Before I share what I cooked again, I’d like to share with you some of my many accounts in my Journey To Fitness. Just in case my posts on food and nothing-to-shout-about dishes bore you to brink of death 😀
All food and no exercise spells trouble for your body and I kid you not. Exercise is good for your heart, mind, body and soul. You may not feel the difference now if you are still in your 20s or 30s. But once you have hit forty and lead a sedentary lifestyle, you’d most likely begin to notice the differences in your body.
People who do regular activity have a lower risk of many chronic diseases, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and some cancers. Research shows that physical activity can also boost self-esteem, mood, sleep quality and energy, as well as reducing your risk of stress,depression, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Given the overwhelming evidence, it seems obvious that we should all be physically active. It’s essential if you want to live a healthy and fulfilling life into old age. I want to be able to still run around and travel the world even when I am 84 years old or 90 years old. There’s this 84-year old grandmother at my condo who is fitter than I! She wakes up at 5am everyday and works out for several hours at the pool area, practising her sword and fan tai chi movements, brisk walking and does body stretching. She then sits at the gazebo by the pool and chats with her peers until 10ish am each day. She gives me so much inspiration whenever I chat up with her or simply just by looking at how spirited and sprightly she works out each day, with so much energy bursting in her.
At the same pool area too each morning is a 78 year old grandma who moved in 2 months ago. She walks with the support of a walking stick and an Indon helper. She looks like she is into her 90s. When I chatted up with her, I found out that both her kidneys were removed. She can only eat plain vegetables and nothing else as she is not undergoing dialysis. She is currently consuming Chinese medication.
So the conclusion is eat well, eat clean and exercise regularly and you could be like the 84-year old healthy grandma. Put crap into your body and you will suffer in your later years. No joke. Love your body for you only have one.
It’s medically proven that people who do regular physical activity have:
- up to a 35% lower risk of coronary heart disease and stroke
- up to a 50% lower risk of type 2 diabetes
- up to a 50% lower risk of colon cancer
- up to a 20% lower risk of breast cancer
- a 30% lower risk of early death
- up to an 83% lower risk of osteoarthritis
- up to a 68% lower risk of hip fracture
- a 30% lower risk of falls (among older adults)
- up to a 30% lower risk of depression
- up to a 30% lower risk of dementia
If exercise were a pill, it would be one of the most cost-effective drugs ever invented!
This weather this morning was one of gloomy, breezy, chilly and a dark sky with a looming thunderstorm. I wasn’t in the mood to swim in such compromising weather but with a determination as strong as steel, I went ahead. The moment I went into the water, my body froze. The key to combat the chilly water and strong wind is to quickly dip your body inside the water and start swimming immediately, as fast as you possibly can, to generate heat in your body. My body would normally be warmed up within 5 laps of swim on a cool morning but today, it took me over 13 laps to finally feel warmth. It didn’t help that it was extra windy today. *shiver!!*
I was the only person swimming this morning, which makes the pool looks oddly gigantic and creepy. Have you ever tried swimming alone at 6:30 in the morning under the threatening dark skies with no one else in the pool except you? Add the strong howling winds and chilly water and you’ll feel like you are in one of the scenes from Nightmare On Elm Street. This morning, I felt and saw the currents of the pool water each time the strong wind blew and howled. I soldiered on and after 30 minutes, I managed to complete 28 laps continuously, complete with body stretches and aqua cycling. It poured just after I completed my 28 laps.
It is hard to explain to you the awesome feelings one gets after exercising. If you haven’t started on an exercise regimen yet, why not try it today? Yes today! It can be as simple as climbing up and down the stairs in your house or walk up the stairs to your unit if you live in a condo. I used to jog outside the house at 5am with a baton in my hand and another round of running at 7pm when I returned from work. Rain or shine, I would exercise, even if it meant running whilst holding an umbrella. I was and still am that determined and no one can break my will power.
Getting regular exercise aside, eating clean is just as important. Whether you are a carb-cutter, carb-loader, paleo warrior, or intermittent faster, your golden rule of clean eating should be to include as much fresh produce in your daily diet as possible.
Ok, enough said and I am stepping down from the soap box 😀
Here’s one of my home-cooked dinners last week – baked Halibut steak from Greenland. It was the first time hubs bought this fish and the meat was very smooth and creamy.
I baked the fish in two different styles – two pieces were lightly seasoned with sea salt and black pepper and another piece coated with wholemeal bread crumbs.
Verdict – the breaded one won. And my conclusion is to bread the fish each time I bake fish in future.
Baked Portobello mushrooms with garlic.
Stir-fried organic cabbage with shredded carrot, garlic, onions and eggs.
I got a thumbs up from my most persnickety and critical daughter over dinner that night 😀
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Chicken Adobo is a popular dish in the Philippine cuisine that involves meat, seafood, or vegetables marinated in vinegar, soy sauce and garlic, which is browned in oil, and simmered in the marinade. The chicken is then grilled briefly in the oven. I added a handful of bay leaves into the simmer sauce for a more flavorful lift.
Below – sauteed organic cabbage with carrots; grilled sesame chicken drumsticks and boneless chicken thighs marinated with aromatic five-spice powder and garlic powder.
These are the dishes that busy working mums or dads can prep in under 1.5 hours. Oil splatter is minimal too.
