Getting There.. :)

It's been quite a long hiatus - two weeks and two days to be exact! It is a record for me in my 3-year-11-months of blogging, and I really thought I have lost it totally and couldn't blog again..

And then, I suddenly had the inspiration to blog while I was in gym this evening. Regrettably, it had even been a longer hiatus as far as gym is concerned. The last time I went was before Chinese New Year!

I was really not motivated and wanted to skip again but then I couldn't go home since I had a class this evening at church.. I made myself go and I ended up wishing I had longer time!!

Due to time constraint, what I did was 20 minutes of cardio, 5 minute of sit-up and 5 minutes of stretching. That's all.

And it was while I was doing stretching in front of the mirror that I felt I have achieved something pretty significant.. I no longer cringe when I look into the mirror!!

In the past, I just hated to look at the layers of fat around my midriff.. Every time I looked into the mirror sitting down stretching, I was reminded how I really need to lose weight. Well, I have been on this `program' for almost two months now.. and I must say the results are showing!

Okay, I'm definitely not trim and slim but my top had even became so lose that I could hardly see those bulges on my tummy!

For the record, I have lost 7.5kg (around 17 pounds) so far... my waistline alone has drop about 7cm (2 3/4 inch.) :))

So how did I do it? Well, there's no secret. I had admitted that losing weight is a real battle for me for I really lack will-power and discipline and simply love to eat! Although i knew the theoretical side of dieting and all, I found it so hard to do it.

The last straw was when I tried to put on my jeans one night and found out that ALL of them were too tight to even buckle up! I really had ballooned up over the festive season, and I knew I had to do something about it.

So the next day, I signed up for a slimming course at a new centre - not a well known one but I went because the person in charge there knows a lot about the slimming industry and they have very advanced machines as well as great variety of treatments.

Of course, you only need to sacrifice time for the treatments BUT you need a lot of discipline and will power to follow the diet.. and to my amazement, I did.

First I was put on a detox diet where my food consumption were limited to fish, eggs, oats, salad vegetables and fruits. That went on for more than a week and then I was allowed to have seafood, tofu and other types of vegetables.. and it's not really rigid, when I was away at camp, i could have lean meat too.

I guess how I could survive with the diet was that I'm encouraged to be creative with the meals.. and they even gave suggestions. I can have vegetable soup, fish in oat porridge and cawan mushi (steamed egg) for instance. Only thing I have spent quite a lot extra to buy vegetables, fruits and fish.

Anyway.. all this paid off as I noticed my weight and inches gradually dropping.. I could wear those jeans again, and some of my clothes became lose even! And people also noticed.

Just now in fact, a group of ladies from church `cornered' me and were so amazed how I managed to lose weight. So I told them honestly..

I'm glad that by now I feel I am comfortably in handling my diets these days. I can actually eat most food, but in smaller quantity of course. Of course I still have to avoid the real fattening ones like deep fried stuff and fats..

I'm only about half-way through the treatments.. and I still plan to lose more.. at least another 5kg! Trust me, I was really quite overweight so I would still not be averagely-slim after that!!

Let me lose a little more and then I shall pose some (narcissitic) pix.. hehe.. :p

My two Js are so unfit!!

I know I'm pretty unfit - although I'm fitter today than I was 10 years ago due to gym training.. But because of traveling, busyness and plain laziness and lack of motivation, I haven't been to gym for a month now! (It doesn't help that my gym is about 17km away from my home and need to find parking and all...)

Anyway, this afternoon, since it was not too hot and sunny (before the rain came) I decided to jog around my housing area... and decided that my two overweight dogs need some exercise too!

So I took them along on a leash while I jogged! I think the whole distance - including quite a lot of stairs as we have a path around our gated community - was probably just about 1km or more..

It was much easier bringing Jojo as Jelly likes to stop at her fancy - either pee/poo or simply smelling something. I felt they were panting quite heavily.. although I was getting a bit tired myself. So after one round, we went home and stopped for a while - gave them some water, and then came out again and did just very short run...

Then it started drizzling so it was really a very short work-out for me..

While I already recovered my breath and all, the two dogs looked drop-dead tired, and panting heavily, and kept sticking out their tongues for air of course....

I couldn't help but take these photos - and this was like at least 20 minutes after they had stopped exercised!!

Gosh.. my dogs are so unfit!! I think I should bring them out to exercise more..



Jojo panting away by his water bowl...first standing and then `collapsed'!



Jelly too.. and is even too tired to chew her bone!!





Not easy to take photos with the Two Js, but I managed this time.. haha




This is such a funny pose - actually Jelly was lying slightly further away from Jojo but for photo sake, we push her gently closer and they actually just lied there for a few minutes like this - cos they are both too tired to move!!

overdose of work + computer + football + coffee + lack of exercise and sleep = an unhealthy, tired and grumpy owl

This is the longest post title yet for my blog of three years..

I really ought to be taking a break from my PC screen.. my left eye is red again and my thinking incoherent. But I just need to rant - whether it's self-pity or self-reproach. :(

Ok, on one hand, I'm feeling pretty stressed with work - and had put in my Facebook status that I have 5 stories to write in 3 weeks (now one more!). A few of these articles are really not easy - as in I really need to plan, contact many interviewees and organise the whole story within limited time. I can tell you the `getting the story' part would be far tougher and much more time consuming than actual writing. Well, it's so for most story I guess but now I have a few of these TOGETHER! And the more I started on them the more I discover there is to research and do and there's one particular lead story that probably needs re-angling.. thank God I haven't actually written anything but...

(I shan't dwell into work stuff cos I can't and won't reveal much and don't want to bore my readers!)

So yeah, you would imagine I'm slogging away with work.. But thanks to the Euro 2008 championship (which is almost the whole month of June) I have turned into a true-blue owl. The matches are all played starting at 2:45am - though some of the first round matches started at midnight. Those who know me know I'm quite a fan of International football - ie country against country - especially huge ones like World Cup and Euro Championship. And now having the luxury of not needing to wake up for work, I have been sleeping at the crack of dawn the last fortnight. When it came to the Quarter finals where three out of four matches ended up in extra-time.. u could imagine my sleeping patterns. I now get up about 1-ish.. but even like last nite there was no match, I still slept after 4am but woke up a bit earlier cos thought of work. And my daily mug (or more) of Starbucks coffee become an essential as a `pick-me up'

Since I had no specific things on today, I originally planned to go to gym this afternoon after working a bit more in Starbucks. For I hadn't gone for 2 weeks now (before that I took even longer a break!) Exercise would make me feel better I know. But guess what, I ended up sitting in Starbucks - doing some work (not actually writing but drafting questions and discussing things with editors) and other leisure things on the Internet - for close to five hours! Time just flew and by that time, too tired and hungry to consider gym.

When I drove home, I felt quite angry with myself.. and with things. I felt unproductive and lousy basically..

But of course not everything is gloomy. Like when I realised I forgot to bring my wallet out today, it just happened that a friend was waiting to meet me at Starbucks. So she passed me some money.. phew! And then the organiser of Gary Chaw's concert has kindly given me two comp tix for the concert this Sat which I'm not covering and was wanting to go!

So I know I should stop complaining. I should just tell myself to buck-up!!

And thank goodness only three matches left!

p.s. pardon this lousy, uninspiring post

My Battle with Fat (part 2 - Now: the new and healthier way!)

Today will be the 7th day of my new slimming program. No no, God forbids I joined another slimming centre.. but I did `enrol' into a weight loss program of sort, with professional guidance. BUT, it is not a slimming center.. It is way cheaper and to me, healthier and make more sense.

Basically I'm on a meal replacement program - using the formula supplied by Herbalife. I just found out after I decided to try it that it is actually quite established and many people have heard of this, which is also a direct marketing business. But to me most importantly because the person who is selling me the products is someone I know and I am quite amazed how he managed to lose so much weight. On top of that, when he let me tried the product, it actually tasted pretty good! Not like some formula I have tried years ago which was quite yucky. It also has various flavour so not so monotonous.

Like I said in part 1, I knew on Jan 1 that I would need some kinda help to lose weight. Telling myself I'm on a diet (AGAIN!!) won't work. For I really lack the will power especially when it comes to food. So I know that if I `sign up' with my friend and get the product, which although still expensive, but much more affordable compared to other weight loss centre (ie. machine treatment type), my mindset would be different.

True enough, it has been working! I went for consultation last Thursday and began the program on Friday - actually had a test trial for Thurs itself and didn't feel hungry until much later in the evening. I was a bit amazed that the shake (which is less thick than a real milk shake) is very filling and can indeed be a supplement as a proper meal!

To start with, I was instructed to take the shake (which consists of all kinds of nutrition and vitamins) and whey protein (the accompaniment of the shake that gives you the extra protein) for breakfast and dinner. For lunch, I could still eat normal food - but non-fattening stuff and less in quantity. Throughout the day, I would also be taking a lemon tea - which function is to speed up the metabolism rate and helps to burn the fat in the body.

Only one normal meal a day.. but I am allowed to snack a little - healthy snack of course, in between meals. The key word is sensibility and moderation. But I find myself only needingi to snack a bit if I sleep late at night. For the shake does make you feel quite full. So yes, you can say for a week, I have succeeded in following through my new diet and slimming program

And it was also easier than I imagined.. I think it's very important if you start off with a positive mindset. Yes I do sometimes think of some yummy food and get a bit tempted seeing what my parents eat.. but I just tell myself it's ok, I've had been eating so much last year and I also try to not subject myself to temptation if possible!

That's not it. It is not just a diet thing. It is actually lifestyle changing - and for better too. You see, because I have to take all three meals, i am forced to get up by nine something in the morning to have (shake) breakfast! And that means I am `forced to' sleep around 1am the latest! Herbalife actually contributes to killing the owl!!

Unlike slimming centres, my friend did stress the importance of exercise. For this program it's advisable to sweat it out at least three times a week. The best would be around 20 mins of exercise daily! Of course daily is a bit unrealistic for me but I will be going to gym this afternoon which means in this week, I would have achieved exercising three times!

You see why I'm so excited and willing to `line my dirty laundry in public' so to speak and talk about my battle with fat and all the ups and downs of my weight loss ordeals? Because I am so thrilled to discover one that not only would help me lose weight - (but don't know how fast or effective yet on me) - but also help to CHANGE my rather unhealthy lifestyle or never eating breakfast and irregular exercise routine. AND of course CHANGE my over-indulging and unhealthy eating patterns too!!

So that's it. My new year resolutions had been pretty good in terms of personal lifestyle and discipline is concerned.. I also hope I can do so for my work, and more importantly for my spiritual life.

Fitness for Life

Just over a month ago, I made a decision to be serious in getting fit and signed up for personal training at my gym.

So far, I have already gone for 8 sessions of training.. they're pretty strenuous and tough.. after the firs few times, my muscles ached badly. But I felt good and fitter as I had never pushed myself that far when doing gym on my own.. Then today.. (or rather yesterday evening) I did another major decision - I have converted my current Platinum membership (RM134 per month) to a lifetime membership they call `Infinity'!

To be honest, when I was told about the lifetime membership in the past, I thought I won't bother to consider.. firstly I don't know how long I might stick with this gym, secondly I think although in long run it is cost-saving, the lump sum you have to pay is just too hefty for me..

But funny how things changed and turned out. Just say in the last couple of weeks I have received quite a large sum - call it a parting`gift' from my ex-company (which include my salaries, allowances, bonus and back-dated sums) So, with this disposable `income' in the bank - and knowing I should be going back to employment in 3 months time or so, when I found out about a new and better rate deal (tie in with certain credit cards), I was very `tempted'. I took my long shower and changing time to think (and even prayed over) and I was convicted.

Am I serious to stay on with the gym? Well, I could see the improvement ever since it was set up early last year taking over the premise of another gym. I was already the member of that old gym and I liked the location and the club premise itself.. so I stayed on. But there were times I had even contemplated changing gym as at one point, it was so crowded even when renovation was not completely done! Very frustrating for someone who was used to a spacious and exclusive feel of the gym..

But in the last few months, and esp. since signing up with P.T., I am really enjoying myself at the club. The woes had minimised. Parking is cheap (during weekdays), I can do other things at the mall before and after.. and it's strategically located from PJ, KL and even where I live - if smooth traffic its only a mere 15 mins drive. To cut a long story short.. yes, since when I joined P.T., I have decided I will stick with the gym..

Yes, the conversion to `Infinity' means if comparing to what I'm paying now monthly, I just need to go on for three years and after that, it practically works out to be FREE for life!! Ok.. maybe not free.. the deal is, a lump sum - payable in one year instalment, and from year 2 onwards, its just RM88 PER YEAR. I decide to pay all - RM5.5K (at a slight discount compared to instalments). I don't want to have close to RM500 debited from my credit card each month, as I have the P.T. and a few other instalments to pay off already!

So yeah, I'm now a proud `Infinity' member of California Fitness - which has affliliation clubs in many countries esp Hong Kong and Singapore (which i probably visit more often). And we are considered the `premium' members entitled to the best benefits.. and some nice free gifts thrown in for me today. ;)

A pix of my temporary card


To think of it, just three or four years ago, I was the most sendentary person - someone who could go without any exercise for the whole year.. maybe just a couple of times in the pool and not really swimming much too! I used to get D, or E for physical education in secondary school. It took me 25 mins to run 2.4km cross country when I was 15 or so. Now, on the treadmill machine, I can cover 2.4km in 18 minutes.. but allowing warm up time even. And I'm more than 20 years older!

No, I'm NOT publicising my gym. For selfish reason, I hope they will have less new members so the place will be less crowded! But I just want to say how happy and good I feel now with exercise.. and the motivation and interest has come from the gym. Maybe others enjoy other forms of exercises and games. But to me, I would go to a gym to exercise anytime because (just a few reasons though i could go on) :

• You don't need to find another person to exercise with.
• You can go anytime you like - it's open 365 days in the year from early morning to midnight.
  
• You don't have to worry about the weather
• It's safer than outdoor exercise eg. jogging, running
  
• There are so many varieties of workout to do - cardio machines, weight training, GroupX classes etc.. (within each, there are many more machines and a host of classes to try out)
  
• A condusive environment with everyone around you exercising spur you on.
  

No, i don't go there to socialise with my friends nor to be seen..

Since I'm doing P.T., I plan to go to the gym in Hong Kong at least once when I'm on holiday.. (so not to slack..) But my trainer urged me to go at least twice! hmm.... a bit hard but will see.

I see it as an investment into fitness for life.. more worthwhile than a lot of things I've splashed my money on in the past. Oh, the good news is, I think at least I've managed to achieve one of my long-term resolutions now! :D

Alarming Statistics!

Had my consultation session for personal training this evening.

Technology is really amazing - I just had to stand (barefooted) on a machine called `In-Body' and hold onto its metal-like handle for a while.. and Ta-Da! It read all the `scary statistics' for the trainer and me!

Nope, I'm not gonna divulge those stats which spelled out everything from my weight to body-fat/bones/muscles/water weight (and many others) to the ideal stats for my height and age.

It couldn't read my age of course.. haha!

Well, what I learned about my own body condition is nothing funny. In fact it is quite alarming, although I know already more or less where I stand - from my sessions with slimming centre and the measurement when I first joined the gym more than two years back.

It is confirmed that my bone structure is actually consider small - thus the weight of my bones in proportion to muscles (not much) and to my FAT is really quite SAD!! Yes, my fat weight is the heaviest - in proportion! Just base on the fat percentage alone, I'm considered obese! :(( And BMI wise, I fall in the slightly overweight category..

My trainer, after explaining in alarming tones to me all the stats, suggested a training outline AND the goals that I'm gonna achive in 12 sessions.. But mind you, after 12 sessions, I still have to work on it, but the $$$ I am to pay will be less.. There are no shortcuts nor miracles here.

And of course, to accompany this tough-sounding exercise regime, I will have to watch my diet too! After the first few strength training sessions, I will be given a nutrition guideline to follow. It didn't sound as bad as what I had to go through before (at those slimming centers) and so I am determined to follow it faithfully.

Training will commence after Raya break. In the meantime, I need to build up my stamina by doing some exercises too. I went for spinning class after that and had a great workout!

I will be measured again by `In-Body' on January 17, 2007. By then, I hope to, no, I MUST achieve the statistics target that had been set for me!

My Fitness Challenge!

Went to gym tonight and after 30 minutes of cardio exercise and another 20 or so of weights training, I suddenly had the urge to have a proper fitness regime that could see results!

Had been considering personal training in the past but due to time and cost factor, I had just been working out on my own and although I feel a bit fitter I know I'm not achieving enough

But soon, I would have no work hours to observe - my time will be flexible in the next two months at least! Oh, speaking of that, I just did a mental countdown - 10 more working days to go!! :D

So I did it! I signed up for personal training! (here are some of the benefits of having a personal trainer)

I was recommended the six week/ 12 sessions to start with. Two guided sessions a week with tailored program to achieve my targets - which is basically to increase fitness AND to lose fat! There will also be nutritional advice and fitness/fat analysis etc...

I plan to start during the festive time when work load had waned off..

Well, it's not cheap but not something I couldn't afford. I decided it's a worthwhile investment, even if I don't lose much weight at least I will build muscles and be fitter! It sure beats signing up for slimming treatments, which I had done before and it's all in vain now.. :(

I'm quite excited and am determined to go through with it!

My Cycling Challenge

A short post just to commemorate this.

I went for my third ever GroupX spinning (cycling) class tonite and I almost died!

Ok, so maybe that's an exaggeration.. :p

Imagine, one hour of M (multi-level) workout and I managed to follow the instructor more than 90 per cent. Honestly, I really felt like dying at certain parts.. my heart was pumping like crazy and I thought I might collapse. Remember, I'm not a fit person.

But mind you, ther was even an aunty and uncle who are at least 20 years ago than me in the class!

I felt good (though pretty tired) after class. Indeed, this is a great way to burn fat and get fit. I will go it again!

Feel So Good!

After more than two months of absence in the gym, I finally went for a workout this evening!

I just had to. I feel so unfit, and the weighing scale and measuring tape are showing alarming figures.. yes, due to over-eating and lack of exercise, I have piled on the weight to an all time high!! It's really distressing - I can't even fit into half of my clothes!

The last two months had been pretty chaotic. Various factors - work schedule, World Cup, other commitments and travelling - had prevented me from going to gym. Of course I could have made extra effort but I just didn't.. felt too tired.

But I remember that I am paying a substantial monthly fee for my gym membership so I better make use of it again!

It was packed as usual during the peak hours but I managed to find a machine for cardio - not sure what it's called but it's like pedalling standing up. Quite good to start off after not exercising for so long. It wasn't too strenuos. But I couldn't get hold of a treadmill anyway..

As I was pedalling and puffing away, I was thinking this. It's soooo easy to pile on the calories on some yummy food but it takes time and real effort just to burn them away! Why, it took me more than 30 minutes to work off the same amount of calories I would easily consume in a nice meal.

Anyway, here is the brief summary of my workout:

Cardio: 32 minutes / 300 calories
Stretching
Weight training on five machines
70 sit-up on the apparatus

After I showered, I felt so refreshed and good! Exercising is definitely essential..

I have to do this more often. I can't be too ambitious so I target to go gym a minimum of twice a week. If time permits, I would go three times..

And of course, at the same time, I HAVE to cut down on what I eat.. :/