A Wonderful Evening Outing

I am a big Sheila Majid fan and have been following her career for years ever since I first heard the songs from her first album.

If there was a local artist that I would say that I’m a fanatic of, Sheila Majid would definitely be the one.

But I have never been to any of her live performances .. ever .. until this past weekend.

For years, I’ve always regretted not being able to watch my favorite local artist performing live. I remember being so close to going to her “Legenda Concert at Stadium Merdeka” back when I was in KPP only to be foiled by a transportation problems getting to the venue. Her last concert was at the Petronas Philharmonic Hall at KLCC sometime back which again I had to miss because I didn’t have anyone to go with. When I was active in my company dinner organizing committee back in the day, I always had her name on the top of my list of entertainers to invite but we could never seem to get her to come to our function. Years have passed and I’ve actually resigned myself to the possibility that I would not get a chance to see my idol performing live.

When I saw a banner at SultanMuzzafar’s blog that said that she would be performing for the Institut Jantung Negara (IJN) Foundation Charity Benefit, I knew that I finally got my chance. I am a loyal supporter of the IJN Foundation who do good work for people needing expensive heart health care which would be out of reach for them if not for the funding/help provided by the foundation. Last year, at around the same time of the year, they organized a benefit staging of the “Puteri Gunung Ledang – The Musical” at Istana Budaya which I attended with my family. This year the whole family was planning to go on a trip to Indonesia at the same time as when the concert was happening which means that they would not be going.

I was crushed! I really wanted to go but again run into the same old problem of not having someone else to go with. I hate going to concerts alone (which I did once when Richard Marx had his concert in KL ages ago) no only because of my transportation situation but also not having someone to share the occasion with would really suck. Fortunately, this was the new me now, the guy who was no longer the hermit crab living in his own world in the middle of nowhere. I quickly made a list of the people I knew would enjoy a Sheila Majid concert as well as enjoy each other’s company to invite to join me for a night out.

It was made easier for me that my mum was able to secure me the cheapest tickets for the concert at RM100 per seat instead of the normal price of RM150. On of the perks of having relatives working at IJN is not only will you get a chance to attend IJN Foundation events but a secured room at IJN should you need to have a heart operation! With that all set, I sent out txt and Facebook messages out to the people on my list and waited to see who would say yes to the offer. There were some people on my invite list that I really wished that they could go as it would really have made the night more interesting. Fortunately some people did which really made my day since I really wanted to go to the show.

On the day of the show, we made plans to meet up at KLCC to have dinner before going to the show which was being held at the nearby KL Convention Center. I was already there since 4 pm as I had another meeting planned earlier before the guys showed up. We had dinner at the Apartments at KLCC which was located where Shrooms was before. Wasn’t particularly impressed by the food they served but the company was more than worth the time spent there. After dinner, we took a short walk using the connecting tunnel between KLCC and the Convention Center to reach the concert hall.

Our tickets were for the nosebleed section on level 3. As we came into the hall I was quite surprised to see how empty that section was given the time that we came in. I had checked the online ticket website to see ticket availability and it did say that they had sold out for the cheapest tickets to the show. I had imagined that the section would be packed by then but instead I found it to be strangely deserted. I found out later that majority of the seats on our level were purchased by the corporate sponsors who would normally distribute it to their own staff. I’m guessing that somewhere along the line, those tickets did not get distributed out leaving just empty seats around us. It’s a pity seeing all the empty seats that night when I think of the other people trying to get tickets online only to be told that they have sold out.

Our 3 seats were originally at the top left side of the room but thanks to much cajoling from the guys with me that night, we decided to move further down the assigned seating to be closer to the edge to see the stage better. Those who know me knows how hard it was to get me to agree to that. I do not have a thick skin, people! The thought of being caught sitting in a seat not assigned in the ticket that I hold actually mortifies me. But being a night of many first, I decided to throw caution to the wind and move down with the rest of the guys. It turned that eventually the event crew requested that everyone to move down to the second level to fill up seats there but we decided to stay where we were since it had a better view of the stage.

The concert started a bit late as to allow for the arrivals of VIPs which included the Prime Minister and wife. They had a short cheque presentation from corporate sponsors who donated graciously to the cause which was received by the PM. Thankfully there were no grand speeches from any of the VIP that night as people were already grumbling around me about the late start. As the starting strains of “Ku Mohon” start playing over the short presentation of her visit to IJN, I was getting more excited about seeing my favorite artist in action. I didn’t have to wait much longer when she appeared on stage launching into the first song of many that night.

The concert itself was a blast. Everyone around us practically knew the words to all of the song she sang that night and we sang along with her. The guys who I came with were so busy with their cameras, either snapping pictures of the singer or making bootleg copies of the concert performance (hahahah), that I had to check in with them to make sure that they at least were enjoying the show for a view other than the camera’s view finder. At certain points of the concert, all of us were up on our feet (including the PM who we could see from our seats) and dancing to the music. I think that the last time I had actually attempted to move my body is any type of rhythmic activity, Clinton was still the President in the US. It was quite liberating actually to be able to let loose a bit and just dance to celebrate the music that was being performed for us.

Of course I also found out that night that a certain someone I was with that night really has the worst sense of rhythm I have ever seen. I never imagine that I would find someone who sucked it at more than me. Good thing that your charming self more than compensated for the lack of coordinated movement.

Sheila went through 3 dress changes throughout the slightly more than 2 hours concert that night. She sang all of her fan favorites from her earlier albums that went down well with the audience who practically grew up listening to her songs. This was also her first concert in 7 years after her last appearance at Petronas Philharmonic Hall which made it more special for the IJN Foundation as she was willing to come back for their cause. It was clear that she loved the crowd and the energy that she was getting from them as we partied the night away. She did only one encore performance that night but it was for a song that all of us were waiting to hear the whole night. Her performance of “Legenda” accompanied by her fans in the auditorium was a wonderful way to end the concert.

We left the concert hall at almost midnight feeling the buzz from a really enjoyable show. Most of us decided to stop at a nearby eating establishment to get some should-be-avoided post midnight nosh before going back to end the day. It was a wonderful evening outing for me which of course left me losing my voice in the following days after the concert but the experience of seeing Sheila Majid live in concert was worth walking around sounding like a trombone for days. I don’t know when I would get the opportuinity to see her in concert again but at least now I can cross one more item from my list of things that I want to do.

Workout Progress – Jan ‘08

January saw me starting the year with a new PT as my previous PT had decided to explore other job opportunities. At the point, we had already finished our 1st block of 24 PT sessions and we were talking about adding on more sessions to focus on muscle mass development. With him gone, I had to go through the process of selecting a new PT that fit best with my personality and workout goals. Thanks to his recommendations, I was able to quickly decide on my new PT and we set down to plan out a program that spans 24 sessions for me to learn the skills I need to start on the new phase of my gymming experience.

After focusing more on body conditioning and strength building in the last PT block, both of us agreed that it was time for me to get into a program that would help me achieve my goals of developing muscle tone and definition. This meant that I would be hitting the free weight section of the gym more often than before. While it may be blasé for some, it was a major move for me as I had to overcome my feelings of intimidation and self doubt when it comes to working out in that area. What I soon found out was that with the exception of a few, most who are there were actually quite supportive of free weight newbies as long as they don’t interfere in their own workouts i.e. hogging the weights and not returning them back to their proper place after use.

I have to admit that I still get intimidated around the people there but at least I am not actively avoiding working out there because of it.

Diet plan in Jan

Breakfast (8 am)
- 1 sachet of Quaker Oats Flavored instant oatmeal
- 1 serving of low fat yogurt
- 1 serving of protein shake

Brunch (10 am)
- 1/2 serving of plan fried rice with tempeh goreng or greens
- 1 hardboiled egg (alternate working days – 2 whole eggs total per week)
- 1 serving of fruits

Lunch (12 pm)
- 1 Spirulina cereal 3 in 1 mix.

Snacks (4 pm)
- 1 Nature Valley Granola bar (Apple Crisps, Almond and Pecan have lowest calories)
- Japanese Green Tea

Dinner (7 pm) – non workout days (Tues/Sat)
- 1 serving of protein shake
- buy something roughly less than 300kcal

Workout Days (M/W/Thurs/F: 8:30 – 11:30 pm, Sun: 4 – 8pm)
Pre workout
- 1 serving of protein shake
- buy something roughly less than 300kcal

Post workout - 1 serving of protein shake

Supplements : Protein Shake – 3 servings per day
21st Century’s HerbalLipo Tea – 1 serving per week day
GNC MegaMen Dietary Supplement – 1 tablet per day

I’ve given up bread as a component of my daily diet since I am already getting my carbohydrates from the other food stuff that I was consuming. I’ve replace it instead with a service of flavored instant oats which has the added advantage of cholesterol control. It’s cheap and convenient enough to have around the house and I usually can get them easily from the supermarket before I go to my gym. While most of the other components of my diet stayed basically the same, I have added 3 servings daily of protein shakes a day. Given that I need the protein for my current PT plan, this was potentially an expensive affair given that the usual protein shake that I used cost about RM300 for an 18 serving box. I was lucky this month to get a special deal on protein shake mix that was close to their expiry date (Aug 2008) and was selling for about RM135 per tub. It may not be my usual mix with it’s 56gm of protein per serving but it would do in a pinch given my tight budget.

A word on the dieting.

While it does seem that my diet plan seems a little of the harsh side, it does not mean that I don’t indulge myself occasionally. I love food and I love eating it more than cooking it so most of the time I would not really say no to an invitation eat out when it comes my way. I actually found myself eating out with friends more often in January than in previous months of the past year. The trick is to realize that you can still go out and eat healthy if you make the right choices for yourself. Moderation, as in all things, is also the key in eating out in a healthy manner. Food, both as sustenance and a social lubricant, was meant to be savored and not wolfed down in large quantities. Keep those points in mind when you eat out and you shouldn’t stray too far from a healthy diet. Of course indulgence mean that you do it occasionally. To do it on a daily basis (or more) would slide you into the hedonist category.

Looking ahead in February, I will be embarking on the next phase of my current PT training program where I would be adding on an extra set for each of the exercises that I am currently doing. No doubt that I am a bit apprehensive about the prospect but I have surprised myself before with what I thought I could not do at the gym so I’m looking forward for the challenge. While I have been talking about it for months, I have yet to try out any of the GX classes that they offer at my gym. I have actually short listed that classes that looked interesting for me down to either BodyPump or Spinning but I have yet to find the opportuinity to attend their introductory class. I’m putting a goal here that I would try to attend both classes at least once in the month of February to find out what they were about and if I would like to continue attending them. Most of these classes are held at the same time as when I do my PT sessions so I need to check if they are any that I can attend on Sunday instead. I would definitely be writing an entry for my first time in a GX class in my blog should I accomplish it this month.

As usual, my fitness adventure continue on with me now in more control of what I want to achieve. I’ve definitely started to reap the dividends from gymming as people start to notice the physical difference in my appearance. While that is definitely an ego booster, it should not be the only reason to go gymming because looks may fade with time but your health stays with you for much longer.

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 9

Program Day 9 (muscle group: Back and Triceps – duration 1.5 hrs)

Warm up – Stretching (10 minutes)

Back
Assisted Chin Up (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 25% of body weight)
Lat Pulldown (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 65/80/95 lbs)
Low Row (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 25/30/35 lbs)
Upper Back (reps - 12/12/12, weight – 30/30/30 lbs)
Single Arm Upper Back (reps – 5/5/5 per arm, weight – 30/30/30 lbs)
Iso-Lateral DY Row (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 25 lbs)
Single Arm Iso-Lateral DY Row (reps – 5/5/5 per arm, weight – 25 lbs)


Triceps
Triceps Pushdown (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 30/32.5/32.5 lbs)
Barbell Close Grip (reps - 15/15/15, weight - 20 lbs)
Seated Dips - Bench (reps – 15/15/15, weight – body weight)

Cool down
Cardio on stationary bike (10 minutes, 60 kcal target burn)

Note:

I have completed the first 3 cycles of the program and will be starting on a new cycle variation next week. It would be basically the same type of exercises but instead of doing 3 sets of each, my PT will be adding an extra set to push me further in our program. I’m looking forward to the routine change but have to admit that I’m a bit intimidated by the prospect. Still I will not let my fears get the better of me (for fear is the mind-killer – Dune) and instead take it as another challenge to overcome next week.

Still having some problems with my form when doing pushups for both chest and triceps exercises so I don’t think that I’m getting all that I could out of that exercise. Talked to my PT about it and though he agreed that I could work on improving my form, he was not about to let me off the hook as far as pushups are concerned. They will stay in the program until I can develop the correct form for it. Well .. a guy got to do what a guy got to do then.

InBody Check Progress - Jan '08

I actually did my monthly InBody check a few weeks back before starting on my current PT program but didn’t get a chance to really look at it till today. This month’s results would be used to compare how much I have progressed from the same time period last year and to set the new baseline for this year as I go through my program.

Looking at the numbers, I still have room for improvement but I will not let them detract from the accomplishment that I have been able to achieve in the past 12 months.

Thanks to a combination of dieting, exercise at home and gymming, I was able to shed a few more kilograms of weight. While it was not as much as my previous record of shedding close to 10 kg a year achieved in 2006, I’m not too disappointed by it as total weight is a relatively subjective measure for overall fitness/wellness. Moving ahead, I will be focusing more on the body fat and muscle mass percentages which bears a more relevant measurement that I need. For 2008, I’m setting a weight goal to hover around 72kgs which I don’t mind exceeding as long as the body fat% continue to decrease.

Both body fat and muscle mass percentages are on track given that I was mostly doing light exercises before I started going to the gym in September last year. I hope to see better numbers in the following months as I go through my current PT plan. I looking forward to see an increase in muscle mass at least given that my current program has some emphasis on muscle/definition building.

My fitness journey is still continuing and I’ll be putting up my InBody check results on site as soon as I get them.

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 8

Program Day 8 (muscle group: Lower body, Shoulders, Abs – duration 1.5 hrs)

Warm up – Stretching (10 minutes)

Lower body
Linear Leg Press (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 180/270/270 lbs)
Walking Lunges (reps – distance, weight – 2 x 10 lbs plates)
Static Lunges (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 10/10/10 lbs)
Seated Leg Curl (reps 12/12/12, weight – 80/80/80 lbs)
Ball Squat (reps 15/15/15, weight – body weight)
Walking Calf Raise (reps – distance, weight – body weight + 10lbs)
Reverse Calf/Soleus Pull (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 5/10/12.5 lbs)

Shoulders
EZ Barbell Front Raise (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 30 lbs)
Combined Dumbbell Front & Side Raise (reps – 30/30/30, weight – 15/15/15 lbs)

Abs
Abs Crunch – Hammer Strength (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 22/55/55 lbs)

Cool down – Cardio on stationary bike (20 minutes, 120 kcal target burn)

An Uncertain Journey

I pride myself as having an alternative plan to almost everything that I go through in life. The thought of not being able to switch plans should the first plan fall through does scare me a bit as that would disrupt my orderly existence. As such, it usually takes me a while to take action as I would need time to consider the best opportunities and then get another set to be my backup plan if the first set don’t work out. Some backup plans were made for the small details of my day while others I have set down for my long term planning of what I want to do with my life.

Events that happened in the past 2 weeks saw me jettisoned a major backup plan pertaining to how I would live my life. This was a backup plan that I have put in place for almost as long as I remember. It was something that I thought that I would eventually settle for should nothing better comes along. Something that I had set in motion to be there should I fail to overcome my fear of reaching out and grasping the happiness that I want for myself in life. Something that, before recently, I thought would be my lot in life in the very near future.

I realized that my backup plan was in effect a crutch that I continued to use to avoid facing certain truths in my life. For as long as it was there, I did not have to risk anything detrimental to matters of my heart since I can always cut my losses and run away to my backup plan. What I didn’t fully realized till quite recently was that I was not the only one depending of this backup plan. There was one other person in this scenario that was being dragged along in this plan whether they like it or not. For as long as I continued to hold on to my backup plan, I effectively had this person’s life on hold waiting for me to fall back to the plan.

So I decided to take the risk and totally abandon that particular backup plan.

Of course, being me, I went through a minor freaking-out episode when the realization of what I had done finally sink in. Obviously I got through that episode with all my facilities intact .. more or less.

So here I am with nary a backup plan relating to how I would find happiness in my life from this point on. I have to be honest and admit that the prospect of not having that crutch scares me but there still is a sense of excitement at the thought that from this point on I would operate on unknown territories. Letting go of that plan has also given me a sense of freedom to explore new possibilities without feeling the guilt of knowing that I am allowing an innocent person to remain in a limbo that I somewhat place that person in without their actual consent.

For once in a long time, I am navigating my life using star charts that yet to be written and not those fixed in stone. Rough seas ahead would have to be expected but the adventure would definitely be worth an uncertain journey.

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 7

Program Day 7 (muscle group: Chest, Biceps, Lower Back, Abs – duration 1 hrs)

Warm up – Stretching

Chest
Flat Barbell Bench Press (reps - 12/12/12, weight – 50/50/50 lbs)
Flat Dumbbell Bench Press (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 20/20/20 lbs)
Push Up (reps – 15/15/15, weight – body weight)
Incline Dumbbell Press (reps – 15/15/15, weight 20/20/20 lbs)
Cable Pec Fly (reps – 12/12/12, weight 10/10/10 lbs)

Biceps
Standing E-Z Bar Bicep Curl
- Full extension from low to chin (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 30/40/40 lbs)
Dumbbell Hammer Curl (reps – 12/12/12, weight – 15/15/15 lbs)

Lower Back
Back Extensions (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 57/64/66.5 lbs)

Abs
Abs Raised Knee Crunches – (reps 15/15/15, weight – body weight)
Alternate Leg Up Plank – (reps 1/1/1 minute, weight – body weight)

Cool down – None

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 6

Program Day 6 (muscle group: Back, Triceps and Abs – duration 1.5 hrs)

Warm up – None

Back
Assisted Chin Up (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 25% of body weight)
Lat Pulldown (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 57.5/60/62.5 lbs)
Low Row (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 32.5/45/47.5 lbs)
Upper Back (reps - 12/12/12, weight - 27.5/30/30.5 lbs)
Iso-Lateral DY Row (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 25 lbs)

Triceps
Triceps Pushdown (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 30/30/30 lbs)
Triceps Pushup (reps 15/15/15, weight – body weight)
Barbell Close Grip (reps - 15/15/15, weight - 20 lbs)
Seated Dips (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 60/70/80 lbs)

Abs
Abs Leg Raise (reps – 20/20/20, weight – body weight)
Abs Crunches – Hammer Strength (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 33/44/55 lbs)

Cool down – None

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 5

Program Day 5 (muscle group: Lower body, Shoulders, Core – duration 1.5 hrs)

Warm up – Cardio on stationary bike (20 minutes, 120 kcal target burn)

Lower body
Linear Leg Press (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 90/160/230 lbs)
Walking Lunges (reps – distance, weight – 2 x 10 lbs plates)
Static Lunges (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 10/10/10 lbs)
Leg Extensions (reps 12/10/10, weight – 35/40/45 lbs)
Prone Leg Curl (reps 12/10/10, weight – 30/36/40.5 lbs)
Walking Calf Raise (reps – distance, weight – body weight)
Reverse Calf/Soleus Pull (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 5 lbs)

Shoulders
Shoulder Press (reps – 12/12/12, weight – 20/20/20 lbs)
Combined Dumbbell Front & Side Raise (reps – 30/30/30, weight – 15/15/15 lbs)

Core muscles (abs and back)
Leg Up Raise (reps – 1/1/1 minute, weight – body weight)
Horizontal Plank (reps – 1/1/1 minute, weight – body weight)

Cool down – None

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 4

Program Day 4 (muscle group: Chest, Biceps, Lower Back, Abs – duration 2 hrs)

Warm up – Stretching

Chest
Flat Barbell Bench Press (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 45/50/55 lbs)
Flat Dumbbell Bench Press (reps – 12/12/12, weight – 20/20/20 lbs)
Push Up (reps – 15/15/15, weight – body weight)
Incline Press (reps – 12/12/12, weight 20/20/20 lbs)
Pec Fly (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 16/22.5/27 lbs)
Cable Pullover (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 30/40/50 lbs)
Vertical Chest Press (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 23/27/30 lbs)

Biceps
Standing E-Z Bar Bicep Curl (3 position – continuous without rest between position change)
- Low to Elbow level (reps – 9/9/9, weight – 20/30/30 lbs)
- Elbow to Chin level (reps – 9/9/9, weight – 20/30/30 lbs)
- Full extension from low to chin (reps – 9/9/9/, weight – 20/30/30 lbs)
Seated Bicep Curl (reps 12/10/10, weight – 16/18/20 lbs)
Cable Bicep Curl (rep 12/10/10, weight – 40/50/60 lbs)

Lower Back
Back Extensions (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 54.5/57/61.5 lbs)

Abs
Abs Crunches Hammer Strength (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 33/33/33 lbs)

Cool down – None

Hiking at Bukit Gasing, PJ

I finally did it!

No .. it’s not that! Or the other thing. Or that thing I was thinking to do .. hmm there are still a lot of things that I have not done yet.

I finally tried hiking!

Thanks to the friend who has been gracious with his repeated invitation, I decided to take up the opportuinity to try a little bit of hiking for myself this past weekend. Honestly I was a bit worried that this particular friend of mine had swore off trying to invite me to join his hiking group given that I have declined his invitation twice before. That’s why I was very grateful that he did which gave me the opportunity to check that activity out in line with the goals that I have set up for myself this year.

First obstacle to overcome was waking up very early in the morning. I am by nature not a morning person. It takes me at least 15 minutes and 3 hits on the snooze button to get me out of bed especially when it’s 5 am in the morning. Good thing that I have packed all that I needed to bring along the night before or else I would definitely have left some things behind that morning. After a quick shower and breakfast, I took a bus to the Asia Jaya LRT station where I was suppose to meet him at 7 am. Fortunately I did not have to wait long for the bus and actually reached the meeting point at 6:45 am.

My friend picked me up not long after and we were on our way to the Bukit Gasing Educational Park which is located in the heart of Petaling Jaya. I have heard of the place before but always thought that it was located outside of KL. I never imagined that such a place existed in the middle of a long established residential area. That just goes to show how much small things like this can be a pleasant surprise for me since I have been living close by the area almost all my life. It took someone from another country to show me that it was there!

We waited for a little bit before the rest of the group arrived at the base of the trekking route. It was just 5 of us that Sunday which consisted of 3 group regulars and 2 newbies, myself and 1 other person, who would be joining them for the first time. I was a bit apprehensive in the beginning since I was not sure what to expect. The last time I went hiking was in Janda Baik Forest Reserve back when I just finished my college prep school and I was definitely in much better shape then than I am now. I was also unsure if the regulars meant that they would be running all the way through the trek route ala the Hash House Harriers which would definitely scare me off.

Thankfully, running was not in the books that day, unless of course one wanted to (not me … no thank you). In deference to the newbies, the group decided to choose the “milder” course that they feel that we could managed on our first time out. Of course, “milder” was quite subjective when it came to this group of people gauging by their fitness levels so I wasn’t that convinced but I was determined to go through it. I would not know my own capabilities if I don’t push myself and this was a golden opportuinity to try it in the safety of a group that I was sure would be looking out for me.

The course started fairly easily at first then became a series of increasingly challenging climbs using both man made steps set in the ground as well as natural steps created by conveniently located rocks and roots. I initially found myself struggling to keep pace with the lead (yeah you … geez you were really moving that morning) but I soon realized plus was told that I didn’t have to. I should go on my own pace and there will be someone bringing up the back so the group didn’t get separated too far. Once I started to get the hang of tromping around in the secondary forest at Bukit Gasing, I found my own pace that I could handle and occasionally push to raise to the next level.

The trek itself was fairly varied. We went up and down through clearly marked paths that was surprisingly was not as slippery that I had thought given the rains that came down the night before. Some of the slopes were fairly easy to go up while there were a few which presented much more of a challenge. The one that I was most excited during the hike about was the one that had an almost 70 degree incline that was the most difficult to go up. I definitely felt the burn in my calves, hamstrings and glutes trying to climb up that steep incline which was much more intense than any workout I had in the gym for the same muscle group.

Needless to say, I was huffing and puffing so loudly that I’m sure that I would scare off any animals within a 2 mile radius of the area with the sounds of my labored breath. I was soaking with sweat from top to toe but I was really enjoying the experience. I was outdoor enjoying the fresh air that I rarely get to and I was in the company of supportive people to always checked back to make sure that you were doing ok. The trek was also filled with the sound of people wishing others “Good Morning” as they pass each other which added to the surreal feeling of it all. We had people of all ages, young and old, all there to enjoy their surroundings and work out a good sweat while doing it. This provided me with a feeling of camaraderie that was unique to the experience which added another layer to be cherished.

When I reached the end of the trek, I found myself feeling both elated that I’ve accomplished something new that morning and hopeful of doing it again sometime soon when I get the chance. I’ve proved to myself that I was again able to do something that I thought I could not and I gained something new from the experience. I would definitely set new goals for myself in terms of pace the next time I go on this hike but I know not to rush it. Maybe do that when I get in better condition and more familiar with the trek. I also met a set of new people that I could add to my list of acquaintances which is always good to do in my book.

After the hike, we walked back to where the cars were parked but not before stopping to watch a whole troop of wild monkeys coming out in search of food by the roadside. We proceeded after that to a nearby mamak place to have breakfast which gave me another opportuinity to bond with the group. Leaving after breakfast that Sunday morning, I was fully convinced that hopefully I would be able to do it again with the great company I had that morning. The whole experience was not only something that I could cross off my list of things to do this year but also an eye opening experience of finding out something that I could enjoy doing on a free weekend.

Unfortunately the Bukit Gasing Educational Park is currently being threaten by developers who planned to clear part of the land for property development. The path that I hike through on that Sunday may not be there for long and everyone should take the opportuinity to enjoy it while it’s still there. Better yet, one could get involved with efforts to conserve the area against developer encroachment which I unfortunately did not get details of how to. I saw some notices at the entrance to the park so I believe that the details on how we can help should be listed there.

My first Sunday hike through Bukit Gasing Educational Park would definitely rank in one of the more memorable things I did in 2008. It’s still early though but I can say that it is still one of the most memorable things I did this month at least. I would definitely recommend it to other who like me initially thought that they would never be able to survive it. You’ll be surprised at what a little bit of determination and support from a great set of people can do for you.

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 3

Just to clarify, I don’t go through the program on consecutive days although I do use “day” to refer to each session. I would be killing myself if I did that. Like all types of exercises, one should put in at least one day in between sessions to allow for full recovery. The muscles that you stress during the session also need that time to rebuild and hopefully add bulk to which is one of the goals of the program. Given my 5 days on - 2 days off gym schedule, this means that I would have 2 days that I do only cardio and abs exercises at the gym. Usually for me that would be on Thursdays and Sundays. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays are dedicated to the PT program.

Program Day 3 (muscle group: Back, Triceps and Abs – duration 1 hr + 20 minutes cardio)

Warm up – Brisk walking on treadmill (20 minutes, 100 kcal target burn)

Back
Assisted Chin Up (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 25% of body weight)
Lat Pulldown (reps - 12/10/10, weight - 55/57.2/60 lbs)
Low Row (reps - 12/10/10, weight - 30/32.5/35 lbs)
Upper Back (reps - 12/12/12, weight - 27.5/27.5/27.5 lbs)
Iso-Lateral DY Row (reps - 12/10/10, weight - 25/30/35 lbs)

Triceps
Triceps Pulldown (reps - 12/10/10, weight - 15/17.5/20 lbs)
Barbell Close Grip (reps - 15/15/15, weight - 20 lbs)
Seated Dips (reps - 15/15/15, weight – body weight)

Abs
Abs Leg Raise (reps – 20/20/20, weight – body weight)
Abs Crunches (reps - 15/15/15, weight – 10/15/20 lbs)

Cool down – Stretching

Day 4 program later tonight should repeat Day 1 exercises but starting at the weight levels from the second rep of Day 1. It should make for an interesting day at the gym later.

It Comes and Goes ... Really

Artist: Shayne Ward
Album: Breathless
Year: 2007
Title: Breathless

If our love was a fairy tale
I would charge in and rescue you
On a yacht baby we would sail
To an island where we’d say I do

And if we had babies they would look like you
It’d be so beautiful if that came true
You don’t even know how very special you are

Chorus
You leave me breathless
You’re everything good in my life
You leave me breathless
I still can’t believe that you’re mine
You just walked out of one of my dreams
So beautiful you’re leaving me
Breathless

And if our love was a story book
We would meet on the very first page
The last chapter would be about
How I’m thankful for the life we’ve made

And if we had babies they would have your eyes
I would fall deeper watching you give life
You don’t even know how very special you are

Chorus

You must have been sent from heaven to earth to change me
You’re like an angel
The thing that I feel is stronger than love believe me
You’re something special
I only hope that I’ll one day deserve what you’ve given me
But all I can do is try
Every day of my life

Chorus x2

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 2

I’m falling behind on updating my PT program (what else is new).

As noted in the previous entry, this programs are customized for my needs and my goals which may not be the same for everybody. I have also gone through a block of 24 PT sessions that consisted of less weight training exercises that my PT has me on now so I consider my current program as more of an intermediate level program.

Program Day 2 (muscle group: Lower body, Shoulders, Core – duration 1 hr + 20 minutes cardio)

Warm up – Cardio on stationary bike (20 minutes, 120 kcal target burn)

Lower body
Linear Leg Press (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 50/90/140 lbs)
Walking Lunges (reps – distance, weight – 2 x 10 lbs plates)
Static Lunges (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 10/10/10 lbs)
Leg Extensions (reps 12/10/10, weight – 30/35/40 lbs)
Prone Leg Curl (reps 12/10/10, weight – 25/30/36 lbs)
Walking Calf Raise (reps – distance, weight – body weight)

Shoulders
Shoulder Press (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 25/25/25 lbs)
E-Z Bar Front Raise (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 20/20/20 lbs)
Cable Side Raise (reps – 15/15/15, weight – 5/5/5 lbs)

Core muscles (abs and back)
Leg Up (reps – 1/1/1 minute, weight – body weight)
Horizontal Plank (reps – 1/1/1 minute, weight – body weight)

Cool down – Stretching (too exhausted to do anything else)

Workout Journal – 2008 Personal Training Program Day 1

I’ve been noticing that my blog has been getting hits from people looking for gym workouts on the internet. The sudden increase this early in the year doesn’t really surprise me as I think that many people would start hitting the gym as part of their new years resolutions to live a healthier life. Knowing that not many people might have the opportuinity to engage a personal trainer, I feel that I might be able to help out those looking for gym workouts by sharing mine.

Of course there are some things that need to be clarified before use.

This is actually my second training program having completed an earlier training program than focused on learning how to use the gym equipment correctly as well as developing core muscle strength. The previous program was heavy on the circuit training so that I would be building stamina, reduce recovery time and learning to recognize my pain threshold. I would highly recommend this type of program to newbies first to avoid any injuries that might occur. If possible talk to the PTs at the gym and ask for the complimentary fitness assessment that they usually will give out free when you sign up for your gym membership. Take time to walk though the machines to learn how to use them and ask for one or two sessions for core muscle training.

If you had training before and/or are comfortable with moving to an intermediate level, the program that I’m sharing in my blog would be an example of what you might design for yourself. The operative word here is “design for yourself” since gym training programs are highly customized for the individual’s goals and needs. My current program fits my profile of being a 35 year old male with no gym experience other than the past 4 months at my current gym and living a fairly sedated lifestyle . My goals for the program is to get a leaner body tone with some muscle definition and to lower my blood pressure readings. If your needs and goals are different than mine, the program here might not be as good as a fit for you to follow but you can take it as a guide of what type of exercise is available for you.

I will be putting up these entries as often as I can on the days that I have my PT sessions. You might see a lot of repetitions in terms of the types of exercises that I go through but I guess that repetitions are the basis of strength training and muscle building. Against better judgment, I will also include the level of weights that I used for the exercises. I say “against better judgment” because I’m sure that some people would see it as bragging about the weights I’m lifting but seriously folks other people can lift much more than me so I’m just risking embarrassment by listing them here. Nevertheless, being the completist person I am, I will be listing them here as part of documenting my progress as I go through the program.

So with that said, listed below are the exercises that I had to do for my first day of the program. Note that rest times between sets are kept to a minimum just enough to feel the ache pass. I also welcome comments and recommendations on the program which you can leave in the comments section.

Program Day 1 (muscle group: Chest, Biceps, Lower Back, Abs – duration 1 hr + 40 minutes cardio)

Warm up – Cardio on stationary bike (20 minutes, 150 kcal target burn)

Chest
Flat Barbell Bench Press (reps - 12/10/10, weight – 40/50/55 lbs)
Flat Dumbbell Bench Press (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 15/20/25 lbs)
Decline Push Up (reps – 15/15/15, weight – body weight)
Incline Chest Press (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 20.5/25.3/25.3 lbs)
Pec Fly (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 11.8/22.5/27 lbs)

Biceps
Standing E-Z Bar Bicep Curl (3 position – continuous without rest between position change)
- Low to Elbow level (reps – 7/7/7, weight – 20 lbs)
- Elbow to Chin level (reps – 7/7/7, weight – 20 lbs)
- Full extension from low to chin (reps – 7/7/7/, weight – 20 lbs)
Preacher curl (reps 12/10/10, weight – 11.5/13.5/18 lbs)

Lower Back
Back Extensions (reps – 12/10/10, weight – 50/54.5/59.3 lbs)

Abs
Decline Abs Crunches (reps – 12/10/10, weight – body weight)

Cool down – Cardio on stationary bike (20 minutes, 120 kcal target burn)

Update (11:50pm): Got ahold of my training book and noticed that I remembered the number of reps and weights all wrong. I have since corrected it.

Workout Journal – On Personal Training

I’ve just recently lucked on a great offer for my PT session renewal. Instead of the RM110 per sessions that I am paying now, I just need to pay RM 80 for 20 sessions for my renewal. I also manage to negotiate to get 4 sessions free added to the total which should last me for the next 3 months. I am almost certain that this might be the cheapest rates for PT that you can get in town unfortunately it was only for the duration of the new years period so the offer is no longer valid for people who are interested to signup for it now. I only got to know of the offer from the gym on the second last day of the offer since I was away during the end of the year. I was already planning to add more sessions to my PT so the offer came in the right time for me.

Unfortunately, I will no longer be working out with my usual PT as I start this new block of PT sessions. My PT has decided to leave the gym for a freelance job offer in Terengganu beginning in a few weeks. I was kind of bummed when I got the news as I have really built a rapport with him and now faced the task of finding a new PT to replace him. While it’s true that the gym is suppose to assign me with a replacement PT when something like this happens but I spoke to the PT manager and asked that I be allowed to choose the replacement myself. I don’t know if that was a common practice to select your own PT but I asked him just in case and got his approval.

First thing that I did was to talk to my current PT for his recommendations. Unless the PT has just transferred to gym, they should know the rest of the PTs who is available there. More importantly, my current PT would know the way that I work out and therefore would be able to recommend someone who would be able to guide me along in the manner that I am already used to. My current PT would also be able to provide an honest assessment of the recommended PT’s skills since sometimes you don’t really get a full account of that if you asked directly from the PT.

Once my current PT identified his recommended replacement, I decided to get some face to face time with him to suss his level of experience and training goals. This part is quite an important factor for me when deciding which PT to pick. Having someone who have experience working with people who start off as your normal out of shape office drone is very helpful as they are aware of the schedule and physical limitations that I have to go through. My current PT actually specialized in special cases i.e. older people, people with medical conditions and physical disabilities which made him aware of specific considerations that needs to be in place for different people.

Having a clear training goal is also something that I look out for. Not everyone who comes to the gym wants to be able to lift hundreds of kgs above their heads by the end of their PT sessions. Some of us are just happy to be able to lose inches from our waist to fit into better fitting clothes. As such, being able to design a program to fit a particular training goal is quite essential. Nothing worse than having a PT who is training you to do something that you don’t feel motivated to do. With that in mind, I was able to sit down with the recommended PT and got him to layout his training program for 3 month given my goal of losing weight and building definition. Suffice to say that by the end of the discussion, I feel more confident about the recommendation.

The other thing that I look for in a PT personally is how they motivate people to reach out for that next level. This I can only find out by observing how that PT works with another client. Personally I can’t stand PTs who are all gung ho about the number of reps and loads without really looking at the client’s capabilities. I absolutely abhor PTs who tend to shout their encouragements like a bad impression of a drill sergeant when there is no good reason why he has to. It’s bad enough that he’s counting your reps for the whole gym to hear but to announce to the whole world that you’re struggling with the weights is nothing less than distracting. It was funny actually for my PT to be told that one of my requirements that I have to have for my PT is for someone who would not shout at me. Sarcastic jabs and harmless jokes at my expense for not being able to reach the next level are ok with me since I can use that as motivation. Having to deal with people shouting in your face is never fun unless you’re get off on some weird power trip thing.

The other thing that one needs to look out for when selecting a PT is to look at his current load of clients. Having a popular PT with many clients might sound appealing since it would be reflective of this skills as a PT but then you might run into inflexible scheduling conflicts especially if your time slot is part of a back to back PT day for him. What I found best if to find someone who doesn’t have more than 4 1-hr appointments per morning or per evening depending on your workout session. If the PT seems to be cramming more than 8 appointments in a day then that to me is something to be wary about. While most PT sessions will last about an hour, there will be somedays that you’ll be running over and it would be a good thing to make sure that your session does not eat too much into the next client’s session.

Selecting a PT is something that I put some extra effort in since in the end this would be the person who you would be working with for the next 3 months to achieve your fitness goals. While I do reserve the right to ask for a change of PT during the session if I find that the PT is not working, I would rather select the right one from the offset and not having to deal with the hassle of changing PTs later down the line. Based on my own personal criteria, I was able to make an informed selection as for my replacement PT who I would be starting with later in the day today. I’ve done my best to select one that I feel can guide me to the next level in my fitness adventure/experiment and I am actually looking forward for it.

Hopefully I would make as much or not more gains working with my new PT as I did with my previous PT whom I would always be indebted for showing me that I could actually do it once I put my mind to it.

Things To Do in 2008

I stopped making up a list of new year resolutions quite some time back as I never seem to be able to stick to them before. So instead of resolutions, I have goals that I want to achieve instead. I guess if I wanted to be technical, they can mean the same thing but somehow goals implies that there is an end to look forward to instead of just wanting to achieve that end as implied by making resolutions. Goals are more concrete for me to strive for so that has been what I’ve done these past years. I guess that I jinxed myself anytime I use resolutions instead.

So here’s my list of goals that I want to accomplish in 2008 which by the way is in no particular order. One of the things that I’ve learned in goal setting is that goals have to be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time related). Hopefully my goals for 2008 will be as such.

Travel to at least 2 different destinations

I want to repeat the excitement that I felt when I travel to another place that I have never been before. For this year, I’m targeting to travel to at least 1 overseas locale and 1 local destination. After enjoying myself immensely at Fort Santiago, Manila last year, I definitely am looking forward to go to somewhere with a lot of history and character. Indonesia looks like a likely candidate for me this year since it’s close, probably affordable for me and I wouldn’t really run into too much of a problem when it comes to finding something halal to eat. Bali, Lombok, Padang, Yogyakarta and Riau are on my list of possible destinations to go to.

After the successful trip to Perhentian Island, I would definitely want to go back and experience island life. It might not be to the Perhentians again though as there are other islands that I have not been to yet. Tioman and Pangkor would probably be in my consideration but I have to say that on top of my list to go to currently would be to Sipadan in Sabah. The thought of backpacking and roughing it for a while there does have some appeal for me since it’s not something that I would be used to being a city boy born and bred. Since I don’t swim (without a life vest) or dive, I wonder if there would be something else to do there?

Update my wardrobe

I am somewhat of a minor clothes horse with a fatally lack of any sort of fashion sense. That combination added to the amount of weight that I have lost the past 2 years has resulted in a whole boatload of clothes that do not fit me anymore and/or clothes that were not meant to be seen by human eyes in broad daylight. I would definitely have to sort out my closet for things that still usable and give the rest up for charity regardless how sentimentally attached I am to them. At least that would help me reduce the amount of closet space that I need.

Once I have the space, I would definitely be out for a new wardrobe. I’m looking forward to trade my store bought work clothes for ones that I get tailored by my usual tailor. I always loved wearing tailored clothes but have not done it for some time due to weight fluctuations. That would change this year as well as all the baggy T-shirts that I have been buying these past years. Not that I have bulging muscles to show off not but at least I want to get better fitting T-Shirts that I can be comfortable in instead of wearing those that look like sails on a yacht on a breezy day.

Be more physically active

On top of the gymming that I’m currently doing, I would also like to try other types of physical activities to see if I would like them. I’ve turned down an friend’s invitation to go hiking with a group of friends twice last year because I was not sure if I could do it. That and the fact that I had to wake up very freaking early in the morning to do it which for someone like me is something that I have to factor in. I’ve promised myself that the next time he invites me, I would actually go through it. How would I know if I would not like it if I did not at least try it once? The worse that can happen is that I get a good sweat while huffing and puffing half to death in the secondary growth jungle swearing at myself for doing it at an ungodly early hour.

I just hope that the person who invited me before (yes you … *waves*) has not swore off inviting me again by now.

I’m also planning to pick up a sport on top of my gym time. I am absolutely rubbish at any sport involving balls so it would be something that is outside my comfort zone. In line with my continued goal of breaking away from my comfort zone and try new things, I am thinking of picking up futsal this year. My ex-secondary school friends already have a monthly futsal thing happening so I might check that out since they play quite close to where I live. They are always asking for more players from our batch for the yearly inter batch competition so I guess even someone who is “kaki bangku” (roughly translated – sucks royally at football) like me would be welcomed.

Enhance my gym experience

To date I have been more focusing on doing solitary exercises while I’m at the gym. Other than the sessions with my PT, I would normally be going through my routines alone for both my cardio and weight stack training. Since a lot of the class that I see organized at my gym are already included in the monthly fees that I am currently paying, I’ve decided to try to attend at least one this year. After talking to the gym staff and my PT, I considering between attending the spinning classes or the bodypump classes. While the spinning classes seemed to be an easier transition for me considering I’m already doing all of my cardio on a stationary bike, I have to admit that the bodypump class looked more interesting for me.

I’m also looking forward to start working with more free weights in 2008. I’ve always shied away from them since I get easily intimidated by folks how usually congregate in the free weights area at my gym. Towards the end of my last PT sessions, my PT has be slowly moving me away from the weight stack machines to routines that I have to use free weights. I’ve discovered quickly then that most of the people there are either focused on their own workout or just there to pose around and look intimidating. As long as I don’t get into their way, I’m would be just fine doing my own thing. I’ve also made some friends at the gym how would be able to help spot me which I didn't have before and was another reason why I don’t use the free weight area as much as I should have. I hope that by doing more free weights this year, I would be able to achieve the fitness goals that I have set for myself.

Get my drivers license

It’s about freaking time that I did! I’ve already paid the lessons in full ages ago and they did guarantee that I will be able to get a license by the end of their program no matter how many times I have to repeat it. I wonder if I would be one of the stories that they would use when they talk about the number of time someone had to take their lessons before he passed his driving license.

Why is it taking ages for me to get one? Simply put I worse than an old half blind old person when put behind the wheel of a car. I get panic attacks when I see a car coming up too close to my learner car and I start forgetting all that the instructors tell me. I hate being in a situation when I don’t have full control and having to trust the other person on the road to take care of themselves by driving carefully.

Nevertheless this is something that I need to get done with this year.

Happy New Year 2008

Last post for 2007!

I would like to wish all readers and visitors a Happy New Year 2008. I hope that everyone will start off the year with bigger and better things in store for the new year. If 2007 was not as much as a success for you, take a moment to reflect and then move on with more determination to make 2008 even better than the year preceding it.

I don’t really know what I would be doing this New Year’s eve. Feeling my age (getting long in the tooth people!), all the hoopla of going somewhere crowded like KLCC, Dataran Merdeka or even the Sunway Lagoon that’s just close by where I’m staying has lost it’s appeal. Especially the thought of having to go by myself … I’m getting an agoraphobic attack just thinking about it.

I wonder if the Starbucks at the Sunway Pyramid new wing would have a good view of the fireworks show at Sunway Lagoon? Of course I think by now, there would already be droves of people thinking of the same thing.

Any who, those planning to go to party the new year in, have a blast guys but do party responsibly. It would be a stupid thing to do to ring in the new year in the emergency room or worse in a coffin. If you’ve been drinking, give the keys to your designated driver so you can get safely home. If you go out drinking without a designated driver then you’re an idiot!

Happy New Year 2008!

Year In Review : Memorable Moments in 2007

2007 has been a really exceptional year for me. To be honest, I am hard-pressed to remember any past years when so many changes that has happened to my life both on a personal and professional level. Having this blog helped me to document them as they happened and for that I am thankful. If for nothing else, I get a chance to take some time out to review previous entries and be amazed at how much my life has changed in the past 365 days.

2007 started with a bang, so to speak, for me. After 12 years of being celibate, I started 2007 by breaking that dry spell (and no it was not a New Year hookup). Technically it was not the full course but it was enough for me to officially declare an end to the long streak. While it was a big deal for me, it turned out to be less significant for the other party. While I was already imagining building a future together, it turned out that I was just an one off thing to be casts aside once dispensed with. A few exchanges later led me to the impression that what seemed so significant for me meant as much as a business transaction for the other party.

To top things off, I was also told then that I might be more appealing to other people if I just lose some weight. Talk about stepping on someone’s balls when they’re already down for the count. I was extremely embarrassed, heartbroken, hurt and bitter at the time but after mulling it over for a bit, I decided to do something that I have never really did before. I decided to stop feeling sorry for myself and instead divert all the negative things about myself that I was feeling into something more constructive. I wanted to prove to that person and more importantly to myself that I am worth much more than just a one night fling. What started as a driven obsession for vindication gradually evolved into my journey of self discovery and acceptance. It’s funny when I look back and think that if it was not for that incident, my 2007 might have turned out very differently indeed.

I also got the opportuinity to do a little bit of traveling in 2007. The first was to Manila which was the first time I was out of the country since my last business trip to Hong Kong way back in 2001. The opportunity to go along with a group of significantly older friends I knew from my secondary school alumni came up and for once I decide to take the risk of trying something outside of my comfort zone. The trip was a success for me as not only did it allow me to see a place that I have only seen in pictures before but it allowed me to reflect on how home was compared to other places. The trip also stoked a travel itch that I have long suppressed by what I thought was practical reasons.

The second trip that I took in 2007 was to the Perhentian Island with my family. I have wanted to go to these island after hearing about it for the longest time. When I got there, it more beautiful than I could ever imagined it. It was a place that I could definitely picture losing myself in for months if it was possible. Being able to share the discover with my family was also an added bonus. The last that that we had a family vacation was a few years back when we went up to Langkawi so the trip to Perhentian was something that was long overdue for us. It allowed us some really good family bonding time away for the distractions of our daily lives.

This year also saw me embarking on a fitness journey/experiment to improve myself and my self confidence. After years of struggling with issues with self image, I decided (with a little push from being painfully reminded that I was still fat) get off my fat arse and do something about it. I joined a gym and rededicated myself to eat healthier from the beginning of the year. I remembered how hard it was for me to overcome the feeling of being self conscious about working out in public at the gym. I can still recall the anxiety that I had about changing in the locker room around strangers. Over time, I was able to get it in my head that not everyone who was at the gym looked like they stepped out of a fitness magazine and that I’m not as terrible at it as I thought that I would be. Locker room anxiety also pretty much faded away once I got more comfortable with my own body. Of course that doesn’t me that I’m walking around without clothes in the locker room now (is anyone crazy enough to do that?) but at least I don’t feel the need to wait for people to leave my locker area before I changed like I did when I first started.

An increased level of self confidence in myself also led me to take more chances in 2007 especially when it comes to matters of the heart. I guess I can blame if to the endorphins released by working out but I found myself to be more opened to possibilities that I would normally shy away in past years. Instead of just keeping things clinically sterile, I allowed myself the chance to explore what would happened if I took the next step. What started as just comments left in blog entries changed in to txt messages and then to lunches or coffee meetings. After awhile an familiarity began to set it allowing me to be comfortable to move on in small steps. I’m not the best person to be in a relationship with since I carry with me so much emotional baggage and insecurities but in a way I have been learning to change that. It is still a journey that we are on and there are no guarantees that we would end up at the same destinations in the end so for now I prefer to appreciate the adventure instead.

Last but not least, 2007 was the year when I found a whole new circle of friends that I would not imagine that I would be a part of a year before. Thanks for my own increasing self awareness and acceptance, I was able to come out of the shell that I built around myself and reach out even with the risk of being rejected. These new friends quickly became persons of inspirations and sources of new stories of the human condition for me. Many faced the same challenges, had the same dreams and want the same things in life that I thought that I was the only one yearning for all these years. Some became people that I confided in, shared my fears and embarrassingly revealed my fantasies with without fear of being judged. My life would definitely be less enriched without their presence in my life this year. I think I’ve said it before in earlier blog entries that I made more new friends this year than I did in the past years combined. I can honestly say that the last time I made these many new friends that meant so much to me was back when I was at boarding school. I’ve cherished my friendship with my boarding school buddies for 17 years and no doubt that I would be able to do the same to the friendships that I made this year.

2007 was memorable for me not because of the changes that happened around me but more importantly the changes that happened within me. I will remember it as the year that I stopped just reacting to things but to take charge instead. It was a year that I lessen the reins on my pathological risk avoidance and stretched out to consider possibilities that I would summarily dismiss before. I can honestly say that I’ve grown considerably as a person these past 12 months and my life is the better for it. Looking ahead, I hope that this is just the beginning for better things to come. Realizing that I actually can do things that I set my mind to would hopefully give me the confidence to do more things that I would never considered doing before.

My journey is only starting from this point onwards and I still have far to go.

Year In Review : Gym Journal/Workout Progress 2007

Very early in 2007, I had an embarrassing incident which affected my self image and how I perceived my physical self. Having had worked hard to lose almost 10kgs the year before through controlling my dietary intake, that incident was a wakeup call that told me that I was not doing enough. I took that incident to heart and instead of letting it chip away at my already low self esteem, I resolved to put the embarrassment and anger I felt to better use. I took stock at my own level of fitness at the time and determined that it was time to change things. The feelings of embarrassment, anger, bitterness and self inadequacy left by that incident fueled my determination to overcome years of inertia when it comes to physical fitness.

I signed up for a gym membership at Sunway Pyramid a few weeks after doing some shopping around for the best gym rates. At the time, the gym was only scheduled to open in the 3rd quarter of 2007 so I got cheaper rates by virtue of getting pre-opening rates. Given the proximity of the gym to my apartment, I would be able to spare myself the inconvenience of going far for gym as I would have had I chosen a different gym. I also took advantage of their free InBody checks to determine my current levels of weight, body fat % and BMR. I took those measurements as my baseline and at the beginning of the year I was 80.5kg, 31% body fat with BMR of 1583 kcal.

BMR was basically the amount of calories that a person can burn with just the normal body functions without any exercise. Breathing, walking, cell repair and other internal functions contribute to the BMR levels. I took that BMR level as the minimum level of calories that I would take in for a day. I kept in mind that anything that I ate that went beyond my minimum would have to be burned off someway or it would contribute to weight gain over time. I also had to increase my metabolic rate to increase my BMR levels and I changed the frequency of my meals to do that. Instead of just eating 2 large meals a day like I often do at that time, I broke it down to 5 small meals a day. I tried to estimate the amount of calories that I was taking in per meal and try to limit it to about 300 kcal per meal. I still kept the calorie intake flexible so that I would not miss out on good meals but I try to adjust my portions in those situations.

Since my gym didn’t opened till August of 2007, I spent the preceding months working out using a DP Body Tone II exercise body rowing machine that I bought years earlier but did not use much till this year. At the time, I focused more on upper body conditioning by doing bicep curls, body lifts and some assisted push ups. I also had my daily walks of about 30 minutes each way that I had to do to get to my office as my cardio workout. Once my gym opened, I obviously had more equipments to play with and in the beginning stayed with the stationary bikes for cardio and the weight stack machines for muscle conditioning.

Before the gym opened, I set aside about 1 hour daily for my home workouts. When I started going to the gym, I set myself a goal of making use of the gym facilities at least 4 times a week. I have since upgraded that to 5 times a week with Tuesdays and Saturdays designated as my gym off days. I was able to stick to my 8:30 – 10:30 workout schedule per visit with the exception of Sundays when I would go to the gym earlier in the afternoon to spend about 4 hours there. My workout plan would normally be divided into a 40 minutes cardio warm up, 1 hour of weight or circuit training and a 20 minute cardio cool down. I happy to say that I have been able to more or less stick to that schedule for this year.

From the start of the journey, I also decided to engage the services of a personal trainer to guide me with my workouts. It was quite an expensive item to splurge on since, unlike my gym membership which was on a monthly term, I had to pay all of my PT fees upfront. Looking back, I have to say that it was an great investment despite my initial misgivings about taking a PT. Not only was my PT a source of knowledge on how to use the gym equipments properly, he also helped me to track my progress throughout my fitness journey and motivate me to reach higher levels once he felt that I needed to be challenged. We bonded almost immediately given that we came from almost the same type of background and upbringing which made for an enjoyable partnership. I guess that I may have lucked out in this case, having heard of less than ideal experiences people had with their PT, but I would still recommend gym newbies to consider working with a PT when they start to gain the confidence to properly make use what the gym had to offer.

In terms of work out intensity, I have seen measurable gains in the things that I could do now compared to what I was able to accomplish when I first joined the gym. I remember being unable to completes a series of squats and push ups that I now can breeze through for my circuit training (still have problems with maintaining a 1 minute plank position though). The amount of weights that I load up on the weight stack machines has also gradually increased thanks to the motivation from my PT who always challenge me to move on to the next level when he felt that I was ready even when I thought that he was crazy for suggesting it. I remember how excited I was when I lifted my first 3 digit load (in lbs .. still have a ways to go before I can lift any 3 digits kg load) ever having thought that it was impossible for me to do so. That as definitely one of my red letter days of the year for me.

Without a doubt, getting interested into fitness and really sticking to my gym workout schedule really helped my this year. I got a chance to further lose weight which is now hovering between the 75 – 77 kg range depending on my calorie intake that week. My blood pressure readings also dropped from a high of 196/125 to about 148/98 which is definitely good news for me. I’ve also dropped 2 inches off my waist this year to 34 which was something that I have never been since 12 years ago. I still have not yet reached the optimum weight target for my height but if I stayed my course, it is within the realm of possibility to be achieved in 2008.

Thanks to that embarrassing incident earlier in the year, I was able to use all the feelings it left me to motivate me to go on this fitness journey. I have long since forgiven for the incident but I still call on that memory to spur me onwards to reach for even higher heights to this day. I guess it’s just my way to turn a negative into a great positive for me to work with. As I always told myself, this fitness experiment/journey that I am on is just starting and would be one that I would be happy to continue to share in my future blog entries.

Year In Review : Most Memorable Music in 2007

If there is nothing else to watch on Astro, the two channel most likely to be on my TV would either be the MTV or V Channel. Far from being music savvy, the music videos from these two channels are the only way I could keep abreast of what is popular at the moment. I grew up during the time of the music video explosion with the start of the MTV channel so I rarely listen to the radio for my music. Of course this meant that I’m only somewhat exposed to the more commercial mainstream artists as far as musical exposure goes.

Unlike DVDs, I always insist buying original CDs when it comes to my music. From my experience, buying originals are the only way to get the sound quality that your money is paying for. For me, this is especially essential when buying CDs since the consumer is limited to only their aural senses to appreciate the CD. Original CD prices are still affordable especially for local releases which have been slashed quite a lot relative to the prices a few years ago.

My music tastes generally fall into the international pop category although I have know to venture to other genres for a bit. As far as buying CDs are concerned, I didn’t really get to buy many this year. The few I did buy either stayed in my CD player for months until I tire of them or get copied to my laptop to be added to my office playlist. I guess that eventually I would get one of those MP3 players so I can bring my playlist to the gym as well.

Listed below are some of the more memorable music selections for me in 2007. The accompanying clip was sourced from YouTube.com (obviously) and I guess that the copyrights are squared away somehow so we can embed it in our blogs.

Westlife - Home

Those who know me know how much of a big fan I am of “Westlife” so no list of mine will be complete if I don’t include the single they released in 2007. The song “Home” is of course a cover version they made of the one originally released by Michael Bublé. It’s fairly serviceable but cover versions seems to be all that Westlife has been doing of late. I really miss being able to hear their original material and I do hope that would change soon.

Anuar Zain - Lelaki Ini

This album broadsided me with this song that I long avoided listening to since every member of his legion of fans were raving about every chance they got. Lyrically poetic and wonderfully melodious, it fast became one of my favorite local songs of the year after I listen to it for the first time. I’m not so much of a big fan of the video clip so instead I selected to use a video clip of his live performance at the Anugerah Era ’07 show courtesy of Klubkidd (*waves*)

Melinda Doolittle - My Funny Valentine

Melinda’s performance of “My Funny Valentine” was my favorite of all her performances in American Idol not just because it’s one of my all time favorite songs but also her interpretation of the song was so exciting for me to experience. I really hope that she would release a solo CD even though she didn’t get to the AI finals. I would definitely be buying her CDs just to listen to her wonderful voice and relive the experience again.

Michael Bublé – Everything

I love his music from the first moment that I heard it. A fan of the big band sound and 50’s Americana, it was a refreshing breath of fresh air to hear this crooner reinterpret a lot of the familiar standards for a whole new generation. While is well known for his cover version, his original work on his CDs were no less impressive.

“Everything” has to be in this list. I would not hear the end of it if it wasn’t.

Daughtry-Over You

Another ex contestant from the American Idol who found success without actually winning the show. His vocals were one of the memorable ones during the season that he was on however with his preference for commercial rock, his range on the show was slightly limited. Nevertheless, the show really exposed him to the listening public which guaranteed an almost sure fan base for him when he release his own CD. The choice of remaining with his original band instead of going solo after his AI experience was actually the best for him. I have not actually listened to his full CD yet but I have to say that this song is my favorite.

(Update: 28/12 - Seems that the clip has be removed from YouTube. You can view the clip posted by the band themselves at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C_oHwLcivY)

Samsons-Bukan Diriku

I’m actually quite late in terms of discovering the numerous bands from Indonesia that have been popular on this side of the Straits. It was only during this year, thanks to my youngest brother playlist, that I became aware of some acts like Ungu, Padi and Samsons. I have not quite gotten into them but some of the songs that I heard by them were really good and different from the tired fare released by our own local artists. If more local songs were as fresh as this one, which grew on me as I listened to it, I would definitely be more excited about buying local CD releases.

Shayne Ward - If That's OK With You

Winner of the UK’s “X-Factor” talent search, this tune is one that sneaked up on me and left me utterly devoted to it. It’s hard not to be impressed by the melody and music video itself. I have to admit that I can’t help smiling each time I heard this song.

OK … catchy tune and eye candy. Need I say more?

Year In Review : Most Memorable DVDs in 2007

Apart from my comic book collection, another way of me wasting my hard earned cash is by buying DVDs of TV series and movies that I like. In 2007, I actually bought 64 separate titles from Amazon.com which is quite an accomplishment given that I have only watched a small portion of them. And yes, these are original DVDs that I bought from Amazon.com. I found that buying them from Amazon.com still gives me the best deal on the net in terms of pricing and assurance that they would arrive safely to my mailbox. I’m particularly impressed by their willingness to replace without cost items that might go missing during transit without a lot of hassle.

Most of my DVD purchases this year have been TV series sets that I am a fan off. Being a completist, I just have to get the next box season set once I start collecting them or else I would be fretting about the incomplete set. As for movies, my rule of thumb of buying their DVDs is to wait for a special edition of the DVD to be released before buying them. I would usually have seen the movies that I buy the DVDs for so I buy them more for the additional features they include in the special edition package. Director commentary tracks, making of featurettes and behind the scene documentaries are the things that I look for when deciding which DVD to buy.

As such, I prefer to buy original Region 1 DVDs instead of the local Region 3 DVDs or even the more cheaper pirated copies. Region 1 DVDs would have both the quality and content that I’m looking for when buying DVDs. I still buy some pirated copies but more for titles that I’m fairly sure that I just want to watch once and not add to my DVD collection. For some movies/series, original DVDs are the only way that I will get to watch them since for obvious reasons they will not get shown in the cinema or the TV locally. Of course it I really wanted to watch them, I could wait a few months and get pirated copies from Plaza Damas but I feel that they are better served by getting my cash so they would continue to put out DVDs of the genre.

I guess eventually I get tired of them and willing to trade them with other collectors for new DVD’s but for the moment they happy sitting where there are. The only problem I have with them is that I am fast running out of shelve space to stack them properly.

Without further delay, here’s my list.

Blade Runner – 4 Disc Collector’s Edition

A must have DVD in any sci-fi fan or DVD collector (or in my case, both), the “Blade Runner – 4 Disc Collector’s Edition” collects a new final cut of the sci-fi classic as well as 3 previously released version of the film. Boasting 3 different commentary tracks including one by Ridley Scott himself and 2 full discs of special features, the set would definitely remain the definitive version of the DVD to purchase for this movie.

There is an even better set, the “Blade Runner – 5 Disc Ultimate Collector’s Edition”, with a 5th disc containing a rare workprint version of the film among others, but the price difference was to large for me to justify the additional items added to an already great set.

Grey’s Anatomy: Seasons 1 - 3

I’m not really a big fan of hospital series, having being utterly confused after watching seasons of ER and Chicago Hope, but I was instantly hooked after watching a few episodes of this series. The amount of drama, angst and particularly fetching actors made it one of my must see series whenever I get a chance to see it. The DVD sets has quite a number of extras that make adding them to my collection seemed worth it but truth be told, I just love the show.

Dante’s Cove: Season 2

If I had to describe this series to someone else, I would definitely say that it was what you would get if “Queer As Folk – US series” mated with “Charmed” and sprinkle a whole boatload of camp on top of that union. I bought Season 1 of this series earlier to watch and had a great laugh over the over the top storylines about immortal witches and warlocks who inhabit the titular seaside resort. It was silly, campy and made less sense than square tire on a car. To top it all off, the show has Tracy Scoggins in it channeling her most over the top performance yet which is always fun to watch.

Honestly though, storyline is not the main reason for owning this series. Anyone who says otherwise really does need to get his head (both of them) examined.

Melrose Place: Seasons 1 – 3

This series and “Beverly Hills: 90210” was part of my must see TV watching schedule way back when the aired. Not as stodgy as watching “Dynasty” or “Dallas” (which I did growing up), the young cast made up my perception of what life after college would be like. Watching each episode, I can’t help but snicker at all the stuff that I thought was so cool back then which seems so archaic now. Don’t even get me started on the clothing styles which I ashamedly admit that I copied religiously while I was in college. The show was a trendsetter back then but I can’t help but cringe when I remember half of the things that I wore which was inspired by the show.

Of course the show had a pre “Desperate Housewives” Marcia Cross playing Dr. Kimberly who has to be one of the most memorable characters of the show. The scene revealing how she came back from the dead is still one that fans of the show remember fondly.

More list to follow (hopefully).

Year In Review : Most Memorable Movies in 2007

Last time I did an end of the year review list, it was back in Dec 2005. I skipped doing one last year as I let almost all of the second half of 2006 pass without blogging. I don’t know if I would get to do one entry per day for the next 6 days before the end of the year but I would like to try that.

2007 has been a wonderful year for me. For one, it is officially the first year when I got to write blog entries fairly regularly throughout the year. Quite a few of those entries are related to movies and my attempt at reviewing them. Those how have been reading this blog as well as those who know me outside of the blogworld know how passionate I can be when it comes to movies. I may not be the most technical of reviewers but when I like something, I would try my level best to put to words what I like about it and share it through a blog entry.

So it is appropriate that I start my year end review blog entries with the list of memorable movies that I have watched in 2007. The list is by no means what I consider the best movies to watch in 2007 but they are the ones that still make me excited thinking about them. I have reviewed them before so I would be including links to the reviews that I wrote for the movie for easy reference but it’s not necessary for you to read them again.

Again, this is the list of movies released in 2007 that were the most memorable for me. It doesn’t necessarily mean that they are much superior than the rest of the movies you might have seen. You may have your own list and I would like to hear them from you as well either from you leaving them in the comments section or a link back to your blog for the same write-up on your list.

Without further delay, here’s my list.

Stardust
There were quite a few movies released in 2007 that had their beginnings from comic books which makes a comic book fanatic like myself absolutely thrilled beyond belief. While we did not get another dud like “Catwoman” this year (although we did come close with “Ghost Rider”), most of the movies were slightly disappointing to me until “Stardust” came out. It was a fairy tale for adults and the film adaptation stayed fairly true of the original material in both context and content. It was a joy to see on screen what I had enjoyed on printed paper.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/11/movie-review-stardust.html

Transformer
Anyone who grew up in the 80 like me would remember the “Transformers” cartoon show that they showed on TV. We all wanted the “Transformers” toys back then since they were cool and you’ll be the envy of the neighborhood if you had one. When news about a life action feature film about the “Transformers” came out, I was wondering if they would be able to capture the essence of what made “Transformers” a fan favorite. When I finally got to see it, I knew that not only were they able to do that but they have also successfully surpassed all expectations with the updated “Transformers”. It was one of the highlights of my summer movie viewing.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/07/movie-review-transformers.html

Perfume – The Story of A Murderer
This was a surprise find in 2007. I have never read the book that the movie was based on and I had no idea what the movie was about. I was at the cinema with a friend deciding which movie to watch and decided to take a chance to see a movie that I have never heard before or read any reviews about. That in itself was a great accomplishment for me since I have never done such a thing. Turned out it was a great choice to make and the movie turned out to the most intriguing movie that I’ve watched for a while. Intriguing because majority of the movie dealt with the technical challenge of trying to capture the sense of smell in a visual medium. A technical accomplishment and a fairly interesting story combined to put this movie in my most memorable movies of the year list.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/03/movie-review-perfume-story-of-murderer.html

300
Another movie based on a comic book that was most memorable for being able to present such a wonderful visual feast. Working mostly with computer generated imagery, the story of the 300 Spartan soldiers against the might of the Persian empire came to life in full gory details. Each scene screamed to be paused so the viewer can appreciate the complexities involved to produce such a wonderful presentation. The moment that I saw the movie, I knew that I must get the DVD to fully appreciate the wondrous spread of the visual palate achieved in this movie.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/03/movie-review-300.html

Mukhsin
Last but definitely not least on the list is the simple story of young love set in our own backyard (speaking country wise of course). A fitting finale to the Orked trilogy, Yasmin’s “Mukhsin” was something that I would never thought of skipping. Watching “Mukhsin” brought back memories of the viewers own first pangs of love and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Once in a while we need to be reminded of what it felt the first time we know what love was so we know how lucky we were to have known that love. It was a lyrical and refreshing movie well received by fans of Yasmin Ahmad’s work both local and overseas.

Original review: http://nickxandar.blogspot.com/2007/03/movie-review-mukhsin.html

I guess that all for this list. More lists to follow (hopefully)

Merry Christmas!

Another holiday so closely following the one that we just had!

That’s the beauty of living in a multicultural country like Malaysia where we all get to celebrate each other’s holidays equally. As a kid, growing up in multi-ethnic neighborhood in Kluang, I remember going to my friends houses for their celebrations and they would come to mine for Hari Raya. Christmas was one that we would look forward to most since it meant that Santa would make an appearance at our kindergarten class to give us presents. We would have shows and learn Christmas carols to sing in class just for when Santa came so he knows that we have been nice and not naughty for the year.

For the longest time, I lost that feeling of being like a kid at Christmas until my first winter at Madison. It was my first time seeing real snow in my life. It happened at about 3 am in the morning and my friend, who came in the same flight to US as I did, actually woke me up to tell me that it was actually snowing. We bundled up quickly and went out to see the first snowflakes started drifted down from the sky. It was nothing short of magical to see it really happening for the first time.

Of course, true to my luck, the snow changed to a blizzard for the next 3 days and dumped almost 3 feet of snow on the ground my first year there.

Nevertheless, I had a clear, sunny, white Christmas my first year in the States. We went up to the park by Camp Randall Stadium to build a snowman and sled down hill just like kids. In the evening, we made hot chocolate with marshmallows and sat at the balcony watching the snow fall. It was a wonderful Christmas memory that I know I will cherish for as long as I live.

For all readers and blog visitors celebrating Christmas, I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May you have a smashing and safe celebration wherever you may be.

Something that I wrote sometime back that I usually would dig out to read during the Christmas time. Please accept it as my festive offering to you.

Click here to read : A "Beautiful Thing" Christmas Story

Salam AidilAdha

I'm planning to go back home to my parents place in Selayang right after work today. I’m also taking Friday off which means that I would have a 4 day weekend ahead of me.

Hari Raya Aidil Adha is not really a big thing in our household since none of my relatives have done the Hajj yet. Other than the morning Eid prayers and the family lunch, we normally will spend the rest of the day at home. I may just vegetate in front of my brother’s computer again playing “Neverwinter Night2: Mask of the Betrayer” again like last Aidil Fitri holidays if my bothers have to work on Friday.

If it turns out that they too took holidays on Friday, I think that I might want to get them together for a brothers’ night out. We have not done that in awhile and it would be nice to be able to go out and catch a live band playing somewhere. They have asked me to come and chill out at Heritage Row before but usually in these outings I would end up as banker for the group so I had to wait for when I had more money to burn.

And yes … I did come into some extra money this month thanks to my contractual yearly bonus. And no .. I would not be able to afford to belanja everyone who leaves a comment asking to belanja them even if I want too … I don’t make anywhere close to a certain someone who shall remain nameless with the 5 digit monthly salary (kih 3x *larik*). I’ve earmarked some of that money for a new toy for myself (and it’s not that one for those whose minds are ensconced in the gutter!), my PT sessions that I intended to add after the current one gets used up as well as a little traveling fund for a trip that I’m planning in 2008.

To all readers, a Happy Eid Adha and have a safe celebration (or time off whichever the case maybe) with the family. For those who would be driving to their hometowns, please drive safely. Aidil Adha is the day when people sacrifice animals like cows to distribute their meat to the poor. Don’t be as stupid as a cow to ritually sacrifice yourselves by driving recklessly on the road.