k.p.nook

I know this may be incredibly boring, but I thought I would share the keynote presentation that I did yesterday for my ecotoxicology class at the university. I presented two papers that concentrated on the biomagnification, recycling and storage of persistent organic pollutants in organisms such as mysids and amphipods.

I was very excited to do the presentation, which lasted approximately thirty minutes. Unfortunately, there really isn't much to the above video without me narrating it, but I thought I would share anyway.

Scientists have identified a genetic link between physical pain and social rejection, a finding that explains the common theory that being spurned or breaking up with a lover really "hurts". In a landmark research, psychologists at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that the human body has a gene which connects physical pain sensitivity with social pain sensitivity.

The research, published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, backs the commonly held theory that rejection "hurts" by showing that a gene regulating the body''s most potent painkillers—mu-opioids—is involved in socially painful experiences too. "Individuals with the rare form of the pain gene, who were shown in previous work to be more sensitive to physical pain, also reported higher levels of rejection sensitivity and showed greater activity in social pain-related regions of the brain when they were excluded," said Prof Naomi Eisenberger, the study co-author.

The study indicates that a variation in the mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1), often associated with physical pain, is related to how much social pain a person feels in response to social rejection, the Daily Telegraph reported. "These findings suggest that the feeling of being given the cold shoulder by a romantic interest or not being picked for a schoolyard game of basketball may arise from the same circuits," said co-author Baldwin Way.

According to Prof Eisenberger, this overlap in the neurobiology of physical and social pain makes perfect sense.

The official results are in. Again, the triathlon consisted of a 750m swim, 30km bike ride and a 5km run, done consecutively.

• Overall Place - 76/76
• Bib - 187
• Name - Konstantine Palanski
• Total Time - 1:52:14
• Class Placing - TM20-24 5/5
• Swim Place - 76/76
• Swim Time - 37:08
• Pace/100m - 4:57
• Bike Place - 67/76
• Bike Time - 48:20
• Average Speed - 24.8 km/h
• Run Place - 48/76
• Run Time - 26:46
• Pace/km - 5:22

Die I did not! For the first time in my life I can honestly say that I am happy about coming in last place, approximately 52 minutes behind the top finisher, who completed the triathlon in just under one hour.

As expected, the swim portion (750m) was what slowed me down. Apart from being underprepared for that portion of the triathlon, the open water at Leamington harbour (murky, seaweed ridden, unfamiliar) did not do much in the way of facilitating an easy swim. Excuses aside, I concede to needing swimming lessons; I am a weak swimmer at this point, but I know that I can improve vastly given the right training. I will be looking into them soon, as I wish to participate in the next Windsor-area triathlon, taking place in late August. The biking and running portions were a piece of cake, especially with the short distances involved (30km bike, 5km run) and I enjoyed them to a much larger degree.

Overall the experience was priceless and I can honestly say that I am proud of myself for not giving up, even when given ample opportunity to do so. I cannot wait to try my hand at another one of these events, especially when I know there is so much room for improvement.

The Leamington Spring Triathlon is tomorrow and there's no two ways around it; there is a good chance I may die tomorrow during the swim portion of the triathlon. I feel remarkably unprepared for swimming 750m and have been caught off guard by this, considering the generally good shape I am in and the training I have been doing. I did not consider the time scale since the Bike Trek, thinking a month would be enough time to train, or the necessary inclusion of a swim coach. Lessons learned for next time! The good thing is that I have whet my appetite for swimming, a sport that I will undoubtedly be pursuing in my attempt to lead a fit lifestyle.

I am still looking forward greatly to tomorrows event and will do my best. Finishing somewhere in the middle of the pack is the goal at this point, winning is not.

Wish me luck!

A continued update to the Leamington Sprint Triathlon in which I am participating. Just over one week to go! Training is going well, although I definitely underestimated the importance of being prepared for the swimming aspect of the triathlon.

I always knew how fit one had to be to swim, but I have gained a new level of respect for the individuals who practise swimming as a regular sport. It is one of the most taxing forms of exercise that I have ever encountered. I hope to continue swimming regularly after this event as I can hardly remember a time where my body hurt more then after 25 laps in a 75ft pool.

More to come.

Training has officially commenced as of last weekend. The main thing that concerns me is the swimming portion of the event with a rather short, but nonetheless looming, 750 meter swim in Leamington Harbour:

I have access to the University swimming pool on most days, which has a 22 meter length and allows for a good technique to be ironed out for the big swim. I have to swim what amounts to 35 laps in the swimming pool to without rest to consider myself even remotely ready for the actual event; so far I can do approximately 15. I consider myself to have very good cardiovascular endurance, but after swimming a few laps in the pool, it is easy to understand why technique is just as important as physique. Breathing is of paramount importance.

So that whole BikeTREK thing? It really got me liking the idea of having to train for something. This is the reason why I just registered for the Leamington sprint triathlon that is approximately 3 weeks away.

The triathlon is of the sprint subdivision and includes a 750 meter swim, 20 kilometer bike ride and 5 kilometer run. The only part that worries me is the 750 meter swim for which I will have to train like mad. Fresh from the 200km bike trek, I am ready to face this challenge head on.

All these events are stepping stones to an eventual life's goal of running a marathon and completing an Ironman triathlon.

More updates to come.

Fresh after finishing the last 105 km leg of the 200+ km trek, the picture above is one in which I am extremely satisfied. Last weekend's ride was nothing short of spectacular in every sense of the word and I could not be any more content for being a part of this event. 

The first day was slightly disgruntling for me as I did an extra 17.2 km of riding due to a blown over directional sign that I did not see. This landed me in 17th place out of 55 participants with a total distance of 112.2 km, a moving average of 27.8 km/h, a fastest speed of 39.9 km/h and a total time of 4:22 (including all rest stops). The detour on the first day was not a fun one as I had missed a particularly important turn entirely and had to complete a gigantic horseshoe shaped ride, half of which was on loose gravel, in order to go back to the proper path. Although disappointing for a few moments, I did not dwell on this mistake. The most interesting part of the trek happened within 2 km of the finish line on the first day, where my rear tire went flat. I picked up my bicycle and ended up running approximately 500 meters with it hoisted over my head and then then remaining 1.5 km with it at my side. 

Although a much tougher ride due to wind and rain, the second day's trek was far more enjoyable. I finished 7th out of 55 participants, coming in 10 minutes behind the lead pack of road bicycles; I have to restate that I was riding a mountain bicycle with road slicks and no foot locking pedals. My GPS' battery had died in the middle of the second day's trek, so I could not collect exact data on the 105 km ride as I did with the previous day.

What a weekend. A special thanks to Joe Stonehouse who ended up being my road buddy for most of the trip and a very good one at that.

This is it! My 200 km bike trek for the lung association of Ontario begins tomorrow morning.

I will do my best to get near a computer during the weekend's events in order to do a thorough update. I am hoping this will not be too difficult of a task, seeing as the overnight stay happens at St. Clair College, a rather modern campus that will be littered with computer stations.

The first day will consist of a bike ride that is outlined in the map below, starting at the Leamington marina and ending at the St. Clair College campus.

The next day's route will be as follows:

I am excited to no end and cannot wait for tomorrow morning. I cannot give enough thanks to all those who have supported me, both monetarily and psychologically. 

Three months of training will finally be put to the test this weekend. Wish me luck!

Less than one week to go until my 200 km bike trek for the lung association of Ontario!

Training like a madman! I can hardly contain my excitement for the event. The weekend of the event falls squarely on the same weekend that my store has to do its quarterly inventory, which I now get to skip out on. A mixture of guilt and glee are upon me, the latter in a higher dose. 

I took the bicycle in for a tuneup at the original place of purchase; cables got tightened, adjusted, gears properly oiled and everything tightened. I am ready for this and am literally counting down the days until I can put this on my list of accomplishments.

I have also found something really interesting the weekend after the bike trek in which I am hoping to partake: the Belle River triathlon, which includes a 500m swim, 30km bike and 5km run. The only reason I am considering doing the event rather than having already registered is the monstrous 500m swim. Most people really do not realize how much of a workout a good swim really is, with hardly any muscle in one's body being left unused, especially after half a kilometer. At this point it is a major consideration. For now, I will focus on the bike trek.

If any of my readers want to help me reach my pledge goal of $400, they can visit my donation page. Any little amount, even a dollar, will be of great help! Much thanks!

Less than two weeks to go until my 200 km bike trek for the lung association of Ontario!

I finally made the dive yesterday before my training run and bought a pair of road tires for my bicycle. I now have much less difficulty pedaling and have been able to achieve a faster base speed than with my nubby tires. My training made use of the nubby tires for as long as possible to allow myself to grow accustomed to a harder ride than with road tires. This seems to have worked quite successfully. After switching over the the road tires I successfully rode a total of 85km yesterday, from the Ambassador Bridge to Belle River and back, in under 4 hours. My training has prepared me well enough that I did not fall victim to either shortness of breath or cramps at any time in the ride. 

The donations are pouring in as well. I am within a $100 of achieving my goal and this is an easy task at this point. Much thanks goes to those who are supporting me!

If any of my readers want to help me reach my pledge goal of $400, they can visit my donation page. Any little amount, even a dollar, will be of great help! Much thanks!

Less than two weeks to go until my 200 km bike trek for the lung association of Ontario!

Today will entail a small training session of a 40km bike ride from my home in Tecumseh to the Ambassador bridge and back. I have made a small but incredibly worthy investment in that I purchased a pair of bike shorts; one of the most drastic changes in my riding style has come because of these regular looking shorts which have an inner lining and chamois that cushions your ride and prevents chafing due to perspiration.

The past few months of training have definitely revealed themselves in the past few days. Specifically, I helped a good friend of mine move the other day and went from 11 to 22:30 without a break tugging heavy furniture and boxes. Loss of breath seems to not be an issue for me, which is entirely a side-effect of my training.

If any of my readers want to help me reach my pledge goal of $400, they can visit my donation page. Any little amount, even a dollar, will be of great help! Much thanks!

Less than three weeks to go until my 200 km bike trek for the lung association of Ontario!

I am more than excited and am also more than half way to collecting my minimum of $400 dollars in pledges. I was astounded as to the generosity of my neighbours last week when I went knocking on doors: out of approximately 20 houses, I managed to collect $85 in pledges.

I have been training heavily and am currently recovering from a very sore quadricep muscle, which seems to stem from an overly powerful hamstring muscle that is now overpowering the weaker quadriceps, causing undue strain and tears. An uneven exercise program is the cause and is entirely my fault, I have been focusing on my hamstrings much more than my quadriceps as I do not have a road bike with clamp in pedals and will have to rely more heavily on my hamstrings than my quadriceps. The pain is subsiding rather quickly, but I know that I have to give more attention to my quads in order to prevent this from reoccurring. A few more days off and I am back to a more rigorous training regimen to prepare myself mentally and physically for the 200 kilometer bike ride.

I have already noticed signs being posted throughout the downtown Windsor area denoting the correct path to take on the trek. I feel proud to be a part of something like this.

If any of my readers want to help me reach my pledge goal of $400, they can visit my donation page. Any little amount, even a dollar, will be of great help! Much thanks!

No, not quite an extraterrestrial, but quite alien to the city of Windsor nonetheless. It is my scooter! A personally restored 1986 Yamaha XC125-S Riva. I apologize for the sharply angled picture above; apart from being artistic, it serves to save the full unveiling for a nice warm day when the sun is out and willing to present the scooter in all its glory.

I have previously written about how I found the scooter and the restoration process, but I just wanted to make an entry stating the the entire restoration is complete and I am a fully insured motorcycle owner with a beginners M license as of yesterday. Weather permitting, I will be riding it to university and work today and I have been smiling nonstop for approximately thirteen hours now, the glee is oozing from me.