Weighty Issues Part 1

OMG, guys ! I went through some trials and errors in my quest to lose weight. Everyone has their very own techniques to lose weight and build muscles. The hardest thing is finding the right techniques which suits YOU and ONLY you. I'm still trying to correct and undo the mistakes I've made. I'm not sure whether I'm the right person to give out tips.

The biggest mistake I've made is focusing too much on cardio, thus forgetting the most important requirement of all, building muscles. A proportionate body usually has just the right amount of lean muscles and a low percentage of body fat. As a result, I'm not as toned as I wanna be but I am slimmer than I've ever been in my life. I also made mistakes in terms of proper nutrition as I could not afford stuff like protein powders. I just go and eat what I thought to be a good post-workout meal like scrambled eggs with salads, a sandwich and such. In fact, I found out there is this correlation between the amount of carbs and protein you should eat BEFORE and AFTER your workout. As for my eating habits, I make a conscious effort to determine what's healthier and what's not. I won't deny myself that ice cream or a piece of sinfully delicious chocolate cake. If I ate one, then the next day, I would eat clean by eating more veggies and fruits. It's all about balance. One thing that works for ME is reducing the amount of simple carbs I take. I don't eat white rice on a regular basis anymore, considering all malay food is eaten with rice, it can be hard. ;p Instead, I choose to eat more complex carbs like brown rice, oats, whole wheat bread, veggies, fruits which will help me feel full longer.

My workout was divided in two parts. It's in the past tense because it has been four to five months since I last go to the gym as my study load is getting heavier by the day. I just found myself too tired to go to the gym. Now, I just walk and take the stairs whenever I could. At home, I do light exercises like push-ups. I used to work my upper, lower body and abs exercises on separate days, three times a week. I finished it off with a 30-min cardio.

I hope that helps. By giving you an insight to my weight lose campaign, you should know that it is all about figuring out what WORKS FOR YOU. I can honestly say this though. I may look good in clothes. But I still need a bit of work if I wanna look good naked. How's that for an honest confession. LOL !!

"I look so good naked, don't I ?!!" ;p
Courtesy of Male and Beautiful

Weighty Issues

"Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society."
Mark Twain

Went to One Utama with my parents during the weekend. It has become a weekly thing for us. We had lunch, went to Lecka Lecka or Baskin Robbins for low-fat desserts and sometimes, bought home some melt-in-your-mouth-with-calories-so-high-you'll-get-a-heart-attack cake slices from Secret Recipe. After that, a leisurely walk around the mall is warranted to burn off those damn calories.

To my suprise, there's a sale happening at Jaya Jusco. As far as I know, there isn't any cause for a sale at this point in time. Chinese New Year had just passed. *slaps forehead* What am I saying here ?? There is no need for a cause or a reason to have a sale, right ?! Although, in conjunction with major festivals in Malaysia like Hari Raya, Chinese New Year and Christmas, a sale is definitely called for. Otherwise, we would have to wait for the Malaysia Mega Sale Carnival to shop till we drop.

Seeing all the clothes on display especially the branded ones made me think back to the time when I was overweight. I was at my biggest when I weighed nearly 90kg with a waist measurement of 38 inches. I think about five years ago, the clothes size were bigger than they are now. It's ironic considering nowadays, the percentage of obesity among children is much higher. In my case, the physical state I was in is not that bad. I mean, I was not overly obese. But, my self-esteem was really low due to my affected body image. I was lucky I didn't reach the 100kg mark. I shudder to think how it would have been if my weight was over that mark. Finding clothes that suits me can be described as looking for a needle in a haystack. I know the description is a bit much but yeah, that's because I was choosy, I still am when it comes to clothes. I could only wear dark colours then. Black and dark blue were my favourite colours. I was holding to the mantra that dark colours will look slimming. The kind of clothes I would wear was long or short sleeves shirts with khaki pants, also in dark colours. I could never in a million years wear jeans because I thought it would accentuate my chunky thighs and my big bum. It always frustrates me when it's time for me to go clothes-shopping. I know I will never find suitable clothes in a normal shop as they were several sizes too small. The only shops that have my size are Reject Shop and Factory Outlet Store (F.O.S). These two shops have served me well. Almost all of my "fat clothes" are bought there. Because of that, I was envious of people who can wear whatever clothes they want and look good in them. Branded clothes were something I could never imagined wearing. Particularly for the reason, they are not made for and do not cater to people of a bigger physique. I'm being politically correct here.

What I'm trying to say here is when you're overweight, you feel left out not only in the physical sense but spiritually and mentally as well. It becomes harder for you to socialize because most people choose to see your outer-self. They would never take the time to get know you personally. I've come accross overweight people and managed to get to know some of them whose self-confidence are as big as themselves. They are not the kind of people who would let their size become a hindrance for them to enjoy their lives. However, I was not able to do that. I also had my fair share of being called bad names, not to mention being the target of fat jokes. Then, one day, I told myself I've had enough and thus began my quest to lose weight. My biggest motivation to lose the extra weight was that someday I want to fit into those cool and trendy clothes. It's not a strong enough reason, but that's exactly what kept me going. You know how people would say losing weight is easier than keeping it off ??! It's f***ing true. What drives me these days is to be healthy AND to look good (I won't deny it) and I'm doing that by making healthy lifestyle changes to prevent me from gaining back all those weight I lost. Now, I'm happy to say I can get myself into those clothes. Although, I'm still not satisfied with how my body looks. Who's satisfied, anyway, right ??! With that said, I'm glad I was able to get where I am now. Personally, my self-esteem is getting better, I'm trying to be more outgoing and socially active, no more hassle when clothes-shopping, I could try any style of clothes I want and figure out what suit my slimmer body best and I can do all that in style.

Layering your clothes is SO in now. I think it looks hot. I don't think my still-chunky thighs can fit into those skinny jeans. Damn ! The jackets are cool too but it wouldn't be appropriate considering our tropical weather. Plus (a BIG plus), the guy's cute. ;p
Courtesy of Manchic.
Now, if I can just find those mean people who used to tease me back when I was overweight. *flipping the address book*

Eat your hearts out, suckers !!! LOL !

Out of My Mind

After nearly two-month long break- semester break, Hari Raya Haji, Chinese New Year and some other holidays, all rolled into one - I managed to drag my cute ass down to college to register for the new semester. ;p The first class just started today. My brain has turned into mush. It has become so easy for my mind to wander off instead of concentrating on what the lecturers are teaching. Even with the new semester, I felt like I'm going through the same things all over again.

The same lecturers, the same cliques, the geeks (that's me !) sat in front of the class while the talkative ones sat at the back, the same venue where my classes are conducted, the whole thing. Sometimes, the cliques are even divided by race, malays with malays, chinese with chinese, you get the picture. Mind you, I'm not like that. I simply can't comprehend why some people would do that. For me, hanging out, studying or sitting together in a class with racially mixed people gives me the chance to improve my verbal skills. This is true when you have to speak in English. I guess, the most simple reason why they would want to seat with people of the same race is they want speak in their mother tongue. Another thing is, even though, there are empty seats in the front, they still choose to sit at the back. I mean, it's understandable that you would feel a bit hesitant because you wouldn't want the lecturer to direct his/her questions at you. But, come on ! It's so lame. If you don't know the answer, just tell the lecturer, you don't know. It's as simple as that. Even if you answered wrongly, it's okay because you tried. I would be a hypocrite if I said I've never done it before. At times, I would sit at the back when the lecturer just didn't do it for me in terms of teaching style. I have met some lecturers who have this innate ability to induce sleep on students. Teaching and speaking in only one tone of voice. Can you believe it ?! It is especially trying if you have a class after lunch where you have to go into study mode on a full tummy. Hehe ! What irked me the most, however, is lecturers who don't have an "above average" English competency. To teach, shouldn't you have an impeccable English ?! I don't mind lecturers who speak in Manglish. Please, we are Malaysian. We can make everything Malaysian. Hehe ! There's bound to be an occasional "lah" at the end of a sentence. In a way, lecturers can influence their students. How awful it would be if a lecturer can't even spell correctly. There's this one lecturer who has perfect English. When he speaks or while he's teaching, I found myself instantly perked up (right after with the "lecturer who induces sleep" class) and pay attention to what he's saying/teaching. See what perfect English can do for you. LOL !

This semester has one redeeming quality though, there are no techical subjects like programming. Hooray ! As I've told you before, I'm really not cut out to be a programmer. Almost all subjects for this semester will be theory-based. Naturally, with this kind of subjects, the assignments will be doing a couple of written reports which I like. Weird, huh ?!! However, as much as I'm happy about the lack of programming for this semester, I can't totally brush off programming. This is an IT degree after all. I have a final year project to think of, a compulsory requirement to get my degree. For this final-year project, I have to create a program/software which is my own. How tough is that ??! I got an idea on what to do as it was a suggestion given by my lecturer. She told me if I did well, I might get an A. I wish ! ;p

It's gonna take a while before I got into the hang of things.

Love is All Around

I spent the Valentine's Day hanging out with my friends at One Utama. We arrived there at 6pm after having a light meal at Ikano. Both of them are not from around here and I think they have girlfriends back home. So, we just took to the mall, checking out stuffs. Then, it dawned on me that the mall will be swamped with couples. I was right. There they were, holding hands, girls with a bouquet of flowers on their hands or a red/pink heart-shaped balloon tied to cute little soft toy in the form of a teddy bear, leisurely walking around with their other half. Boy, they did come out in droves. They were everywhere. Everywhere I turned, they there are, speaking sweet-nothings to each other and smiled their happy smiles. It seemed they were just contend to walk around the mall window shopping. Other couples were queueing up, making a line, waiting to be seated into the restaurants of their choice with the desire to have a romantic dinner. I told my friends to be prepared to see so many lovey-dovey couples at the mall and they too were surprised by the sudden influx of them. I couldn't help but feel a bit out of place.

Three guys "lepaking" around the mall, dateless during V-Day ?!! Well, it's only me whose dateless and single and lonely and enormously shy........got carried away there. I think we made quite a threesome. Walking the grounds of the mall like it' s ours. Anyway, my friends can't do anything since distance is separating them and their girlfriends. I get the feeling their girlfriends are not the kind of girls who like to make a big deal about V-Day where they're expected to be wine and dine like queens, lavished with gifts and flowers. But, I'm sure my friends have something up their sleeves though I don't know what they're gonna do.

To all those who have found their other half, good for ya. And those who don't, don't despair, LOVE may just be around the corner. *crosses fingers* So corny ! ;-p

Love the jawline and those sexy lips.
Courtesy of BoyBox

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone !!!

Blogger Exposed

Having broadband can certainly make surfing the Internet more enjoyable AND easier. If you absolutely love downloading MP3s (I'm a MP3 whore ;-p), movies or to put it bluntly P-O-R-N, there's nothing better than having a broadband connection for its fast speed. I heard if you have some extra moolah, then you should invest in a cable connection which has higher downloading and uploading speed compared to broadband. Ermm, do we have cable connection in Malaysia ? *scratches head*

Of course, I have properly acquainted myself to Mr. Broadband. We have spent countless sleepless nights together doing the unmentionables. Hehe ! Had it not been for Mr. Broadband, I will never have the chance to satisfy my cravings for American TV shows. Hence, the address of my blog. Which beg the question, is there a ManTV or GuyTV out there in the blogging world ?? Oh man, I think that's the lamest joke I had come up with.

A blogger friend of mine has just got his broadband. Congrats to you, Kitjar. He, who in a way, resembles me, physically (from being overweight to our now slimmed-down selfs) and emotionally (our attraction toward the same sex). Though, we definitely don't have the same interests, right ?!!! Being the good friend that I'm trying to be, I offered my assistance to help him in getting acquainted with Mr. Broadband. Particularly, on how to download "stuffs". After a couple of email exchanges, I'm glad to report he managed to download one. Yup, you read right. One. Fret not, it'll take time, before long he'll be able to start a collection. ;-p

This evening, I got to put a face and a voice to Kitjar. We chatted via Yahoo Messenger and exchange pics of ourselves. Then, on his insistence, we spoke on the phone for quite a bit. I can't believed how nervous I was. As with most Malays, my verbal skills still left a lot to be desired. Furthermore, I've not had the opportunity to study overseas to be able to speak flawlessly. It would be nice to sound like you've been overseas, I think. How the words flow out of you like water. Mind you, not the pretend, posh kind. But, the one resulted with you being overseas for long periods of time by immersing yourself in their foreign culture. I'm excited at the prospect of wondering whether my sister will have the lilting Irish accent. Haha ! Fortunately, I am better at expressing my thoughts in writing. Thinking back, I laughed at myself for speaking or rather stuttering really bad broken English. He sounded nice. Judging by his pic, I thought he looks great, but he still feels he's FAT. Then, he hollered back at me, "Gile ke, u ni ?!!". ROTFL !! No, you're not FAT, Kitjar. He was quite surprised to know that he's the first PLU person I got to know ON the basis of being a friend. I'm diminishing all the previous guys I've met before to oblivion because they're totally not worth it. They have only one thing on their minds. I'm sure you know what it is. I felt used. Cliched as it is, there's more than just sex.

I'm happy to have the chance to get to know you as a friend, Kitjar. We'll definitely have that drink at the mamak stall when the time comes. I wanna say this one more time, YOU ARE NOT FAT, Kitjar !! Gile ke, u ni. Hehe !

Musical Journey

*warning* Long post ! I'm not sure whether I can do this again soon. It took so much of me, since my command of English is just average. ;-p

Watching the 20th Anugerah Juara Lagu 2006 last night made me look back at what kind of music I used to listen to. I've never been much of a supporter to our local music industry. But I do keep myself aware of what's goin on. I used to be into our local artistes and buy their albums. If I can recall, the first album I bought was Ning Baizura's debut album. Back then, she was the "IT" girl. She, the girl with BIG voice. This was in the early 1990s. From then on, I bought albums from the likes of Amy Mastura, Ella, and Feminin, the first local all-girl vocal group. *hides away, embarassed*

D'Angelo performed nude in his video, "Untitled (How Does It Feel)". Damn, what a fine man he is !
Courtesy of mostbeautifulman

See the trend there ?? All female artistes. Does that make me gay or what ?!! There never was any male local artistes I like at the time. Basically, I was totally closed off from the foreign music scenes. I can just imagined it. Lil' ol me, singing along to Ning Baizura. Hehe ! At present, I'm proud to admit they are male artiste which I found to be totally cool. Artistes like Maxwell, Eric Benet, D'Angelo, The Killers, Franz Ferdinand, Coldplay are some of them. I was exposed to the foreign music scene soon after that. Buying new albums to whet my thirst for music was a rare occasion. I used to wait for Hari Raya and get my green packets to buy them. Or sometimes, ask from my parents to give me a treat. If not, I would save up my allowance money. What else can you do when you're 13, 14 years old ?! Believe me, when I say, I went on a shopping frenzy. Buying two or three albums at one go. My first non-local album I bought was of Celine Dion's. I know, I know. *cringe*. My young brain was saying to me, she is amazing. The way she hits all the high notes. You know, you can trust her to give it all she's got. The power, the emotion, who can't deny that ?! She is one of the best-selling female artiste of all time. Celine Dion is definitely an acquired taste. Either you love her or you don't. I moved on to other DIVAs in the foreign music industry, of course. Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and such. Naturally, my journey through the many genre of music started at pop. Slowly, I begun experimenting with other genres. Jazz, rock, classical, new age, dance, alternative, RnB (my favourite) and the many branches of it like neo-soul, motown etc. The genre I never got into is rap. I can't seem to grasp the hip-hop culture. The music is certainly catchy. That alone is not enough to warrant me with a repeat listen.

The next phase I went through was Bollywood. All those Hindi songs from musicals, Bollywood has become known for. With Bollywood musicals, you get beautiful imageries and sceneries to go along with the music. Not to mention, the melodrama, the heartache and the dance sequences. As cheesy and tacky as it is, Bollywood musicals represents the fantasy that sometimes all we wanna do is to just break into songs. Wouldn't it be great ?? LOL !

Then, I got hooked on music from Japanese/Korean artistes. As I don't understand a single word of the songs, I took in the varied musical stylings in their songs. I was curious to see they are so many pretty looking male artistes from Japan/Korea. Their perception of male beauty is definitely different than ours or even our western counterparts. This is not the reason I got hooked on their music though. ;-p

Nowadays, most of all, I listen to music I won't get bored later. Many mainstream music depend on the appeal that probably last until the artistes get to the top of the charts. I do not deny listening to them. It's just that I need something more. That's why I started listening to artistes that don't usually get much airtime on our local radio stations. I've read so many gay-themed blogs to know how music played a big part in their lives. So, it made me wonder, can your musical preferences becomes a way of telling whether you're gay or straight ??

My take on Juara Lagu 2006

Just watched the LIVE telecast of the 20th Anugerah Juara Lagu 2006 (20th Songs Award 2006), a competition for the songwriters, composers and lyricists, for the uninitiated. It made me looked back at how my taste in music has evolved. The theme for the award show this year is "Evolusi Muzik Berterusan" which means the evolution of music never ends. How fitting ! This year's nominees is a mixed bag of old and new artistes. They will compete for the prize money of RM 20,000 and the title of Juara Lagu 2006 (something like song of the year award). I was rooting for Jaclyn Victor actually, our first Malaysian Idol winner. As expected, she turned in one of the best performances. Although, I hate to admit it, Mawi did give a commendable performance. I could see why the whole of Malaysia would go crazy for him. I'm not one of them, however. Here are the list of winners:

Category Ballad: Gemilang, Jaclyn Victor
Category Pop Rock: Kata, Hazami
Category Ethnic : Aduh Saliha, Mawi
Best Performance: Aduh Saliha, Mawi
Best Vocal: Kata, Hazami
Song of the Year: Gemilang, Jaclyn Victor

I was really surprised when Hazami was announced the winner of best vocal for the night. He performed with a choir and a number of back-up singers. It was redundant to say the least. I thought Jaclyn Victor was a shoo-in for the award. Literally, she blew me away with her powerful vocals. Guess, that was not what the judges are looking for. Mawi, on the other hand, was expected to win best performance award due to the sms votes sent in by his MASSIVE fan base. He did. I have to say I was quite disappointed with Ning Baizura's performance. Her performance was bare with no back-up dancers or gimmicks whatsoever. I think she wanted the audience to pay attention the song and not be distracted. Although, I felt she was trying too hard. Usually, she's very capable of singing live but somehow she came up short tonight. Adam's Tak Tahu performance was just plain boring. I don't see why there's a need for another copy of Yusry KRU. Overall, I enjoyed the show. The rapport and the clever, witty jokes between the hosts left me in stitches. Cheryl Samad is so CUTE.

Let Loose

I have been looking high and low for a computer table in the past few weeks. I didn't know finding one was that hard. Whew ! I have looked at all kinds of models but none of them tickle my fancy. Well, I am willing to admit that I can be very fussy sometimes. Me, shopping for clothes ?! That's a WHOLE other story, if you get what I mean. ;-p.

Finally found one that can hold my computer and all the peripherals I have. Not to mention, a table that accomodate the setup I had in mind. Man, the time it took me to put together the table was ridiculous. I spent nearly three hours. Then, another one hour just to move and arrange my computer to the new table the way I like it. This DIY stuffs can really test one's patience. All the while I was building it, my dad kept interrupting me with questions every five minutes like "Are you sure that's correct ?" or "Did you tighten the screws ?", watching over me like I didn't know what I was doing. After what seems like eternity, I told my dad in a gentle way but sarcastically, "Why don't you come and help me instead of telling me what I'm doing wrong ?!". Of course, he shut up and helped me. Still, I ended up doing most of the work. My dad is not like other "normal" dads who like to do stuff around the house. He prefers to delve into the spiritual mumbo jumbo, our inner self, our subconscious, that kinda thing and reads a lot about it. He talks a lot about it too which I don't comprehend AT ALL. I guess, everyone has their own eccentricities.

My, my ! What a big "tool" you have ?! ;-p
Courtesy of Boybox

I know a man who's quite handy with tools is a possible trait everyone deems to be attractive, to say the least. I totally agree with that notion. I always thought I'm quite handy myself. *smirk*. In fact, I'm the go-to guy in the family when there's something needs to be assembled or re-assembled. Besides, I'm the only (and the eldest) son in the family. Who else are they gonna ask to do stuff around the house ?! My dad ? LOL ! Only God knows what would happened if my parents finds out their only son fancies cute guys. Surely, I'm expected to do the heavy lifting, wash the family car, being the chauffeur and so much more. Being the only son is DAMN hard. You have this insane expectations placed upon you. I don't know whether I can fulfill them. Furthermore, I'm not the smart one in the family. My sister is. Isn't it ironic how the younger siblings are almost always the smart one ???! My sister is doing well overseas, studying to be a doctor. Knowing my sister all too well, she deserved it. You wouldn't believe how meticulous she is when she is studying for exams.

Isn't it bad to be jealous of my sister ? I mean, she has a great future ahead of her. What do I have ? Studying IT, only to realized I sucked at it. At the moment, I barely got by and I don't know what the future holds for me. I didn't put much thought when I chose to study IT. I totally regret that decision. "Life is like a box of chocolate, you'll never know what you gonna get". Like the saying goes, all I can do is prepare myself. It will be up to me to make do with what I've been given, regardless of what happened in the past. It definitely gonna be one hell of a ride. Can I make it ???

p/s: This whole post is obviously me trying to release some pent-up emotions. Don't mind me !! Hehe !