Just woke up! Can you tell?

It’s a cloudy and slightly rainy day in Singapore. No clear plans for today as yet… I might go to Marina Bay, the Esplannade, Funan Mall and see the Merlion… basically wander around and get lost. Not a bad way to spend my 27th birthday. Going to get dressed now. So excited!

I look tired.

Waiting for our SG-bound bus. I'm so excited!

And now, I am finding that being sleepless while lugging around a heavy bag on your back does not mix well with sightseeing and wandering around a foreign city. I just want to find a someplace where I can curl up and nap for a bit… Some hidden corner here in KLCC, maybe? Gah my legs and feet are so sore tired all the walking I’ve done in the past couple of hours.

But enough whining–it’s time for some pics! Of course I took the requisite shot of the Petronas Towers, both from up close and from a distance away (KLCC Park, to be exact):

I got dizzy just from looking up at the soaring structure. Have I ever mentioned that I have a fear of heights? Yeah. Just thinking of what it’s like to be up on one of those topmost floors made my stomach feel queasy.

They’re a magnificent pair of buildings. Too bad that, since I’m travelling alone, I can’t have my picture taken with them. Still, I made do:

Yeah I know. I look tired. And I am tired. Touring is great and all, but… I wanna sleep. And take a bath. But sleep first. *Bawl*

Headed to Singapore later this afternoon. Hopefully the bus I’ll be taking to the Lion City will be sleep-conducive.

After an almost two-hour delay. Still, excitement!

Still, the weekend wasn’t a total waste. My college friends and I went on a trip to Real, Quezon, to try out the little-known surf spot there. Since the surf season has already ended, the waves were a little small and far between. But when they came, the rides were awesome. Another great thing about the slow waves was that the swells were easy to spot and formed beautifully–languid and graceful parallel lines on the otherwise calm sea. It was gorgeous. ^_^

Tomorrow I leave for my Kuala Lumpur-Singapore trip. Work has been so busy that I haven’t even had time to plan and research my itinerary! All I know is that after spending half a day in KL, I’m taking the train to Singapore and that’s it. I hope that I survive this.

And that’s all for today. I’m off to finish packing my stuff–but before I go, I would like to share this stolen picture of me taken by my friend as we were waiting for the sun to rise in Real:

Can I just say how amazing my ass looks in this photo? All my life I have never known my ass to be so round and lifted–not even after my years of Taekwondo training–but here it is, immortalized in digital format. I have nothing else to owe it to except SQUATS–the at-or-below-parallel, barbell kind. So to any lady who might be reading this–lift hard, lift heavy; but more importantly, squat heavy, and squat often. ^_^

• 0:03:00

Jumping Jacks:

• 20 jumping jacks
• 20 jumping jacks
• 20 jumping jacks

Barbell Squat:

• 20 lb x 5 reps
• 20 lb x 5 reps
• 20 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 60 lb x 5 reps
• 85 lb x 5 reps – PR!
• 85 lb x 5 reps
• 85 lb x 5 reps
• 85 lb x 5 reps
• 85 lb x 5 reps

Barbell Bench Press:

• 10 lb x 5 reps
• 10 lb x 5 reps
• 10 lb x 5 reps
• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 55 lb x 5 reps – PR!
• 55 lb x 5 reps
• 55 lb x 5 reps
• 55 lb x 5 reps
• 55 lb x 4 reps

Ohhhh… So close. My good friend and former varsity teammate Ara accompanied me to the gym today and she was kind enough to spot me while doing the Bench Press. She was so awesome and definitely was a huge help in me hitting almost all my work sets. Although technically I didn’t complete all five sets, I don’t think I’m going to deload on this lift. I’ll stay at 55 lbs for a couple more workouts and see if my muscles adapt.

Pendlay Row:

• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 50 lb x 5 reps
• 70 lb x 5 reps
• 70 lb x 2 reps
• 70 lb x 3 reps
• 70 lb x 5 reps
• 70 lb x 5 reps

Felt okay with the Pendlay Row, except for some tightness in my hamstrings, which caused a slight ache in my lower back every time I bent into the starting position. I did five warm-up sets using the 40-lb weight instead of my usual 3×5 at 15 lbs, then followed by another 3×5 at 40 lbs, because there were so many guys at the gym that almost all plates were being used at any one time–including my favorite 2.5-lb ones. I was stuck with 40 lbs, and I had no choice but to make do… if I wanted my workout to continue without a hitch. Which reminds me… it’s time for a minor deload on this lift. I’ll take 10 lbs off on my next workout.

Modified Plank:

• 60 sec
• 60 sec
• 60 sec

Ugh. I still have no endurance for this. Or maybe it’s because I maxed out my trunk muscles as they were, doing my main lifts? Not sure.

Modified Side Plank:

• 60 sec
• 60 sec

Yes, because I want to be a balanced fit chick, I added Modified Side Planks to my ab exercise portfolio. Woohoo this had my sides burning like crazy. Another sign that there’s tons of room for improvement.

Stretching:

• 0:05:00

So for the first time ever, I dared to wear an itsy-bitsy pair of spandex shorts to the gym today… and dare I say, I thought I looked pretty hot in them. For one thing, please take the time to notice the beginnings of an ASS, as highlighted by said itsy-bitsy shorts. Even my friend Ara noticed them.

Mmm-hmm, those Squats must be doing me some good. Hamstrings, please be quick and catch up, okay?

• 0:03:00

Jumping Jacks:

• 20 jumping jacks
• 20 jumping jacks
• 20 jumping jacks

Shoulder Dislocation:

• 5 reps
• 5 reps
• 5 reps
• 5 reps
• 5 reps

Barbell Squat:

• 20 lb x 5 reps
• 20 lb x 5 reps
• 20 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 60 lb x 5 reps
• 80 lb x 5 reps – PR!
• 80 lb x 5 reps
• 80 lb x 5 reps
• 80 lb x 5 reps
• 80 lb x 5 reps

My Squats were feeling pretty good today. I finally got some parts of the form down, which helped a lot in seeing me through my work set. This last couple of workouts I had noticed that, due to the weight on the bar, my form started breaking apart when coming out from the bottom position. I would lift my butt first (correct), but halfway through to the standing position, the movement would be interrupted and I would finish the rep by doing a mix between a good morning and a hip thrust. Because of this I would experience a minor discomfort in my lower back every time I finished a rep. I made a search for squatting tips on the internet and this is one of the helpful articles I found.

Standing Barbell Shoulder Press:

• 15 lb x 5 reps
• 15 lb x 5 reps
• 15 lb x 5 reps
• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 40 lb x 5 reps
• 45 lb x 1 reps
• 45 lb x 1 reps
• 45 lb x 1 reps
• 45 lb x 1 reps
• 45 lb x 1 reps

Still not getting better with the Overhead Press. Going to scale back a bit in my next workout–I’m going to take off around 10% from my work weight, which is roughly equivalent to five pounds. Back to 40 lbs it is.

Barbell Deadlift:

• 30 lb x 5 reps
• 60 lb x 5 reps
• 80 lb x 5 reps
• 110 lb x 5 reps – PR!
  

Whoa. This was VERY challenging for me. I was afraid that my back would give out during the work set. Thankfully, I emerged injury-free. I think I won’t add the recommended 10 lbs next session, though. I’ll stick to five for the meantime.Also, I think it’s time I worked on my grip.

Modified Plank:

• 60 sec
• 60 sec

Stretching:

• 0:05:00

I did a more thorough body stretch after my workout today and man, it was KILLER. My muscles–especially hamstrings and calves–were screaming at me as I bent down into the stretches. Ugh this definitely needs more work.

Sorry for the crappy photo quality. All my post-workout photos thus far are taken with my old Nokia 6303.

NOM. I didn't know ricotta was this enjoyable.

Such a lazy Saturday afternoon. Spent the whole day just chilling at home, watching TV and catching up on my blog reading… all while enjoying my delicious healthy snack! Toasted wheat bread topped with ricotta cheese. So yummy. And full of muscle-building protein. Need my posterior muscles to bring their A-game for my workout tomorrow. I’ll be adding another five pounds to my Squats. And officially crossing the 100-lb mark for my Deadlifts (going to rip 110, yo!). The expected DOMS from that is going to be a bitch.

Grow, muscles, grow.