You know when you reach a set of traffic lights and you hit the button so that the green man appears to indicate that is safe to cross? Well what I don’t quite understand about some people when they hit the green man knowing full well that it will only appear when the traffic light turns red is that…why do they keep on pressing it again after like 10 secs vigorously???

Do they really think it’s gonna make the green man appear faster?! If you think about it, it’s not very hard to put 2 & 2 together…no matter how hard or how often u push the button the green man aint showing up till the lights turn RED!!! OMG!!!

Sorry just had to vent…end lol

Any thoughts guys?

Leading up to the race I was carrying an injury to both my knees and was praying and hoping to just finish the race. I ended up running with the 4hours 15min pace group…Don’t ask me why, it was a stupid idea especially with the injury I was carrying but to tell you the truth I do not regret it at all!

My left knee starting giving way at the 12km mark to my dismay but I kept on pushing. My pace leader told me that he had a sure fire way of gettin rid of the pain and I asked him how and he said “I’ll punch you in the face!” LOL!!! I said I might have to get back to him on that at the 30km mark, if I make it that far. He was such an inspiration and such a great motivator, and at the 25km mark when I wanted to thrown in the towel coz of my knee he started asking me more about myself and what I do in order to take my mind of the pain.

At the 30km mark I got one of the biggest lifts throughout the whole race! My good friend Paulino waited for me all morning at the 30km mark and as soon as he saw me he YELLED OUT “COME ONE LIONEL U CAN DO IT!!!” I tell you what people, no energy gel or power drink could have done what Paulino did for me then. I lifted and was back in the game! He followed me along the running course on his bicycle and told my gf when I was going to pass her.

Saw two other friends Julianne and George keeping my gf company and I just had to ask for a kiss from my gf and that was another super pick me up! At the 35km mark I felt it…What u may ask? It was THE WALL!!! The MARATHONER’S WORST NIGHTMARE! Your legs feel like jelly and everything starts to cramp up and you start to question yourself…”Lionel! WTF are u doing?! Why are you putting urself through this?!”

But the mind is a strong thing and it can overcome whatever your body tells you! So PUSHED ON I DID! At the last 2km I felt my hamstring about to pull and tried not to slow down too much as I was afraid I might pull it. Was so nervous when I saw a runner in front of me then pull his right hammy, which was where I was feeling too but thank god mine help up.

At the last corner I saw the finish line and I was swearing &*&%*^()#&% in my head as I realised it was an uphill finish! I felt like I was sprinting towards the finish line and I had that theme song slow motion thingo in my head…LOL must have been going as slow as a turtle.

At the finish I was just so emotional I couldn’t hold back the tears! I can honestly say it was the most emotional thing I have ever done and accomplished! Had a massage from the Fitness First crew there and it felt so good. Also took an ice bath when I got home and OMG WAS IT FREEZING!!! Was screaming when I got into the bath and couldn’t stay in for the first 1 minute but got back in for another 15 which felt good! Recovering today and my knees are killling me, can barely walk compared to when I was running yesterday hehehehehe…

I would like to say a BIG THANK YOU to everyone for supporting me and encouraging me, before, after and during my race and also to those who donated!!! If any of you would like to donate to my charity you still can at http://www.everydayhero.com.au/shortie84

THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't let the smile fool u...I was in pain LOL!

Was so glad to see my gf at the Finish Line waiting for me

Julianne and George! Great support!

TO make matters worse I did a 30km final run last Sat the weekend before the race and injured myself pretty badly. Knees have been a bit sore over the past few days.

I’ve now decided that my legs are not strong enough to be wearing the Vibrams past 25km so I’m going back to my old LunarGlides for some extra support.

Nonetheless I’m quite psyched about the race tomorrow at 7am! Why u ask? Who in their right mind would be excited about running for 4 hours + and 42km? Well I’m running it for charity and a lot of people have donately graciously for my selected charity CPEC and I don’t wanna let them down!

I’ve recently seen a few really good quotes to get me in the mood recently!

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.” – Lance Armstrong

“If I go one second faster, or one meter further than I have ever gone before, I win. If I don’t, I won trying”

Now my job for the next few days is to taper, stay positive, don’t think too much of the race and CARB LOAD! WOhooooo!!! Supposedly I can carb load up to 2kg hehehehehe so lots of eating yesterday and today!

Guys! If you are interested in donation to my run/charity please visit http://www.everydayhero.com.au/shortie84

THANKS ALL FOR THE WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT AND I’LL TRY MY BEST TO FINISH THE RACE!

Was a bit worried going into this race that I didn’t prep enough for it but it ended up being such a beautiful day that nothing was going to stop me! The sun was out, kids were lining the route with their parents while sticking out their tiny hands for a high five or two from the passing runners, and the crowd was amazing!

I did the stupidest thing though, at the 19km mark I thought I’d sprint the last 1km so I ran my guts out and saw the FINISH LINE in the distance and was overjoyed. However, I then realised everyone was still running and I had passed the FINISH LINE…OH SHIT!!! It’s a 21km race I still got 1km to go and I sprinted waaaaayyyyy too early…STEWPID BOIIIII!!! I totally forgot that there was another 1km in the race before you make a u-turn and an uphill leg to the FINISH LINE! I almost died I tell you, lol I was so pumped esp with people cheering GOOD STRONG FINISH but little did I know I still had another 1km to go.

Nevertheless I still pushed on to finish the 1km and was the toughest part of the whole race but running down the last 100m the announcer on the PA was cheering me and this other guy on as we sprinted to the FINISH. She was yelling, “GO YOU GOOD THING! SPRINT FINISH BOYS! SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT!” and the crowd was going nuts!!!

Finished the race in 1:51:58 and was very happy especially since I was aiming for a 2 hour finish because it was the first half marathon I had done in my Vibram Five Fingers! Now on to the MARATHON in OCTOBER!!!

I think the highlight of the race would be just before the 19km mark near where a lot of the supporters were, a lil 5 year old girl standing along the side of the course stuck out her hand and as I HIGH FIVE’d her she yelled out “GOOD JOB” in the cutest way. This is why I enjoy running RACES!

p.s. I’m running the Melbourne Marathon for charity so if you would like to donate to my charity CPEC – Cerebral Palsy Education Centre, please visit htttp://www.everydayhero.com.au/shortie84

Some pictures for you guys to enjoy! =)

All smiles now at the start!

Twas freeeeeezzzzziiiinnnngggg in the morning

Almost there!

SPRINT FINISSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

I was so excited to finally run in my Vibram Five Fingers in an official race so I thought what better than to do it in a 10km race!

I got a few friends to come along too and the girls here at the bottom were running their first race and after the race they were estatic and loved the atmosphere of the day so much that they are planning to join the next 10km race in Oct!

I was aiming for a 50min target and in the first half of the race I set myself up to follow another racer who was fast enough for me to keep up and running at a consistent space. One thing I’ve learnt from running races is that plugging your earphones and turning ur ipod on is such a waste because
1. It’s harder to keep a steady pace coz naturally u follow the beat of the music
2. It’s harder to pace your breathing coz of the music as well
3. And finally, you can’t enjoy the beautiful sounds of the outdoors and of the supporters cheering u on

So take my advice and try running a race without your ipod switched on next time, it seriously will not make your race harder but actually make it much more enjoyable and easier.

Amazingly I finished my race better than expected and recorded a PB (Personal Best) of 46:10 and had never been so tired after running 10km before. The next thought that came to my mind was…I CAN’T WAIT FOR THE MARATHON IN OCTOBER

If you’re interested in donating towards my Marathon in Oct as I’ll be running for charity please visit my donation page @ My Marathon Charity

More pics from Run Melbourne

Is this the end?

I openly admit that I don’t know what the big fuss is all about with Bieber Fever. He’s just a kid who is probably going to disappear into the wilderness of fame once he cracks his voice aka Aaron “Where is he now” Carter.

After watching the show for some reason I kinda felt compelled to like this kid and how far he has gone in his life to get where he is now even though he’s only like 16 years old. I understood why all these girls (from 8-50 years old) were balling their eyes out whenever they saw him. It’s freaking pandemonium esp when you see an 8 year old just crying like some lunatic groupie. However after thinking about it, I was more amazed at another not so transparent fact of the movie…it was Branding at its best!!! From the purple clothes, to the purple Yankees Hat and who could not notice, THAT HAIR!!!

That HAIR!

Purple much?

If you have watched it or will be watching it soon, think about this, in the whole show you hardly hear the boy talk to the camera, it was everyone else around him that was being interviewed, and the director knew how to market this “brand” and did it oh so well. From the likes of his manager, to bodyguard, singing coach and of course the “right” fans. It’s amazing how social media also helps push the Bieber Brand globally and is ironic how I am doing it now too!

Well yesterday in KL, Malaysia if any of you didn’t know this, a peaceful rally was held to bring light the corruption in the country especially when it comes to the National Election. This was the 2nd time a rally like this has been organised and was fittingly called Bersih 2.0 after the original Bersih rally in 2007.

It is ironic how our Malaysian Prime Minister Najib talks about his 1Malaysia campaign so much and how it should bring the people together but a rally like Bersih which actually is against his posse is the one thing that REALLY DOES BRING MALAYSIANS TOGETHER! How can he say the rallies are riots when the people participating did nothing but walk the streets of KL in a united front and instead the police were the ones shooting tear gas, chemical water filled cannons and beating people up. It’s sad that the country and the WORLD needed to see this but at the same time I hope it does bring about a change in our supposedly “democratic” country.

Supporters voicing out in front of KLCC

The peaceful Bersih rally

Bad boys bad boys, watcha gonna do, watcha gonna do when they come for you?!

Even our own Information Minister couldn’t handle an interview with poise and was so brutal in verbally attacking the media http://www.metacafe.com/watch/976944/aljazeera_interview_malaysia_mis_information_minister/

This video (below) to me says it all! Especially the guy in what I believe is the Pudu Bus Station car park using a water hose to help wash the faces of supporters affected by the tear gas. My auntie was also hit by tear gas and she said “boy does it hurt” but she pushed on and is all ok.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=odU5gJ7UHII

All in all well done my fellow Malaysians who decided to voice their concerns and I hope this brings about good change for our country! Bersih was not only felt in Malaysia but was also publicly supported in places like Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore, UK and Australia. I know it’s not going to happen overnight, but every step no matter how small is always going to make a difference…HIDUP RAKYAT! HIDUP BERSIH!

The soft and cuddly ones are back!

Awesome new villain

I have to admit I was a bit worried coz the first movie was spectacular and you know sequels of a great movie are normally crap and just riding on the wave of popularity from the first one. However, Jack Black and co have outdone themselves for this one! I guess to quote that fatty Panda “PO”…it was PURE AWESOMENESS!!! It was so colourful, even funnier than the first, was amazing in 3D (I’m not kidding, watching it in 2D wouldn’t be the same) and best of all….the story line was FANTASTIC! The villain (Lord Shen) in the picture above was a wonderful addition as you couldn’t pic a more beautiful animal than the peacock!

Short Stuffs Meter:

Total awesomeness

Worth watching

Ok ok only lah

What a waste of money

My grandma could make a better movie!

FINAL RATING  I highly recommend it and is good for all ages!

Last night however I went to watch a movie I have been anticipating for all year. Let’s face it, almost every boy had a Transformers toy back in the 80-90s. It was like a birth right! Well when the first Transformers movie by Michael Bay came out I was very very impressed and totally loved the way it was made, from the design of the Autobots/Decepticons, to Shia LaBeouf’s weird and wacky individuality and who could forget that oh so sexy Megan FOX! *hubba hubba*

In case you needed a reminder who Megan Fox is

Shockwave!

Good ol' Bumblebee

The 2nd movie was a bit of a disaster to me though, they tried to up the ante with more action scenes and trying for too much humour while sacrificing the story line. The action scenes were good dun get me wrong but the humour was appalling! So when the trailer for the third movie was screened I was expecting it to be EPIC! Well truth be told, they had me going for 3/4 of the movie but I was utterly disappointed with the ending or lack of a climax scene! The last 1/4 of the movie was such an anti climax to me it left me with a broken heart but then again the rest of the movie still kicked the 2nd one’s ASS!!!

The plus was the autobots did have some cooler characters this time and I love the addition of Shockwave, Soundwave and what looked like Laserbeak. Shia Lebouf and gang still kept it pretty damn funny though. Finally,  I have to admit that Megan Fox’s replacement was even more of a hottie and DAAYYUUUMMMMM!!!!!!!!!! SHE FINE! (helps that she is a Victoria’s Secret model, can’t act for $hits but who cares!) Check her out!

*WARNING* Image might cause severe staring

Short Stuffs Meter

Total awesomeness :lol:

Worth watching :)

Ok ok only lah :?

What a waste of money :(

My grandma could make a better movie! 8O

FINAL RATING The only let down was the anti climatic ending but still a must see for all Transformers fans

Well ever since I got to Melbourne I haven’t been doing much running but on 31st August 2008, my good friend/housemate Azlan, Cindy and Cynthia decided to participate in the Nike Human Race. Ever since then I had the RUNNING BUG!!! The date is such a coincidence coz it’s on Malaysia’s Independence Day so you could you say I found FREEDOM IN MY FEET! Following that race, I did a few more for example Run for the Kids and Run Melbourne.

For some reason I cut down on running races after that. Don’t ask me why but then I got it again after my friend Damon and I found out about Vibram Five Fingers! If you have a look at one of my previous posts I wrote something about running in them for my races this year. I guess I took my time transitioning into them as they change the way you run.

Anyway, enough talk of my VFFs (I can go on and on about em, if given the chance), this year I’ve decided it’s time for me to get back into it because for some reason something put that Running Bug into my system and I can’t stop looking for races to run.

I guess one of the main reasons I run is for the pure ecstasy you get on race day as well as whenever you complete a run. In fact I read this somewhere today:

“Using high-tech brain imaging scans, the neuroscientists took images of 10 runners’ brains before and after a two-hour run. What they found: Endorphins flooded the brain during exercise and gathered around areas of the brain responsible for feel-good moods and emotion–hence the blissful high.”

It kinda explains why I am so happy and hyper after a big run even though I may be physically tired and exhausted. A lot of people think it is just too painful and hard to run but if you think about it, we as humans, one of God’s most amazing creations have been running since FOREVER!!! Humans are the best distance runners and certain tribes have been known to track prey for HUUUGGGEEEE distances until the prey is tired and then only will the hunters go for the kill. It’s truly amazing! Just google it and you will be amazed! The only problem is that we have been so pampered with technology and easy comforts that we forget the joy of going outdoors for a run!

I ran in the rain not long ago and I have to admit that it was SO MUCH FUN! I felt like a kid again running in the rain. Of course I’m not asking you to go out and wait for a torrential downpour and lightning then start running, now that is just PLAIN STUPID!

Running must be great fun too because why would thousands of people then sign up for races around the world. Before I forget my cousin, his bro-in-law and a friend are running an ultra-marathon for charity. What is an ultra-marathon you ask? Well it’s a marathon filled with people dressed in Ultraman outfits (sorry I just had to imagine that LOL), but it is actually a 100km marathon! NUTS!!! Races are normally run for charity as well so if you can go pledge to their run.

http://runit4charity.com/

You also get to meet a lot of new people when running as I have found out recently. You see, I normally hate training for a run but I told myself that I need to be more focused especially if I wanna ready myself for the Marathon this year. So when I signed up for the Run Melbourne 10km event this year I told myself that I will try and make it to the free training sessions every week and so far I’ve done 3 session and I have to admit it’s so much fun and I have never looked forward to training for a run so much before.

You get to meet so many interesting people and start new friendships so don’t even think about shying away from a training group session next time you sign up for a run because there are so many happy, endorphin-fused runners out there willing to have a chat or two!

I’ve attached some pics of the Races I have participated in over the past few years in Melbourne. I have to say, looking back at em brings back a lot of fond memories with friends and it reminds me so much of what to expect this year that everyday I can’t contain my enthusiasm for the races I have and will be signing up for this year!

If you want to you can donate to my run as well (it’s no Ultra-Marathon but hey, it’s for charity)

http://runmelbourne.everydayhero.com.au/lionel_lim_4

Run you say?

Run for the Kids 2009

Tired much?

All the running makes food tastes OH SO GUUUUUUDDDDDD!

Special stretches to cool down after a run

3 idiots awake at 6am before the start of the Half Marathon

3 idiots after completing the Half Marathon

Good job everybody! Run Melbourne 2009

Must be the endorphins kicking in

RAWR! So hungry we could eat our medals!

All smiles BABY!

I’ve watched a few games on TV back when I was in Malaysia and I have to admit I always enjoyed it. So going tonight was going to be like a refresher on the rules and I have to admit my colleagues weren’t wrong when they said it was the best Sporting Event ever! LOL! It was so entertaining and the crowd was great, you had to be there to experience it.

I know a lot of you must be thinking what is Roller Derby? Well in Victoria it’s an All Girls league and before you start making assumptions, NO I did not go there to see chicks in skimpy outfits. Yes some of their outfits were skimpy but not a single one of them were good looking. They were the type of rocker, tattoo covered, sometimes goth kinda chicks…Some were really big and burly and some lanky and fast!

There are 3 types of players on each team.

1 Jammer – The only player who can score points
1 Pivot – She is normally the last line of defence as well as the pacemaker of her team of blockers
3 Blockers – The name says it all, the block the Jammers from passing them

So the basics of it is this

When the game starts (which is on a oval rink) the 3 blockers and 1 Pivot from both teams start skating around the rink. Then about 2-3 seconds later the Jammers from both teams who start behind the pack start skating too. The first thing to do is both Jammers need to break through the pack in order to be called the “Lead Jammer” of the round and will have to power to call off a round before the clock runs out. One a jammer passes the group, she then needs to lap the group and catch up again from behind them. When she eventually catches up she needs to go through the pack again and every opposition player she laps she gets a point. This goes on until either the Lead Jammer calles off the game by “V”ing her hips/groin (u know like that dirty gesture they do in Wrestling?) or until the 2 minutes for that round is over and they do it all over again. Might sound a bit boring but trust me there is a lot of strategy and speed invovled, as well as a lot of shoulder barges which sometimes takes a player out of the rink completely and into the crowd who decide to sit just along the rink or also known as the “Suicide Lane”.

There are a lot more things to go through but you have to be there to get what I mean, all I have covered is just the basic rules! Check it out if you can and I’ve also posted some pics below. The 1st game of the night (Toxic Avengers vs Bloody Marys) started well but ended up as a belting for the losing team because the winning (Toxic) team had their star player blitzing the rest and her name was Kittie von Krusher!

The 2nd game of the night was between Dolls Au-Go-Go vs Dead Ringer Rosies (I told you they have great names!). The lead can change anytime and it was a SPECTACULER MATCH! Rosies started off so well and were leading 18-0 but then the Dolls got back into the game in the last 10 minutes and ripped the Rosies apart and went into half time leading by 44 points! In the 2nd half the Dolls played great defence and attack but in the last 15 minutes the Rosies came out of nowhere and came so close to winning the game in the last minute. The crowd was going nuts and it was a nail biting finish. In the last 30 seconds the Rosies brought it back to 1 point but the Dolls defended like their lives depended on it and lasted the last few seconds of the onslaught! What an experience!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It all happens in there!!!

Weird but funny costumes being sold at the stalls

Geelong Bloody Marys

New bottle design...I LIKE!!!

First game about to start Toxic Avengers vs Bloody Marys

First game and they're OFF!!!

Dead Ringer Rosies

Dolls Au-Go-Go

Dead Ringer Rosies

Dolls Au-Go-Go

Program guide

Great time with my colleagues

It's all over Dolls 87 - Rosies 86!

It brought me here to a new post and I’ve decided to challenge my life over the next few months. Now don’t get this confused with setting goals because I feel that setting goals typically mean you just aim for that one spot and stop. I guess what I’m trying to say is that the difference is to continuously challenge yourself in life and not stop once you reach a certain goal

Here is my list to Challenge Life!!!

1. Be an outstanding person in the workforce – my company is filled with geniuses and can be quite daunting esp for me because I can honestly say I am quite new to the area I am in at the moment. So I have to challenge myself to work smart and keep myself in the know about the products we sell and how best to excel in area of work

2. Run run run – I have to get back into shape with my running esp if I want to embark on my first Marathon this October! 2 years ago I had that running habit but it slowly died down and I’m going to do my best to challenge myself to run a few times a week

3. Hit the gym – I have to admit I have been a bit slack of late when it comes to my weight workout and have developed a bit of a flabby tummy and lost some of the little muscle I once had. Well only one way to get it back! This time though I’m going to make sure I keep the weights goin upwards instead of using the same weight over and over again because, HEY what’s the point if I don’t lift anything heavier after a month or so am I rit

4. Family – keeping in touch with family more often was one of those goals I set myself too at the beginning of the year but have kinda lost my way a bit. I need to talk to my parents more, my sisters and my two lil nieces mores even though they are all the way in the US

5 Save save SAVE – been cutting down on my spending lately and have been quite proud of myself, normally getting only the things I need…after all I do need to save up for my own place instead of always renting which is basically bad debt!

I’ll leave it there for now until I know I can start challenging myself on more fronts but till then…….

WISH ME LUCK AND I HOPE YOU CHALLENGE LIFE TOO!!!