Tuesday, October 28, 2008

KNS!! I did badly for my IPPT today!!!!!!!!!

I failed 3 stations - SBJ, chin up and 2.4km - today. Damn it! I was doing night shift on Sunday and Mon. Went back home on Tuesday morning to sleep and then went to bedok camp for IPPT. My body was not on good condition to pass IPPT. I only do better for sit up while the rest I did not improve on my previous IPPT results. I believe my body has too much cortisol and too little glucose storage and too little serotonin today.... Never underestimate the health damage caused by doing night shift. Read the articles below for more information:

Sleep Deprivation Can Hinder Sports Performance

Logic would say that getting enough sleep is important for optimal sports performance, but there wasn't much evidence to support this theory -- until now. Some recent studies have found that that sleep deprivation can slow glucose metabolism by as much as 30 to 40%.

Eve Van Cauter, Ph.D., from the University of Chicago Medical School, studied the effects of three different durations of sleep in 11 men ages 18 to 27. For the first three nights of the study, the men slept eight hours per night; for the next six nights, they slept four hours per night; for the last seven nights, they slept 12 hours per night.

Results showed that after four hours of sleep per night (the sleep deprivation period), they metabolized glucose least efficiently. Levels of cortisol (a stress hormone) were also higher during sleep deprivation periods, which has been linked to memory impairment, age-related insulin resistance, and impaired recovery in athletes.

Van Cauter said that after only one week of sleep restriction, young, healthy males had glucose levels that were no longer normal and showed a rapid deterioration of the body's functions. This reduced ability of the body to manage glucose is similar to those found in the elderly.

Most of what we know about sleep deprivation has to do with immune function and brain function. This study is interesting because it shows that sleep deprivation can negatively impact physiology that is critical for athletic performance -- glucose metabolism and cortisol status. While no one completely understands the complexities of sleep, this (and other research) indicates that sleep deprivation can lead to increased levels of cortisol (a stress hormone), decreased activity of human growth hormone (which is active during tissue repair), and decreased glycogen synthesis.

Other studies link sleep deprivation with decreased aerobic endurance and increased ratings of perceived exertion.

What does this all mean?

Glucose and glycogen (stored glucose) are the main sources of energy for athletes. Being able to store glucose in muscle and the liver is particularly important for endurance athletes. Those who are sleep deprived may experience slower storage of glycogen, which prevents storage of the fuel an athlete needs for endurance events beyond 90 minutes.

Elevated levels of cortisol may interfere with tissue repair and growth. Over time, this could prevent an athlete from responding to heavy training and lead to overtraining and injury.

Obviously, more research is necessary. But this study indicates that a chronic lack of sleep may affect metabolic function. For the endurance athlete, proper sleep during heavy training and before competitions certainly may help and is unlikely to cause harm.

Why Athletes Need Rest and Recovery

It is the alternation of adaptation and recovery that takes the athlete to a higher level of fitness. High-level athletes need to realize that the greater the training intensity and effort, the greater the need for planned recovery. Monitoring your workouts with a training log, and paying attention to how your body feels and how motivated you are is extremely helpful in determining your recovery needs and modifying your training program accordingly.



======================


Why You Should Try to Avoid Shift Work and Irregular Sleep

According to a study published in the August 1, 2007 issue of the journal Sleep, rotating shift workers have significantly lower levels of serotonin (precursor to melatonin) than people who work regular day shifts. A total of 683 men of European ancestry were evaluated for this study; 437 were day workers, and 246 were rotating shift workers.

Serotonin is a hormone that circulates throughout your body. It is also a neurotransmitter in your central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). A chronically low level of serotonin is associated with many health challenges, the most common of which are:

  • Poor quality sleep
  • Problems with body temperature regulation
  • Tendency to feel depressed and anxious
  • Poor ability to regulate anger and aggression
  • Sexual difficulties

The findings of this most recent study confirm the importance of maintaining a regular circadian rhythm by resting when you are tired, and striving to maintain a regular routine of sleeping.

If your current life circumstances do not allow for a regular sleeping routine, you should at least strive to acquire restful sleep whenever your schedule allows you to. Here are a few suggestions on how to accomplish this while working on a rotating shift schedule:

  1. Within your irregular sleep schedule, strive to maintain a steady routine of eating, getting cleaned up, spending time with loved ones, and taking care of necessary errands before going to sleep.
  2. When you must sleep while the sun is out, use a sleeping mask or dark and heavy curtains to provide a dark sleeping environment. A dark sleeping environment is important to your body's ability to produce serotonin.
  3. Do everything you can to minimize potential disruptions during sleep time, like turning the phone ringer off, posting a 'no solicitations' sign outside your home or apartment, and wearing earplugs.

For more information on this topic, including suggestions on how to support your health via high quality sleep, view the following articles:

Why You Should Sleep in Darkness

How Much Sleep Do You Really Need to Be Healthy?

Healthy Foods that Promote Deep Sleep

Nine Steps to Better Sleep

Study Abstract:
http://www.journalsleep.org/ViewAbstract.aspx?citationid=3306


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Wednesday, October 22, 2008

The 'R' word is getting louder and louder

Global economy very bad. I am starting to hear the echo of the 'R' word. When will it be my turn??

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Thursday, October 16, 2008

I pass my 2.4km during my 6th IPT session

Ok, today I went for the 6th session. The PTI warned us that it is the last training (next week will be briefing) and the most siong. After doing some general exercise, we ran 3x400km intervals and then followed by 3x800km intervals. The last part is 2.4km endurance running. And I clocked a 12:37 timing. haha... I checked the score table and I passed by just 3 seconds. *_*Y Haiz.. next week like no training leh.. tues got briefing and thurs surpose to be my IPPT but postponed to 28th after clashed with my night shift after the much changes in shift system recently. sianz.. need to change with other people on that day but still sianz.. cos the day before my IPPT is also night shift.. let me think if I should change that day with other people or not. I hope to get a pass ... a silver will make me happy like siao.. haha :D

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Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Back to Jerusalem movement / 传回耶路撒冷运动

The Back To Jerusalem movement (Chinese:传回耶路撒冷运动) is a Christian evangelistic campaign begun in China by Chinese believers to send missionaries to all of the Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim peoples who live "between" China and Jerusalem. This movement was founded during the 1920s, however government restrictions and persecution forced the movement to go underground for decades.

Since 2003, the most vocal international proponent of "Back to Jerusalem" has been the exiled Chinese house church leader Liu Zhenying a.k.a. "(Brother Yun)". But many Christian leaders in China, such as Samuel Lamb have distanced themselves from Yun and his foreign-funded movement, which they believe has been largely discredited. Yun intends for "Back to Jerusalem" to evangelize fifty-one countries by sending a minimum of 100,000 missionaries along the Silk Road, an ancient trade route that winds from China to the Mediterranean Sea[1].

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_To_Jerusalem

"

The most audacious even dream of carrying the gospel beyond the borders of China, along the old Silk Road into the Muslim world, in a campaign known as "Back to Jerusalem". As [Time correspondent David] Aikman explains in Jesus in Beijing, some Chinese evangelicals and Pentecostals believe that the basic movement of the gospel for the last 2,000 years has been westward: from Jerusalem to Antioch, from Antioch to Europe, from Europe to America, and from America to China. Now, they believe, it's their turn to complete the loop by carrying the gospel to Muslim lands, eventually arriving in Jerusalem. Once that happens, they believe, the gospel will have been preached to the entire world.
"

Christianity finds a fulcrum in Asia
By Spengler

Ten thousand Chinese become Christians each day, according to a stunning report by the National Catholic Reporter's veteran correspondent John Allen, and 200 million Chinese may comprise the world's largest concentration of Christians by mid-century, and the largest missionary force in history. [1] If you read a single news article about China this year, make sure it is this one.

I suspect that even the most enthusiastic accounts err on the downside, and that Christianity will have become a Sino-centric



religion two generations from now. China may be for the 21st century what Europe was during the 8th-11th centuries, and America has been during the past 200 years: the natural ground for mass evangelization. If this occurs, the world will change beyond our capacity to recognize it. Islam might defeat the western Europeans, simply by replacing their diminishing numbers with immigrants, but it will crumble beneath the challenge from the East.

China, devoured by hunger so many times in its history, now feels a spiritual hunger beneath the neon exterior of its suddenly great cities. Four hundred million Chinese on the prosperous coast have moved from poverty to affluence in a single generation, and 10 million to 15 million new migrants come from the countryside each year, the greatest movement of people in history. Despite a government stance that hovers somewhere between discouragement and persecution, more than 100 million of them have embraced a faith that regards this life as mere preparation for the next world. Given the immense effort the Chinese have devoted to achieving a tolerable life in the present world, this may seem anomalous. On the contrary: it is the great migration of peoples that prepares the ground for Christianity, just as it did during the barbarian invasions of Europe during the Middle Ages.

Last month's murder of reverend Bae Hyung-kyu, the leader of the missionaries still held hostage by Taliban kidnappers in Afghanistan, drew world attention to the work of South Korean Christians, who make up nearly 30% of that nation's population and send more evangelists to the world than any country except the United States. This is only a first tremor of the earthquake to come, as Chinese Christians turn their attention outward. Years ago I speculated that if Mecca ever is razed, it will be by an African army marching north; now the greatest danger to Islam is the prospect of a Chinese army marching west.

People do not live in a spiritual vacuum; where a spiritual vacuum exists, as in western Europe and the former Soviet Empire, people simply die, or fail to breed. In the traditional world, people see themselves as part of nature, unchangeable and constant, and worship their surroundings, their ancestors and themselves. When war or economics tear people away from their roots in traditional life, what once appeared constant now is shown to be ephemeral. Christianity is the great liquidator of traditional society, calling individuals out of their tribes and nations to join the ekklesia, which transcends race and nation. In China, communism leveled traditional society, and erased the great Confucian idea of society as an extension of the loyalties and responsibility of families. Children informing on their parents during the Cultural Revolution put paid to that.

Now the great migrations throw into the urban melting pot a half-dozen language groups who once lived isolated from one another. Not for more than a thousand years have so many people in the same place had such good reason to view as ephemeral all that they long considered to be fixed, and to ask themselves: "What is the purpose of my life?"

The World Christian Database offers by far the largest estimate of the number of Chinese Christians at 111 million, of whom 90% are Protestant, mostly Pentecostals. Other estimates are considerably lower, but no matter; what counts is the growth rate. This uniquely American denomination, which claims the inspiration to speak in tongues like Jesus' own disciples and to prophesy, is the world's fastest-growing religious movement. In contrast to Catholicism, which has a very long historic presence in China but whose growth has been slow, charismatic Protestantism has found its natural element in an atmosphere of official suppression. Barred from churches, Chinese began worshipping in homes, and five major "house church" movements and countless smaller ones now minister to as many as 100 million Christians. [2] This quasi-underground movement may now exceed in adherents the 75 million members of the Chinese Communist Party; in a generation it will be the most powerful force in the country.

While the Catholic Church has worked patiently for independence from the Chinese government, which sponsors a "Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association" with government-appointed bishops, the evangelicals have no infrastructure to suppress and no hierarchy to protect. In contrast to Catholic caution, John Allen observes, "Most Pentecostals would obviously welcome being arrested less frequently, but in general they are not waiting for legal or political reform before carrying out aggressive evangelization programs."

Allen adds:
The most audacious even dream of carrying the gospel beyond the borders of China, along the old Silk Road into the Muslim world, in a campaign known as "Back to Jerusalem". As [Time correspondent David] Aikman explains in Jesus in Beijing, some Chinese evangelicals and Pentecostals believe that the basic movement of the gospel for the last 2,000 years has been westward: from Jerusalem to Antioch, from Antioch to Europe, from Europe to America, and from America to China. Now, they believe, it's their turn to complete the loop by carrying the gospel to Muslim lands, eventually arriving in Jerusalem. Once that happens, they believe, the gospel will have been preached to the entire world.
Aikman reports that two Protestant seminaries secretly are training missionaries for deployment in Muslim countries.

Where traditional society remains entrenched in China's most backward regions, Islam also is expanding. At the edge of the Gobi Desert and on China's western border with Central Asia, Islam claims perhaps 30 million adherents. If Christianity is the liquidator of traditional society, I have argued in the past, Islam is its defender against the encroachments of leveling imperial expansion. But Islam in China remains the religion of the economic losers, whose geographic remoteness isolates them from the economic transformation on the coasts. Christianity, by contrast, has burgeoned among the new middle class in China's cities, where the greatest wealth and productivity are concentrated. Islam has a thousand-year presence in China and has grown by natural increase rather than conversion; evangelical Protestantism had almost no adherents in China a generation ago.

China's Protestants evangelized at the risk of liberty and sometimes life, and possess a sort of fervor not seen in Christian ranks for centuries. Their pastors have been beaten and jailed, and they have had to create their own institutions through the "house church" movement. Two years ago I warned that China would have to wait for democracy. [3] I wrote:
For a people to govern itself, it first must want to govern itself and want to do so with a passion. It also must know how to do so. Democracy requires an act of faith, or rather a whole set of acts of faith. The individual citizen must believe that a representative sitting far away in the capital will listen to his views, and know how to band together with other citizens to make their views known. That is why so-called civil society, the capillary network of associations that manage the ordinary affairs of life, is so essential to democracy. Americans elect their local school boards, create volunteer fire brigades and raise and spend tax dollars at the local level to provide parks or sewers.
China's network of house churches may turn out to be the leaven of democracy, like the radical Puritans of England who became the Congregationalists of New England. Freedom of worship is the first precondition for democracy, for it makes possible freedom of conscience. The fearless evangelists at the grassroots of China will, in the fullness of time, do more to bring US-style democracy to the world than all the nation-building bluster of President George W Bush and his advisers.

Notes
1. The uphill journey of Catholicism in China, August 2, 2007, National Catholic Reporter.
2. See Luke Wesley, "Is the Chinese Church predominantly Pentecostal?" in American Journal of Pentecostal Studies 7:2 (2004).
3. China must wait for democracy, Asia Times Online, September 27, 2005.



Relevant links:
http://gointl.org/?q=gointl/magazine/56/node/708
http://www.mbherald.com/44/02/books-2.en.html
http://www.amazon.com/Back-Jerusalem-Called-Complete-Commission/dp/book-citations/1903689031

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Friday, October 10, 2008

AFA is ending its boycott of McDonald's

(click link above)

The American Family Association (AFA) is ending its boycott of McDonald's.

Mississippi-based AFA called for the boycott in May after the fast food giant joined the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. McDonald's has notified the pro-homosexual organization that McDonald's vice president Richard Ellis resigned from the board of directors of NGLCC and his seat on the board will not be replaced.

In a press release on Thursday morning, AFA reports that in an email from McDonald's to its franchise owners the company stated its policy is "to not be involved in political and social issues."

Randy Sharp is director of special projects with AFA. He says McDonald's has pledged to remain neutral in the culture war surrounding homosexual marriage.

"The franchise owners understood very early that this was an issue that McDonald's did not need to be involved in from a corporate level, and [that] they needed to stick with serving good food products in a convenient way, at a good price."

McDonald's officials also said the company has no plans to renew its membership in the NGLCC when it expires in December.


Others can learn

AFA president Tim Wildmon says it's encouraging that the world's largest global foodservice retailer has pledged to remain neutral in the culture war. He says other corporations can learn from McDonald's decision to not be involved in political or social issues.

"That's been our appeal to these corporations," he explains. "...[J]ust stay neutral [and] don't give money to organizations that are going to fight against traditional values. And we try to tell folks [that] many of [their] customers are traditional values folks, and don't offend them by supporting gay and lesbian activist groups."

AFA founder and chairman Donald E. Wildmon states that his pro-family organization "appreciate[s] the decision by McDonald's to no longer support political activity by homosexual activist organizations."



Related link:
http://jnwkthoughts.blogspot.com/2008/07/mcdonalds-usa-support-homosexuality.html

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Thursday, October 09, 2008

Something to think about: The upcoming US election

Something to think about...


A reprint of a letter mailed out by the American Family Association:

The upcoming election is the most critical election in the history of our nation. The very future of our nation’s foundation is at stake. Every person will be affected. If the liberals win, then our foundation will no longer be based on the traditional Judeo-Christian morality. It will gradually but assuredly be based on an ever shifting, ever moving foundation. If the liberals win, the damage can’t be stopped with elections two, four or forty years from now. America will forever be changed. We will keep seeing a gradual and growing hostility toward people of faith, especially Christians. The morals of our nation will continue to decline. Our children and grandchildren will pay the price.

In case you may think I’m a “the sky is falling” type of person, you should know: When it comes to predictions, I am a very reserved person. But not on this one. I cannot overstate the damage a liberal victory will do to our country. The upcoming election is the most important in the history of our nation. Yes, if the liberals win you will lose some of your religious freedoms and free speech rights. Churches and pastors will not be exempt. You will not be allowed to say certain things about a particular group. Every item of the homosexual agenda will be approved. All the laws protecting the unborn will be wiped away.

I cannot overemphasize the importance of the Nov. 4 election. That is why I urge you to vote and encourage your family members, friends, Sunday School class and church members to vote. America’s future – the future of your children and grandchildren – is at stake.

Sincerely,
Donald E. Wildmon,
Founder and Chairman
American Family Association

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Wednesday, October 08, 2008

My third session of IPT

Sianz.. today run 13 x 400m in total.. legs pain liao.. tmr how to work.. :(

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Friday, October 03, 2008

真的恋爱了?

Just watched this move "真的恋爱了?" There are some part of the contents quite meaningful. I have typed it out below. Another I record it and put it on this post.

你说神爱我, 那神的爱在那里
曾经有人说过
从来都没有人见过风
但是当我们看到羽毛被风吹起的时侯
你就知道风的存在
神的爱也一样
神是很爱你的
神从来都没有离开过你
(i find the last two sentences weird weird de.. anyway, you get the idea... )

Love is..? (ending) -

内容介绍:

影片讲述六段老中青的爱情故事:中秋节前一个星期,六段在人生路上寻找“爱”的故事正在发生——有人苦苦等候着爱的来临,有人不敢向爱人说不想再爱,有人四处寻找回忆中的爱,有人为已逝的爱而流尽眼泪,有人热切憧憬着开展新恋情……与观众一起出发,寻找真正“爱”的老师,尤其教导年青人应该如何去爱,如何保守己心,等待真爱,从侧面带出《圣经》对爱情的指引。

该影片由众基督徒演员饰演,包括江华、罗霖、洪欣、梁艺龄、李亚男、高皓正、叶翠翠、李诗韵、欧倩怡、小金子、黄智贤和彭冠期等。

影音使团总干事袁文辉表示:“时下传媒就两性及恋爱观的报导均渲染着很多不良的意识,教年青人对恋爱拍拖等问题感到迷惘。而人生热线亦曾经辅导过不少对这方面求助的个案,加上近日坊间情色风暴的热烈讨论明显地反映了年青一代对恋、爱、情、色等问题既向往又好奇,但社会却缺乏正面指引,促使我们迫切地回应这方面的需要。”

If anyone wish to watch, can let me know.

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My second session of IPT

Ok, I went for my second IPT session yesterday. Do some warm up exercises and some general exercises. Then we split to specific training. Majority is weak in running so many join the "chongster" group. In total, I ran 8 x 400m during both the general exercises and specific training. This is only the beginning leh.. hope the next few sessions not very siong. Actually yesterday one is chicken feet liao :p ..

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Wednesday, October 01, 2008

I attended my first IPT session

I have not been taking IPPT for like 6 years already. I thought I can't make it for IPPT so I decided to register for the IPT (a 4 to 5 weeks course). Ok, the first lesson is to see which station you are weak in. So we did our IPPT. Although I fail my 2.4km run, I am quite happy to know that I can pass the other stations!!! I never expect that man.. haha

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