The coming weeks.

Happy CNY team, I hope you are enjoying your Chinese New Year, so far. Or at the very least, enjoying the Angpows rolling in. I know I am. :D

Or, you might be just that slight bit ticked off about relatives commenting ceaselessly about your changed skin tone, physique, height, mannerisms, age, etc....

(You have turned into a sexy beast.)

Either way, its good to take some time off from everything - from studying like dogs, from training like dogs and being stressed out like cats. (Because dogs don't stress.)

Just wanted to let you guys know, especially those with upcoming competitions, that should any of you, for any reason, need the club key to access the swift racings and paddles (if you intend to train really early in the morning, or on Mondays, most likely), you can contact me, Yan or Jemmy. I can't speak for them, but feel free to call me weekdays, because I will be in school almost daily, training and studying.

Which bring us to our next point - Don't neglect your studies. Obviously I know you guys well enough to trust that you won't get carried away with the lack of compulsory training and go gallivanting off on some fun vacation - but at the same time, do balance out the self-training with study time in equal amounts.

Also, lack of oxygen to the brain is extremely detrimental to your studying, as studies show:

"The brain demands at least 20% of the body's oxygen supply, when it doesn't get this supply it can lead to issues such as sleep apnea, poor concentration, forgetfulness, mood swings, restlessness, depressive thoughts and low drive." - Brain activity - Dr. Andrew Scholey, Division of Psychology, University of Northumbria

So if you plan to train first, and study later, do avoid high-intensity training such as endurance gymming, 3-minute rowing intervals, and -of course- Interval running.

You can have it your way and go ahead anyway, but chances are, you'll put your head down on the desk for just a second, and wake up at library closing time. That's just the way our bodies work.

For the old(er) group, there's still MR500 waiting for us, so don't fret, and don't slacken your training! I'm not leaving that race without a podium finish this year, and neither should you. :D

Your very fattened up Captain

-Kiiro