I hope you find my "Let's Get Moving - Resources I Love [PART 1]" useful and motivating!
As promised, here's Part 2 of the resources I find helpful in my journey to keeping fit. Not sure if it's a mid-life crisis awareness but I find it increasingly important to maintain my body and fitness in good condition for as long as I can so that I do not succumb to the common ailments of old age like osteoporosis or cardiovascular issues.
I think the triggers for this mindset shift were identifying a potential issue with my heart during a full body checkup last year (I have since arranged for further tests just to be sure) as well as contracting Covid during the beginning of 2022. Covid slowed me down entirely and there was absolutely nothing I could do but to take things slow. Even after I have "recovered" (ie a negative ART result), I was really lethargic in the next 2 months. This period gave me a total perspective change on taking care of my body and made me want to live the rest of my life with more intent.
Of course, while I recognise the impermanence of this body, I do wish to retain the current good condition for as long as I can so that I can continue to enjoy life into my old age and not be a burden to my children.
Super old school and overthinking, perhaps? Interestingly, a friend shared this CNA article which shared similar sentiments that I have on starting an exercise regime as early as you can to retain your physical assets for as long as possible. Read the article here
Enough of my rambling, here's continuing from the 5 points I saw from my earlier post!
6. Virgin Active
I joined Virgin Active in May 2021, thanks to the encouragement of my husband.
Actually, I was mainly looking for Pilates Reformer classes but realised that these lessons at Pilates boutique studios are really costly!
Then, my husband shared that Virgin Active clubs has reformer classes and they are all part of the membership that I sign up for.
Just to share, I pay around $210 per month and this allows me unlimited access to all the clubs in the island, including my reformer classes, climbing walls & indoor swimming pools at the Marina One and Tanjong Pagar outlets (which is actually the outdoor pool from Sofitel).
Initially, I only go for Pilates Reformer once a week but since March this year (almost 1 year after I joined 😂 and thanks to the wakeup call after recovering from Covid in January), I find more confidence to try out other classes like spin, grid training and climbing. There are other intimidating classes which I will eventually want to challenge myself to try at least once, but we will get there slowly....
Do note that I am on my husband's corporate rate and you might want to check out Virgin Active's website to find out more to see if a gym membership is something that would work for you.
7. Nature Walks
"Forest Bathing" is the buzz word these days. Otherwise known as "Shinrinyoku 森林浴" in Japanese, it is a scientifically proven method that helps to destress and restore our balance.
Personally, I find it very grounding to be surrounded by nature - the sound, the sights and the smell are great comfort which really calms me down while giving me a good workout. When I am feeling down or stressed out, taking a walk in our nature parks never fails to provide comfort and make me realise just how small we are in the face of nature. Our problems are often a manifestation of negative thoughts played on repeat in our inner world. Walking in nature helps us detangle some of that messiness and gives us the peace we need to face the problems or challenges we are facing.
I usually go to the Windsor Nature Park with my good friend after a hearty breakfast. The food, the company and the walk are a great combination to make right any lousy mood for sure!
The length of walk varies depending on the chosen trail and you can also access the treetop walk via Windsor Nature Park - this really makes for a good workout!
8. Cycling
The current craze among my group of friends, my husband and I recently purchased a foldie to enjoy some couple time cycling together around the island. So far we have done the East Coast and Marina Barrage area and are keen to explore other areas with our enthusiastic friends.
Cycling is a very efficient exercise, I must say! The heartrate and calories burn is super worth it and you don't even feel so breathless during the workout. You only feel the burn on your muscles the next day 😂 (but not so much these days because of my daily Yoga stretch)
Spin classes at the gym would be a possible alternative if you don't wish to invest in a bicycle. I have tried a few times before and boy, were they intense!!! That being said, the adrenaline rush from the workout is really incredible~ Unfortunately, my favourite instructor at Virgin Active has switched her schedule and so I conveniently decided to put a hold to spin classes for now.
9. Karin Dimitrovova
I discover her online workout lessons by chance during the Circuit Breaker period, during which I was overworking myself to the point where my body was in total wreck.
I came across her "Beyond Flexibility" course on social media a few times and finally decided to purchase it out of desperation.
The exercises were a lifesaver during Circuit Breaker. In my previous 5am Club review, I mentioned about wanting to do a pancake/middle split by the end of the year. These goals are part of her "Beyond Flexibility" course, and if I can be disciplined about it, I should be able to reach this goal! Discipline is the biggest challenge here!
As I slowly built up my strength, I decided to try out her "Core Play" course too.
It is a 4 weeks program to help build core strength that also help build up strength towards doing handstands.
To be honest, I stopped the courses for a long time and only recently revisited the "Core Play" course after writing this blog entry. That put my middle split goal on a temporary pause for now. I guess there is only so much we can do in our daily 24 hours, right? While I had so much difficulty doing the exercises back in 2020, I find myself so much stronger now and is almost completing the 4 weeks program! Of course, I am also very kind to myself and didn't do the full 3 sets as recommended. Even then, I can feel my core, arms and shoulders much stronger and even more defined.
Her programs are very achievable and each exercise is clearly explained in both text and videos. The only thing I need to ensure is being disciplined about it. It helps that I am waking up early (these days I wake up at 5.30am), so I will head straight to routines from the "Core Play" program after a quick freshening up first thing in the morning.
One thing I wish for would be to have the courses available on an app instead of a website (very much like the Down Dog App I recommended in Part 1) because navigating through each day's exercises can be quite a hassle and these tiny roadblocks can potentially be used as an "excuse" to not exercise.
As I am going for my booster jab this week, I will be on an exercise hiatus for 2 weeks. I decided to retry her "Core Play" course again after the jab effects have settled. This time, I hope I can execute the full 3 sets. Wish me luck!
In my next sharing post, I would like to share the resources I use for my meditation. It is a very short list at the moment as I am still very much a novice in this journey.
Do follow me on Instagram and Facebook for my latest blog updates if you are keen to know when the post goes up!
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