uGoGirlFriday

My sister was chosen to be the representative of her batch in an upcoming event for their institute in the university.
I went to her university to watch her compete. Her university is a two hour drive from our house, so I brought my brother along with me. As the match was about to begin our backs started hurting from the heavy bags we were carrying, so we used their gym’s ping pong tables and put our bags above it.

She just joined for giggles and to have fun with her friends, but apparently her opponent took the game too seriously. Her opponent was a varsity player and the sad part was she never even smiled during the whole game.

I feel bad for her, I don’t think she enjoys playing anymore. Everyone was silent while watching them play. Theirs were the only match that no one else dared to speak in.

I’m not saying it’s bad to be competitive, but if it’s that extreme I don’t really think it’s good for your health.

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I have always love sports and that love required me to take in as much protein as I can. The only problem is I cannot take too much meat either. Arrgh.

Then I found that I could buy protein powder to sustain my protein needs, and that’s not really that advisable to stick to just one brand. There might not be one best protein powder, but there are a lot of good choices!

When buying protein powder, there are four things to consider:

1. Cycling supplements – if your body gets used to the same set of supplements that might decrease the effect, thereby defeating the purpose.
2. Variety – you don’t want to drink the same protein powder all year!
3. Unique qualities – there are some brands that do offer unique benefits, and you don’t want to miss those.
4. Intolerance – there are times that when you stick to the same brand the whole time you develop allergies to other brands.

Make sure that you still check with your doctor about your dietary needs so that you know which protein powder you should buy.

Have fun!

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“Running is the new Badminton” – this is the slogan of an organization in my company. This organization is formed by a group of employees who do running as a sport. You’ll usually see this guys running around the park after work. Earlier, I had a chance to attend one of their pre-running meetings and I could say that I am really interested in joining.

There were some good facts I learned from the discussion. One is running burns faster that any other exercise you can think of. Running makes use of all your muscles, not only the legs. Maintaining balance while running makes use of neck, back, shoulder, ab, or basically every muscle group in the body. Best thing about it is, even if you stop for a day, the fat keeps on burning.

Another thing I’ve learned is that men’s running shorts , shirts and shoes are not that cheap. At first I thought this sport is basically free because you do not have to buy anything. However, I found out that if anyone plans to do running as a sport, they must be equipped with running attire – especially running shoes.

Anyhow, on Saturday I will attend a fund raising run. It is my first time so I’ll do a three kilometer run first.  If all goes well, I’ll do this running sport more often.

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I was never into sports before. Ever since I graduated college, the only part of my body that is regularly exercised is my fingers (not what you’re thinking). Developing software can be so addictive that you tend to forget how important it is to exercise. Because of this not so active lifestyle, my formerly slim sexy body blew up to a flabby fat pear shaped blob. Yeah maybe I’m just exaggerating but my belly did get fatter. This is why I took diet pills.
Diet pills however only slimmed me down however I still needed to tone my muscles to achieve that shapely body I have always dreamed of. Regular exercise will do this for you. Of course, what better way to exercise than to do it with friends?
My friends and I registered in another running event. This time, the event is a fund raising campaign to raise awareness in global warming. This is just my second time to join an event but I’m sure I learned much from my first one. Perhaps now I can do the 10 kilometer run which is much more challenging than the first. Try it out too! It’s really so much fun.

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Organized running events started becoming more and more popular these days. Just this month, the company sponsored three running events for different causes. At first I was skeptical with the idea of paying so much just to be able to register in the race. So what my colleague did was pay for my registration. Since it was free, I was happy to join.

There were three categories in the race. Three, ten, and twenty kilometers. I was registered in the three kilometer run. I started the run and quickly realized that it has been a long time since I ran this far. As expected I did not win the contest, but I sure enjoyed the run.

Running is probably the easiest way to burn all those fats. Even better, if you are under diet supplements, the weight loss will even be accelerated. Now when there are invites for running events, I do not hesitate on joining anymore. Running is a sure fun way to become slimmer and healthier.

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I recently noticed a group of teens running around and doing some stunts (sort of). Instead of the usual skaters jumping off their skateboard ramps, members jump, and even spin on and under railings and boxes while running towards their target place. One of them saw me staring at them and ran towards me. He gave me a pamphlet inviting me to their club. It’s a small organization doing running stunts – Parkour. I just laughed when the guy invited me to join; I told him that I wasn’t onto those kinds of sports, although I was fascinated with what they were doing.

Parkour, as explained by Nathan (one of the members) originated from the French. It is considered a form of martial arts which is focused on efficiently moving from one place to another. The methods consist of running through usual obstacles with speed and grace. Agility and balance is very important in this sport as well as dedication and discipline. It is similar to “free running” – an urban acrobatic sport.

Nathan said that we adults tend to forget that we started this running and jumping when we were still kids. This is supposed to be natural for us but since we stopped playing around, our bodies adjusted and got used to slow movement. What he said got me thinking, he has a point. However, because of my busy schedule (and my laziness), I just passed on the opportunity and just enjoyed watching.

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For football (a.k.a. soccer) fanatics, instead of admiring your football gods from one of those wholesale tvs, wouldn’t it be better if you get to see them from the stands and perhaps even get to shake hands with them in person?

I suggest planning a trip to Europe that includes these top three destinations in your itinerary: London, Manchester, and Liverpool. These are the three largest cities for soccer or football which also houses stadiums that are the home of a club or national team with a capacity of 40,000 or more (FYI, 40,000 is the minimum capacity required for a stadium to host FIFA World Cup finals matches). Some of which are Wembley Stadium in Wembley, London (90,000 capacity); Old Trafford (football) in Trafford, Greater Manchester (76,212 capacity); and Anfield Liverpool (45,362 capacity).

It doesn’t matter which hotel you’re staying in. Just make sure to avail of stadium tours from the popular big clubs so you can get a behind the scenes look at the players” changing rooms and the facilities.

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I’m the type of person who cannot handle being idle for a long time. I thrive on diversion – planned or not.

In my 24 years of existence, I have tried a lot of sports and enrolled in some of them. From Kung-fu, Aikido and Kendo, to swimming, basketball, table tennis, track and field, soft ball, and soccer. I”m also into music. I enrolled in two renowned guitar schools, and was taught how to play the drums and piano by my cousins and friends. In fact, I am a member of an all-girl band and my band mates are my sisters. We”re currently inactive as of the moment though.

Aside from those, I seize all opportunity to hop into a new resto, bar, town, or any other nook and cranny that I deem interesting.

Through this blog, I hope I”ll be able to share with you some of my experiences as I jump from one activity into another, in search for THE most appropriate and captivating RnR for me.

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Noted as the “Number One Ski Resort in North America” and the “Best Ski Resort in the World” by prominent ski magazines, Whistler, Canada offers everything that you could possibly want. From a charming alpine village, a fantastic scenery, to wonderful skiing on two magnificent side-by-side mountains (Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains), and great and reasonably-priced Whistler accommodation – that’s Whistler, British Columbia for you.

To cap it off, just this July, Vancouver-Whistler was selected as the host city for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Greatly enthused with all these, I checked some Whistler lodgings and settled with Hearthstone Lodge Penthouse. Based from reviews, with a prime location in the very middle of the Village and with a virtually postcard perfect view, this penthouse truly combines luxury and comfort. Why settle for less when you can have it all, and at a reasonable price at that?

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In 2005, I joined Manila Kendo Club with a mixture of curiosity, apprehension, and excitement. Kendo, a form of Japanese sword fighting, was recommended to me by one of my senseis in Aikido when I was in high school. And the fact that one of my favorite anime characters – Kenshin Himura- is skilled in the art of sword added more appeal to it. Well, there’s also the keiko scene in My Sassy Girl which made me want to have my own bogu (armor) set. I have always known that all forms of sport or activity, especially if it’s a martial art, will require a lot of dedication and patience to master it. But it was only when I joined Kendo that I learned how important patience is. One kendo-ka shared, “Kendo used to be based on actual killing techniques. It was based around the principle of trying to end the fight as quickly as possible. So if you sever the spine, cut off the head, or cut off the wrists, the fight”s over.”

  To be able to achieve this type of skill, you need to concentrate on physical development, etiquette, mental development, and alertness. Nevertheless, Kendo’s ultimate goal is this: ki-ken-tai-ichi (spirit, sword and body as one). Cutting or slicing with your sword, no matter how efficient you perform it, is mediocre unless you slice and cut with your spirit, sword, and body in harmony with each other. It will take time to attain this level. In fact, even some Kendo practitioners in dan level admit to occasional lapses in achieving this. And this, my friend, is where patience comes in.

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