From spinning, delicious healthy treats to bodyweight routines, here are some fitness ideas to kick-off your year in fitness
Cover From spinning, delicious healthy treats to bodyweight routines, here are some fitness ideas to kick-off your year in fitness

Should ‘fitness’ rank high on your personal goals this year, we got your back with inspiring videos of workouts, delicious recipes and wellness tips.

Admit it: tracking your daily Fitbit quota of 10,000 steps can get a little underwhelming if it’s constrained to pacing about aimlessly. While we’re riding the high of a brand-new year, consider a new route to your fitness goals by taking up a new workout or dressing up your healthy eats. For the past year, we’ve followed some of the city’s trendiest wellness influencers in a Fitness Kickstart video series. Scroll on for workouts, delicious recipes and health tips that make it impossible to fall off the fitness bandwagon.  

1. Jason Choong’s Bodyweight Workouts

If you’re guilty of abusing ‘busy’ as your trump card, Jason Choong of Flyproject has just the remedy with this full body workout. His fitness routine revolves around Flyproject, Flycycle and the new Flyclimb, and on those days he hits the road running, he swears by hotel workouts that take 10 minutes at the minimum. Get his full nifty workout here.

2. Dr Andrea Lim’s Postpartum routine

It goes without saying that Dr Andrea Lim is the original #fitnessgoals. To illustrate this point, 12 days after delivering her firstborn, Isabelle Zara, the nature lover hiked up Penang Hill and in a couple of months, conquered Mt Fuji. The Peak Fitness founder recommends a body-part specific workout for new mums as seen in her story here.

3. Recipe: Elyn Pow’s Pastel Chia Pudding

The thought of ‘healthy eats’ brings to mind boring, tasteless food, but not at Rawsome, the yoga/fitness jaunt that introduced chia pudding to the masses. A juice-cleanse catastrophe led Rawsome’s founder Elyn Pow to develop a range of pretty and nourishing chia seed puddings that taste more like dessert than ‘diet food’. Learn how to make a creamy and fruity mango beetroot chia pudding here, that's loved by Rawsome’s regulars.

4. Faiz Ariffin’s: Fit While Fasting

The debate on exercising while fasting sees no end in sight, but national bodybuilder, Faiz Ariffin, has a handy guide to training efficiently in the month of Ramadan. It can be more beneficial than you think, if you know when and how to train, as explained by the athlete in this story. The trick is to stick to a proper fitness plan and opting for a high-energy meal plan, we found out.

5. Train Like A Powerman: Datin Wira Sabrena Dani

When Datin Wira Sabrena Dani hit 30, she resolved to achieve her fittest self, and since then, she’s been on a roll. Sculpting a super-toned physique has given her the strength and energy to raise her young daughter, take up a spinning instructor training, and even train for the Powerman Asia Duathon Championships 2018. She’s a regular on the CrossFit circuit, which undoubtedly, gave her a boost in the competition. Get Datin Wira Sabrena's Powerman training routine here.

6. Dynamic Pilates With Che Puan Sarimah Ibrahim

Being in the public eye, one is expected to look good and vibrate with energy all day long. As a veteran in showbiz, Che Puan Sarimah Ibrahim maintains herself with a solid athletic Pilates routine. She opts for reformer exercises to balance out the vigours of her other passions; boxing and gym. She revealed to us the core-centric workout that helped strengthen and correct her posture while on the job.

7. Shooting Hoops With National Basketballers

When in doubt, you can count on a good old game of basketball in your fitness pursuits. National basketball players, Ivan Yeo and Kuek Tian Yuan, are living examples of how this sport has turned into a profession and kept them in top-notch shape. In this high energy video and interview, the duo showcase their signature moves that will inspire you to pick up the ball and dribble away at the court.

8. Pool-Based ‘Boga’ At Babel Fit

If yoga sounds like a bore, wait till you try Boga Fit, the aqua-centric, core-challenging regime at trendy of all gyms, Babel Fit. Here, you’ll be meditating to stay on your floating Boga FiTMAT whilst keeping up with HIIT reps and flexi-bendy poses. Trainer Jacq Ng gave us an exclusive taster of the workout that’s making waves in the fitness circuit.

9. Spinning With Amri Rahim

Nothing beats a #truestory quite like fitness transformation testimonials. Case in point: Amri Rahim, the PR maestro who treated his diabetes by hitting the bikes. In this inspirational story, the fitness convert shared about how exercise boosted his self-esteem, jumpstarted his recovery and led him to a tight-knit support system.  

10. Engage Your Inner Child With Natural Movement

There’s no one-size-fits-all fitness plan, which Imelda Yong discovered the hard way. Her high intensity workouts backfired in chronic injuries, until she discovered the MovNat method. Together with Dr Elaine Hong, Imelda trained in the mobility-based regime and became the only certified trainers in Malaysia. The workout, as explained here in detail, taps into skill and movement, in the safest and most efficient way. In other words, it’s all about flowing with childlike wonder.

11. Recipe: Party-Worthy Healthy Treats By Amazin’ Graze

We have Amazin’ Graze to thank for, in making healthier snacking choices packed with natural, delicious flavour. Last Christmas, we explored a couple of way to jazz up their festive nut butter and granola by adding them to healthier classic desserts. As part of a demo, founders Amy Zheng and Lee Ching Yi shared their recipes for chocolate avocado puddings and caramel pecan bars that make for winning party treats.

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