12 Habits

Never Too Late

It’s April and it’s never too late to go back to your New Year’s Resolution of losing weight! Though this year I didn’t make an official resolution.  I always like new years and New Year’s resolutions. It might be a cliche to a lot of people but I really do believe in them. It gives me a fresh perspective on my life and allows me to “touch base”. Like my resolution to get rich for example. When I was in high school, I wanted to be rich. But not just rich, but filthy rich to the likes of Bill Gates and Warren Buffet. I especially worshipped Michael Dell because he became a millionaire at a very young age. In fact, he was 21 when Dell Computers went public.

Look at me! I’m turning 21 soon and have no extragavant wealth to put my name to!

I am sad.

But as the title suggests, it’s never too late.

I recently went back on the exercising wagon after about…3 months of sabbatical. Wasn’t sure what I was waiting. It does take a while to adjust to a new schedule every semester.  Or maybe I was just too ambitious. But to me, doing ab exercises is important. It’s no longer about having a sexy definition (which is of course, hot) but it’s more important to strenghten the core, so I can do flips and moves and not have to struggle XD. Okay not that I can do flips but you know, maybe one day I will.

Since I dont have my exercise foam mat here, I use large towels. But it’s very mafan using towels. So I bought an exercise ball. Behold.

This ball is excellent for ab crunches because in addition to doing the crunches you have to balance yourself as well. Unlike the firm support of the ground, padded by an exercise mat, the ball will not give in. Therefore, you have to work harder to do crunches and prevent yourself from slipping off.

Good workout. Very, very good workout.

Sighs. Why didn’t I get it earlier?

When I first wanted to get an exercise ball, I didn’t want this size. I wanted a larger one. But after a second thought, I decided to get the medium size since it actually fits my height. But the store where I originally saw it had run out the second time around. I had no choice but to go to a mall near my college. Luckily they have it. And guess what? It even comes with a pump and free workout DVD! The one I wanted initially didnt come with a pump! I thought I could just blow it by mouth if I couldnt find one. But then I read on the label and it said you cant blow by mouth. Which is just as well since the hole is DEEP inside and the pump has a sharp nozzle to push the air in. Blowing by mouth was impossible to begin with.

Well anyway, just making good on Habit 1! Tomorrow I shall go watch a movie. Horton Hears a Who only have two showtimes at Pavilion tomorrow! Does it mean it’ll stop showing soon? D:

Ta’ra!

Habit 4

I never thought I’d finally be here myself.

Habit to break: Thinking that I’d need a specified number of time a day to complete an assignment, thinking that the assignment would turn out better that way rather than spending just one day writing up said assignment.

Habit to cultivate: Adhere to the 20/80 Rule.

The 20/80 rule dictates that 80% of the work is done in 20% of the time, and 80% of the food is eaten by 20% of the people and 80% of the wealth belongs to only 20% of the people.  So far, this rule has proven true, and the more you understand it, the better you can work yourself out.

I also realized that this is true. Therefore I shall not push myself to adhere to what’s ‘right’ and what’s ‘proper’ and work my own way! I have the ability to do an assignment in one sit down and have it 80% done. The other 20% is usually just frills, formatting and spell checking, of which are mostly done the morning before the assignment is due XD.

I suppose this also applies to exercising, isn’t it? 80% of the work is done in the first 20 minutes of the workout. The other 10, if you’re going for 30 mins, is for stretching and warm up. Devastatingly, I have been going to the gym only one a week now. I need to step up my game, in addition to buying an exercise ball. It’s so fun doing crunches on it :D.

Sighs. My life is so hectic lately. March is especially so, since all of our individual assignments are due this month while our group assignments are all due early April. But I do not like the stress so  I shall do them in my own time. I am not the type to like to lose sleep over anything. Normally it’s not worth it and I like my sleep.

Well, in case you forgot how I look like, here’s a picture of me and my friend, watching the play entitled ‘Whoa! Willow” last Sunday.

It was a fun performance. Plenty of drama, and dancing and singing.

My friend was in the vocal ensemble and every cast and crew received four free tickets for their families. My friend gave them all to me XD.

I didn’t take pictures with the rest of the cast, except one. It’s mostly because I don’t know any of those people and it doesn’t feel right posing in a picture acting as if we’ve known each other for ages.

We finished off the day at KLCC where it was raining all the way, while we walked.

Tropical rains are…incredible…

Anyway, I wanted to upload more pictures, but this post was first made for Oblong Corner but for some reason after those two successive posts, I can’t upload anymore pictures. pffft.

Anyway, that’s all from me today. Ta’ra!

A Hairy Issue

I know it’s been more than a three months since my last update, but this blog is still alive, believe it or not. When  I logged in I was surprised at the number of comments awaiting moderation! But they all turned out to be spam.

Anyway, I remembered how early last year I embarked on a journey to improve the condition of my hair. Back then I wasn’t happy with them. They felt dry, fizzy-like and the hairfall rate scared me.

And I wouldn’t mind having my hair grow faster too. So I did my research and found several truths:

1) There is absolutely NO WAY for your hair to grow any faster than it’s natural rate of growth.

2) Hair needs to washed at least once in two days, with shampoo. Washing is the only way for your hair to get much-needed moisture.

3) Improving your diet can help improve your hair

4) Dandruff is not the white flakes you see on your head. Dandruff is a medical scalp condition and can only be treated with prescribed medicine (either some special shampoo or pills). Flakes are a result of dry scalp.

So armed with the above knowledge, I realized I could not make my hair grow any faster that it already is, and that there’s nothing I can do with the hair already on my head. All I could do was influence the growth of healthy hair.

The first thing I did was change my shampoo. I’ve been using Pantene religiously for three years and frankly, I was getting bored of them. I switched to L’Oreal for a while but I didn’t like the watery conditioner, so after a few months I switched again, to Sunsilk. Now Sunsilk I like, because the conditioner is very good. The pink Soft n Smooth conditioner works almost like magic! I’m addicted to it now.

Other than switching shampoos, I also changed my diet. Tuna and fish oil was generally good for you hair, so I started buying more tuna flakes in water for sandwiches. I cooked them first though, as how our maid at home always makes XD. I made about eight sandwiches with just one tin. It was too much that I gave about half to my housemate hahaha. I persuaded her saying that it’s good for your hair.

Which is true, of course.

This ‘improving my hair condition’ journey is not a new one for me. Previously, I noticed the sorry state of my hair in high school. I didn’t know something as simple as shampooing and conditioning could help, so after a certain lenght, I would trim the edges or cut them back to shoulder lenght, and hope for healthier hair to grow back. It’s called the ‘rebooting’ method.

It worked to a certain degree that my current hair are healthier than their predecessor.

Exercise is also good for your hair since it pumps more blood to your head, which helps the growth of healthy hair. So I decided to do some more of that too. Sides, I was getting overweight from all the years of sedentary living.

I started seeing results just three months after the initiation. A friend whom had never seen my hair suddenly appeared in my hostel unit and commented how nice my straightened hair was! XD

I corrected her, saying I have never straightened or chemically treated my hair, since…well, what’s the point really?

That was among the first signs of victory for me; proof that my effort had been worth it. Mind you, before I never had people complimenting my hair since they were quite dry.

Knowing that I was doing the right thing, I kept up my haircare regime. In the end it all boiled down to one thing; wash your hair frequently, use a good shampoo and conditioner, and maintain a healthy diet. That’s it! If only I had known this years before!

Now it feels really good to have nice hair (boost my ego). One thing I have at my advantage is that my hair had never seen sun damage. I had covered my hair since I was twelve, before people have even heard of rebonding and chemical treatment. I told a lady at a hair salon that I wanted to go for hair treatment because it makes my hair felt like it was in one of those shampoo ads. The lady said that hair treatment only makes your hair softer, and it lasts only for a couple of days, and reverts back to your normal hair after a few washing. She said you can achieve the same results by using conditioner.

Sucks for her since now that I know this truth, I’m no longer tempted to spend 80 Ringgit to have my hair treated. Though I might still go for it one day since I like the pampering :D. Hair treatment is the only kind of treatment I dare to go for because it doesn’t use chemicals for your hair.

Another thing you should know about hair care is that, frequent brushing may lead to split ends. Brush your hair to untangle them, but be gentle. If you tug too hard, you will pull away perfectly healthy hair that’s best left on your head. Brushing evens out the oil on your scalp to the rest of your hair, which is good for them. But too frequent brushing is damaging to your hair.

I personally find my hair look better when I don’t brush them. When I brush them, the hair looks dry because they are not clumped together naturally, as if they were made to stand on their own by force. Besides, hair looks nicer when they are together, no?

Healthy hair is especially important for me now since I am planning to keep my hair long at least until I graduate, just to see how long they can go :D.

Well, I hope my two cents have been helpful. Ta’ra!

Stupid Neighbour

My stupid neighbour is at it again. The Chans, as they are known, complained again about some ‘weird noises’ coming from our place. They live in the unit below us by the way.

True, I was jumping and doing aerobic exercises but my jumping only lasted for 30 SECONDS!! And the couple just can’t handle noises for that long can’t they!? What? my jumping ruined your mood for a shag on the couch or something!? Well boo-hoo! LIKE I F**KING CARE!

At first it was only the husband, and then they did the civilized thing and called security. I wasn’t about to open the door when it was only him though. He could have assaulted me and nobody would know. Good for him. For having some brain.

Anyway, I answered the door finally, after putting on more appropriate garments. He said he was ‘concerned’ over the noises either from our unit or the next one. No doubt our next door neighbour had had some bouts with the Chans too before. After he blah blah blahed away, I told him it was in the middle of the day and such noises disturb you?

And the wife replied with a quick ‘yes!?’ like you know, quick and sarcastic. But I just raised my brows at her.  Wench.

Of course, the husband said yes and went on how we should be considerate of the neighbours around. Funny that coming from him. I wonder how many neighbours had he complained about anyway? I told him sure, people make noises, but you can’t tell a 5-year-old to shut up can’t you? Not to say it’s hopeless but he said we can try and minimize the noise. I told him ‘we’ve’ tried. I’m not going to say I live alone here! That’s crazy! So I pretended my 5-year-old sister was around. Besides, he should know since he had once wrote a letter of complain on that too.

But I mean, kids being the devils they are, are noisy, uncoordinated and likes to jump around. I said we’ll try and mostly dismissed him as being pesky.

Me: So you want us to minimize the noise?

Him: Yes, try and minimize the noise because we live downstairs and the noise bothers us.

Me: Right. We’ve tried. But there will still probably be noise. (whatever your interpretation of it may be). And?

Him: And we want you to try and minimize the noise.

Me:  Yeah I got that and?

And the guy kept repeating himself. At the end of it he said thanks for your time, but no doubt we left on a sour note. Not like I care much. My dad had made it clear that we didn’t like it each other. Literally.

Once he wrote a letter against us and the guard delivered it to us, just so we know a complain had been filed. Then my dad told the guard to tell the Chans “I don’t likes you”.

The guard just laughed.

Now this is sometimes why I hate being the nice person and avoid confrontations. Sometimes it’s best to make enemies than pretend to be friends. I’ve been pretty much very loose with the guards, pretending as if I’m just another person coming and going in this building. But I think it’s time for me to bear my weight around (all 68 kg of it!) and remind them including the management that they are serving us. And I deserve the same treatment.

But I will not go the way of the Chans and become popular in the complaints department. I will play this smartly. I will be that arrogant person living above them and a snobbish resident of a serviced apartment. I’ll be so cold even those two cangkul guards at the entrance won’t dare to make a pass at me again. Yes, those two cangkuls are young guards, perhaps about my age. They thought they could get away with making a pass at me because I’m female and I’m alone. One of these days I should give them the finger. The people in the management office once didn’t take me too seriously because I was always behind the shadow of my father. They will pay. I will bear my weight against them too. I’m a resident and I demand service!

And the Chans. Well too bad for them, despite their complains, fact remains that I still live above them. From now on it’s WAR! I do not need your permission to work out! My tummy will not be bloated like your beer belly!

En Garde!

Trouble Breathing

Is it just me or do I find myself having trouble breathing lately?

Could it be the bangla in the bus? The cigarette smokes? The smelly bunch of Ah Lians and  Ah Bengs? Or was I just hungry?

I am really not sure. The other day in the bus, when I returned home from college, I was…really hungry. I also didn’t get a seat so I stood, facing some padding thing where wheelchairs sit against. And then, I had trouble breathing. It’s funny sometimes that I forgot to breathe. I mean, these things are automatic. You don’t need to remind yourself to breathe, unless you’ve only just started exercising. It’s like, I just stopped…and expect my body to automatically breathe only to realize I’m short of breaths! And then, I started inhaling deeply several times, but it never seemed to fill my lungs. Then I did the worst thing I could have ever done!

I panic!

I inhaled again and again, deeper each time, but still felt short of breath! I improved my posture, making sure I was standing straight and my airpipe was straight as well.

It recovered several minutes later.

But that sure surprised me! My air supply was not obstructed because I wasn’t making any wheezing sounds. I don’t want to think of it as asthma or anything because I don’t have the history. It’s just one of those random things. But just to be sure, I bought a snack before I got on the train. Just my luck though, it was drizzling heavily when I reached BB so I had to wait around another half an hour before I could continue my journey home since I forgot my umbrella. *sighs* I don’t like to get stuck rained out without an umbrella.

After I had my lunch I recovered fully, because even in the monorail I was still breathing pretty shallowly.

Though I still noticed I sometimes still forgot to breathe. (I thought only babies have this problem!?) Anyway, I found the perfect cure for it.

EXERCISE + FOOD

Before my exercise my breath sometimes gets stuck in my lungs and I find myself breathing hard for several minutes. But after doing some exercise, my breathing recovers and more! I didn’t forget to breathe! Hahahaha! But breathing problems could potentially become serious doesn’t it? I’m hoping it would go away together with the exams heh heh…

Anyway, I found some renewed vigor in pursuing my weight-loss goals. I’ll list them down here.

REASONS WHY I WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT:

1. I don’t want to look like my mom’s side of the family

I don’t like them because they have issues for having some ‘holy’ family name. I was once told I looked like my mom’s youngest sister a.k.a Head Mafia. I was appalled! Devastated! She was bordering between chubby and total fatness and admittedly my big cheeks come from that side of the family. Therefore in order to keep away the resemblance, I have to thin out my face by getting rid of any excess fat, get it?!

2. I want to get fit and run a marathon

One of these days I’m going to run a full marathon. In order to do that I have to, in addition to building my stamina, get rid of the fat, thus excess weight and train to run. Also, I hate having to gasp for air after every little print I did.

3. My pants are heavy enough.

I like wearing jeans and cargo pants. I keep all my stuff in my pockets, like my wallet and phone (currently Sasarai :D). Any more, I would usually bring my trusty handbag. Either way, I always pride myself in that one day, should I was being chased and had to run from danger, I could just take off on a run without having to worry about excess baggage. But I’ve tried running short distances, like crossing the road and my pants alone was enough weight to make me pant! (ooh a pun! hahahaha!) Since changing pants is almost out of the question, since I need the extra pockets and I actually like cargo pants and jeans, I have no other choice but to decrease my own weight. Who knows eh? My life could depend on it one day.

4. I envy those skaters

One of my dreams was to take up rollerblading seriously. But I never had the opportunity. I’ll prolly get myself a new pair of rollerblades or skateboard one day, plus protective gear and teach myself skateboarding again. But f I can’t then at least I want to have the same stamina as them.

5. I want to take up martial arts

It’s physically challenging, so the least I could do is get prepared for it. I’m currently considering several martial arts and their classes.

6. I haven’t achieved THIS yet!

That’s right, SoYouWanna.com’s article on So You Wanna Flatten Your Abs. That was the catalyst that started this whole weight loss madness (which apparently hasn’t gone away). I tripped out during my first year of degree, but not anymore. Now I’m back with a vengeance baby! I don’t intend to win a Nobel Prize for Most Ripped Abs, but getting ripped abs is more than just appearing good, it gives you better strenght and flexibility too.

And man, I just found out that you will lose fat in the area that stored fat last. Like for example, you grew your stomach first before your butt follows. So when you burn fat, the fat on your butt will go first before your stomach. Sighs. It will take a while to shrink my thighs.  They are my problem areas, as most girls.

But I shall win this battle of the bulges!

Ta’ra!

Balance

Lately I’m witnessing the combination of all three Habits.

I found that when I exercise after I woke up I’m more motivated to study later in the day. And I may have found the right studying time for me. For now, at least. I like studying at 6-7 pm, the last hours or daylight.

On the exercise front, I have definitions on my arms now it’s creepy XD. I used to do a lot of biceps tonings before, but I never had real definitions before. Though I won’t be expecting the scales to budge any time soon. In addition, I bought some more supplements because my chlorella tablets are finished.

Maybe it’s the stress, but I managed to finish one story and started another while doing my studies.

And I want money.

Ta’ra!

Soreness

For three days now, my triceps have been feeling like rocks. After my vigorous arms exercise it still feels sore. But it’s easing up now.

I found the formula to keep me from exhausting my enthusiam to exercise: alternating days.

 Yeah I’m a little late in realizing that, but who cares :P.

I found out that if I alternate days, I don’t over exhaust myself. And during those days without exercise, I feel useless and will start attacking the exercise the next day with a vengeance! …which leads to of course, soreness again, which would warrant a rest the next day. And the cycle continues :D.

Daddyo is here and I visited another apartment for evaluation of live-able ness. Though the building is okay, near to a park and is surounded by eating outlets, it’s hard to access and has so many people roaming around the base. Not a good place.

We also finally went grocery shopping. After so long, this place is without food. I bought some low-fat milk because I haven’t drank milk in a long while. I know someone said that full cream or fresh milk is better than low-fat because it might have added flavourings, I don’t care. I like low-fat. And my stomach is choosy when it comes to dairy :/.

Yesterday morning I noticed that there are some definitions forming around my abs. Yes, I’m so happy. But it’s funny how they would disappear usually around lunch time XD. hehehehehe.

I’m gonna keep working hard!

Ta’ra!

p/s I have a new blog! The Oblong Corner to replace Yee ‘O Lost Souls. See you there!

Progress Report, again.

I admit. I haven’t started on habit 3 yet. But soon though. I’ve been…busy this weekend xD.

Anyway, I’m picking up the pace on Habit 1!

Notice my starting weight?

I had to take two days off after the boot camp DVD workout because my whole body was sore XD.

I haven’t stepped into the gym yet. Has been too lazy to go down there to do it. But my dad is coming soon so I won’t be able to exercise at home. You’ll be seeing me in the gym then.

It’s cool now that I can go back to exercising in the daytime. During the fasting month I struggled to time my exercise just right at night. Then I have to shower and wait till my hair dries before I can go to bed. Totally messed up my sleeping time.

And ooh yeah, I was totally impressed by the site statistics hehehe. If you read my blog frequently, please don’t be shy  to leave a comment :D. You dont have to register.

Ta’ra!

Habit 3

I thought I’d go on a monthly cycle of habits, but I just do it as the come. Habit 1 is doing well, so is Habit 2. But Exams is coming up, so it’s time for Habit 3.

Habit to break: No studies outside of class

Habit to cultivate: Study for at least 1 hour a day

I thought I’d start with next sem, but why wait, right? My first paper is 19th November and I have a lot to cover by then. But 1 hour a day seems feasible. Maybe I’ll bump it up as I go along. That way I’ll feel less guilt hehe.

So wish me luck!

Ta’ra!

Booting It Out

Yesterday, while I was out shopping with my cousin, I noticed how unshapely my arms were. Okay I rephrase: They look fat!

I may have lost 4 Kg, but it sure isn’t showing as much as I want. I have been lifting weights, but it’s very minimal. My main focus has always been to do a workout as intense and as long as possible, so I often ditched strenght training for cardio workouts.  After which, I’m too burn out to do any lifting.

But no more! I haven’t gained back the weight, but this time I will seriously pursue shapely arms. Therefore today I bought two workout DVDs dedicated to weight training and body sculpting.

It’s a new Denise Austin video apparently. It’s been ages since I’ve gotten any new materials from her. I lost 10 kg previously, just by doing her routines alone, so I really adored her. (But of course those 10 kg I gained back after one year in the hostel *grumbles*)

The thing with workout DVDs as opposed to VCDs is that they usually contain two sets of workout, instead of one. So you get double for the same price! I even contemplated buying a yoga DVD since it’s good for flexibility and whatnot, but I didn’t have enough money for all three heh heh. But fortunately Denise’s DVD has an extra 10 minutes flexibility segment I can follow wheee.

I really like running, especially on treadmills, but I’m always concerned that all it does is burn calories, and the workout is mostly lower body. And if all I do is run, I get bored. So that’s why I still use workout DVDs whenever possible, to give my routine variety.

My third 30-day cycle started last Saturday when I managed to squeeze in an exercise in the morning hehehe. My next workout would be tomorrow! I can’t wait! 

And classes are ending soon and it would be another 2-3 weeks to my first paper. I like having lotsa free time. Gives me plenty of time to plan and stuff hehe.

Also, Habit 2 has been working out pretty well. I feel less guilt now towards my parents. Yeah I’m not a good daughter.

I have decided that my parents will not change and it’s futile to try and change them. You can only make them understand but they will not do a 360 for you. If only I had come to that conclusion sooner. sighs.

I even randomly gave to beggars on the streets now. I always remind myself to give money away after something bad had happened. Like getting left behind by the taxi *mutters mutters*.

Anyway, I wanna be in the best shape possible for my 21st birthday, so better start now!

Ta’ra!