Music

Music can sooth the savage beast (unless you play them Metallica numbers from the late 80s...)

I've been experimenting with music since I was small. I'm no musician and when I say experimenting it's more towards testing how the genre fit to my own ears. And guess what, we should also test how they fit with the rhythm of our hearts too.

There are many health articles published which relate to genre of music and how each of them can affect your way of thinking and certain physical reactions. Take classical music for an instance. Studies found that it's best to play it at restaurants and while studying (I suppose it's more suitable for students who are trying to memorize facts). Classical music is known for its smooth and harmonious sound which helps us to eat slower and giving the body ample time for better digestion. Same goes for the students. They need to digest and memorize facts. Classical music's tempo tells the brain to take its time processing information and there's no need to rush anything.

Hard rock, dance tunes and heavy metal might not be suitable to be played for people who prefers fine dining but they're not bad sounds either. Fast tempo and loud noises somehow help to pump one's adrenaline to get onto their feet and do something. Hence the tracks selected for group exercises classes usually consist of the 3 genres of music. They signal the brain to get things moving - well at least your feet would start tapping. Having said that, it doesn't mean students can't listen to those music. I found Mathematical problems can be solved faster when I have these musics playing on my walkman (at least they were some 15 years ago).

During my uni times (when there's no iPod but life was pretty much simpler) I had to carry a huge bag to the library just to make sure I have all the necessary cassettes available. Just imagine, different music for different subject. Van Halen for calculus, Bryan Adams for High Speed Network, Rod Stewart for Microprocessor, Bon Jovi for Assembly Language etc etc...

These days I continue on experimenting with music even though I don't have to study much. Still I need different music for different situation. Nickelback for cardio sessions, Bee Gees when I do weight training, Beyonce when I need to write nasty emails, Pussycat Dolls when I need to focus on the road etc etc etc...

However, I don't need music to fall asleep. Looking after 3 kids is tiring enough to make me enter La La land easily.

Power

The Power Of Love

Love has the power to break all chains 

- Swim the deepest seas 

- Endure the strongest pains 

- Love is the glow in the darkest night leading you on until you have sight. 

- Cristoto


*Images from fanpop.com

Cardio?

I found this really interesting article on cardio exercise. I have to agree with the author (who happens to be a certified trainer with vast experience in helping people get fit, lose weight and achieve impossible dreams.... having a six-pack for example). Traditional cardio exercise is seriously boring. I admit I was torturing myself when I did cardio training on those machines. Lately I only spent 15 minutes on each trainer. There's no fun in doing cardio. You get to watch TV and listen to music but the quality of exercise is questionable.

I tend to give up easily when I do cardio especially when there's no personal trainer to push and motivate me. I was always like, well.... there's nothing to chase, I'm not in a hurry. So the exercise became a walk in the park and the result was disappointing.

I noticed that I started to lose some weight and getting a more toned body after I frequently joined BodyCombat and BodyPump classes. BodyCombat is a lot of fun. I get to kick, punch, shout, laugh and not to mention interact with many people in the class.

BodyPump is quite a challenge. It seems easy, but after the 6th track, you're lucky if you could still feel your legs and arms. After the class ends, I always find it quite difficult to lift my arms. But, as my friends told me, sore muscle after exercise is a good news. That means you managed to work them.

I love it anyway, as everytime I go to these classes I'll surely sleep soundly at night.

*Images from weheartit.com

Sleep

For a better health and happier life, sleep more. Seriously.... it solves a lot of things while giving your body and mind the much needed rest.

When you decide to sleep on a certain matter, you'll get a better resolution the next day.

*Image from weheartit.com

Caramel

It's a movie with quite an unusual backdrop : Beirut. When all I could think of was oppression and war, the movie gave me a totally different view on the women at that side of the world.

One woman was having an affair with a married man.

One woman was having trouble accepting the fact that she's growing old.

One woman found herself attracted to beautiful women.

One woman was a muslim, about to get married but kept a dark secret from her fiancee.

One selfless woman had to take care of her elder and senile sister.

The movie also showed the other sides of the story.

One woman, who's trying to please the husband without knowing that he's seeing another woman.

One man, who was admiring a woman he couldn't get from far.

One husband who neglected his wife and kids and went out openly with his girlfriend.

One senile woman who was just confused with her surrounding, but wanted to be cared for.

One old man who showed interest in an attractive old woman and tried his luck.

One woman took the risk to be liberal.

One woman had to let go of her daughter as she's getting married.

The story revealed many aspects of women that society tends to overlook. Dealing with day-to-day issues at times requires the women to make a lot of sacrifices. We can never understand why women make a fool of themselves when it comes to love; even when they know the relationship not heading anywhere. We can also never understand why some women decide to live in denial. Would a woman neglect her own flesh and blood in order to find the love of her life? Watch this movie, you'll get some answers.

* Images from weheartit.com and Googled.

Arithmetic Love Quote

 'In the arithmetic of love, one plus one equals everything, and two minus one equals nothing' - Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic's Notebook, 1966.

Copy pasted this from Ruby Ahmad's FB status.

I'd love to buy and read this book called The Second Neurotic's Notebooks.

Image from weheartit.com.

Tired

Today I rushed to the gym at 5pm with the intention to join BodyVive class. I was watching the class in progress about two weeks ago and decided it's not high impact and perhaps I could try it out.
It took me 30 minutes to reach FF IOI. When I've changed into my gym gear the class have already started. I went in and headed straight to the front. Except for a geeky looking guy and the instructor, there were all ladies in the class.

After the first track, I noticed a really old Ah Soh in the line behind me. I thought she must be already in her 70s. She looked frail, her hair was all white, her face and hands were all wrinkly and her movement was very slow. But she followed the class anyway. The instructor was also very considerate. He showed the old lady the right moves and explained them clearly to her during every track. It turned out, BodyVive was a very low impact exercise. I only started to sweat during the 5th track. But it's a good starting point for newcomers.

After the class ended, I went to the bar for a few glasses of ice lemon tea. Then, I checked the timetable wondering what's the next class. The Ah Soh was standing near me and she asked what class will start soon. I told her it's Kick-Boxing Fusion. I totally have no idea what Kick-Boxing Fusion was all about. The Ah Soh asked me whether she could join. I got a feeling that it's a high impact class. I didn't know what to tell the Ah Soh. She looked really interested to sweat a little bit more. Perhaps she was quite bored with the BodyVive; perhaps she was looking for a more challenging exercises.

So, I told her that kick-boxing is a form of martial art, have some similarities with Kung Fu and Tae Kwon Do. She nodded and asked me again whether she could join. I felt really bad because I didn't want to encourage her to do something that might cause her injuries. So, I told her to go and talk to the instructor who was chatting happily with a few guys behind us.

She walked slowly towards the instructor but before she could open up her mouth to speak, the instructor rushed inside the class as it was about time to start Kick-Boxing Fusion. The Ah Soh then followed the instructor in and she was standing right in front of the stage, ready for some action. Encouraged by her passion and confidence, I followed her in and stood on her right.

When the class started, again I was surprised when the Ah Soh proved that she's a lot more than the frail looking old lady. She was doing really well with the boxing and kicking. Thank god she was not overdoing it and I was so happy watching her enjoying the exercise.

As for me, I only stayed until track 6 as it was already 7.15pm and I had to rush back, otherwise I might miss Maghrib prayer. Although I didn't manage to complete the class, I thought Kick-Boxing Fusion is not that high impact as BodyAttack. There's a lot of optional movements for older (or fatter) people. I'm tired now after the two classes but determined to do this again next Thursday.

* Image from weheartit.com

Love Me

Dear men, all women wants to be loved and they deserve that. Full stop.

Dear women, all men wants to be loved in return. They need that.

Why the book 'Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus ' is a bestseller is understandable. All women thinks that men are so complicated and difficult to understand and vice versa.

Perhaps, it's about time to tell the world that we are not a complicated species. Don't let a book make you feel miserable. It's quite tough to fully understand men, especially those we truly love because women tend to over analyze things.

Men don't want to be analyzed, just let them be.

Women don't like to be criticized, just make us happy.

*Image taken from weheartit.com

Escapism

You can't choose your family, but you can choose your friends. At times you'll feel trapped among strangers whereas they're your own flesh and blood. There will be times when you can't figure out a way out of the problems in the office or with the neighbor. Perhaps, some mornings you wake up and wish that you're someone else or living another life. Sometimes you even wish that everyone you dislike would disappear and replaced with nicer people. There are also moments when you wish you could trade with another woman's (or man's) shoes.

Sadly, we won't get to do those things. Life is not a fairytale or a badly written Hollywood spoof movie. However, it's still okay to escape once in a while. Even three hours a week should be sufficient.

Some people go as far as an island far far away from home, leaving everybody and everything behind for a few days. Some won't even have this luxury, but we can always spend a few hours at the movies with some close friends or alone, it doesn't really matter. As long as we can take our thought off of all those depressing things at home or office. I found talking silly with close friends helped a lot when I need to de-stress. Pampering ourselves is another good option to keep our sanity checked.

Escape doesn't mean running away. Escape is just a way of gathering thoughts or clearing the mind before evaluating problem solutions. Some problems don't have any solution, we just let some wounds heal through time. Escape could mean meeting new people with fresh or intriguing ideas (or easier on the eyes). When we get to know new friends, we'll go through a process to discover ourselves all over again and later we'll be able to look at things from a different perspective.

So, the next time you face a very challenging problem or stuck in a difficult situation it's okay to escape for a while. It's okay to tell the people around you that you need some time for yourself before you could come up with something solid. It's even okay to buy some time after someone apologizes. It's good to forgive but a deferred forgiveness works wonders on a relationship.

Dear women all over the world, escapism is an important word in our dictionary. Don't know where to start? Try reading chick-lit, watching chick-flicks or pay a visit to the national arts gallery.