health and fitness – Page 2 – HEALTH FREAK MOMMY

No More Excuses! Get Fit Without Joining A Gym!

Many of us think that fitness depends on our ability to own a gym membership. If you don’t join a gym, you can’t get fit, right? Wrong, there are so many ways to get fit without joining a gym. And, I’ve listed some of the most genius ideas down below:

Start Running
Running is an excellent way to stay fit, which is why you see so many runners everywhere! The great thing about it is that you get to go outside. You can run, and feel the fresh air in your lungs as you do it. Plus, it;s something you can do at any time of day. Early morning before work, or late at night before bed. There’s really no excuse, apart from when the weather’s bad. And, even then, some waterproof running gear is all you need. My biggest tip is to buy proper running trainers. This is because you need the right support when you run. Otherwise, it can be damaging to your joints.

Create A Home Gym
One of the main reasons people think they need a gym membership is because of the equipment there. But, there’s an easy way to work around this and save a load of money. You can create a gym in your home with ease. Especially if you have a spare room or garage that isn’t used as much as it could be. These are the perfect places to set everything up. All you need is the best home gym equipment for fitness workouts. I’m willing to bet you won’t use every machine in the gym, so, you’re wasting money. Most people will only need five machines maximum to get a good workout in. Things like treadmills, bikes, etc. Get some weights as well, and you’ll be sorted for all types of exercise. It may cost a lot to start with, but, you’ll save so much over time. Plus, you have more motivation as your gym is right by you at all times. No excuses, just go to your home gym and get fit.

home gym

Play Outside With Your Kids
Believe it or not, but playing with your kids can get you fit. I know, it sounds funny, but it’s true. Anyone with kids will back me up here and tell you all about it. Head outside to a park and play with your children. You’ll find it difficult to keep up with their endless energy. They’ll get you running around and joining in with their crazy games. Before you know it, you’ve worked up a heavy sweat! The great thing about kids is that they love playing sports too. No doubt your children will always ask you to go into the garden and play with them. Kick a soccer ball around with your kids a few times a week, and you can get fit.

Image result for image of mom plays soccer ball with kids

Of course, you should combine these ideas with a healthy diet. There are plenty of fitness-friendly food ideas for you to enjoy. Regular exercise, combined with a balanced diet will get you fit in no time!

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Healthy Tuesday – 2 August 2016

I woke up feeling zombified today. I’ve not had a single day of sleeping in the whole of last week. Monday through Sunday started at 4:45 am for me, with each day ending around 11-ish pm. When I don’t get a day or two of catching up on my beauty sleep for that week, the following week spells trouble for me. But I still went for my pre-dawn brisk walk today, interspersed with running up ramps. I swam 26 laps in the pool yesterday morning and ended my day with 30 bicycle crunches (image below) on the bed last night 😀

bicycle-crunch

After 40 minutes of outdoor workout this morning, I downed a packet of hydrogen-infused water, which gave me an instant power boost. Since I felt rejuvenated, I did some back stretching and Swiss ball crunches (image below) on my fit ball. Suddenly, I didn’t feel sleepy anymore!

Excercise-ball-crunch

When our muscles are fatigued, lactic acid is released and our body produces hydrogen to compensate. When we pump in more hydrogen into our body, the hydrogen which is a natural antioxidant neutralizes the over production of lactic acid in the blood stream very quickly. Thus we recover quicker and feel rejuvenated. Try it!!! If you are active in sports, do away with whatever you’re drinking now and try hydrogenated water. You can email me at shireenyong@gmail.com to inquire more.

Breakfast was sugar-free and additives-free plain yoghurt with organic chia seeds, almonds, pumpkin seeds, sugar-free peanut butter and a swirl of palm sugar.

Lunch was pork porridge with shredded carrot strips and sweet potato, seasoned with pepper, sea salt and spring onions.

The big girl just announced that she needn’t have to go to school this Saturday, wooohoooo!!! Finally I get to sleep in this Saturday, can’t wait for that!

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Top 4 Bodyweight Exercises For Building Muscle

Most people think that bodyweight exercises are pointless, and you should only lift weights. Well, I’m here to tell you that they’re completely wrong. There are some great exercises out there that will help you build muscle and increase strength. To help prove my point, here are four of the best:

Push Ups
If you want a basic bodyweight exercise, then the push up is for you. It’s not hard to do one, and there are variations to make them easier or harder to do. This exercise will target your chest and triceps, depending on how you do it. The closer you have your hands together on the floor, the more triceps activation you get. A typical push up will be done with hands at shoulder width, so you get a great bit of chest activation going on. You can also do clapping push-ups to make the exercise even harder, and grow bigger muscles. Plus, you need no equipment for this movement, all you require is enough space to lie down!

Pull Ups
The pull up is the greatest test of upper body strength there is. By doing this exercise, you’ll be working a whole host of muscles against the weight of your body. Primarily, pull ups will target the lat muscles in your back. Also, you get considerable activation in your trapezius muscles, most notably the lower traps. As a bonus, pull-ups will also work your forearms and biceps; it’s an all round muscle building masterpiece. Most people think you can only do pull-ups in the gym, but this isn’t the case. You can do them on a door frame or the back of some stairs in your home. There are also companies like PullUpMate that do portable pull up stations for indoor use. I strongly recommend you find a way to do this exercise at home, as it should be done every day to maximize muscle growth.

Dips
As far as triceps bodyweight exercises go, dips are the best for building muscle mass. The reason for this is that you’re in a suspended position when doing them. So, your triceps are working hard to keep your body stable, while also moving it up and down. And, you can also alter the angle of your body to target your chest more. This means you’re essentially doing a suspended pushup, and can get serious chest growth. You can create your own dipping station at home by using two chairs or the corner of a kitchen counter. So, they’re great to add to any home workout.

Handstand, Evening Sky, Beach, Sun, Summer, Sunset

Handstand Push Ups
The final exercise will target your shoulders and make them burn like crazy. Simply do a handstand against a wall, and lower your head to the ground then push up using your shoulders. If you can’t do this, then pike push ups are a good alternative. Get into the downward dog yoga pose and lower your head to the floor then push back up.

All of these exercises can be done without any weights at all. And, each can be modified depending on your experience and strength levels. Add them to your workout routine today!

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Three Strategies To Get Your Health On Track In 2015

In a world where debilitating diseases are becoming increasingly prevalent, many people are seeking health solutions that will empower them to lead positive lives free of illness. If this is your health objective, it’s important to know that there are several wellness strategies you can implement to start living in a more enriching way. Here are three of them:

1. Find A Holistic Doctor
The first strategy you can employ to start leading a healthier life is to find the ideal holistic doctor. Rather than placing primacy on the administration of medication, holistic doctors seek to facilitate healing and restoration in the patient’s mind, body, and spirit. There are a wide range of health services that these doctors can offer to realize this objective. Some of them include medical hypnosis and acupuncture. Holistic doctors will also oftentimes place emphasis on offering nutritional counseling services that help the patient eat the foods that promote optimal energy levels, mood regulation, and weight management. You can access information regarding these types of services by visiting the following website: www.drbryanmd.com.

2. Invest In Personal Training Services
In addition to finding a holistic methods doctor, it’s a good idea to invest in personal training services. Doing so can facilitate health optimization by ensuring that you’re in the habit of exercising effectively and regularly. Personal trainers specialize in developing and consistently optimizing exercise routines that empower people to accomplish their fitness and health-related goals. Whether you’re attempting to lose weight, increase musculature, or develop a more toned physique, personal trainers can help you realize your objectives. Moreover, getting in the habit of exercising regularly will promote cardiovascular health and help you attain a new level of wellness.

3. Optimize Your Diet
One final strategy you should employ to get healthy this year is to optimize your diet. Although many if not most people understand that a sound diet is the foundational pillar of great health, many of these individuals procrastinate about changing their eating habits. Don’t make this mistake. Instead, start taking steps towards diet optimization by replacing coffee with green juices and salty snacks with healthy trail mix.

Conclusion
Individuals who are ready to take their health to another level should understand that there are several ways to make it happen. By finding a holistic doctor, hiring a personal trainer, and optimizing one’s diet, you will likely find that you start operating at a level of physiological efficacy and excellence you never thought possible!

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Random Things On A Friday – 31 July 2015

As July 2015 ends today, I ended the last day of the month by embarking on a new fitness regime this morning! With creaky and achy knees that give way whenever I run on the road, I have decided to give running and brisk walking a break to heal my aging knees.

Inspired by the mil who swims for half an hour every morning (she’s 70 years old this year) and advised by the hubs, I have decided to swim every morning to give my knees a good break. I have never been a fan of swimming as I prefer to sweat it out on the road or gym but I have no choice but to go through a hiatus to heal my knees. Today, I found a renewed love for swimming! I swam for 45 minutes starting from 6:30am and felt really good after the workout in the water! The only thing missing is a swimming cap to hold my waist-length hair in place. In a few minutes, I will be driving to Mid Valley Megamall with the mil to shop for a swimming cap and a pair of goggles. Swimming, here I come and conquer the pool from now on!

Happy Friday peeps! 🙂

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Awesome Rawsome Lunch – 2 April 2015

Yesterday was awesome rawsome lunch day for me. I do that twice or thrice a week, for lunch. Today is yet another day of going raw for lunch, well almost, but I will be adding an egg to increase my hemoglobin levels. I am anemic, caused by heavy menses, which in turn is contributed by a tiny fibroid in my uterus.

My awesome rawsome lunch yesterday was Pesto Salad. The salad composed of alfalfa and onion sprouts, walnut, almond, pecan, sesame seeds, organic Japanese kyuri, organic cherry tomatoes, green grapes, seasoned seaweed, fried shallots, Japanese Yuzu plum dressing and homemade Pesto paste.

Before lunch, I downed 2 glasses of raw smoothie, consisting of orange, apple, green grapes and alfalfa and onion sprouts. The kids and the hubs had orange and apple smoothie, sans the raw sprouts.

**BURP**!! That was so so filling and enough to sustain me till dinner while giving me the fuel to slave for the kids and household 😀

Can anyone eat such healthy stuff just for a day? Tell me you can! They are good stuff you’re pumping into your body alright! 😉

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BaNaNa Fitness Special Bootcamp Exercise @ Plaza Damaz

Hear ye hear ye all you fitness buffs and those who intend to melt away your belly fat to have a fabulous bod!

A friend of mine is organizing a BaNaNa Fitness Training (special bootcamp exercise) and has asked my help to spread the word around. My hubs has been attending this bootcamp at our neighborhood for almost a year and it is very intense. If I have the time, I will attend too. I am all for fitness but unfortunately, time is not on my side for now.

Here are the details of the BaNaNa Fitness special bootcamp exercise:

Venue: The Space, C1-3 (above Dynasty Club), Block C, Plaza Damaz, 60 Jln Sri Hartamas 1, Kuala Lumpur

When: every Monday & Wednesday,

Time: either 10am-11.15am or 8.30pm-9.45pm by Rapid Fusion Fitness

Price: RM299/mth (Early Banana Rate at RM799 for 3 mths).

For more information, you may send all enquiries to thespacekl@gmail.com or call 016-217 1060.

The organizer is offering a FREE trial if there are 5 or more people. So gather your friends, colleagues, husbands, wives, siblings or your boss to try out this fitness bootcamp for free! Don’t let this opportunity to jump-start your health and fitness regimen slip away ok! 😉

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Preventing Cancer as a Family

“Prevention is better than cure”, we have often hear this, but how many of us actually practice it? All of us are aware of the threat posed by cancer, and there are actually many simple ways that we can practice together as a family to lower the risk of getting cancer. Adopting a healthy lifestyle together with your family members not only keeps you healthy, but can be fun too! 🙂

A new initiative by AXA AFFIN, in collaboration with National Cancer Society Malaysia (NCSM), aims to increase awareness and will be supporting cancer patients currently undergoing treatment. AXA AFFIN will fund the NCSM daycare usage to one cancer patient for every blogger that links back to AXA AFFIN 110CancerCare website in their effort to care for cancer patients. So, it’s really time to raise the awareness of cancer prevention starting from your own household. Here are 4 simple tips:

1) Do not smoke
Tobacco is the major cause of lung cancer. The best way to prevent lung cancer is to never start, but if you do, it’s never too late to quit. Adults in the house should know that second-hand smoke can cause lung cancer too, so establish a smoke-free policy at home. Also, make sure your children understand the danger of smoking since young. Many people first
started smoking due to the influence around them. So make sure your children are able to make wise decisions when the time comes.

2) Maintain a balanced diet
According to statistics, obesity among children is on the rise. Obesity should be treated carefully as it can cause many health problems, and is one of the factors that lead to an increased risk of cancers in adults. Our dietary habits are formed since young, so the best way to maintain a balanced diet is to make it a habit for your family starting from your children. Avoid having too much fast food; instead, eat more veggies, fruits, and grains! Reduce the intake of salt, sugar, alcohol and red meat. Sometimes we might go overboard with these “feel-good” foods. You can search for fun and healthy recipes online, healthy diet need not be boring and bland.

3) Be active
Be physically active at least 30 to 60 minutes per day. You can think of fun activities to do as a family. It doesn’t have to involve heavy workouts like running or rock-climbing, just a simple walk or a fun outdoor game can achieve the same effect. Regular exercise improves digestion, allows for stable level of hormones, and bolsters the immune system. And for the mums and dads, it’s a great way to maintain a lean and healthy look too! 🙂

4) Take Supplements
Nowadays, there are many supplements to choose from, and they are available for all age group as well. Folic acid, Vitamin D, Iron and Multivitamin are recommended to lower the risk of getting cancer. Do consult your pharmacist for the ones that are most suitable for your family.

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A Health Freak Mommy’s Breakfast

The below plate of raw goodness was my breakfast during our stay at Hilton Sentral two Sundays ago. Many people will attack the ham, bacon, sausages, nasi lemak, pancake, muffins and desserts counters first but for me, it is straight to the fresh juice counter. My health savvy girls know that they are to eat fresh fruits and fresh fruit juice first and they will always queue up at the juice counter to wait for their juice. Next will be eggs, some Edamame beans and then they will only be allowed to take one sausage (small ones) or half a sausage (big ones). They used to love whacking on ham and bacon but after years of being ‘brainwashed’ by a health freak mom, they did not pick any of these deli meat during our last two buffets meals.

I know, for the life of many of you, you will probably never eat pickled beet root, raw alfalfa sprouts and almonds for breakfast, out of all those more delish and more flavorful grub lining the tables out there eh? 😉

Health freak baby nibbling on Edamame beans and pumping in fresh juices for breakfast. She got to eat a small slice of roti canai as reward.

Health Freak Mommy’s angels 🙂

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Berry Chocolately Bread

This is my breakfast today:

Milo sprinkled on homemade wholewheat bread with sliced jumbo sized strawberries.

This is anytime healthier than char koay teow, chee cheong fun, curry laksa or nasi lemak eh? I realize that if I cut down on deep fried, oily and spicy food, the monthly zits will stop bothering my face. And my complexion glows too! So try out health freak mommy’s complexion glowing recipe of daily exercise, drinking lots of plain water, green tea, coconut water, eating a few servings of fruits everyday and ditch your junk food. Feeding your skin with a good skin care product is vital too. One thing that I must strive to improve on is to get at least 6 hours of sleep. Still trying very hard in this area!

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My Daily Fitness Regimen

I hardly bring along my mobile phone with me when I exercise in the morning as it is too cumbersome to pocket a phone bigger than my palm in my shorts or waist pouch when I run. Today, I started a tad late to exercise as it was drizzling and the gym is the only place I could go to… but we can only gain entry into the gym at 7am. So I brought along my mobile phone to snap a picture of this….

The above air walker is literally reserved for ME from day one as no one but ME would be in the gym yet the moment we can gain entry into the gym with our access cards at 7am sharp.

At 7am, the gym is normally devoid of fitness junkies except for me or my hubs if he does not have to leave the house early to work. So I will normally have the gym all to myself, while I read my newspapers and exercise on this air walker. I can even let out whatever vile sounding gases from my upper and lower tract without fear of embarrassing myself muahahahahahaaaa!!

If you have yet to resolve to start on an exercise regimen to keep yourself trim, fit and healthy, do start today. You do not have to sign up with a well-known gym for thousands of bucks. I do not believe in splurging a lot of money to lose weight. A simple walk or run round your neighborhood at least 4-5 times in a week costs you nothing but you have everything to gain from this healthy regimen 😉 And oh yes, always remember to cut down on your food portion and stay away from unhealthy food. Where there’s a will, there’s always a way, trust me.

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My Health Freak Breakfast – 25 April 2013

After a half-hour workout in the gym today where I burned 300+ calories, here’s what I had for breakfast:

1 packet of Ryvita’s mini cream cheese & chives rye crackers (shared with Cass) and half a bowl of honey nut granola topped with untoasted hazelnuts, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds and three juicy strawberries. I only poured half a cup of Anlene plain yoghurt into my bowl of granola as 1 cup equals 91 calories and I wanted to use the remaining 45.5 calories for my Haaegan Dazs ice cream later, muahahaha!

I’ll bet only health, fitness and diet freaks will eat such boring grub and with calculation of calories and carbs in mind! 😀

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Everyone Can Be Slim If They Set Their Mind On It

I believe everyone can be slim if they set their hearts and mind towards being slim. I know that I can be very fat too if I do not control what goes into my mouth and fall prey to lack of discipline. Despite my hectic life being a WFHM, I force myself to squeeze out at least 30 to 40 minutes of my very limited time every morning to exercise. Being married to a man who is in the food business with a family where everyone enjoys good food, I have myself turned into someone who enjoys traveling to every nook and corner to tuck into some good food too! So if I am not disciplined enough in my exercise regime, I am darn capable of doubling up my size in a matter of months!

My exercise regime every morning involves 20 minutes of running in the outdoor and another 15-20 minutes of working out on the air walker in the gym. I get ‘high’ from the adrenalin flowing in my body each time I exercise. And it is during this time that my clogged up mind will unclog by itself. My creative juices trickle out too. Some of my friends have asked me if I am working out in the gym to build some muscles but no no, having bulky muscles on the hands and calf is the last ‘asset’ that I want to have, albeit sadly I already have those muscular runner’s calf. But I’m proud to say that I do not have those ‘grandma’s flabby arms’ yet but still have pretty firm upper and lower arms 😀 But for those of you who are aiming to build some muscles, you can work on them in the gym with those weights and google search on how build muscle, where you will get thousands of search results.

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Ditch The Elevator For The Stairs

… and that’s what we have been doing for the past 1.5 months. It was my mil who started this practice, the idea of which my girls love and have been supporting….. and we have been using the stairs to get to the 5th floor of our unit whenever we are not in a hurry to go to school or other classes.

If I add up the calories that I burn from climbing 5 flight of stairs everyday, the total calories that I will burn in a week is enough to reward me with 2 or 3 ice creams or fatty cakes treat every week without the fear of that bulge!

… and I get to teach Baby her numbers too when I point out to the number on each floor that we stop at!

Best of all, my girls think it is really fun and adventurous to pace up the stairs and see who the winner is!

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The Ultimate Website For Health and Fitness Freaks

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of wellnessdaily.com. All opinions are 100% mine.

Ever since I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) almost 9 years ago, my life turned around (for the better, though I went through a lot of struggles) as I have learned to follow a disciplined exercise regime and eat a healthy diet. After the first diagnostic at the gynae’s office, my life revolves around surfing the internet for answers, treatments and natural remedies to help me overcome the disorder. That was how I transformed into a health freak. For those of you who suffer from PCOS, you will know that losing weight is the hardest thing to do. But with persistence, determination and sacrifices, I managed to lose the 6kg I gained due to PCOS, albeit it was slow.

During the height of my PCOS disorder, I had surfed hundreds of websites for answers and had printed articles from the internet that filled up more than 3 thick arch files! I found out that there is no cure for PCOS but the symptoms like weight gain, acne, infertility, among others can be treated. I also found out that with a healthy lifestyle, I can get relief for the symptoms. For example I need to exercise regularly and stay away from carbs and white flour products to lose weight. With regular exercise and cutting down on refined white flour products, the acne also went away.

If you are looking for a wellness website where you can get all the answers that you want from losing weight to staying fit, eating right, healthy recipes and much more, you must check out www.wellnessdaily.com. It’s really a neat and impressive website where you can get such interesting information as the best fat burning exercise, fitness for diabetics, low sodium recipes and much more. There are also news on coupons and ways to help you save money. Right now, there is a Twitter contest going on. All you have to do is to sign up at wellnessdaily.com and tweet about the site for a chance to win a WellnessDaily.com prize package which includes coupons for a year-long supply of Jennie-O Turkey Store products and a one-year gym membership valued at $1,250!

“Enter to win $ towards a gym membership & JENNIE-O turkey products. Just follow @wellness_daily & RT this! http://bit.ly/tbd123.”

This contest runs until March 10, so there really ain’t much time to waste. Check out the site now – it’s FOC to register. I won’t be surprised that after checking out wellnessdaily.com, you will find yourself dancing yourself to fitness or getting up at 5:30am everyday to work-out!

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I Need A Pedal Exerciser To Help Me Burn Some Extra Calories

It’s really frustrating for me as I weigh myself on the bathroom scale each morning. Despite me exercising everyday, the red needle just ain’t moving to the left. I am really tempted to buy a pedal exerciser so that I can exercise even when I am seated in front of my computer. The rotor Magneciser pedal exerciser is the perfect alternative to traditional stationary bikes. Whilst it helps burn off calories, it also helps to improve circulation, muscle strength, joint range-of-motion and coordination for the entire body. It is small, portable and lightweight and can even be placed under my computer table! I can move my legs even as I work on my computer.

No. of times viewed = 188