FINANCIAL FITNESS: Seven Nuggets of Wisdom

It was 2005 when I had the realization that I should take charge of my finances.
I was already working for quite some time, but didn't have any savings.

A friend of mine shared his favorite book, "The Richest Man in Babylon" and at the same time, my brother was trying to influence me into taking a look into my financial status.

Since then, I was able to get a grip on things, slowly paying off my personal credit card debts and invested in some Retail Treasury Bonds (RTB), Time Deposits (TD) and the some Blue Chips in the Stock Market.

Back then, I was challenged as a single mom, trying to get back on track.
Years after the realization, I was able to make the change and had my own share of learnings along the way. These are things one would read in books, but for sure, these had helped me out a lot.

Sharing the Seven Nuggets of Wisdom that had helped me out during those times.

1. It's all in the mind. 

Wealth is a mind game.

Image from the net

Unless your parents are already millionaires and tycoons, almost everyone starts from scratch, zero, nada.  A more specific case is that if one is deeply in debt, relying on credit cards to live and funds coming in is not enough, having allocation for savings is the least of your priorities.
If you could relate to this scenario, don't despair ~ I was in that exact situation 10 years ago.
Know that, as long as you have working income, you can convert that into passive income, IF YOU DECIDE. Be with positive, like-minded individuals. Develop a goal, device a plan and track your progress. What the mind can conceive, it can definitely achieve.

2. Develop the habit of saving. 

 Give yourself  10% no matter how small or big. It's the habit, not the cost.

Image from the net

 Be it Php 100 a month, Php 1,000 or even Php 10,000, it doesn't really matter as long as you start on in. Remember, Rome was not built in a day.

3. Learn to find beauty in simplicity.
Simplify your life. Turn of the television, do picnics with the kids, run in the park and have mini picnics. Your kids will thank you more for it. Time spent with family is what makes childhood memories more special and memorable.
Do bike commutes,get on you bike and reduce your carbon footprint. Enjoy every moment of movement and the zen feeling of just breezing through traffic with just you and your bike.

4. Manage your wealth. 
Being stewards of wealth, we are gauged by how we manage what we have.
If we know how to manage the small stuff, we can then be trusted with the bigger stuff.

Image from net

Know how to minimize your extra expenses and determine the thin line between wants and needs. If you must, buy more assets that liabilities. Being a good money manager is the sure fire way to financial freedom

5. Make your money grow. 
It is not how much you earn but what you do with the money coming in.
Learn about your options with different investment vehicles: business, stocks, real estate, time deposits, etc. Expand your knowledge base and take calculated risks.

Image from net

Be open to opportunities for your money to grow - broaden your network and meet new people.
Who knows, your next business deal would probably come from that person you met in the gym!

6. Know there is joy in giving.
You might not feel that there is anything to give, but, looking at nugget #1, If you keep on telling yourself you have nothing, then your physical reality would prove your right.
As stewards, it is our duty also to share what we have.

Let us all learn from the majestic tress. They give that they may live.
When you prune a branch or pick a fruit, nature makes sure that it grows back after a time. The law of nature shows that the more you give, the more you grow.

7. Have fun in our way to financial freedom.

These simple things surprisingly makes a big difference to help you reach your financial fitness goals. Try it out and share what your nuggets of wisdom are!

Motivation 101

There are days when you feel like you just want to do anything.. at. all.
During those times, motivational quotes really help out a lot.

Sharing with you quotes that I love reading.

*  70% of ALL PEOPLE who start a FITNESS PLAN QUIT.
    EXCEPT YOU. NOT THIS TIME

* Go do something that makes you SWEAT.

* TRY HARD EVERYDAY.

* I train because I want to defeat the me who couldn't do it yesterday so I can be better today.

Image from the net

.* Your body can do ANYTHING.... you just have to convince your MIND.

* A workout is a personal triumph over laziness & procastination.

* When you're struggling, REMEMBER THE OUTFITS YOU WILL WEAR.

* WORKOUT AS IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDED ON IT. Because it does!

* BEAST is someone who gets up even if they can't.

* This is not what Barbie looks like.     This is not what Fashion Models look like.
   This is what FIT looks like.  This is what being HEALTH looks like.    This is sexy.

* When in doubt, WORKOUT!

How about you? What are your favorite motivational quotes?

Urban Legends: Fitness Myths Vs Facts

In the fitness world, there are lots of urban legends you’d hear in the gym locker room.

Statements like, “I don’t want to eat sinigang or sisig because ingesting pork fat will make me fat!” or “I stay away from those heavy weights because I don’t want to look like a She-Hulk”

Image from the net

An urban legend, urban myth, urban tale, or contemporary legend, is a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true. As with all folklore and mythology, the designation suggests nothing about the story’s veracity, but merely that it is in circulation, exhibits variation over time, and carries some significance that motivates the community in preserving and propagating it.

- Wikipedia

As we embrace the fitness lifestyle, it is our responsibility to question these statements and find out for ourselves if these are categorized as what we all know as “fitness” urban legends.

Below are some of the Fact vs Myth statement that I stumbled upon and would like to share with you.

Please feel free to add some more.

—————————

Myth: High – carbohydrate, low fat diets works best.
Fact: People are becoming fat from carb overdose.

Myth: If you exercise, it doesn’t matter what you eat.
Fact: If you exercise, it matters even more what you eat!

Myth: Eating right means three big meals a day.
Fact: Eating  nutritious balanced meals with the proper portion is the way to go.

Myth: Weight training is only for young athletes.
Fact: People of all ages should do weight training.

Myth: Muscle grow while you’re working out
Fact: Muscle grow while you’re resting and recuperating, AFTER a good workout.

Myth: A certain number of sets and reps gets the job done.
Fact: High-intensity efforts produces the best results.

Myth: Aerobic is better for shaping up than weight training.
Fact: To transform your physique, you must train with weights.

Myth: If women lift weights, they’ll get “bulky”.
Fact: Resistance exercise helps women create lean, toned bodies.

Image from the net

Myth: You need to drink water only when you are thirsty.
Fact: Your body needs more water than it’s telling you.

Myth: Pinays are weak and dependent
Fact: Pinays are Positive Independent Natural Adaptable andYouthful!

So, now that all the myths and urban legends are debunked, care to share what have YOU heard through the grapevine?

How to Workout During the Rainy Season

So you want to work out but its raining really hard outside.

Running is not an option and going to the gym is too much hassle because of the heavy traffic.

From the net

That’s fine.  However, that's no excuse for you not to work out.

The good news is that you can burn that extra jiggly fat, start being lean, and have a great workout with just using your existing furniture at home and your body weight!

How?  Let me introduce you to Body Weight Circuit Training.

Completing one exercise right after the other without stopping a set  is what’s known as “circuit training”.  This builds both lean body weight and give you a great cardio workout.

So why does it work, you ask me?

In these exercises multiple muscle groups are used to complete the movement. These challenging movements get your heart rate pumping and in effect helps with the caloric burn that we all want.  With this in mind, studies showed that Circuit Training burns more calories than interval training — which actually burns MORE calories than steady cardio.

Efficient use of time is important for me and spending hours of running on a treadmill is not how I envision my time spent.  Here is a sample basic  workout that can be completed at home, in the park, or even in your office during lunch break.  

In a circuit routine, you’ll do each exercise in sequence without breaks in between as much as possible. 

Once done, you do it all over again.  If you can still do a set after the 2nd set,  try one more for third.

Note that it’s better to stop and take a break than to do an exercise incorrectly.  If you can’t do all three set of circuits without stopping, then you have yourself a goal.

As in any physical activity, WARM UP before starting.  Elevate your heart rate by running in place, jump rope, or jog up and down your stairs.  After the warm up,  start the circuit by doing the following movements:

Air Squats. 

Livestrong.com defines Air Squat as “an effective exercise for both the beginner and the advanced athlete. It uses just your body weight to tone and strengthen the muscles of your buttocks–gluteus minimus and maximus–and your thigh muscles, the hamstrings and quadriceps. Air squats also increase flexibility in the hamstrings and glutes. This exercise is great for women as it targets the problem areas of the butt and thighs. It’s also effective for people on the go who might not have access to a gym or weight-training equipment.”

Yes, you read it right! It’s GREAT for women as it targets butt and thighs.

Try to do 10- 15  repetition per circuit.

Here’s another great move for you.

Why NOT Being Successful IS Selfish

Hello readers!

It's been more a year of not updating my site as I've been busy with various events and fitness activities offline. Going through various phases, it's interesting how one still gravitates to one's passion as working on one's passion is a surefire way of finding success.

SUCCESS. A concept that most people want to achieve in their lives -- It's interesting how I've been reading articles about how you need to be selfish in order to be successful and every time I finish reading, it always makes me wonder if that's the only way to do things. "To be successful, you have to be selfish, or else you never achieve" -- Apologies to His Airness MJ but those words saddens me a lot.

Image from the net.

Imagine the surprise I had when I heard Ray Higdon say (paraphrasing it a bit)  "Most people think success is selfish -- but the thing is, it's selfish NOT to have Success".

Wow.

And he went on further saying...