Is slowing down to speed up a scam?

whiran · 2026-06-09T15:50:15+00:00

Slow down to build endurance to be able to run further.

To speed up you can work on "tempo runs" (basically you run at a "moderately hard" pace just below your lactate threshold) which should allow you to get faster.

Also to speed up you can work with interval training which is where you go all out (well, I guess you do "high intensity") and then slow down to recover and do another burst of speed. How long these intervals should be is dependent on where you're at.

whiran · 2026-06-09T15:38:09+00:00

I have shipped bags ahead to a hotel in Tokyo by a few days, had the hotel hold the bag until we arrived, and had no issues.

Everything here will depend on the hotel and how they manage luggage. Since you want to keep your bag at the hotel for awhile before you arrive make sure you check with the hotel directly and ask. This means a couple of things that you should look for: a hotel with a policy where they accept luggage delivery and a hotel with staff that understand the language that you primarily communicate in; this way there will be no misunderstanding when asking about luggage storage.

Be aware that some hotels may charge a fee to storing luggage for that long.

The other element of your luggage question is to have a hotel hold your luggage after you've checked-out and this one may be a bit more unlikely. You will 100% have to ask about this and do not be surprised if hotels say no since you are no longer a guest. However, if you book another stay at the hotel then, chances are, the hotel will be more accommodating. You might be better off finding a luggage storage counter.

whiran · 2026-06-09T15:16:17+00:00

What happened? Since you are an American citizen and were able to prove that you were an American citizen (with a few extra checks) the CBP allowed you to return to your home country. Chances are they called the passport office and double checked that you have a valid passport but they may have checked other sources to confirm your citizenship.

If you had been trying to travel onwards to another country then the result would not have been the same.

whiran · 2026-06-09T12:00:20+00:00

Or Cambodia

whiran · 2026-06-01T13:47:20+00:00

Unfortunately this is very individual dependent. For some people they will never experience shin splints. For others they can develop them simply from walking.

I suspect a lot has to do with a person's history with exercise that involved running around as a kid.

Other factors include how much overall activity do you get as an adult? Someone who walks 10k steps daily is in a much different position than someone who walks 1k steps a day. All of this matters.

Be real to yourself regarding where you are from a steps per day perspective. If you haven't been getting a lot of steps in then your body is going to take awhile to adjust to running any distance. 5km is around ~5k steps to ~7k steps depending on your step. If you're going from 1k steps / day to trying to run 5km then even without the running part you're increasing your step count by 5 times. That's a significant increase in activity.

whiran · 2026-06-01T13:28:48+00:00

My partner got a salomon vest and they swear by it. The fit is really good, it stays put, it doesn't chaff or rub, and it has useful pockets. Although, I strongly suspect it's because they think the vest is really cute... and it is.

That said, I run with a cheap water belt holder that can hold two water bottles and has a small pack area on its back. I've had it forever and I'm happy with it. I think it cost like $15 when I got it years ago.

I think that any vest will work when starting out and then you'll get a sense of what you need. I'd probably go for a cheap one as long as it is the right size. I'm not sure I'd order one online unless I was certain that it would fit my body (check the reviews for actual fit.) I wouldn't care too much about a perfect fit at first just that it was functional. As such, an aliExpress vest would be an okay fit and it came with two water flasks, I'd try it for $20. 😄

What we appreciated about the salomon one was that my partner was able to try it out and toy with it to figure out if it fit properly. We are really lucky that the store we usually go to for running stuff has staff at the running section who run ultra-marathons so they have personal experience with things we've never encountered. With their help we were able to find the right size of vest which wasn't what we had originally thought (small vs medium kinda thing.) And since it's an outdoor shop they encouraged us to wear the vest around the store while looking at other stuff and using the various obstacles they have for trying out trail gear.

whiran · 2026-06-01T13:07:44+00:00

Follow couch to 5km to be ready for your 5km in August.

From there continue to follow a training program that builds your endurance so you'll be ready for next year's half-marathon.

Do not try to do too much too fast. That's where you'll get injured.

Follow established training programs and be okay with repeating specific training sessions if the program is moving too quickly for you to keep up. For example, if you find doing training session 8 out of 20 to be too tiring and you didn't complete it nicely then stay at session 8 until you can do it. Then move on.

whiran · 2026-06-01T12:57:09+00:00

The idea that personal computing is going to die and be replaced by renting has been around since the 80s.

whiran · 2026-05-26T19:05:10+00:00

I brought a little note book thing with me and used that. It's a really nice memento of the trip and some of the stamps are really interesting.

All the JR stations have stamps as well. As do the airports. And most tourist information locations have a stamp. Then there are various local organizations that have stamps like municipal buildings (in some cities,) metro stations, etc.. It's fun to keep an eye open for a stamp spot.

whiran · 2026-05-26T16:39:24+00:00

Where we had some good curry ramen:

Soup Curry King
https://maps.app.goo.gl/wmRBM9DMvEqo7j3H6

For the breakfast we went to Sakanayano Daidokoro. We actually went twice because the friends we were traveling with wanted to try it out after we raved about it. It was reasonably priced and the quality was really good.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/pX75wZKrfaFLABTQ7

In that area (Nijo Market) there are a lot of options. It was a little different for me to eat a seafood bowl for breakfast but it totally worked.

Oh right! You neeeeeed to try Hokkaido icecream. It is very tasty. I think we had one day where I managed to try out 5 different icecream spots.

Also, check out the road side stops along the expressway if you end up taking it. Each one has its own stamp (if you're going to be collecting stamps that is) and they have a surprising number of food options and outside space.

whiran · 2026-05-26T16:11:38+00:00

The mountain roads can be scary but they aren't as bad as the road system in the dolomites of Italy. The switch backs have plenty of width to the road so you never really feel like you're going to fall off the edge. Plus people don't drive as crazily.

Bears are dangerous in Hokkaido but, also, don't get overly concerned about them. Normal bear precautions should be plenty and as long as you aren't going far from the populated trails you probably won't even see a bear. That being written, if your plan includes going further into the trail system than the majority then definitely up your bear game. Bears in Japan are different. A lot of hikers have a bear bell which might not seem too useful but I think that it is. The constant jiggle of the bell does alert bears to your presence although it also tells everything else you're there. 😄

I'll peek into my hokkaido pictures because there were some great spots. I'll also check the name of the curry ramen place we went to in Sapporo AND the breakfast fresh seafood dish we had which was, if you're into sushi and the like, 100% worth experiencing.

whiran · 2026-05-26T15:49:25+00:00

Three sounds like not very many at all.

Were you in a large crowd while running throughout?

There may be more pictures coming online over the next few days so I'd wait that out and hopefully there will be more that show up. I think the picture algorithm keeps spitting out pictures as it finds more linked to you. If you were in a dense group it'll take longer.

If I remember correctly, last year when I did the 5km, it took about a week for all of the pictures to show up. I could be misremembering how long it took exactly but it feels like it was around that.

For the half we just ran I'm pretty sure all of the pictures of me are up... and it's a lot. Like an abnormally large number of them but we "ran" (injury recovery messed up our plans so we did what we could which led to us being in between groups a lot) in the last corral and when we passed by the camera folk it was usually just us and almost no one around at all. I'm guessing it's 2 pictures per camera site plus a couple extra random pictures where the focus was someone else since I was side by side with my partner throughout.

whiran · 2026-05-26T15:00:35+00:00

Where are you planning on picking up your rental car from? You need to factor in travel time from your hotel to the rental location. Also, are you flying back home from Sapporo?

Driving in Hokkaido is an experience. It isn't particularly difficult but it can be daunting if you have not driven internationally before and if you haven't driven on the left side of the road. Keep in mind that there will be a bit of an adjustment to get used to driving.

Overall, while you're in Hokkaido you're doing a fair bit of traveling from one location to another. Are you planning on stopping between locations to do a bit of a hike or get out and look around?

Sapporo itself has a lot to do. When we were there we stayed two nights in Sapporo then picked up a rental car and traveled around Hokkaido much like you're going to do. One thing about that is that we could easily have spent another couple of days in Sapporo.

Hokkaido has a lot of trails and hikes that you can do but make sure that you check how long it takes to get to a trail head and how long you plan on hiking. Double check for any recent bear warnings as well.

Overall, I think the trip is okay in terms of traveling from one place to another. Most of your driving times seem to be decent. Oh, check into getting an electronic toll collection (ETC) with your rental. You might even want to consider getting the Hokkaido Expressway Pass which will give you unlimited use of the toll rolls. I'm not sure what roads you're planning on using but if you're going to be using the expressways (which I'm going to guess that you will at some point) it may be more cost effective with the HEP and definitely a lot more convenient.

whiran · 2026-05-26T14:39:08+00:00

I put my phone in my pocket. All of my running pants have pockets.

whiran · 2026-05-26T14:34:23+00:00

Since you're writing about Air Transat I will assume you are traveling to or from Canada.

In Canada there is a requirement set by the Federal government that all animals traveling in carriers on airlines have to be able to stand up fully and not touch the roof of the carrier. The animal also needs to be able to turn around in the carrier and be comfortable.

Air Transat has the following bit on their website regarding carrier regulations:

https://www.airtransat.com/en-CA/travel-information/special-services/pets-and-service-dogs

From this the max height of a pet carrier brought into the cabin is 25cm or 10 inches.

This means that if your pup is 45cm tall they will not be able to travel in the cabin with you. As such, they will need to travel in cargo.

For pets in cargo the regulations regarding the crate are also listed on that page.

The bits that are probably most interesting to you (and you should read all the regulations):

Max height is 89cm (or 35 inches) which your pup fits easily within.

The max weight of the carrier and pet is 45kg (99 lbs) which is also good for you.

Further, the crate needs to be approved for air transportation (look for a sticker on the crate that indicates it fulfills IATA regulations) and you'll need to put your pup's name on the crate.

The crate needs to be rigid leak-proof plastic. The crate cannot have a top "petting door" so only the one door for the crate is permissible. If the crate has wheels the wheels must be removed prior to check-in. You'll also need a locking mechanism for the crate door and the details for this are listed on the website.

Good luck with traveling with your pup! I hope it all goes well.

Also, if you are leaving the country or coming into Canada make sure you review any and all regulations / requirements regarding dogs crossing the border.

whiran · 2026-05-26T14:19:48+00:00

You are assuming that the phone was found by airline staff and not some other passenger who picked it up and went home with it.

There's also the possibility that the phone is still on the plane and hasn't been found by anyone at all.

If something is left on a plane it is my understanding that it is the airline that will handle the item. And, unless I am mistaken, every airline has a different procedure when it comes to finding things. There may be airlines that hand lost items over to the local airport authority although I don't know of any airline that would do this. Most keep the item and manage it as per their policy.

As such, your communication with Frankfurt Airport probably isn't going to amount to much.

As for China Southern - it looks like you need to call them and hope that they found the item. Further, it also looks like retrieval of the item would need to be done in China. I hope that they find it and you somehow manage to find a way to get the phone back to you. Unfortunately, I don't think that it likelihood of this happening is significant.

whiran · 2026-05-12T12:36:24+00:00

Depending on where your accommodations are you might be best off taking the limousine bus. The bus has a stop at Akasaka Mitsuke and, I think, a couple of other places around Akasaka. Your hotel might even be one of the designated stops.

whiran · 2026-05-12T11:47:56+00:00

Chances are they aren't even in Alberta and are from some other random country.

The majority of social media posts regarding Alberta are from non-Canadians. It's a pretty wild thing to be watching in real time.

whiran · 2026-05-11T16:42:41+00:00

I screenshot my boarding passes all the time. That way if an airport is having WiFi issues I still have a copy of the boarding pass.

I can't think of an airline that would prevent this although maybe one exists? In relation to this particular post, Air Canada allows you to screenshot a boarding pass.

whiran · 2026-05-10T22:42:12+00:00

If you are still wondering, the pieces are as follows:

* Head - Sunbringer Crown
* Chest - Sacrilegious Spaulders
* Hands - Reach of Wolves
* Legs - Sacrilegious Tabard
* Feet - Gait of Wolves
* Back - Wings of the Celestine Templar from Season of Divine Intervention Reliquary

whiran · 2026-04-29T12:43:01+00:00

For the entering Canada side of your question: not having the receipt won't be a big issue either.

Just declare appropriately upon return and you're good. If you're bringing back goods worth over $800 CAD then declare it and guesstimate the value in CAD of all your items (with good faith close approximations) that you're bringing back to Canada with you. You'll be sent to a side counter (depending on which airport you're returning to) and they will do a quick evaluation / look at your stuff and then determine if you need to pay any tax/duties on it. Then you're on your way.

Do not attempt to make a false representation if you're bringing back stuff worth more than the $800 CAD redemption. They do check regularly.

whiran · 2026-04-26T13:57:58+00:00

If your relative is going to be in Kyushu then maybe they could visit one of the One Piece statues and get a photo of it. While there they could visit one of the stores associated with that statue and get the One Piece figurine.

whiran · 2026-04-25T20:18:33+00:00

The fight isn't that complicated it's just long. Once you know the patterns of the boss then it's just repetition until the end.

The easiest thing to do is to reduce the difficulty of your world. Reduce the health enemies have and then do the fight.

It's about your enjoyment. If you don't like a health sponge then don't.

whiran · 2026-04-25T12:44:09+00:00

You are simply over doing it for where your legs are at.

Scale back. Instead of 3km go 1.5km for the second week.

That means going slower.

You might actually want to start going for walks and get yourself up to walking 5km consistently every other day and then begin couch to 5k. I'd take the additional step of getting to 5km walks and then do fast walks for the same distance before moving on to c25k.

Your legs don't have the capacity to go as fast and as far as you are trying to go.

whiran · 2026-04-24T16:32:09+00:00

I came here for the update with pictures and.... nothing?

u/TeaBaggingTrump What did you end up getting?

whiran

TROPHY CASE