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Monthly Archives: August 2009
Karate 125 …the last class of the summer
I felt not that good today because of allergies caused by me playing around in the yard. There was a lot of dry grass and weed dust and moldy vegetation I was raking around. I got a sore throat and feel like I have the flu, but I think it is just allergies. Anyway, in the early part of the class came the warm up as usual then we did some sparring practice which I really, really hate. Really. I suppose if I was not such a klutz I might like it more. But being handicapped by a lack of flexibility, joint problems, and coordination I really have no chance of doing well in this area. When I look at how much better everyone else is at this, I really feel it is all futile. Intellectually I know it is not futile. I will get better at it and pretty … Continue reading
Posted in Karate, Training Notes
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My favorite star is Tarazed in Aquila, the Eagle.
So far in my star gazing, I’ve looked at Deneb, Vega, Sadir, Altair, Alshain, Arcturus, and Tarazed plus a lot of others whose names I don’t know yet. I’ve looked at M13 and M31 too, one is a galaxy (Andromeda), and the other a globular cluster in Hercules. I am just getting back into astronomy after a long absence so I am looking at the sky with 15 x 70 Celestron binoculars. They are of course, too shaky to see anything properly yet, but I am picking up a Sky Window early next week and this should allow me to view things a whole lot better. Anyway, by far the most beautiful object I’ve observed to date is Tarazed at RA 19h 46m and DEC +10.36 degrees. At a magnitude of 2.8 it is a K3 class brilliant orange or reddish star only 100,000,000 years old and already fusing helium … Continue reading
Posted in Astronomy, Science Friction
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Run 66, 2009 …endurance = speed + distance
Knowing I would be missing a run this Saturday due to a company paintball function, I decided to run extra hard today. I passed my 7 km waypoint in only 47 minutes and 30 seconds, finishing the 11.15 kilometer course in 1:15:23 for a 6:46 pace. To do that, I illustrated a law of physics wherein endurance = speed + distance. This simply means that if you can run 10 miles (for example) at a slow pace before you have nothing left, you can expend the same amount of energy by running at a fast pace but you won’t be able to run as far. This simple equation is merely illustrative. If you keep endurance fixed, you can up the speed but then you must lessen the distance and vice-versa. Of course, in the real world endurance is not fixed. It changes depending on how healthy you feel at the … Continue reading
Posted in Training Notes, Training Runs
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Karate 124 …juroku revisited
A lot of push-ups, crunches, and core exercises and stretching were followed by basic kicks kata. Later we were shown juroku. We were shown this kata once before, but we had to relearn it in yesterday’s class. It is another woman’s kata. It was designed for women. This kata allows for defense against much larger and stronger adversaries, which is why this kata was ideal for women. The other woman’s kata we learned was aoyagi. Woman samurai were not allowed to carry swords and this one allowed the dagger women samurai carried to be concealed during the strike. I’ve not gone into very precise detailed description here so don’t quote me on anything. It is not a sexist thing, really. It is a practical thing. If I were to say, “It’s a girly kata”, that would be sexist. Historically, such kata were preferred for women because you did not have … Continue reading
Posted in Karate, Training Notes
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Devon Turkey Chase, 2009
Run 65, 2009 …does a little anger make you run faster, better?
Who can say? But I was feeling pretty depressed and discouraged today. And when I get that way I end up getting angry. In one of my recent posts I said that I had a sub 50 minute goal for a way point on one of my trail training routes. I also wanted to beat my previous PR time of 1:16 (and change) for my fastest 11.15 kilometer distance on that route. (I know, I’m a slow old gaffer). That day I did 50 minutes and 8 seconds. Today I ran past that way point in 49 minutes and finished the route in 1:15:47 for a 6:48 per kilometer pace. The weather was very breezy and cool, slightly overcast. I’m a little less angry now. By the way, speaking of SLOW, I am at least 30 minutes too slow to place in my age group over a 16 kilometer trail … Continue reading
Posted in Training Notes, Training Runs
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