So the power went out between 8:30 and 11:20 this morning. Luckily, I was asleep for most of that time, haha.

I’ve started running again this week, mainly to keep myself in shape, but also to “test” the air quality here in Beijing. Two weeks ago, after jogging for a short 10 minutes, I developed a sore throat during work the next day, but I suspect that may have been due to a cold that was going around the workplace.

This week, I’ve gone jogging twice so far, both times after dinner, and fortunately have not shown any negative side effects. In past years, I’ve heard rumors that Beijing’s air quality has had detrimental impacts on runners’ lung capacity, and while I do believe there is some truth to that, I also think that the story has been exaggerated. As the 2008 Summer Olympics has shown, despite Beijing’s reputation as a somewhat “dirty” city (but is it really worse than L.A. or London?), the air here is definitely clean enough to sustain strenuous athletic events such as the triathlon and the the marathon.  For runners like myself who simply do it for the thrill and exercise, the pollution is even less of a problem, since we’re not going that fast/hard in the first place. That being said, it can’t hurt to use some judgement when exercising. Run either in the early morning or late afternoon, since that’s when air pollution and temperature are at their lowest levels (I’m assuming you’re not going for any midnight jogs or things of that nature). Also, drink plenty of water before and after exercising. And always stretch and cooldown before workouts. These are the basic guidelines that I like to stick to no matter where I am in the world, and they help me make the most of my workouts.

I’ve also been playing a lot of guitar lately. The song I’m learning right now is called 青花瓷 (Qing Hua Ci) by Jay Chou. I’ve gotten all the chords down…now for the the lyrics, which are, of course, in Chinese :P.