Exercise some common sense please.

Tolerance is something a gym member has to put up with, especially when it comes to popular classes, eg. yesterday's Body Combat, which is and always will be full house. The studio was already packed when I stepped in, thus having to stand at the back. Fine with me.

One joker came in later and stood close in front of me. Fine with me. The class was full, I could understand that. This joker, who did jabs like as if he was swimming, then kept moving backwards as the first track started. Not much room for shuffling, scissors nor front kicks. A member next to me was obviously more pissed off than I was, hence he asked the joker to move forward a little, which fell on deaf ears. At one point, I accidentally kicked the joker's hand but I found no reason to apologise. Not my fault what. Silly man. Few tracks later, the member next to me turned to me and criticised the joker. No idea what the fler said cos it was in cantonese but I understood the bottomline of his message. Gave him a nod and a big smile to indicate that I agreed with him....ahaks.

That aside, this morning's newspaper headline "National Fatwa Council to make a ruling on yoga" caught my attention and made me laugh. Apparently, a local joker lecturer, Prof.Zakaria Stapa of UKM, advised Muslims who have taken up yoga to stop practising it as it deviates from Islamic beliefs. Errrr....Prof. Zakaria, you ever heard of EXERCISE? Moron!

First there was the ban on tomboys, now it's yoga...so, what is next? Not only do we have stupid politicians running our country, now it seems that we also have stupid professors teaching the next generation. Scary!

Nori Maki anyone?

I found a healthier snack to feast on....Nori Maki Rice Crackers, classic japanese rice crackers wrapped in tight hugging seaweed. Super crunchy and super crisp. Unlike some other types of rice crackers, this one does not contain msg.

The package claims FAT FREE, CHOLESTEROL FREE AND NUT FREE. OK, I'll take their word for it. Definitely no nuts though. It also says "You will become addicted once you try them". That is so true...I definitely can't stop eating since I open it.

The package is resealable and the zipper actually seals well. It's priced at RM4.75 (yes, not cheap). I bought mine at Jusco Supermarket.

TARA 3 - Countdown begins (Leg 7)

Leg 7. Teams travelled to Macau, China. See...my prediction was right on the next country. China! errr...ok...HK is China too...ahaks.

The first task, IMO, was ridiculously easy. Delivering gold fishes to an acquarium to get their next clue. With Operation Hours applicable, some teams managed to catch up though. At the ferry terminal, G&T (Team Pinoys) were smart to exchange their tickets with other passengers for earlier tickets. Not enuff with a good 15 mins head start off H&B (Team Bolehland), Team Pinoys decided to YIELD Team Bolehland, causing Henry to mutter "Scum" when their arch rivals were about to leave after the Roadblock task of climbing the Macau Tower.

The tomboyish AD&F (Team Kiasu) looked so clumsy wearing dresses at the DETOUR task of playing blackjack. Their giggles were enough to set me off giggling as well. Looked so silly...giggling all by myself in front of the tv. Meanwhile, Team Pinoys decided to do the other task of completing a lion dance routine. At one point, Geoff fell on his tailbone and I was like "Yeah.....that's karma for yielding my Team Bolehland".....I know, so cruel of me. Anyhow, Team Pinoys still came out on top at the pitstop despite having difficulty with their last task of arranging the Chinese zodiac lanterns.

I&T (other Team Bolehland) were playing catch up the whole time and still came out last at the pitstop. The girls were in tears but luck were with them as it was another NEL. Ida, in particular, was relieved when Allan didn't have to take their money....again.

Memorable Quote of the Week - "When you walk, keep your legs closed and together" - Bernie (Team Bolehland), to Team Kiasu before leaving the Blackjack table. Hilarious!

Next country Teams race in - Cambodia (yes, still Asia)

Next team to be eliminated - I&T (Team Bolehland). Twice in the bottom...time to go la. Or they might just as well end up first, since I was dead wrong in my last prediction!

Masking with Dainty Design

Of late, I couldn't resist checking out sheet facial masks in Guardians and Watsons. Got myself 2 pieces of Dainty All-In-One Collagen facial masks at RM13.80 over the weekend. Or one can get 5 pieces at RM26.90. Was indecisive between Dainty and Neutrogena's Deep Hydrating mask, having read good reviews about this 2 products in beauty forums. Finally, decided on the former.

Collagen, a type of protein, makes up about 25% of our body's total amount of protein. It provides firmness and strength to the body tissues. As we aged, collagen degrades and leads to wrinkle formation.

Effects of All-In-One Collagen Mask :

1. To whiten and re-hydrate your skin

2. Prevent wrinkles by increasing skin elasticity

3. To repair and re-conceal wounds and sunken scars

4. To facilitates the recovery of skin metabolism

5. Modulate and stabilizes skin pH

I am not too sure of the effects above it left on my skin after just using 1 piece. The mask was a little big for my face but I guess all the better to cover every inch of my face eh?. Had a little difficulty opening up the whole mask because there were too many foldings. This mask covers the eye area as well, including eye lids. The essence didn't drip down my neck which was good. If anything, there were plenty of the essence after I put the mask on my face, that I actually used it to wipe on my neck, no waste.

After using, my face did feel more hydrated and radiant. Face didn't feel sticky at all, even after massaging in all the leftover essence. I believe my fine lines are also minimised but it did nothing to my laugh lines, at least not yet. My stubborn pimple scars did look lightened slightly. Gonna try a few more of these and see the overall effect.

TARA 3 - Countdown begins (Leg 6)

Last nite's leg was booooring! The teams flew out from Taipei into HK (advantage to Team Honkies, of course). Roadblock - get past rugby players (who were SUPPOSED to stop the teams) in order to get to the clue box. Rugby players my foot! Even my grandmother, god bless her soul, would have no problem doing that.

Henry&Bernie (Team Bolehland), imo, chose the wrong task in DETOUR, because it cost them time. No doubt Henry, a chef by profession have no problem gutting fishes but tell me, how difficult can it be to crack open fortune cookies, the other task? The other teams sure didn't have a problem.

Searching the Ladies Market for a girl with the same handbag may seem difficult but certainly not un-do-able. Team Honkies, who were ahead the whole time, naturally came in first at the pitstop, Ida&Tania (the other Team Bolehland) came in last but it was NEL.

This is what I think about TARA 3 after watching 6 episodes. Unlike TARA 2, this season, the producer decided to cut cost by staying close to neighbouring countries in Asia; Thailand->Vietnam->Taiwan->HK. Tasks are getting relatively easy with each passing leg.... despite the "Toughest Race Ever" tag. Out of 6 legs thus far, only 2 (Legs 2 & 3) were exciting. Too many whiny teams. Too many quitters. Too much acting.

Memorable Quote of the Week - "Hot water, hot water" - Ida (Team Bolehland), running past the crowd after completing the task at Ladies Market.

Next country Teams race in - China (close to HK)

Next team to be eliminated - Geoff&Tisha (Team Pinoys)

Sensibility

Today at work, I found out some disturbing news about unfair treatment. Favoritism in the office is nothing new but when unfair treatment is being practised openly, it is just wrong. It sends a wrong message to other employees. It de-moralises the affected employees. So quick to judge, criticise and blacklist when one made mistakes but gives no credit when that person delivers. I feel bad for a couple of colleagues who are being unfairly judged. I know I won't like it if I am in their shoes. Don't do upon others what you don't like being done to you. It's all about karma.

Work aside.....

Was at the gym last evening and saw something which annoyed me for some time already....happened before. One lady, in the changing room, was on the bench texting and has no sense to see that the bench she was sitting on was pushed very close to the lockers. I somehow managed to slide my tiny frame in between the bench and available locker. Opened the locker door, put my bag in and was ready to go change when I noticed that the lady kept glancing behind as if afraid that I was peeking into her sms because of the close proximity. Talk about stupidity! She couldn't push the bench further away issit? I barely had enough room to turn anyway. Sensing her consciousness, I purposely stood behind her and took my own sweet time to slowly rummaged thru my bag....making her even more nervous...hahaha.

Ok, all evil aside, I had a more enjoyable time embracing the new Body Combat 37 in my 2nd attempt. Found out that the correct name for the Capoiera martial art in Track 6 is Esquiva, and not Skiva (which sounded like the lingerie brand...teehee). Esquiva, a form of Capoiera, is more on evasion than contact. Whatever it is, somehow to me, Capoiera is more of a dance form than martial art.

I like this new Combat release purely because there are lots of scissors and I love scissors purely because it's a reminder that my knees are fine.....touch wood! The next few classes will be more on refining the techniques.

I'm beat

Returned to pumping and combating today after skipping those classes for almost 2 weeks. I swear, my stamina and strength levels have dipped significantly of late. For the past 2 months, my attendance record at the gym has been quite pathetic really. For the kind of membership fee that I am currently paying, it certainly didn't look worth it.

I returned in time for the Les Mills new releases. I did not anticipate much changes in Body Pump 67 and I was right...although I must say the warm up track was a little weird, kinda messy. Squat Track has plenty of bottom halves. Tricep Track quite a killer especially with the kickback towards the end. It seemed to go on and on. Shoulder track, which I also failed miserably, was simply wicked. Plank crunch was something new introduced into this release for the Abdominals Track. It's gonna take me a while to adapt myself to my once a week Body Pump workout, instead of the usual 3 classes per week. It will definitely affect my weights selection and improvement.

The new Body Combat 37 has plenty of new movements, noticebly the Brazilian capoeira in Track 6, which I think is called "skiva", or something like that. Lots of squats and lunges. Not something that I was looking forward to, considering that, just an hour earlier, I was doing squats and lunges too, in Pump. Thighs were still burning from that. The Muay Thai track has 64 knees, on each side. Conditioning track started off with crunches, followed by wide and tricep push ups, something I was able to do relatively well, thanks to all those time spent doing Body Pump. Overall, this new release was not bad. Music wise, I'm not too crazy about it.

It was raining heavily when I was leaving the gym but I was able to rush home, shower and grab a bite to eat before leaving for my facials. I was looking forward to the shoulder massage, which I needed, especially after an exhausting afternoon. Unfortunately for me, the beautician did not do a good job, unlike the usual times. I left the facial centre with a throbbing headache, something which I had been experiencing intermittently on a daily basis for a week already.

Looking forward to an early rest tonite and hope for better health ahead.

Amazing Race Asia 3 - Early season prediction

Amazing Race Asia Season 3, otherwise known as TARA, started airing last month with much anticipation and is now into Episode 4. With 10 brand new teams, this season has been dubbed "The Toughest Race Ever". This makes me wonder....if Season 3 is the toughest race ever, does that make Season 4 and beyond cupcakes then?

As predicted, there are more models, actresses, beauty queens , TV personalities in TARA than the average Joes. For entertainment purposes, this isn't all that bad. It boosts ratings, no? Sure, we all want the "normal" people to win the race but let's face it, deep down in our hearts, we like the existence of these celebrities in this show, even though we bitched about it. Bear in mind, if you are not from this elite group, don't bother applying to be in this race. Really. Don't waste your time.

My top 3 this season - Henry & Bernie (Team M'sia), Sam & Vince (Team HK), Ida & Tania (Team M'sia). I think these 3 teams are very competitive, strategise well and don't bitch at each other. Key ingredients to winning.

Early season awards (drum roll please):

Most Likely to Win it all - Sam & Vince (Team Honkies).

Most Likely to Win the most legs - Henry & Bernie (Team Bolehland).

Most Dramatic - Niroo and Kapil (Team Capati), thank god they were eliminated in the last leg. How much more drama can we take?

Most Laidback - A.D. & Fuzzie (Team Kiasu)

Most Annoying - Ida & Tania (Team Bolehland), but hey, still one of my favorites.

Most Dumbest - Natalie (Team Tomyam). Sorry Natalie, you are alone in this one.

Most Misunderstood - Geoff & Tisha (Team Pinoys), I see nothing wrong with Geoff.

Most Untrustable - Oliver & Mai (Team Tomyam). Karma bites, dude.

Teams that have already been eliminated thru Episode 4:

Leg 1 - Neena & Amit (Team Capati) - dunno much about them.

Leg 2 - William & Isaac (Team Kimchi) - So much hopes for this duo.

Leg 3 - Natalie & Pailin (Team Tomyam) - Quitter. (singular)

Leg 4 - Niroo & Kapil (Team Capati) - Quitters.

For the last 3 legs, Team Bolehland Malaysia has been first at the pitstops so congrats...Malaysia Boleh! Woohoo! Tune in to Amazing Race Asia 3, which airs on AXN, Thursdays @ 9pm. For more details, log on to http://amazing-race-asia.axn-asia.com/index.php.