Day 2 out of 3 of my first-aid course is over, and i've been enjoying it very much. the only dissatisfactory thing was that we were misinformed of the venue on the first day. but well...it's no longer a big deal. i'm quite surprised at how quickly time passes during the course! i think it's how the course is structured/paced. there's a lot of hands-on practice, so that kills significant time. plus, there's lunch and 2 breaks (one morning, one afternoon), so that helps as well. and speaking of lunch, i've been paying astronomical prices for lunch these past 2 days. yesterday's lunch was at an atas french place, so i still felt somewhat willing to pay $35 (before GST and service charge) for a 3-course lunch. however, today's lunch was a total rip-off. i had nasi padang (1 meat, 2 seafood, 1 vegetable) at this shop near the training centre. a meal like that would cost me $3+ to a maximum of $5 in NUS. considering NUS is subsidized somewhat, i'm willing to pay about $6 to $8 elsewhere. the stall (a few coursemates and) i ate at charged me $13, and it wasn't even air-conditioned! i really don't know how the price came up to that much. we came to the conclusion that the owner (1) makes a hell of a profit, (2) charges based on impression, (3) doesn't have many repeat customers. to be fair though, i liked their squid and fish, so it's not a completely horrible experience. but still...paying 3-4 times more for so-so standard food was quite unpleasant.
i've said this before, and i'll say it again. fate works in funny ways. like today, group meeting was scheduled. i had earlier enquired about missing half a day of the course, but later decided that it would make more sense to miss group meeting. ended up that i didn't have to miss anything, because my professor cancelled group meeting yesterday. in the 19+ months i've been with the lab, this is probably only the third time it's happened (other than for public holidays or festivals). such a nice coincidence. also, i met some very interesting people in the course. interestingly, a lot of people from varied backgrounds are taking the course. among those i remember are a couple of chefs, a taekwondo coach, an inline skate instructor, a teacher, a construction worker, at least 2 physical trainers, 2 nurses, some secondary school kids, and myself. in particular, i got to know the (a?) master trainer from true fitness. by some freaky coincidence, she was from CJC judo too! that was 20 years ago, though, so we've never met in a judo context. don't know if it's because of that, but we seem to hit it off pretty well! upon learning about my knee problems, she ever helped me tape it up for stability, and gave me a few rolls of tape of different brands to try out. i think that'll come in useful during training.
on the way to her office in great world city (we walked from the course venue near outram park MRT), she was telling me how to set fitness goals and pace myself. her starting point for me (and most of her clients) is walk for 10 minutes. then, slowly increase the intensity and duration. at first, i was quite sceptical. i mean, no matter how unfit i may be, a 10-minute walk as a complete workout session seems kind of like an insult to my fitness. but her point was that starting slow builds confidence. even then, i think i can afford to start off at a higher benchmark. maybe a 2 or 3km jog, or maybe even intervals (5 times of a 100m sprint, 300m walk/jog), accompanied with some light PT. and i can make use of the gym, too. the other takeaway is that i have to watch my diet. my current 1 to 2 meals a day actually slows my metabolism, making it harder to burn everything off. and yes, with my transponder, i no longer have an excuse. time to throw my sports shoes into the car.
after listening to all the stuff about goal setting, pacing, nutrition, and sleep, i realize that i have to change my mindset somewhat. i don't know when this idea got into my head, but when i think of a workout, i think of exercising until i am dead tired, like only capable of dragging myself home, into the shower, then into bed. turns out that that isn't necessary. that's where the concept of pacing comes in. have to ensure that i still retain some energy after i'm done. reminding myself that i can still go back to lab to run experiments might be a good idea.
the course material itself is pretty digestible, and most of it is relevant to judo. the only things that i probably will not need to use in a judo setting are first aid for cuts, burns, and animal bites/stings. the rest, like CPR/AED, treating fractures, sprains, spinal injury, nosebleeds, all have the potential to be relevant...though i hope to never have to use any of my knowledge. tomorrow's the test, which i think should go pretty well. after that, the next step is applying for inclusion in the NROC.
seems like there was a major upheaval in the SJF today. so far, i know that the referee director has stepped down. i'm sure that most, if not all, of the people in the other exco positions will be changed. since it affects me to some degree, i am really curious as to who's the new president and referee director. not too bothered about other (more administrative) positions, like treasurer. well, i guess there'll be some form of media release soon. at the worst case, i can find out from the people who were actually present at the AGM. makes me wonder how judo in singapore will change. well, i guess i'll be able to see (and experience) the changes for myself in due time.
like i mentioned earlier, the theory and practical tests are tomorrow. i wonder if the tests will really take the whole day. or maybe the morning will be used for recap/revision and teaching, while the test will be in the afternoon. whatever it is, i hope we finish reasonably early. think tomorrow might be a good time for a haircut and a library visit.
i've said this before, and i'll say it again. fate works in funny ways. like today, group meeting was scheduled. i had earlier enquired about missing half a day of the course, but later decided that it would make more sense to miss group meeting. ended up that i didn't have to miss anything, because my professor cancelled group meeting yesterday. in the 19+ months i've been with the lab, this is probably only the third time it's happened (other than for public holidays or festivals). such a nice coincidence. also, i met some very interesting people in the course. interestingly, a lot of people from varied backgrounds are taking the course. among those i remember are a couple of chefs, a taekwondo coach, an inline skate instructor, a teacher, a construction worker, at least 2 physical trainers, 2 nurses, some secondary school kids, and myself. in particular, i got to know the (a?) master trainer from true fitness. by some freaky coincidence, she was from CJC judo too! that was 20 years ago, though, so we've never met in a judo context. don't know if it's because of that, but we seem to hit it off pretty well! upon learning about my knee problems, she ever helped me tape it up for stability, and gave me a few rolls of tape of different brands to try out. i think that'll come in useful during training.
on the way to her office in great world city (we walked from the course venue near outram park MRT), she was telling me how to set fitness goals and pace myself. her starting point for me (and most of her clients) is walk for 10 minutes. then, slowly increase the intensity and duration. at first, i was quite sceptical. i mean, no matter how unfit i may be, a 10-minute walk as a complete workout session seems kind of like an insult to my fitness. but her point was that starting slow builds confidence. even then, i think i can afford to start off at a higher benchmark. maybe a 2 or 3km jog, or maybe even intervals (5 times of a 100m sprint, 300m walk/jog), accompanied with some light PT. and i can make use of the gym, too. the other takeaway is that i have to watch my diet. my current 1 to 2 meals a day actually slows my metabolism, making it harder to burn everything off. and yes, with my transponder, i no longer have an excuse. time to throw my sports shoes into the car.
after listening to all the stuff about goal setting, pacing, nutrition, and sleep, i realize that i have to change my mindset somewhat. i don't know when this idea got into my head, but when i think of a workout, i think of exercising until i am dead tired, like only capable of dragging myself home, into the shower, then into bed. turns out that that isn't necessary. that's where the concept of pacing comes in. have to ensure that i still retain some energy after i'm done. reminding myself that i can still go back to lab to run experiments might be a good idea.
the course material itself is pretty digestible, and most of it is relevant to judo. the only things that i probably will not need to use in a judo setting are first aid for cuts, burns, and animal bites/stings. the rest, like CPR/AED, treating fractures, sprains, spinal injury, nosebleeds, all have the potential to be relevant...though i hope to never have to use any of my knowledge. tomorrow's the test, which i think should go pretty well. after that, the next step is applying for inclusion in the NROC.
seems like there was a major upheaval in the SJF today. so far, i know that the referee director has stepped down. i'm sure that most, if not all, of the people in the other exco positions will be changed. since it affects me to some degree, i am really curious as to who's the new president and referee director. not too bothered about other (more administrative) positions, like treasurer. well, i guess there'll be some form of media release soon. at the worst case, i can find out from the people who were actually present at the AGM. makes me wonder how judo in singapore will change. well, i guess i'll be able to see (and experience) the changes for myself in due time.
like i mentioned earlier, the theory and practical tests are tomorrow. i wonder if the tests will really take the whole day. or maybe the morning will be used for recap/revision and teaching, while the test will be in the afternoon. whatever it is, i hope we finish reasonably early. think tomorrow might be a good time for a haircut and a library visit.
-random thought of the day: Feeling empty.-
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