Friday, 29 July 2011

Body Pump + P90X

Hi blogger!

To get you guys up to speed with my week, I've started a memership at Goodlife Gym to really get a boost in my workout routine. I've been doing their Body Pump classes which are hella fun =).

Basically, Body Pump is a weightlifting class that helps tone your muscles. It does all of the major weightlifting movements, like Squat, Bench, Rows, Dead, Bicep, Triceps... But it focuses on tons of reps (maybe hundreds) using light weights. The great thing is that there is a trainer leading the class, who not only corrects your form but really encourages you to keep giong and keep pushing yourself. We do each set to a music track, and we don't stop unless there's a pause/slowdown in the song (for a break), or until the song stops. So that's 5 minutes of nothing but pumping those weights, then switch tracks to target a different muscle group. And on and on for the whole hour!

Lastly, I started doing this, the P90X Ab Ripper X:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1464945638519938565

I know, I know... it's pretty intense isn't it? I want to have abs like the girls in that video! And I love how there are other vids there of people showing their results from the P90X sets... And I must say, some are quite impressive!
I'm doing the Body Combat class sometime this weekend, so i'll let you guys know how that goes...

Friday, 22 July 2011

Cultus Lake

Hey guys!
I can't quite sleep right now because I'm very excited for tomorrow - I'm going on a daytrip to Cultus Lake in BC, near Abbotsford. It's about an hour and a half drive from here. There's a huge waterpark there with tons of pants-shitting slides and rides!

And of course, I'll finally get my chance to do some tanning while I'm there. The weather has been so gloomy all this summer that I've pale as a vampire now. I just hope it's sunny tomorrow; pray for me guys! Seriously, every other city in Canada is having a massive heat wave. At the very least, they're seeing sun in the summer like they're supposed to!

Come on Mister Sun!

Wednesday, 20 July 2011

Katy Perry in Vancouver!

Hi all, still alive and kicking!

So Katy Perry was in town two nights ago, and fans FLOCKED to Rogers Arena to see her. I've been trying to call into the Beat (our local radio station) to win free tickets to the concert. Haha, not that I'm particularly fond of Katy Perry, but I do like a few of her songs. Not enough to make me want to buy the tickets outright... (Okay okay I'll say it, I'm just cheap. That's the student life for you!).


Here's a video of her in concert:

Funnily enough, I happen to know that Katy Perry doesn't have the strongest live singing voice. She sounds manly when she sings live. Not to belittle her talent or anything - she's still an amazing singer. It's not easy to hit those high notes! You'd have to find some of her older Live concert videos to hear what I'm talking about. No doubt she has come a long way since then, and has improved a lot!

Just thought it'd be neat to mention!

Sunday, 17 July 2011

Diet and weight training update

Hello boys and girls,
Thought I'd give you guys an update on my new fitness regimen. This week I'm still 120 pounds, same as last week when I started out.... I've been keeping very consistent in my calorie counting, and it actually looks like I've been negative calories for most of my days! I'm still not seeing results though =(.

Some major changes this week that I've made include:
1) Oatmeal for breakfast
2) Salad for lunch
3) Fruits, veggies, and nuts for snack (e.g. celery, carrots, grapefruit, almonds...)
4) Low carb and low fat diet
5) Visit the gym every day to do treadmill  (10 minutes) and weight training (30 minutes)
6) Eat 5 small meals a day

Frankly, I'm completely fine with the meal plan... I've been eating like a rabbit the whole week, and I honestly don't mind having raw lettuce daily (not even salad dressing!). Usually my protein comes from chicken/turkey breast on my salad. Sometimes I treat myself with a cucumber or tomato in it.

Desserts and junk food are *almost* out of the equation, but I've already made significant cuts to those as it is! Yes, yes, once or twice I gave in to the craving... But how's a girl supposed to live otherwise? Really though, I think the most difficult part of my regimen is the gym visits. Having only recently gotten off my fat ass, I'm not in the groove of running for extended periods...

Oh well, there's always next week though!

Friday, 15 July 2011

Harry Potter

Ahhhh it's Harry Potter mania!

I can hear the collective groan from all of you guys around the world... but I love the series! I can't believe it's ending though =(.

At around 4pm yesterday I walked into Oakridge, and people were already lined up for the midnight viewing. Not to buy tickets mind you, all of the tickets were pre-purchaesd; they were lining up to get a seat in the theatre. Isn't that just incredible? Like I mean, I'm a fan and all, but... an 8 hour wait? I think I'll watch it next week...

But yeah, apparently this movie was already at $25 million in sales (domestic alone... overseas is another $44 million) before it premiered. That makes it possibly one of the biggest midnight-grossers, beating out Twilight: Eclipse. In fact, I bet it already outranked some movies' total gross before it has even been released!

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/box-office-report-midnight-shows-211346

It's well on it's way to besting the $158 million in weekend openings held by the Dark Knight. Speaking of which, I can't wait for Dark Knight Rises!

I still remember when she was yeigh tall...

Wednesday, 13 July 2011

Mumbai bombing - 20 dead

Hi everyone,
Sorry I didn't have a chance to post last night, came home pretty late from a day trip and I was completely pooped from driving...

I just saw the news about (another) bombing in Mumbai:
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Mumbai+rocked+three+explosions+least+feared+dead/5095880/story.html
"It is another attack on the heart of India, another attack on Mumbai," said the chief minister of the state, Prithviraj Chavan, who hinted at possible foreign involvement by saying it was a "challenge to Indian sovereignty."

The Home Ministry said at least 20 people had been killed and 113 injured, many of them seriously.

Home Minister P. Chidambaram told reporters in New Delhi that it was "a coordinated attack by terrorists," adding that "the entire city of Mumbai has been put on high alert."
No group claimed responsibility for the attack, though suspicions initially fell on two Islamist groups that have targeted India in the past: the home-grown Indian Mujahideen and the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

3 bombs were set off within 15 minutes of each other at a middle class residential area, a wholesale gold market, and a building housing diamond traders and jewellery shops.

I can remember several bombings in India of recent history, including 2006 attack on suburban trains in Mumbai, the 2008 shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai, the 2010 restaurant bombing in Pune, and now this.

It is just insane to hear of all these terrors and people dying, when we often take our security so deeply for granted. My heart is with the families of the victims. Godbless.

Monday, 11 July 2011

Strippers protest liquor law in Regina, Sask

Quick update:

Saw this photo on the Vancouver Sun today:

From here http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Strippers+protest+Saskatchewan+liquor+downtown+Regina/5085504/story.html?cid=hot_photo

The story is that strippers were in a downtown Regina mall getting signatures for a petition to legalize stripping where alcohol is served. Now, as interesting as that story is, I wasn't too intrigued by it... But I saw the photo and couldn't stop laughing!

What I saw was this old, fat guy sitting around at the mall, when these smoking hot strippers come up to them asking for signatures... And he can't stop staring at her body! I don't even know why it was so funny to me, it isn't that funny really... I don't know, but men are such pigs =P.

Asking a Stranger for a Favour

Hello Blogasa,

So recently I came across this article that deals with How to Ask a Near Stranger for a Favour. It's really neat and definitely very useful in the business world. I thought I'd share with you all:
http://blogs.hbr.org/silverman/2009/08/how-to-ask-a-near-stranger-for.html

Now, there's definitely a good, an okay, and a bad way to ask someone for a favour (e.g. go out for coffee with you, introduce you to someone, do something for you, etc etc). The author here definitely brings some of those points to attention. Granted, I don't agree with all of his points - not everyone is looking for personal gain, for example - so do take some of these with a grain of salt.

Also check out some of the comments under the post, readers write back in and discuss the tips he writes about. They've definitely brought up most of the criticisms I had of the letter he wrote.

Now I turn the question to you guys: Which of the changes do you agree/disagree with? How would you write such a letter?

Sunday, 10 July 2011

Royal Bullshit!

Hey everyone,
Lately I've been getting pretty fed up of hearing the same thing over and over again - about the Royal Couple. A glance at the Vancouver Sun headlines tonight shows literally 80% of the links having something to do with Kate or Will:
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/index.html

Royal couple honeymoon, royal couple in Calgary stampede, royal couple in Hollywood, royal couple having sex in the back of a Canadian Air Force military jet... I'm sick and tired of it! Jesus, let this royal couple just be.

"Will and Kate star in polo match!" "Will and Kate in Los Angeles!" "Will and Kate vow to return to Canada!" Seriously, is our society today so devoid of newsworthy occurrences that we have to devote headline after headline to these absolutely platitudinous people?? Aren't there deaths by the thousands from an ongoing war in the Mid-East that could use this coverage?!

What good has this couple ever shown us beside an ostentatious display of self-pampering, unproductive vacationing, and superficial wealth? Granted, I do think Kate is extremely pretty, and the ornate attire she adorns is nothing short of astounding. Will, well... he's old and balding. But is this what we value nowadays? We fawn over the colour and style of her wedding dress, the height and make of her heels, and the freaking band and cup of her bra.

Meanwhile, on the split-second news headline stream, US is deferring millions in Pakistani Military Aid, South Sudan earns its independence, massive oil spill cover-up and scandal in China, Japan braces another earthquake... Bah, but who's counting right?

And so, my question is this:
What good has ever come of the Royal Couple?

Go ahead guys, prove me wrong.

Saturday, 9 July 2011

Celebrate Vancouver 125

Hey guys!
Just got home from the Vancouver 125 festival, a celebration of Vancouver's 125th anniversary. It's a neat gathering with tons of stuff to see and do, lasting only July 8, 9, and 10. I recommend you guys to check it out if you're in the area or visiting. It's in Stanley Park, but you best take either the free shuttle service that runs from Waterfront Station, or the #19 Stanley Park bus. So it's in a quiet, remote place but is very handily accessible.

You can check out the event schedule here:
http://www.celebratevancouver125.ca/2011/06/summer-live-in-stanley-park-event-schedule/

There's a bunch of onsite activities to do during the day, and by the sounds of it they're pretty fun (I didn't go during the day so I wouldn't know). Starting around 5:00pm, different bands start to play at the two outdoor stages. Tonight's performances I saw included Mother Mother (admittedly, don't know them that much) and Kyprios. If you stay that late though, remember to bring a blanket or lawn chairs to sit on, and perhaps a jacket/blanket to cozy up in - it gets pretty cold around 8:00pm!

There's only two days left of the festival, and I'll be there tomorrow afternoon so see ya all there!

Friday, 8 July 2011

2¢ Gas Tax

Hey all,
So today I read an article in the paper that really worked me up! You can read it here:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/07/06/bc-translink-gas-tax.html

Basically, the idiots who run this city think that it'd be such a great idea to tack on another 2 cents to pay for the Evergreen subway line from Coquitlam to Burnaby. I suppose the thinking was, "Hey since Vancouverites are already paying more for gas than any other city in North America... 2¢ won't make a difference!"

That's on top of the 15¢ that has already been priced in by TransLink. For the record, our prices are at about $1.30 per litre (about $4.90 per gallon). Yes, I can already hear you guys thinking, what the fuck?!

Alongside the HST, the bike lanes, and the fleet of other stupid decisions this government has made... I suppose it's not that outrageous is it? Thoughts are welcome!

Thursday, 7 July 2011

Calorie Counter

Quick update before I go sleep:
I've decided to keep track of my diet through the Calorie Counter from About.com. Just a quick overview of its functions, they have a comprehensive list of food items, albeit a bit lacking in restaurant menu items. If that does not suffice, you can always add in your custom food and its nutritional data according to the box.

Next, the site will fully calculate for you the approximate amount of calories or nutrients you need to achieve your goal (weight loss, gain, or maintenance). There are many other inputs as well, which is what makes this program so flexible. Under the settings area, you really get to define your current conditions and your goals to fit your own regimen. For example, it will incorporate your height/weight/age (standard), nightly sleep, starting and goal weight, target calories, body time, activity level.

On the point of activity level, it will also allow you to add different types of activity you do: Running, 6.0MPH, 35 minutes, for instance. All that will factor into your activity log, will calculates the number of calories you've burnt while also adding in the maintenance calories burnt as a function of time. Id est, by 1:00pm in the afternoon your burnt calories bar will be halfway, but by 9:00pm it'll be almost filled to indicate the amount of burning you did. This is what allows you to figure out whether you have a net calorie loss or gain!

Anyway, I recommend all of you check it out because it's so neat. Even if you're not on a diet or counting calories (which, as a side note, is extremely cumbersome!).

Tuesday, 5 July 2011

Back Online!

Hey guys,
After a month-and-a-half hiatus, I am finally back online! So sorry to all my dear readers for leaving you guys hanging. It got very hectic around here and I had a bunch of stuff I needed to take care of, so I thought I'd take part of the summer off to get it out of the way. Now that I'm back, an update is in order!

Deloitte Internship


This one was a ton of hard work, but I don't regret it one bit. Man, they really showed me the ropes at Deloitte, and I couldn't have asked for a better time. Everyone there at the office was incredibly welcoming and extremely willing to spend time with the interns. Over the 2 months I've gotten quite an eye opener on this field!

In all practicality though, I think this is a great career to be in - very laid back working environment, with a healthy dose of stress to keep me moving forward. I know a lot of people can't hear the word accounting with grimacing, but seriously? There is very little math involved! Most of the calculation is done by computer nowadays, so there might be a bit of data entry but that's about it for number crunching. Most of it is problem solving: How to work this out, What are the tax rules regarding that, How should we classify that on the books, What other ways can we book it more efficiently...

Anywho, not sure if there are many of you out there that are interested in this field, but if you are... Good on ya! I strongly suggest it.

Diet


That dreaded 4 letter word...

So recently I've put myself on a diet. Under all the stress lately I think I've been munching down a lot more and eating convenience [less healthy] foods. Therefore, I think I need to slim down again so I can fit my tights! But let's get it out there people, I'm not the best at dieting, and damn y'all should see my snack cupboard. Or more like snack storage silo. Seriously I could house a family of 6 in my snack cupboard - food and board.

And to get to the point, I was hoping someone could recommend me a good Protein Powder for women? I never thought I'd be taking this stuff, but I have heard that they help with the weight loss... I plan on eating 5-6 small meals a day and replacing a few of them with protein shakes. Also, it'd be great if someone could build me a meal plan...!

Thanks, love you guys and it's great to be back. Keep checking for more updates!