tokyo running days

東日本大地震に関する覚え書き1

2011-03-14T00:41:00.006+09:00

地震に関して、何か記録しておこうと思い、休眠していたこのブログに書き込むことにした。11日（金）午後4時頃、夫と山手線に乗っていた。新橋の取引先へ向かう途中だった。浜松町の駅を電車が出発した直後、揺れを感じた。しばらくして揺れが最大限になった頃に電車がストップ。そのまましばらく車内で揺れを感じたまま。車窓から見えるすぐ目の前の古いビルが今にも倒壊しそうな勢いで揺れる。たくさんの人がビルから外に出てきた。みんな状況がわかっていない様子。最初の大きな揺れの後、すぐに掃除し始める道路工事作業員の姿も。さっきまで崩れそうに揺れていたビルの真下で。その後余震が断続的に続く。通りにはどんどん人が増えてきて、だんだん「有事」の様相に。不思議の電車の中はほとんど危険を感じなかった。1時間ほど経って、外へ出られることに。小さなはしごをつたって、ひとりずつ順番に線路に降りた。混乱はなし。また、その間に余震は

Races in this summer

2010-06-16T12:44:00.003+09:00

Due to cancellation of IM Japan, I ended up with entering three tri races. I never really wanted to do this many races.....June 20, Sakata Oshin Race (Olympice distance)July 11, Ironman Asia in Jeju (IM Japan replacement)August 22, Suzu Triathlon (Swim 2km, Bike 100km, Run 23km)My plan is;Sakata >> go hardJeju >> go all out for Kona slot (prob. first and last chance for me)Suzu >> fun race using

2010 Niijima Triathlon

2010-05-20T19:09:00.004+09:00

Last Saturday, (May 15, 2010) I went to Niijima Triathlon again and completed the race. Here is the race report I posted to Namban Forum.-----------------------MikaTotal 2:45:58 (7th women, 103rd overall)I always like this Island Series tri, and this year, with no exception, I had a very good time with fellow Namban triathletes and supporters. Swim 30:05 (136th, PB!)The swim part is always my

Kamakura Rough Water Swim 5k

2009-07-14T10:54:00.003+09:00

人生初の5kmOWSは甘くなかった。。。なんとか完泳はしたものの、タイムオーバー。公式記録は出なかった。コースは材木座海岸から沖へと並べられたブイに沿って4周。1周目が1.4k、2周目が1.3k、3周目が1.2k、4周目が1.3k。（お？合計が5.2kになってるぞ。。。）1周目、チェックポイントを通った時点で41分。まあまあのペースだと思えた。2周目も中盤までは順調で、このままあと2周は楽勝じゃないかと思ったのだが、2周目岸側の折り返しで給水を受け取ってボートにつかまったら足がつってしまった。これでどーっと不安に。とりあえず岸側の足がつくところまで泳いでいき、足をついてストレッチ、マッサージ。棄権するかどうか迷ったものの、とりあえず痙攣がおさまってきたので泳ぎ続けることに。この時点で時計を見ると既に1時間25分経過。。。まずい。距離はあと半分残っているのに、タイムアウトまであと1時間5

Murakami Triathlon, the mission completed

2009-07-01T11:57:00.009+09:00

Last Sunday, I went out to Murakami for 51.5k triathlon with Ma to overcome Niijima swim DNF, and the mission was happlily completed. Here is the report I posted to Namban (my running club) list. --------------------------2:43:51 71st overall, 1st AGS 35:59 131stB 1:21:16 77thR 46:36 51stThis race wasn't on my annual race calendar until I had a traumatic Niijima experience. I decided to do this

Mt. Fuji Hill Climb

2009-06-08T15:14:00.008+09:00

Yesterday, I did my first Mt. Fuji Hill Climb race. It's one of the biggest cycling events in Japan and more than 5,000 participants gathered in a park at north foot of Mt. Fuji. The weather turned out to be great and we could see gorgeous Mt. Fuji from the starting area as you see in the pic.I like the colourfulness of bike races. It's fun to watch colourful bike gear and pricy bikes. Being

不調。

2009-05-26T22:19:00.003+09:00

毎年春から初夏は調子が悪い。冬場のマラソン練習でたまりにたまった疲労に逆襲されるような感じ。さらに花粉症に追い討ちをかけられる。シーズンオフ気分にひたって体重増加。モチベーションもどーんと下がる。ま、ここ3~4年ぐらいはだいたいそんな感じだ。しかし、今年はそれに輪をかけて不調だ。体重の増加も著しく、身体のむくみや疲労感もより顕著。足指を打って怪我をしたり、先日のトライアスロンではスイムでおぼれそうになってDNFしたりと、どーもいけない。身体感覚がどうもヘンだ。なんなのだ、これは･･･、と思っていたところ、こんな記事を読んだ。トライアスリート、藤原裕司氏のトレーニングエッセイだ。http://www.tri-x.jp/article/?p=112人間の身体には生理的リズムがあり、パフォーマンスが順調に向上していく「順調期」と、疲弊した身体をリセットして復元させる「適応期」と呼ばれる期間

Bike, swim and run weekend.

2009-05-25T00:36:00.005+09:00

Saturday, 107km mountain ride from Sagami-ko to Yamanaka-ko out and back. Lots of hills, mostly ups for outwards and fun down hills for backwards. I saw gorgeous Mt. Fuji in Yamanaka-ko. I love mountain ride. Swam in the evening. 300m x 5 with wetsuit on. Tight, but managable. I haven't decided wheater ro buy new one or not.Sunday morning, just went out to Yoyogi Park and ran 21k with iPod on.

DNF at Niijima Triathlon

2009-05-19T19:26:00.003+09:00

Last weekend, I made a trip to Niijima with other Namban tri mates (Mary, Phil, Motozo, Jay and Nick) for my first triathlon race for the season. I took this Olympic distance one as a season opener and it was supposed to be a fun race.When I looked at last year's results, I found out that third place woman's time was slower than my Oshima time last year. I suddenly got ambitious. "I might get

Quick report on Osaka Women's Marathon 09

2009-01-27T00:50:00.002+09:00

3h 11s 02s5k 22:13 / 10k 22:00 / 15k 22:18 / 20k 22:05 / half 1:33:27 / 25k 22:29 / 30k 22:39 / 35k 22:58 / 40k 23:52 / last 2.2k 10:28This was my 4th fastest time. Sounds mediocre...but I think this is decent result, at least it wasn't embarrassing faliure. Actually I was quite happy yesterday while I still remember the pain at the race. I told myself, "Mika, you did well. 3h 11s is good time.

Post Tokyo Women's training (for Osaka Ladies Marathon)

2009-01-05T23:34:00.005+09:00

Although I stopped writing this blog for a long time, I continued my marathon training after Tokyo Women's.●Week1 (Nov. 17 - 23)The recovery week from TW's. Therefore total mileage was 11km. Had some pain in my right shin.●Week2 (Nov.24 - 30)Despite the niggle in my shin, I ran 10km at FIT charity race on Monday and came in 3rd. No pain. 5000m TT on Wednesday and timed 20:22. Not bad. 20km pace

Ancient news, TIWM final.

2009-01-05T23:24:00.003+09:00

Oh... I realised I haven't even written about the Tokyo International Women's Marathon in November.... What a lazy bum I am! I will just copy and paste my report I posted to Namban list on November 20, for recording purpose at least.--------------------------------Mika TokairinTime 3:16:05This was my 5th TIWM and so far I “tied” with the event. First one in 2004, I got cut off at 34k and swept by

3 Weeks to go

2008-10-27T10:42:00.006+09:00

Now there are three weeks to go for Tokyo Women's Marathon. I would like to review how I spent these 4 weeks, the crucial period of the training.●Week 3 (Sep. 29 - Oct. 5)Total mileage 92.7km incl. a 3 x 2000m with build-up pace (from 4:25 to 4:10/k), a 10km TT (42:50) and a 42km slooooow jog (It was planned to be 35k +, but since I got lost, I ended up with such long distance...). Missed 2 days

Feeling like a runner.

2008-09-30T10:03:00.002+09:00

It's been two weeks since I started my marathon training and my mind-set is shifted to the runner's one now, having done an over 100km week for the first time since spring. So far, my legs are OK, just some soreness in my thighs.●Week 1 (Sep. 15 - 21) 85.5km incl. 30km with 5min/k pace●Week2 (Sep. 22 - 28)101.7km incl. 35km with 5:05/k pace and 16km with 4:30/k pace (was slight faliure)

9 week marathon training

2008-09-22T14:49:00.003+09:00

Now Sado tri is over and what's next....Tokyo Women's Marathon!Last week, Brett made a marathon training programme for me and I finally started the marathon training. Considering that I only have 9 weeks (now 8 weeks) before the race, every run looks so precious and I can't skip any of them. At the same time, cramming too much training into the short period is very risky. In fact I pulled the leg

Sado Triathlon B type

2008-09-12T22:31:00.001+09:00

Last Sunday, I completed Sado Triathlon B type (2km swim, 105km bike and 20km run). This was my 4th proper triathlon and 2nd middle distance one. Here are my result and report.Overall time: 6h08m50sSwim leg (2km): 47m48sTransition: 6m37sBike leg (105km): 3h35m39sTransition: 3m58sRun leg (20km): 1h34m49s154th overall12th overall womanWon my age group :-DTwo summers ago, I started triathlons as a

Oshima Triathlon

2008-06-08T20:29:00.004+09:00

Just a quick report.Swim 39:36 (172nd)Happy to finish within 40 min. At the very latter part, I had a cramp in my right calf and got panicked, but managed to complete with no kick.Bike 1:17:15 (including transition time, 103rd)So much fun to pass many people! 3 minute improvement from 2 years ago.Run 47:30 (64th)I seemed to have used up legs at the bike leg, and got cramp at my left hams. Lost

Future plan.

2008-06-06T14:16:00.002+09:00

- November 2008, Tokyo Women's Marathon (target: 3h05m)- January 2009, Osaka Women's Marathon (target: 3h00m??)- Summer 2009, first Ironman, Japan or Canada (target: finishing)- June 2010, Comrades Ultra marathon (target: running all the way and finish)Gambaro!BTW, I am going to race in Oshima Olympic distance tri tomorrow. Gambaruuu!

Boston Marathon Experience.

2008-05-20T13:55:00.007+09:00

before after (still smiling!)This is the race report I wrote for Namban list.Total time: 3h31m46s5km 23:5910km 24:1615km 24:1520km 24:43half 1:42:1925km 25:2330km 27:3235km 26:4040km 25:2542.2km 10:41Since I decided to run this marathon as a "fun marathon", I was planning to run 5min/k pace all the way and hopefully finish around 3h30m. 5min/k pace is about 30seconds/k slower than my PB marathon

名古屋国際女子マラソン、大撃沈。Nagoya, bad race again.

2008-03-17T12:52:00.006+09:00

先週、Qちゃんと一緒に走ってきました、名古屋国際女子マラソン。結果は3時間17分35秒。大大大撃沈。最初の5kmは、関門を意識してとにかく突っ込み20:57。そこから5kmごとにきれいな放物線を描いてペースが落ちて行った。Last weekend, I ran Nagoya International Women's Marathon with Q-chan. The result was 3h 17m 35s. To make the cut-off point at 18.4km (please refer to my report 2 years ago), I started with 20:57 for the first 5km, and from there, my pace described beautiful parabola downwards.5km 20:

東京マラソン。

2008-02-18T19:09:00.003+09:00

English version will be followed soon.昨日、東京マラソンを走った感想。「楽しかった！」のひとことに尽きる。今回私はこの東京マラソンを、3週間後にある名古屋国際女子マラソンのトレーニングランとして走ることにしていた。キロ4分半のペースをぼんやりと想定はしていたものの、実際は最初の5kmを走ってみて、体感的にしっくりくる無理のないペースで走りきろう、と思っていた。そんなわけでノーターゲット、ノープラン、ノープレッシャー状態でスタートラインにたったわけだ。最初の2kmは混雑がはげしく、だらだらとジョグ。2kmで10分15秒もかかっている。その後徐々にコース上に隙間ができてきたので、「それなり」のペースに。タイムをチェックすると、キロ4分半で走れている。体感的に苦しくなかったので、このままいけるところまでいくことにした。5kmから14kmあたりまでKeren

PB, unexpectedly.

2008-02-18T15:52:00.003+09:00

3h 08m 53s (net, at my watch).As Arnaud prophesied, I made an unexpected PB at Tokyo Marathon, with no pain, which is a huge surprize. For the first time, I felt running a marathon is fun.I'll write what it was like, a bit later.

Updates.

2008-02-11T16:43:00.000+09:00

With Bob's encouragement ("Hey, you haven't updated your blog since last Decemter!"), I am doing some quick upate here.New Year HolidaysAte a lot, drank a lot and ran a lot. Oh and watched ekidens a lot on TV. Highlight of my training run was Hakone 5-ku run on 28 December. Took 2h33m for 23k while Brett took only 1h4?m, but it was fun. I thought we should do it with Namban next year.JanuaryRan

Omedeto, Mara.

2008-02-11T16:29:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday, I had a chance to give the omedeto card to Mara in person at Tyler Foundation Mara Yamauchi's Warm-up Training Session. Thank you to all who contributed messages to her!

Target race.

2007-12-19T13:57:00.000+09:00

I have been wavering for a while weather I should take Tokyo Marathon as a serious race or not, then now it's a kind of too late to follow a real serious programme for Tokyo Marathon. Well, I can still do a decent training for a decent result, but since I haven't made a marathon PB over a year, I really want to run a real serious race now.Yesterday, Brett said to me "Why don't you go for Nagoya?

Race report: Tokyo International Women's Marathon

2007-11-23T00:04:00.000+09:00

There is always next one. The words are usually encouraging when you hear them after a bad race. However, they came up to my mind when I was passing 15km point.There was no negative symptom before the race. The training went well and having marked PB's at 5k, 10k and 20k, I felt confident for a new marathon PB. My tapering went as I planned and I ate very carefully before the race to avoid

Loading carbo.

2007-11-16T00:31:00.000+09:00

I started loading carbo from tonight. Pasta with tomato cream source, oomori no oomori! Tomorrow, I will eat Chikara Udon (udon & mochi).I am getting fat!

10km PB! :-D

2007-11-08T00:03:00.000+09:00

3:57/4:05/4:03/4:04/4:03/4:04/4:06/4:06/4:09/4:01Total 40:43Paced by and run with Brett, Omar and Stuart. Thank you so much!

25km pace run and US olympic trial.

2007-11-03T23:25:00.000+09:00

I did 25km pace run at the Palace with Harriers group. I joined 4:40/k group but I kind of wanted to run faster, I took off at 2km and ran by myself to the finish. Still there are many runners running around the Palace and I tried to keep the pace by targeting and catching up one by one. My laps were: 23:25/22:08/21:56/21:56/21:53I felt OK till the end. Happy with it.Today is the day of the US

5000m PB :-D

2007-10-31T22:49:00.000+09:00

19:39(3:57/3:54/3:55/3:58/3:53)5k PB is the one I have been longing for since 2 yeas ago . I am very happy.◎Monthly mileage for October: 438km

39k, failure.

2007-10-29T00:31:00.000+09:00

Today's run supposed to be the last long run and the longest run before Tokyo Women's. However, it turned out to be a failure attempt.I started at the National Stadium with Motozo and ran with pretty good pace (4:50/k) up to 3rd lap of the Imperial Palace, but during the 4th lap, I started to feel heavy on my stomach. Digestion problem! I know the feeling, I have experienced it twice during

Yasso 800s with 3min.

2007-10-25T14:09:00.000+09:00

Yesterday, I tried Yasso 800s at the track. Despite my last minute notice, 4 people joined me. (Arnaud, Joachim, Rie and Omar, thanks so much!).What we did was, 10 times of 800ms in 3 minutes with 400m of recovery jogs (nearly 3 minutes). We managed to do it fairly strongly, and I am quite happy about how I felt afterwards. It wasn't easy for me, but it wasn't that bad. When I did the same thing

Takashimadaira 20k

2007-10-24T12:25:00.000+09:00

1:25:10 (net) / 1:25:33 (gros)I am happy with my run although I missed 10 seconds for my target. I have been doing this race for 4 years in a row and the main purpose is to check my fitness level before my main race Tokyo Women's. I compared the 5k splits of these four years and found an interesting point. My first 5k split is getting slower as my total time improve. This year, I am very happy

4:15/k pace.

2007-10-18T00:00:00.000+09:00

That's the sub-3 hour pace for a marathon, 90min pace for a half and 85min for 20k.Today, I ran 12k with 4:15/k pace to see if I can run Takashimadaira 20k within 85min. Thanks to Shoji-san and Rie, it was successfully done and I had a feeling that I can sustain the pace for 20k. Feeling pretty good about it.I know running 42.2k with that pace is another story, but to be honest and bold, I

34k including Tokyo Women's course.

2007-10-15T18:40:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday, I did another long run with Rie, Yuri and Akira.Started from the National Stadium, followed the course of Tokyo Women's up to Jimbocho, then headed to the Imperial Palace, did 4 laps and came back the same course to the National Stadium Marathon Gate.This time we didn't really care about the pace, just kept a bit faster than 5min/k until the Yotsuya uphill, since pushing at the hill

30km at the Palace.

2007-10-09T22:12:00.000+09:00

Sunday, I ran 30km, 6 laps of the Imperial Palace. Seven Nambanners started together but soon after we split into 2 or 3 packs. I ran with Bob all the way and thanks to him, I could do the run with the planned pace (30sec faster in each lap), well, almost!24:47/24:34/23:51/23:07/22:56/22:342h21m53s in total.Monday morning, I helped Harriers at their 30k pace run in Yoyogi park, mostly doing water

32k in the rain.

2007-09-30T18:37:00.000+09:00

On the day of dreadful weather like today, it's essential to make a prior appointment with other runner fellows, otherwise I would have skipped this long run today.Thanks to the company by Jason and Neil, Paddy and I did 32k and Christian 38k (with 4:30 pace!!), despite the rain, muddy road and headwind sometimes.This made my weekly mileage 123km, monthely mileage 393.5km. Considering that I had

Effect of training camp.

2007-09-29T18:11:00.000+09:00

Last weekend, I joined Harriers (A membership running team that former Namban speedster Taro runs) training camp in Kurumayama, Nagano. We did nothing but running, sleeping and eating for 3 days.The total mileage we ran for 3 days is over 80km at 1600m altitude. It was a bit too much for my injured part (right quad), but somehow I could survive without any serious injury, which was good.This week

Never underestimate the damage after a race.

2007-09-16T16:39:00.000+09:00

After Suzu tri, I had no sore at all and felt perfectly fine. I thought "Gee, tri is amazing! I won't need any recovery period". Then I did 30k a week after the race and next day I did a tempo run and felt great!Two days later, when I was doing quick move drills (knee-up), I heard a big crack in my front-right hip joint and pulled the quad (大腿四頭筋). I went to see a doctor* and he said that this is

Coming back to runner's life.

2007-09-01T12:42:00.000+09:00

The tri experience left me glorious memory. Now, I quickly have to shift to runner's training programme.This morning, I ran 31km. This is the first over 30k since London Marathon in April. I started around 6:30am. The weather was perfectly cool with a little bit of rain. I ran through Yoyogi park, Harajuku, National Stadium area, Akasaka Palace, 3 laps of the Imperial Palace, then came back with

Suzu triathlon report.

2007-08-28T20:50:00.000+09:00

This was my third triathlon and the longest distance ever for me. What worried me most was swim part. 2.5k in the ocean sounded pretty impossible to me first, but somehow, I chose this race as a summer project. I urgently needed to improve my swimming skill in 2 months. On top of swimming 3 times a week, I borrowed a "Total Immersion" DVD from Stuart and I also took private lessons. All worked

Suzu tri results.

2007-08-28T09:56:00.000+09:00

Total time: 7:47:15Swim (2.5k): 1:06 (290th)Bike (100.2k, incl. transition time): 4:12:09 (209th) / 5:19:06 (227th)Run (23k): 2: 28:10 (141st) / 7:47:15 (187th overall out of 318 finishers / 8th out of 22 woman finishers)Surprizingly I become the winner of my age category. (out of 4, but never mind!)I enjoyed so much! It was great experience.

Bye-bye, bike.

2007-08-21T16:23:00.000+09:00

After quite a bit of struggle, I finished packing my bike on Sunday afternoon, and today sent it out to Suzu. Since packing and sending my bike has been a real headache to me, I am so relieved now. But another headache is....I have to reassemble it before the race! I hope my expert fellow Keren, Jay and Stuart will help me.◎Wednesday, 15Run: easy 5.5k in the morning 14.2 in the evening,

Coming back to night shift.

2007-08-15T00:52:00.000+09:00

Because of this fierce heat in Tokyo, I am giving up the morning runs these days. This evening, I ran around Picture Gallery with escalating pace. The air in center of Tokyo is now better because of Obon holiday.◎Tuesday, 14Run: 11km at aerobic pace, up to 4:35/km pace.

2k swim.

2007-08-14T15:56:00.000+09:00

Last week, I only swam 600m. That's not at all enough for my situation. So Monday evening I went to Tokyo gym pool in Sendagaya and swam 2km in a row. It took 50 min, but I was happy that I could swim as far as 2km. Adding warming up and warming down, it was 2.5km altogether, the distance of Suzu course!At the moment, I am ignoring the fact that I have to cycle 100k and run 23k afterwards. My

Hakuba weekend.

2007-08-13T13:40:00.000+09:00

I went to Hakuba (north Alps) for family reunion. I was expecting nice, cool weather there, but actually it was very hot.Saturday, we went up to Happo-one (ridge). We went up by ropeway and ski lift and then my brother and I decided to go further up. We left our parents , sister-in-low and 3 year old nephew there and started speed trekking. When we almost reached the top of Karamatsu-dake, we

Easy 11km (in the evening)

2007-08-10T08:54:00.000+09:00

In Thursday evening, I ran a big loop around my neighbourhood. Inokashira dori to Oyama crossing, Tamagawa josui, Hatsudai, Sangubashi, Yoyogi, National stadium, Gaien nisih dori, Harajuku, Yoyogi park. Sometimes it's nice to get out of the park and run in the street.◎ThursdayRun: 11km, easy, then aerobic.

Earlier morning.

2007-08-08T10:38:00.000+09:00

This week, I am able to run in the hour most people would agree to call it morning, around 7:30am. Compare to the hour I called "morning", it's far nicer to run especially in this season. Cooler and smells nicer in the Yoyogi woods. The only problem is that my body is still asleep during the run and get sleepy during the day. I guess I am still nocturnal. Can this habit be reformed?◎Tuesday,

Just a log.

2007-08-06T23:53:00.000+09:00

◎Friday, 27thRun: 13k easy at Yoyogi park◎Saturday, 28thBike: 98k at OkutamaSwim: Form lesson◎Sunday, 29thRun: 16k at Yoyogi parkSwim: 1.5k in 35min with weatsuit at the swim squad in Yoyogi●Weekly mileage (for run)66.5k (5.5k short)◎Monday, 30thRun: 10k easy at Yoyogi parkSwim: 1k at Olympic centre (100m x 6 + w.u. & w.d.)◎Tuedsay, 31stRun: 8k easy at Yoyogi park◎Wednesday, 1st Aug.Swim: 1.1kRun

Jelly fish sting.

2007-07-25T08:47:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday, I joined Kamakura open water swim with Jay and Keren. As soon as we started, two experts swam away and immediately went out of my sight. They were so fast. I felt I was swimming backwards....So I never had a chance to actually swim with them, but I swam some distance anyway. Still it was good to experience open water, it's been more than a year since last time I swam in the sea (

To train in the moring.

2007-07-21T11:38:00.000+09:00

It's always hard for me to secure evening time for training. Therefore I used to train in the midnight. But I realised that it's far more stressful and in the first place unhealthy. Now I try to train in the morning (morning for me means anytime before noon).Recently I have been successful in training in the morning time, before breakfast, and I realised that it's really effective to lose weight!

Track.

2007-07-18T23:00:00.000+09:00

Swam in the morning. I think I am getting better and feel easier in the water than pre TI era. Still need lots of practice.In the evening we did a sort of big ladder, 800m/1200m/1600m/1200m/800m/400m. I wasn't brilliant, but kept pushing until the end. (Thanks to ultra girl Kuri-chan)◎TodaySwim: 1.5km at Olympic CentreRun: 13.1km total at Oda field

Rest.

2007-07-17T21:15:00.000+09:00

The damage from yesterday's ride & run was bigger than I thought and I am totally worn out today. So I skipped the swim and took complete rest.Meanwhile, I would like to report my post anaemia condition. Still, I am not feeling 100% fit when I run, but I gave up troubling about it and settled my mind to just keep taking iron tabs everyday. Now, I am taking around 30 to 40 mg of iron everyday plus

Okutama after typhoon.

2007-07-16T21:28:00.001+09:00

Keren and I went out for a bike ride in Okutama. This time, we started from Musashi-Itsukaichi station and rode over Kazehari Toge and down to just before Okutama lake, then turned back. I had a flat tyre and thanks to master Keren, I learned how to fix it. It was a good hard ride. After coming back, I left my bike and luggage at home and went to Yoyogi Park to run. I met Adam Y. there, the

Learning "Total Immersion".

2007-07-15T16:12:00.000+09:00

I borrowed Total Immersion DVD from Stuart and watched it Friday night. Before I watched, I though it would be like Billy's Boot Camp for swimmers, but actually it was totally different. It was the method to tell you how to feel natural and relaxed in the water and how to swim with minimum water registance. It's nice just to watch actually because they swim so beautifully. Keren told me that his

Starting training log again.

2007-07-13T13:25:00.001+09:00

This suppose to be a motivation blog. I have forgotten about it for a while. So back to the basics, I start my training log again here.◎YesterdayRun easy 7k at Yoyogi parkSwim 1.6k at Olympic center pool◎TodayRun easy 8k at Yoyogi park

Sprint tri at Showa Memorial Park.

2007-07-05T15:39:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday, I did a triathlon at Tachikawa. It's sprint distance (S750m/B20km/R5km) and I thought it would be a good practice for Suzu.This race revealed my crucial weakness. Swim.Here is my result.Overall time 1:29:38, place 27th out of 87 women. (6th in age)Swim 21:04 85thBike 44:56 11th for bike part (45th split pl.)Run 23:38 8th for run partI was the 3rd from the bottom at swim part. I knew

Tour de Utsukushigahara

2007-06-26T12:33:00.000+09:00

Thanks to Phil's organisation, I completed my first bike (only) race last Sunday. It is called "Tour de Utsukushigahara", it's a hill climb race and the course is 21.6km long with 1,270m elevation gain. I always wanted to do this race and was happy that finally I could do it.2,300 cyclists in their colourful bike jerseys gathered in a small onsen town near Matsumoto, Nagano prefecture. The

Bye-bye, anaemia.

2007-06-26T11:31:00.000+09:00

Last week, I had a blood test and got the result to show that my low red blood cell problem is over.Red blood cell 337 →391(376-516)Hamoglobin 10.7→12.6 (11.2-15.2)Hematcrit 32.6→37.7 (34.3-45.2)Serum iron 40→62(50-170)Ferritin 17→43.4(5-157)The criteria are a bit different from the last time though, since I applied the women's ones.To be honest, I didn't do much for recovery, I just took iron

Kamakura trail.

2007-05-21T10:16:00.000+09:00

Thanks to Jay, I joined Kamakura trail on Sunday. It was a beautiful sunny day and 10 people including Chuck from Singapore enjoyed a nice, relaxed and easy-going 22km.I was a bit worried if I am able to run whole way since I don't run much these days because of anaemia, but it turned out just fine.It was so nice to run without worring about pace or time or mileage. Now it's time to enjoy pure

貧血レポート / Memorandum on anaemia

2007-05-19T18:26:00.000+09:00

今後のための覚書。いずれもうちょっときちんとまとめます。This is a memorandum about my anaemia progress for future.●4/11　血液検査の結果、貧血との診断。・赤血球数　337 （基準値430-570）・ヘモグロビン 10.7 （基準値13.5-17.6)・ヘマトクリット 32.6 （基準値40.0-52.0）･血清鉄 40 （基準値60-200）・フェリチン 17 （基準値10-80［女性］）鉄剤「スローフィー」とビタミンC顆粒（鉄剤の吸収をよくする）を処方され、この日から1日100mgの鉄を摂取。鉄剤摂取前後のコーヒー、紅茶はやめた。ビールは鉄を多く含む黒ビール!●April 11Got a diagnosis of anaemia from a doctor after a blood test.・Red blood cell

Swim.

2007-05-19T17:35:00.000+09:00

Friday afternoon, I went swimming. It's been a long time since last I swam, I think since last July. I thought I almost forgot how to swim, but somehow I managed to swim 1km (only, but nevertheless). I enjoyed swimming in an empty 50m lane in weekday afternoon. I'll try to come here more often.

London Marathon pictures

2007-05-06T20:15:00.000+09:00

ExpoNamban reunion(With Taro, Adam O., Greg, Mika K. and JJ)Race day morning at Charing Cross station(With Taro, Mika K. and Geraldine)Beautiful day! Heading to the starting area(Mika K., Geraldine and Taro in the picture)After the finish. No confution at bag collectionPost-race faces with a bit of fatigue, disappointment and happiness (Adam O., JJ and Taro)With the Namban's first world record

Paris (not so running related)

2007-05-06T18:55:00.000+09:00

After London Marathon, I visited Paris and spent two nights there for rewarding myself. It's been 18 years since I last visited this city and I was curious to see how it's been changed (or if it's refusing to change stubbornly).The thing I most worried was language. I only speak 4 expressions in French, "merci (thank you)", "au revoir (good bye)" , "bon jour (hello)" and "s'il vous plait (please)

London Marathon 2007

2007-04-29T03:27:00.000+09:00

It may be an old news, but hey, I ran Flora London Marathon, too!I ran it with 3:20:16, almost 10 minutes off from my PB. My 5k splits can tell a whole story about my marathon.5k 21:07Woops! Way too fast. I was aiming at 4:30m/k pace (22:30 for 5k). Thanks to the high unit iron tubs, I think the anaemia is healing quicker than I thought and I totally lost the sense of pace. During the training

貧血レポート。

2007-04-14T10:05:00.000+09:00

今年に入って、走っても走っても成果が出ない。それどころかどんどん遅くなる、という状態が続いていたため、先日、意を決して血液検査を受けて来た。そして「貧血」が判明。正直ホッとした。記録が伸びない理由がとりあえず明らかになったから。これがわかるまでは、「モチベーションの問題か？」とか、「根性が足りないのか？」とか、「いわゆる頭打ち？」などなど、いろんな考えがぐるぐるして、ランニングが嫌いになりそうになっていたので。貧血にもいろいろあるらしいが、私の場合は「鉄欠乏症貧血」で、「赤血球」、「ヘモグロビン」、「ヘマトクリット」、「血清鉄」の項目の数値が基準以下だった。以下、ネットで付け焼刃お勉強してみた。●貧血血液中の赤血球や血色素が少なくなった状態。ヘモグロビンの原料となる鉄の不足による「鉄欠乏性貧血」がもっとも多いケース。＜一般的な症状＞　めまい・立ちくらみ　頭が重い・頭痛　耳鳴り　顔色が悪い

Post Tokyo Marathon struggle.

2007-04-11T13:45:00.000+09:00

After Tokyo Marathon and during the preparaion for London Marathon (22 April), I was struggling with the situation of " getting slower and slower, weaker and weaker". First, I thought it's the matter of motivation, since I have been doing this marathon training since last July and a sort of getting bored with it. Second, I suspected my weight gain. Yes, I am now 2kg overweight compared to my best

I'm still here....

2007-03-29T19:18:00.000+09:00

Just to let you know that I am not quitting this blog. Just don't know how to start again since I have been absent such a long time.Will be back soon.

Time to build up determination.

2007-02-10T12:54:00.000+09:00

All the hard 35km runs are over. Test half marathon is done anyway. Now it's time to build up a positive image for the marathon.To be honest, I have been very soft in spirit during the training period, compare to my previous marathons like Tokyo W's and Nagoya W's. On the other hand, I have run the highest monthly mileage in January. And I don't want to waste this effort, just because of being

Quick update.

2007-02-06T23:38:00.000+09:00

January monthly mileage was 472.6km in the end. Shame it didn't reach to 500km, but they are only numbers.I ran Kanagawa Half Marathon on 4 Feb. I was feeling easy with the pace for a 90 min. half marathon until 17km, then suddenly got cramp on my left achilles, then all the way up to calf, then hams, and it made me stop and walk for 1km. Shame, but concidering how I felt until 17km, I am not so

No run Monday, so no 500km.

2007-01-30T08:41:00.000+09:00

Got too busy. 3 hour sleep for 2 days...

40.4km more.

2007-01-28T23:10:00.000+09:00

The last long run was over, almost, say 80% successfully. I am so glad to be free from mileage obsession. But wait, my monthly mileage is now 459.6km. If I run 40.4km within 3 days, I will make 500km for a month! Hmmm. Maybe I should start tapering from 1st of Feb.

『風が強く吹いている』

2007-01-22T11:16:00.000+09:00

箱根駅伝を舞台にした青春小説。マンガやTVドラマになりそうな、山場いっぱいのエンターテインメントです。面白かった。おすすめー！　「長距離選手に対する一番の褒（ほ）め言葉がなにかわかるか」　「速い、ですか？」　「いいや。『強い』だよ」お貸し出しいたします。希望者の方、ご一報を。"It's blowing hard" by Shion MiuraA light novel about Hakone Ekiden. Very entertaining and inpiring in some ways. I enjoyed it so much. Here is an inspiring quote from the novel."What do you think is the best compliment to distance runners?""Fast?""No, it's '

Brief update.

2007-01-16T14:09:00.000+09:00

115km/week.Considering the intensive work situation after long new year holiday, I think this is not so bad mileage. However, the mileage is the only thing I can proud of. I failed Wed pace run (only kept up with 4:15 pace until 6k), and I also slowed down at the 35km Palace run (supposed to build up the pace but after 5th lap, I couldn't even keep the pace). iPod Nike plus.I got this new toy at

Highest mileage for a week.

2007-01-08T14:47:00.000+09:00

Yesterday, I joined Magical Mystery Tour of Tokyo #2 with Brett, Bob, Keren and Jay. We started with very relaxed pace, perhaps over 5min per k pace, then gradually increased the speed, but not so much. At the final 5k, I got sick and had to slow down but others were running strongly at the finish. The course was great. We mostly took foot paths and trails along the river. I was amazed that there

Recalling my first marathon.

2007-01-05T11:19:00.000+09:00

Coming Tokyo Marathon is my 10th marathon. Perhaps that's why I can't help recalling my very first marathon experience.In December 2002, seven months before joining Namban, I ran my first marathon (Aoshima Pacific Marathon in Miyazaki pref.) with 4:05:36. It was very agonizing experience and I thought I would never ever do it again. I did it all by myself, training alone, travelling alone, racing

Happy New Year!

2007-01-04T15:09:00.000+09:00

Failure 5k PB attemptBefore this new year greeting, I think I should report my 5000TT attempt on 27 Dec. last year. I am sorry to report this, but it wasn't successful at all. My target was 19:30, and my first k took 4 min and I was already struggling. Second k was 4:07 with big effort, then at the end of 3rd k, I stopped trying. I can think of hundreds of reasons for this result but main thing

Speed again!

2006-12-20T00:42:00.000+09:00

Despite the terrible Ome sore that is still remaining in my thighs, I went to Oda field this evening (Tuesday) and did the 400m intervals by myself again. Thanks for advices from many people, I decided to take longer rest this time. The plan was to run 400m with 85 sec. and jog 400m. And here is the result.1'27/R2'521'22/R3'031'26/R2'591'25/R3'191'20/R3'461'26/R3'171'27/R3'221'26/R3'161'22/

Speed!

2006-12-14T01:53:00.000+09:00

Wednesday track workout. While everyone else was doing 1600 x 4, I did my own workout 400m intervals. A sub-three woman told me about this training when I asked her how I can improve my 5000m time. Many people point out that my 5000m time is too slow compared to my marathon time, so I decided to reinforce my "speed" this month. The plan was to run 400m with 85 seconds then 100m jog for recovery

Time to start again, but I haven't...

2006-12-08T21:13:00.000+09:00

I am going to run Tokyo Marathon in February and only 2 months left. However, I am still reluctant to start training again. I think I am getting fat....Some updates.Okutama EkidenIt was fun. The weather was cold and crisp, I enjoyed so much. I love this Okutama area very much.Wednesday track session 1000m x 6 (5 for me)I was late and missed the first 1000m, but I ran other 5 heats with satisfying

Report on Tokyo Women's.

2006-11-26T21:45:00.000+09:00

Sorry about this belated post. A week passed since I ran my third Tokyo International Women's Marathon. I am very pleased to have achieved 3:10:07, a new PB by 51 seconds.I started my training 2 months earlier than usual year and spent whole summer running 100k per week to aim at 3hour marathon. However I realised that my target was a bit too ambitious for this time and 2 weeks prior to the race

Very quick report of Tokyo Women's Marathon.

2006-11-20T15:46:00.000+09:00

3:10:07, 51 second PB. 0-5k 22:14 -10k 44:39 (22:25) -15k 1:06:40 (22:01) -20k 1:28:44 (22:04)Half 1:33:36 -25k 1:50:52 (22:06) -30k 2:13:37 (22:45) -35k 2:36:33 (22:56) -40k 3:00:19 (23:46) -42.2k 3:10:07 (9:46)Many thanks to all who supported us at the roadside and sent me encouraging messages. Under the harsh weather condition, your support literally kept me going through to the finish

The verdict.

2006-11-07T13:07:00.000+09:00

The final race pace run at Tamagawa on Sunday turned out to be a fiasco. I couldn't keep the planned pace until the end of the 10k mark while I was trying to run 25k. I talked to coach Brett, and we finally verdicted that I am not ready for the primary target and need to set the realistic target. Fine. I am rather relieved than disappointed somehow. Nevertheless, I will run for my new PB in the

1000m x 6.

2006-11-02T12:14:00.000+09:00

I did much better than expected. I feel better now. 3:42 / 3:47 / 3:48 / 3:47 / 3:47 / 4:10 (got cramp)

Suwako Half.

2006-10-31T12:36:00.000+09:00

This is the quote from my post to Namban mailing list. -------------------------------------------------------Last Sunday, three Nambanners ran Suwako Half Marathon. It was a beautiful autumn day at the lake side in Nagano prefecture. Although the temperature was a bit high for this time of the year, there isn't much to complain about the race. Actually, this was the one of the best half marathon

19:58.

2006-10-25T23:56:00.000+09:00

Exactly a year ago, I ran my first sub 20min 5k (19:53). Today, I made second one, 19:58 (3:54 / 3:58 / 4:03 / 4:05 / 3:56), 5sec. off from PB, and it was really barely, but I am still happy. Huge thanks to Motozo for leading me all the way.BTW, Paddy made another PB today, 19:03! It's his 3rd PB in 5 days, and almost 1 min. faster than last month's 5k TT. 1 min. improvement in one month! Amazing

Jog note.

2006-10-24T13:45:00.001+09:00

ショウジさんに教えてもらって最近始めたSNS、ジョグノート。グラフになるのが結構楽しいです。

Takashimadaira 20k race.

2006-10-22T21:05:00.000+09:00

I ran Takashimadaira 20km road race today. It's a small race held at a suburb of Tokyo. I like this race because it is accessible and can be a great preparation for Tokyo Women's Marathon in November. So since 2004, I do this race every year, this was my 3rd time.I barely made a "course" PB, by 7 seconds, but I couldn't break the real PB (1:25:26) that I made during a marathon race last March.

Not quite successful, but OK.

2006-10-19T01:39:00.000+09:00

Again, I did 4:10/km pace run at the track with Stuart, Adam B.and Carol. 12km this time. Rie and Shoji-san joind us later. Maybe I was a bit tired from yesterday's run, it wasn't as good as last week, I slowed down at the 2nd half. (4:03 / 4:09 / 4:07 / 4:09 / 4:12 / 4:10 / 4:12 / 4:13 / 4:13 / 4:16 / 4:16 / 4:08) The average speed was 4:11/km. I should be happy about it.Because I was breathing

Sweet spot of heart rate.

2006-10-15T22:06:00.000+09:00

I don't use heart rate monitor, so I can't tell specific number, but there must be a sweet spot of heart rate when you run. For me, I have just discovered that I feel really good and confortable when I run faster than aerobic but slower than tempo pace, feel much better than just jogging.This week when I have to do aerobic recovery jogs, I actually did this "sweet spot" pace. Still slower than my

Unexpected 10k PB.

2006-10-11T23:06:00.000+09:00

I am a simple person. I have been so unconfident about myself for a long time since every time I try a pace run, I failed or barely made it, and have been thinking that maybe this pace setting is wrong for me. Until today.Today, I decided to do a 10k pace run at the track with 4:10 to 4:15 per k pace. Stuart ran with me and thanks to him, I could manage 4:10 pace all the way and we even speeded

Tokyo, Tokyo and London.

2006-10-10T19:15:00.000+09:00

In these couple of days, it turned out that I am going to run three marathons in this 2006-2007 season. Tokyo Women's in November, Tokyo Marathon in February and London Marathon in April. Last winter, when I did three marathons in a row (tokyo, osaka and nagoya), my whole 6 months were dominated by marathon training and I swore myself that I would never ever do three marathons in one winter. It's

30k at Yoyogi park.

2006-10-01T23:51:00.000+09:00

Since I failed the registration to Global Festa charity run 20k at the Palace (I was late for payment deadline), I decided to run 30km at Yoyogi park this morning. To do a long run, I really need company, otherwise I get bored and slow down a lot. At Yoyogi park this morning, there weren't many people but I had a good company (thanks, Adam Y.) till 6th lap and could run 11 laps with decent

Terry Fox Run.

2006-09-25T11:10:00.000+09:00

Thanks to the swim and massage I had in Saturday, I became able to run Terry Fox Run 10k on Sunday. It wasn't really a race since we didn't even get a number, but it's a good opportunity to compete with other runners anyway. My target was 42:30 and I managed to finish with 42:24. Barely, but I'm happy. I think I was the 1st woman, but no prize. It was really a "run and walk", not a race at all so

Consequence of the Yasso 800.

2006-09-23T13:16:00.000+09:00

Since the Yasso 800 on Wednesday, I have been suffering from fatigue and leg strain and only able to do short and easy jogs so far, and missed a hill training. Perhaps I will not be able to do 25k for today, either. I felt good right after the session, but it now seems a bit too much for my body.For a marathon training, everyone says it's more important to fulfill everyday's training menu than

Yasso 800.

2006-09-20T21:54:00.000+09:00

今日の南蛮トラックワークアウトは、Yasso 800。フルマラソンタイムに合わせて、800mのタイムを設定し、グループごとに走る。フルマラソンが3時間15分の人は、800ｍを3分15秒で10本。インターバルも3分15分。3時間の人は800mを3分ちょうどで10本。インターバルも3分。私はちょっと背伸びして、3分のグループに入った。実は私かねがねこのYasso 800というトレーニングに疑いを持っていた。ちょっとラクすぎやしないかと。何しろインターバルタイムが長すぎる。去年3分15秒グループで走っていた時は、スピードもたいして出さなくていいし、たっぷり休めるしで、まあ、楽勝だったのだ。「こんなんで3時間15分切れるってのは、何かの間違いでは？」と思っていた。しかし、3分グループは訳が違った。そもそも800mを3分以内で走るというのは、私にとってはけっこう大変。インターバルが長いとはいえ、

30k with the real hill.

2006-09-17T20:04:00.000+09:00

Another 30km long run weekend. After doing a course marshal in Run for Africa charity race, I started my own training. Thanks to Yoshida-san who ran with me for 4 laps, and Rob who happend to run with us for 3 laps, I could keep decent 5min per k pace until 20km. I ran the last 10k part by myself, incorporating the final 7km hilly part of Tokyo Women's real course. Last year, I struggled so much

Training log, at least.

2006-09-13T11:21:00.001+09:00

I am moving on to the next training stage. Now I am focusing on intensity, not weekly mileage anymore, but still I am running 100km a week as a consequence of 7 runs in a week. Here is my training log last week.<4-10 Sep.> Mon: Hill repeats, 17k altogetherTue: Easy 14kWed: 5k @4:15 pace, failed.... 10.5k altogetherThu: Hill repeats, 18.8kFri: 6 x 100m on/offSat: Fartlek 10.6kSun: Long and easy

よれよれ30km & 信じられないトレーニングメニュー。

2006-09-04T16:02:00.000+09:00

土曜日のロングラン30kmは、ダメモトで参加者を募ったものの、結局一人旅となった。半蔵門の銭湯バンドゥーシュから午後4時半にスタートし、皇居6周。中盤はまあまあのペースを保てたものの、最後の2周はバテたし飽きたしで、よれよれ。どーにかこーにか距離だけは全うしたが、20kmと30kmってどうしてこんなに違うんだろう。日曜日は仕事でヤクルトランニング教室。気がついたら参加者と一緒にトラック練習に参加することになってしまい、ホントはロングランの翌日はやっちゃいけないスピード走をやるハメに。少々遅めのグループに入れてもらって、なんとかこなしたが、左ふくらはぎが筋肉痛以上に痛い、今。でも、ダニエル・ジェンガ選手に会えたので、よしとする。それにしてもケニア人ランナーって、ホント惚れ惚れするような肢体をしている。走るために生まれたとしか言いようのない肉体。カッコいい!　ジェンガ選手はシカゴマラソンに向

Summer 2006.

2006-09-02T02:59:00.000+09:00

It's been a month since I last updated this blog. When I tried to update, I realized I even didn't remember how to log in. After several trials with possible IDs and PWs, I barely managed to log in.During this silent August, I worked hard and ran a lot. A 100km bike ride in Okutama, an Ome trail run and no swim at all. So it was like work run work run work run brick training. Pretty hard, but not