Winter Training in All its Glamour

Good for:  Building fitness during cold winter months

Not so good for:  Staying entertained

So let's do something different and start this blog with a question.  What is wrong with this picture?

I can forsee many answers...  Cycling next to a washing machine.  Almost exposed arse.  Weird laptop screen on top of washing machine.  Cycling indoors.  Taking a picture of all of the above.  :P

But this is the reality of winter training when you live in the colder parts of Europe.  To be a fair weather trainer is to not be much of a trainer at all.  So you make the best of what you have.  An indoor trainer, with a laptop for entertainment.  Sometimes with a washing machine and a dryer for company.  Always with towels and rugs to mop up the sweat.

But I don't complain (much)....  It makes you stronger in your mind if you can race against nothing on a stationery bike.  It is good value for time spent, because you don't have to worry about turns and traffic lights.  Just get on the bike and get it done.

Happy days, roll on race season 2015!

US$3.78 million in the postbox

Good for:  Entertainment value and wishful thinking
Not so good for:  Presumably my bank account at a later stage

So, I collected this letter from my mailbox today:

Being an unbeliever of anything too good to be true, my first instinct was to Google it. And there you have it.  A letter that has been sent out again and again, for the last 4 years or so.  Same address, same name, same amount, same story.   Presumably hand signed too, just like mine.

Wow.  Why would anyone sit and look up new names and addresses, to send a letter to, years on end, unless there is a remote chance of success??  Turns out the story is, at some point, the sender will ask you for some money.  Duh.  What else could this be about....  Surely, surely, surely, people do not take letters like this seriously?  Please?!

I would be tempted to create a bogus email address and send this dude some abusive emails, except he knows where I live.  I blame the Danish (maybe Scandinavian since there were a lot of similar stories from Sweden) system of publishing names and addresses on the Internet.  :P

Racing an Ironman, or make that 2!

Good for:  Collecting a cool medal, looking forward to post race treats (see picture)
Not so good for:  Poor tired legs

So today marks 1-week-after Ironman Copenhagen.  I could post a picture of my medal but I've already done that.  I could post a picture of my swollen feet from last week but that would be boring.  So you get a picture of my dinner-with-my-biggest-fan from last night.  :)

Racing is great, but it is even better with the support of friends and family.  Many people follow me on Facebook, apps, in real life, whatever else they can find, whilst I run around for 10.5 hours completing my Ironman.  It is much appreciated, and this post goes out to all my supporters.  :)

For the record, we get to do it all over again in 5 weeks, on the 5th of October, where I will race Ironman Barcelona, just for fun.  :P

Magic Cream from China - Keep Dry and Shady

Good for:  Relieving mosquito bites and other skin irritations, light entertainment :P

Not so good for:  English lessons?!

Having lived away from Malaysia for the last (almost) 15 years, my skin is quite sensitive to mosquito bites.  After 4 days of being here, I am now moderately covered in little red spots.  So I was offered some cream by my parents to alleviate the itching.  It came in the jar above....

I have to say I spent quite some time giggling at the jar and its label.  I am not sure what I found funniest.   "Keep Dry and Shady" or "Do not drink" or "Scribble on skins" - Google Translate gone wrong!  But the cream seems to help the mosquito bites which is what is important.  :)

Touchscreen Notebook

Good for:  Coolness factor, surprisingly convenient option of "touching the screen" to do what you want

Not so good for:  Older techno-phobes, Windows 8 annoying interface

Things have been a bit quiet on my side for the last week and a bit.  Reason being, I was first getting ready for and am now on, a flying visit to Malaysia! Being a true Malaysian who lives abroad, I have 2 interesting items on my agenda:  Eating and shopping.  :P  

I'll save eating for another post, but today I went shopping with my family. 

First I was dazzled by the colours clothes in F.O.S., and eventually I bought a touchscreen notebook.  I am not keen on Apple products, and do not own or use any computers other than my work machine, and my mini laptop at home.  So this is my primary means of storing data, tracking training and social-media-ing.  My criteria of selection was coolness, small(and light)ness and ability to transfer and process training data and pictures.

I first looked at a tablet with a keyboard option, but was told that whilst it appeared to be equivalent to a laptop, a tablet is not capable of supporting special software that I use regularly such as Adobe Acrobat, Garmin Training Centre, and Suunto Movescount. It was "USB capable" but only had one USB port.  And it did not have an SD card reader.  Good to know.  That just rendered it incapable of fulfilling 60% of my requirements.  So it was back to a more traditional laptop option in the end.  But with a touchscreen, hah!  It had to be cool in some way, right?!?

Rainy-Denmark vs Water-Rationing-Malaysia

Good for:  A reminder that things might not be as bad as they seem!
Not so good for:  Cycling outdoors (in Denmark) and/or taking a shower (in KL)

First of all I must admit that keeping to the theme of this blog was a bit challenging for this post.  But I will persevere!  Second of all, I admit that you can't tell just how rainy it was when that picture was taken.  But I can assure you it was RAINY...  my soggy clothes were evident of it (although I have no photographic proof).  :P

Those of you who have been reading my blog will know that I am going on a flying visit to Malaysia next week.  I saw this article about water rationing in the Klang Valley last night, and couldn't help but compare it to how we are always complaining about the "dårligt vejr" (terrible weather) in Denmark.  According to the article, 2.2. million households will have water for 2 days, followed by 2 days of dry taps.  My family are lucky enough that our house does not fall into the areas affected.

So maybe I should stop complaining about the rain and slightly flooded river banks I have to run on.  At least I can take a shower when I want to in Denmark!

Hello Spring!

Good for:  Better weather for more outdoor training, outdoor meals, BBQs, etc (keyword being outdoors!)
Not so good for:  Unpredictable weather (it might snow in spring in Denmark)

With my ever improving Danish, I heard this on the radio today:  "Today is the last day of winter..."  Yay!  So I guess it is spring.....  I must confess that the picture above was more likely to have been taken in summer though.  :P

With spring comes new flowers, baby animals and most importantly (hopefully) better weather.  Don't get me wrong, I like winter for what it is - Christmas and candles and cozy windowsills.  But I do not enjoy cycling in the wind and rain.  Much as I enjoyed the spinning sessions with the local cycle club, I look forward to cycling outdoors in the (even if flat) Danish countryside, and even more so to the impending race season.  Game on!  :)

Oh yes, and did I mention BBQs??  That starts tomorrow...  :D

Racing with a club

Good for:  Motivation, socializing in a triathlon context
Not so good for:  Coached athletes who require their own programs

I did my first Ironman in 2011, the world renowned Challenge Roth.  It was a fantastic race experience, with the thousands of spectators cheering me on, but more importantly, it was the first (and only) race I did with a group of people from my club.  I was sitting in the middle of a German countryside, surrounded by 10+ Danish people, it as surreal.

I do think it is great fun to turn up for a foreign race with people you know.  It turns the whole experience into a party, with memories to cherish.  :)

Take me home, country roads....

Good for:  Going back "to the place, I belooooong", a mental break
Not so good for:  Consistent training, jet lag

I made an impulse decision in the last few days.  I have decided to go back to Malaysia for a flying visit.  And I mean a flying visit, literally.  No country roads to take me home, I fly home on a Thursday and leave again on a Tuesday.  With travelling time that gives me 4 days home.  Period.  Pronto.

Reason being a) I need a new passport (good excuse) and b) I just feel like going home.  It does not happen often.  In fact this is probably the 2nd time in my entire 14 years in Europe, where I have felt "Yep, now it's time to go home".  Not that I want to go home for a prolonged period of time, but somehow, I feel like hearing those stupid sounds in KLIA.  Ha ha.  My fellow Malaysians must know the chimes I am talking about.  ;)

So KL it is, for a weekend trip and a bit.  Yay!  :)

Diets and fads

Good for:  Quick weight loss, short term morale boost
Not so good for:  Sustained weight loss, long term well being

There is always much talk about the latest diets and fads.  Low fat, low carb, no fat, fruit and vegetables only, paleo, etc.  The list goes on....  

I have never been a believer of diets, since I think the key to losing weight and keeping it off is a change in lifestyle.  The body has been designed to need certain types of food in order to thrive.  Protein to restore muscles, carbohydrates for instant energy, fat for reserve energy, etc.  We cannot change our genetic make-up.  We are better off adapting our lifestyle to match what we were designed for, i.e. eating "natural" foods and maintaining a reasonable level of physical activity.

I read a book written by Phil Maffetone, and even tried his 2 week test.  I concluded that it is ok to read different books and theories, and take the best out of all of them.  So I have my usual Danish Friday breakfast at work every week, despite having eggs and minimal carbs for breakfast every other weekday.  And yes that includes bread and jam.  My end of the week treat, yum!  :)

Insanity is....

Good for:  Cycling across a desert to a cool (warm) place like Hoover Dam, doing things out of your comfort zone
Not so good for:  Being exhausted all the time, going completely mental at people for no good reason

So things are not going so well at the moment.  Recent turn of events have resulted in some unnecessary yelling and drama.  But there is light at the end of the tunnel, silver (or bronze) lining in every cloud, etc.

I have learnt that sometimes a little insanity is ok, as long as it doesn't become a habit in life.  Good insanity brings us to exciting places and experiences - it has brought me across the Alps in France, across some deserts and National Parks in Las Vegas, and over much countryside in Denmark.  But there is only so much insanity you can carry through with your daily life, before it starts to affect you in a negative way.

All about the balance.....

Local sushi restaurant (run by Chinese people)

Good for:  Good quality sushi, friendly service from Chinese hosts
Not so good for:  A Chinese person who has forgotten how to speak Mandarin!

I received a surprise phone call today, in Chinese.  The owners of the local sushi restaurant, Fushi Sushi, had taken a liking to us, and were keen to make friends.  We were invited for dinner "on the house", drinks included!

The catch lies in the fact that I barely speak Chinese, and they do not speak English.  A chicken and a duck when it comes to communication.  But we got by.  Nice to have nice friendly Chinese shop owners nearby.  Good sushi to top it off, a nice recovery meal after a 2 hour+ brick training session today!  :)

Life in Denmark

Good for:  Camping, a cosy existence, health care, hygge
Not so good for:  Paying taxes, cycling on mountains (there are none)

This is one of my favourite pictures from my life in Denmark.  Pre-race breakfast in a caravan with my good friend Stine.  

Someone sent me a link recently about Scandinavian life:  http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/27/scandinavian-miracle-brutal-truth-denmark-norway-sweden.  It did make me chuckle, I have to admit.

But my take is Denmark provides a simple, uncomplicated, if mountain free, life.  You pay tax, they take care of you.  Simple as that.  Danes are welcoming (once you get through the first test) and would be your friends for life.  Highly recommended.  :)

Get some Headspace

Good for:  De-stressing and calming down, general well-being
Not so good for:  Staying awake when you are tired

You can get an app for meditation, it's called Headspace.  I tried it, and so did a journalist:  http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/07/09/headspace-meditation-benefits_n_3567421.html

I found it ok and possibly even invigorating, except I kept falling asleep whilst doing it.  :P  I have been told you need to practice focus in order to focus. Hmmmm. Try it, and if you do, please share you experience with me.  :)

Caravans

Good for:  A cosy holiday, mobile home with easy access to home cooking, adventures
Not so good for:  5 star hotel experience, cold weather

I took this picture because it was funny.  It is actually a handbag!

But this post is to illustrate I like caravans.  I had never been in a caravan before I moved to Denmark.  But I think the concept is pretty cool actually.  Drive your home, wherever you want.  Bring the food you want, wherever you want!  Sleep with your own bed clothes, with your own pillows.  What's not to like??

Welcome

Welcome to Trivestyle, and thank you for visiting.  Trivestyle is my new project, an attempt to reinvent my life.

You see, I have tried various modes of life.  Once upon a time I thought my goal in life was to get married and live happily ever after.  Well, that did not happen for me.  So I tried triathlon instead.  Which has been a fantastic journey, that has brought me to some beautiful and exciting places.  When I started, I did triathlon for fun.  Completely random training and race choices.  Then I thought I could be world champion.  So I hired a coach and took it very seriously....

Two years on, and I know I will never be world champion.  Fine by me, I just wanted to find out of it was possible.  And so now I embark on a new journey....  How do I thrive in a life that includes triathlon on top of a "normal" life?  I am up for trying new things and concepts, and will keep you posted along the way.  My ultimate goal?  To be happy with my life.

Let the journey begin!

Cross Country Skiing

Good for:  Building endurance, peace and quiet, lovely views, feeling alone

Not so good for:  Injuries (skis do not clip out when you fall!), legs not used to cross country skiing

So, I went on a ski holiday recently, to Trysil, with boyfriend and his kids and mum.  In an attempt to stay fit and/or get fitter, I did some cross country skiing.

Loved the peace and tranquillity of being out in the open mountain, but my legs did not like being used in a way that they are not used to.  I would recommend it for cross-training when on a ski holiday, but be prepared to be sore after.  Also be prepared for sweat drenched clothes if you wear too much, and be warned that the weather might change dramatically when you get to the other side of the mountain.  Been there, done that.  :D