shek Mun training Day 4 (21k)

Didn't windsurf, wind too mild, would end up pumping on the sail all day.

So I went to Shek Mun to train instead, and I'm glad I did.  Had curry for lunch in the Thai place near Sai Kung Pier first, then bused to Shek Mun (ho hum...)  

As soon as I got there, I spend 30+ minutes on the stepping machine, got my heart rate up to 172, then drank a lot of water.  Maybe I drank too much?  Or I ate too much at lunch?  I ended up feeling really sick and puked.

tried to get back onto the stepping machine, but was feeling too sick to go on.  Studied for a while (JLPT), puked some more, then did what I could on the weight sets.  After stretching, I felt much better, but decided not to push my luck (or stomach, for that matter), and went down to the water where I always feel more at home. 

I think I performed well today.  At least, I did much better than my previous attempt at Shek Mun:

Launch (pontoon) 1420 

--> mucked around for a bit, needed to rearrange the styrofoam, cos I could hardly stuff my legs into the cockpit.

-500 mark   1434

3ooo mark  1504

-500 mark   1529

3ooo mark  1559

-500 mark   1624

3ooo mark  1657

-500 mark   1721

pontoon       1733 (had to dodge a few row-boats)

heart rate at 116bpm

21km/167mins = 7.5km/hr

For some reasons I felt very uncomfortable while moving downstream.  When I paddled against headwind up the river, every paddle stroke felt solid; I could tell whether I was rotating my torso by gaging how much power I had to exert with my arms.  But when I moved down stream with the wind, (I felt as though I was being sun-dried alive, and) I felt as though I was just going through the motion.  When I planted my blade and rotated my torso, it felt as though the water gave me nothing back to grab.  In terms of speed I was moving faster than upstream, but I just felt as though I wasn't moving efficiently, like my body was rotating and moving in vain.

was tired after I rounded the 3000 mark for the 3rd time, and my speed also dropped significantly, so obviously I need to work on endurance.  I know I still haven't fully recovered from the 60k (SMB) trip, and I also lifted weight today, but I think it's encouraging that my body can recover while I continue to paddle 20+k on a daily basis.