Category Archive: Health and Fitness

I saw the heavily preggers woman in the gym again this morning. This time, my jaw almost dropped when I saw her on all flours on the floor, doing pumping / push-ups like a pro!! To begin with, even if you are not pregnant, it requires a mountain of stamina and strength on your part to be able to do push-ups.  With a few kilos of excess baggage, it would be really strenuous on the hands and you’ll need double the amount of stamina. When her bump gets bigger very soon, I wonder how she will cope with the push-ups as the bump would be touching the floor the moment she goes on all fours on the floor. Before she did the push-ups, she was running on the treadmill. After the push-ups, my jaw dropped again when I saw her seated at the weights equipment pulling weights. Then, I saw her lifting dumb bells!! If there is a competition for married female fitness buffs, this lady will surely clinch the title!

Although there is a well-equipped and newly refurbished gym at the condominium that we live in, I seldom hit the gym these days. I prefer to run outdoors. I find that the ‘oomph factor’ is missing in our gym. What’s missing is the ambience. There is no pipe-in music, no stereo player and no TV. I find it a tad boring running on a stationery machine with nothing much else to do. I still prefer going to private gyms and hotel gyms as the atmosphere there is really conducive.  There is cool pipe in music, TVs mounted on all 4 walls, personal trainers, nutrition experts and a healthy café that offers healthy juices, smoothies and snacks after my workout sessions. Also, almost everyone else surrounding me is so fit and so motivated that the vibe just rubs off on me!

My friend who had just given birth to a baby is searching for a fitness center with a good personal trainer who can help her to shape up, especially on her abdomen and tone up her flabby ‘aunty’ arms and bottom. She is looking for a state-of-the-art fitness center that’s opened 24 hours like one of those Seattle fitness clubs that offer personal training, advice on diet, weight management, group exercise and plenty of fun and healthy activities. I told her About VisionQuest as I had read about it recently and this fitness center meets all her requirements. Well too bad they don’t have a franchise here, other wise I may join them as a member! It’s opened 24 hours and I can sneak out to have pilates or step classes when my 3 kids are fast asleep 😀

I had wanted to blog about this for a very long time. What prompted me to write this today is when I saw this lady (probably her age is mine, about mid 30s) who is heavily pregnant working out in the gym this morning. This is her 3rd pregnancy. I have always seen her working out regularly in the gym, before she was pregnant and also during her pregnancy. Sometimes we work out together in the gym. Lately I noticed that her bum is getting really big. But she’s still working out in the gym, very regularly and very intensively too. She’s still wearing her pre-pregnancy gym attire, gloves, et al. On most days, I see her on the treadmill or bicycle equipment, tunturi, etc. but today I saw her lifting dumb bells…. like a pro… wearing her gym gloves! Gawd, this lady is sure a fitness freak, just like me. If only my 3 pregnancies were stable enough, I’d have done the same too but I don’t think I would lift weights like her. Does anyone out there who works out in the gym during your pregnancy?

I cannot tell you enough how beneficial exercising is to your mind, body and soul. I have always been a very outdoorsy person but ever since I started working, exercise had been the last thing on my priority list. All that changed when I found out that I have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) 9 years ago. After doing some extensive reading, I found out that exercising can help alleviate some of the symptoms of PCOS like weight gain and acne. And that’s how my daily half hourly exercise regime started 9 years ago. For 9 years, I exercised every day, rain or shine, but skipped the regime during my 3 pregnancies and 2 months post-delivery.

Before I moved to a condominium with gym facility, I had plans of buying a treadmill and even a Tunturi exercise bike. For about 2 years during the time I was still working as a PA, I woke up at 5:30am to jog every morning before I left for work. It required tons of discipline in order to stick to the regime but it was worth the sacrifice. The merits of regular exercising were great and I felt great. But many times, I exercised in fear of being mugged in the pre-morning darkness. For that reason, I nearly bought a treadmill and a Tunturi Ellipticals so that I could have 24 Hour Fitness in the comforts of my own home. It was my hubby who prevented me from buying one. Good thing I listened to him, otherwise I would have to give away my treadmill and the Tunturi exercise bike when we moved to a condominium.