Healthy Lifestyle Habits You Can Follow Even on a Busy Schedule
When we’re busy with work, it’s very easy to forgo healthy lifestyle choices. Fortunately though, there are still a lot of things we can do to stay healthy even if we’re drowning in work. You just really have to pay attention to your own habits.
Drinks lots of water
One of the easiest healthy habits you can do is to keep yourself well-hydrated every day. Even if you’re busy, it’s still very easy to have a glass of water while working. You can also have a water bottle on your desk so that you can remind yourself to drink up from time to time. Some even do use alarms on their phones just to remind themselves to drink water.
Eat breakfast
In Singapore, more and more people are actually skipping breakfast. But, no matter how busy you are, you should always find time for breakfast. Having breakfast should be on your list of priorities! Skipping breakfast will cause you to take less healthy food options throughout the day. If you’re busy with work, you’re usually stressed out. And eating unhealthy food will only make things worse.
Drink coffee
When you’re busy, the go-to drink you’ll usually have is coffee. Coffee helps you stay alert and get more things done. But, of course, there is still a debate about how good or bad it can be for our health. For one, it does have a lot of benefits. But there are also risks when having too much. So the simple solution, if you think about it, is just to not have too much! The pros will far outweigh the cons as long as you drink in moderation.
Be mindful of what you eat
When we’re focused on work, we usually don’t pay attention to what we’re putting in our stomachs. If the food is quick and convenient, I’m going to have it since I still have a lot of work to do. Don’t think like this. Eating mindfully is also one of the best healthy habits you can have. Eating slowly also comes with that. We usually gobble down our food without even taking a break just to save time. That’s a big no-no.
Sneak in a little exercise each day
You can do some push-ups and sit-ups as you wake up, for example. Or maybe you can take the stairs up to your office if you still have time. You can also take breaks and just walk around your office. You’re giving your mind some time to rest and you’re also moving your body a bit. If you can’t find time to do actual exercise, this might be the best thing you can do.
Simple Ways You Can Avoid Accidents at the Gym
Surely, you’ve already seen those “gym fail” videos on YouTube. You might have even seen a fellow gym-goer in ActiveSG make quite a funny mistake. But funny or not, these are actually accidents that are very much avoidable. Luckily for you, you won’t have to make those mistakes if you continue reading!
Remember to do a proper warm-up
A lot of people (usually beginners) make the mistake of heading to the weight racks and just head directly to their workouts. This is a recipe for injury! Even so, jogging on the treadmill for five minutes and doing a few stretches won’t cut it as well. You have to do a proper warm-up before you start doing anything. Starting with the treadmill is okay but you should then follow it up with dynamic stretches. Doing a proper warm-up will significantly reduce your risk of injury.
Have a spotter with you
If you decide to lift heavy, always have a spotter with you. It can be your gym buddy, a trainer, or even some random gym-goer (remember to ask politely!). But even then, if you lift something too heavy that even your spotter won’t be able to do anything, then good luck buddy, you’re waiting for an accident to happen to you right in your face.
Don’t ego lift
Ego lifting is probably one of the biggest reasons why accidents happen in the gym. It’s basically lifting excessively heavy weights and sacrificing form just to feed your ego. Just don’t do that! There’s nothing wrong with not being able to lift heavy at all. More than anything, you’re keeping yourself safe from injury and you don’t risk damaging the gym equipment.
Be mindful of your surroundings
Another thing you should remember is to be mindful of your surroundings. If one person is doing a heavy bench press and you suddenly walk in the way of the bar path, the barbell might fall on that person’s face. Of course, this would cause an accident. But it’s also likely that it will get you in a fight. When you’re walking around to get equipment, remember to keep a safe distance between others who are in the middle of their sets.
Be careful when re-racking weights
A lot of people also make the mistake of not placing the weights on the rack properly. Chances are, those dumbbells or plates will fall off and crush yours or somebody else’s feet. Some even get their fingers crushed by the weights because they don’t put it back cautiously. Just don’t rush and take it slow when you have to re-rack your weights, especially if they are heavy.
Here’s How You Can Be a Better Storyteller
You won’t instantly notice it but humans are actually frequent storytellers. We tell our friends, relatives, and co-workers stories and they do the same. In some situations (like making a presentation at work), being a good storyteller can matter a lot. So, here are some things you should know!
Listen to others tell their stories
You’ll always have that one co-worker or friend who’s just really good at telling stories. So, try to observe and listen to them whenever you can. Sometimes you can learn a thing or two about what they do and you also get to know how it feels to be on the receiving end as an audience. There are also many great sources online where you can listen to people tell their stories. Listening to others first can be an excellent way to start improving your storytelling skills.
Write it down first
Whenever you experience something that you think can build into a great story, always remember to write it down. Our brains always play tricks on us and it won’t do any good to just trust your memory. Write down every thought that comes to mind and slowly create your story from there. By writing everything down, you can visualize the story a lot more clearly. You can be sure that it will be easier for you to tell the story if you organize it well on paper and include even the minor (yet relevant) details.
Avoid giving too much background
When telling a story, you’ll usually have to give some background information so that the audience can understand the context. Even so, that doesn’t mean you’ll have to give every detail about why the story happened in the first place. This is a mistake many people make when it comes to introducing their stories. You’ll only end up boring your audience before you even start! If you think this your problem, just remember to tell your audience only what they need to know.
Keep things concise but don’t rush it as well
Speaking of boring your audience, you don’t want to stand there telling a story that seems like it’s not going to end. It’s important to keep it concise because you’re essentially giving the major details while still keeping the audience engaged and interested. Although keeping concise is important, you should remember not to rush with your story. You’ll get tempted to breeze through everything especially if you’re new to storytelling. But try your best to slow down and just have fun in front.
Make sure to include dialogue
Another great addition to any story is dialogue. Think of it this way, dialogue in storytelling is just like the pictures in children’s books! It adds more color to the story and can even summarize the story as a whole. You can tell, for example, about that one time you were walking around Singapore and interacting with an auntie at a hawker center. There are really many real-life dialogues we can use to tie up our stories.
Big Reasons Why You Should Try VR Fitness
We all know that virtual reality is a new form of entertainment commonly associated with gaming. Lately though, it’s been making rounds as a great partner to exercising. There are already a lot of gyms around Singapore that’s centered on VR fitness as well! If you think about it, it might actually be a great idea to add a different element to your workouts. So, here are some great reasons to give VR fitness a try.
It can literally get you addicted to fitness
Now, there are those people who are naturally inclined to exercising. Whether it’s weightlifting, Zumba, Pilates, or CrossFit, there are people who just love to exercise! And then there’s also those who find it relatively difficult to stay motivated during their sweat sessions. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that! But if you really want to stay motivated to exercise, VR fitness might just be it. Because it’s just like playing a game, it will be quite addicting. And the bonus is, you won’t even notice that you’re already busting a sweat!
It can also give your brain a good workout
When you lift weights or jog, for example, your brain isn’t too involved aside from helping you focus on the muscles and also your surroundings. With VR though, you can improve your coordination, decision making, and analytical skills all while moving your body and working your muscles. Plus, this also has something to do with our motivation. Our brains tell us if what we’re doing is boring, so by doing VR, we’re basically fooling it to thinking that what we’re doing is fun.
You can do it in private
If you’re still a bit anxious or insecure about exercising, VR fitness can be a great choice because you can almost always do it on your own. You can enjoy a VR workout in the comforts of your home and even if you go to a VR gym, no one can watch you because everyone else is having a virtual reality experience for themselves. In addition to that, you won’t need to face common gym problems like people hogging the equipment sweaty machines!
It will be easy to track your progress
When it comes to exercising, one of the most common advice you’ll get is to have a fitness journal to track your progress. Naturally, you will get lazy from time to time and just stop writing in your journal altogether. That actually won’t be much of a problem with VR though. Almost all VR games track your movement during each session. Over time, you can see even the smallest changes in your endurance, speed, coordination, and more. And the bonus part is, the data will be very accurate since it’s monitored by an electronic system.
5 Must-Know Tips for Beginning Triathletes
If you ask me, triathlons show the peak of human endurance and physical performance. Triathletes go for miles and miles with each discipline: running, cycling, and swimming. There are also many official triathlon events that happen in Singapore too! And if you yourself are gearing up for a triathlon event for the first time, here are some tips you need to know.
Slowly build your experience
Firstly, if you’re a complete beginner, you should start with smaller triathlon events first. It helps you get a feel for how triathlons actually work and you can also check your fitness level at that particular time. You do not want to go to a global event like the Ironman World Championship for your first try at a triathlon. The overall distance of the whole event is simply too much for a beginner.
Fit your training to your lifestyle
For one, you should never go to a triathlon event without training. But you should also create a program that fits your everyday schedule. Don’t create a training schedule that will interfere with more important daily activities. For instance, if you train too hard on a workday, both you’re mind and body will be exhausted. This can be detrimental to your long-term fitness and health. Just remember to make your training moderate but consistent.
Go with groups
The triathlon community in Singapore is actually bustling and there are a lot of individuals who enjoy doing meet-ups for training. Going with a group can add a different dynamic to your trainings. For one, it’ll be less boring. It’ll also be easier to stay motivated because you have to push yourself and keep up with the others’ pace. You might also get a lot of valuable advice from these fellow athletes.
Do brick sessions
Brick sessions or back-to-back workouts are considered integral parts of training for a triathlon event. A brick workout basically means you complete a bike and run workout or a bike and swim workout back-to-back. This is to help your body get used to transitioning from one exercise to the other. This is very important because the sudden transitions from swimming then cycling and lastly running are not as easy as it sounds.
Get used to open water swimming
Another very important part of training is to include open water swims. Although it won’t always be readily available, it’s still a valuable time for you to get used to the swim leg of the event. Swimming in open water can feel very different from practicing in the pool, especially with the pressure of the whole competition. So, try to expose yourself to that experience as much as possible.