. Sebab Tirona tu nama family nenek saya. Her name is Aurora Tirona. She is a Filipino convert

7) I can be paranoid at times. Yes, i can worry too much over unnecessary things

8) Health and nutrition is a my forte. Tapi badan tak hot macam Fergie Black Eyed Peas pun. Tkpela, janji sihat

9) I used to hate running when i was small. But now kalau tak pegi run beberapa hari pun rasa macam dah tak best.

8) Saya suka maka best ;)

9) I love shoes and bags more then i love clothes sebab "with shoes we travel the world"

10) Saya suka bagi kata2 motivasi kat orang. Tapi kekadang diri sendiri tak motivated langsung. Ntah pape

11) I can play the piano. Tapi skill ni perlu diasah semula sebab dah berkarat. 7 tahun tak petik piano tu. Tapi the last time main. Ok la lg. Masih boleh membaca note music dalam buku. 

12). Saya diajar untuk menjadi independent. My dad selalu pesan altho ada pasangan hidup tetap perlu berdikari

13) I like guys yang ada self-vision and motivation. I rasa that traits membuatkan diorang nampak confident. I think that's sexy. haha

14) Tak suka lelaki poyo yang ingat dia yang hebat. 

15) Secretly having a crush on someone (lol)

16) Saya minum 2 liter air sehari. Sihat bukan? Haha

17) Always tell myself that fast food is bad. Tapi kekadang aku bedal gak. Moderation is the key *ceh ceh nk sedapkan hati*

18) Saya nak buka running camp/school in future kalau ada rezeki. Nak educate the young ones on starting to be healthy at a very young age :)

19). Kereta idaman adalah VW Golf GTI. Kalau tak dapat tu, pakai jela kereta CLK purple saya (cute little kelisa) yang dah umo nak masuk 8 tahun dah. 

20) Cakap pasal purple. Purple is my fav color

21) Saya suka observe orang. especially bila duduk dalam bus/ train or mana2 yang ada ramai orang

22) Saya sedang menghabiskan masters. Tapi tak habis2 lagi. Insya-allah it end. Dah tak larat dah ni. Nak kena cari keje. Umo pun dah makin meningkat.

23) Kekadang saya suka buat hal sendiri. Contoh: keluar sendiri, tgk wayang sendiri

24) Oh, i love fashion and styles. Tapi diri sendiri tak la stylo sgt pun. biasa2 je. kkdg cm selekeh pun ada. haha

25) Saya tak suka bau asap rokok. benci. Habis baju semua melekat kat baju/tudung. Katakan tak nak pada rokok ok?

OK, there you go. 25 random facts about me. Personally i think i'm just a simple person je. Nothing special pun. Tapi mungkin special pada mata orang lain kot? Haha. Have a good weekend everyone!

words to ponder and (wonder)

Kata ratu hatiku

"You can't have it all in life and you've got to learn how to accommodate with the people or situation around you sebab kakak ni (refer pada diri saya) have a very strong/hard character"

Oh. Tak perasan plak. Baiklah. Akan ku renung-renungkan kata-kata mu wahai ratu hatiku

Yes, sgt strong sampai my arms are sore sebab pegi hiking kat bukit tabur yesterday. Challenging gak la, terasa macam spidergirl la gak bila kena panjat batu2 *sakit woo tangan* to complete the hike. Macam mana pun, I've managed to conquer Bukit Tabur West!

 Time ni serious happy sebab dapat lepas panjat batu yang sgt susah tu

 Ha, masa  attempt to panjat batu yang sgt challenging for me. The picture above nampak muka dah happy kan sebab dah lepas the attemp. Muka i dah cuak gila time kata my friend Ruby. Haha. Ok, lepas ni kena pegi register-kan diri kat shah alam extreme park buat wall climbing

Team wanita-wanita gagah ;)

 Banyak lagi pics sebenarnya. But the rest have not uploaded them up on Facebook yet. So kena la tunggu. 

Oh, total hiking time is about 3 jam i think. 2 hrs and 15mins up and 45mins down. Nak turun tak sesusah nak naik (of course la kan?) Hahah. Bukit Tabur East shall be in the my next to do list!

  

 

Phuket Trip- The long awaited post

The long awaited post

4 days 3 nights stay at Novotel, Patong Beach Phuket.

A celebration of 8 years of friendship/sisterhood with my very good friend. Someone i trust, love and confide. To Zalekha Yazid, this blogpost is for you.

Courtesy of SHAPE magazine

 The fantastic view from the hotel lobby

 Another fantastic view- Near the pool side

 AWESOMENESS

 The cruise to phi Phi Phi Island

Amazing view from the top of the cruise. LAWA GILA Ok!.. Pardon the mamat salleh in the pic*. p/s: badan dia cam fit siot. ahah

Clear blue waters at phi phi island beach

Meet Jan. The solo traveler from Germany. Only 20 yrs old and so very adventurous.

Ehems

Blue sky, blue sea. Breathtaking

A memorable trip. I hope to come here again ;)