Nat's Blog

If years as a fitness instructor, personal trainer and overall fitness geek have taught me anything, it’s that people are different. Their needs are different, their goals are different and their physiques are different. Some people are naturally thin. I hate those people. And then some people — like me — gain muscle easily. Of course, there are people who are envious of that. And then there are those who gain fat easily. No one wants that.

For all the differences among people, however, there are some things that are universal. One needs to eat. Proper nutrition is the only way one can lose fat. And I don’t mean a starvation diet. People need to eat to lose weight. We just need to eat the right things.

Something else that is universal is that one needs — and often neglects to get — rest. Not everyone knows that, in order to make gains, whether in strength or endurance, whether muscular or cardio-vascular, we all need rest so that we have enough energy to exercise again.

I am a case in point. As anyone can see from my photos, I am not thin. At times, I am just plain fat. My weight fluctuates (the pejorative term is yoyos) within a range of five kilograms. Lately those fluctuations have been greater due to insufficient rest.

My first job, way back in 1979, was as an aerobics instructor. I was not good at what I did but I loved it anyway. It wasn’t until I began training people in the weight room that I really found one of my true loves.

Now you would think that someone with my experience would be in great shape, but I’m not. In fact, I’m finding that my suits are getting tight around the waist and that I am doing the dreaded belly-over-the-belt thing where I button and belt my trousers just above my hips and haul my belly over it all, just so I can get through the day being able to breathe.

Okay, maybe I’m not that bad.

But I find myself in the worst physical condition that I’ve ever been. Due to a busy schedule, bouts of flu and general inconvenience, on Sunday, I could barely touch my toes nor could I balance on one leg. Those are standard tests for basic physical fitness and I failed them. It was only on reflection with my trainer that I realised that, in the past four or five months, I hadn’t exercised more than six times and never for more than three days in a row.

So on Sunday, I started exercising again on a stationary bike and could barely get through half an hour. The following day, I scheduled a session with the trainer and could only just manage about 65% of the programme. I am still sore.

How did this happen? How did someone like me, who loves fitness and gets a real high out of exercising, get so out of shape?

Part of it is age. I am no longer as physically resilient as I was when I started that first job teaching group exercise. But that’s only a small part.

By far the larger part is that I wasn’t getting enough rest. Because I had so much on my schedule, I was waking up tired and getting more tired with each day. This is what happens when one has a full-time job and starts up a new company at the same time. Immediate professional needs take priority over matters like good nutrition and recuperation. This went on for months, and if I am to be honest with myself, this is but one episode in a good six or seven years of general physical decline.

About seven years ago, I had reached that age where I had all the experience I needed from working for others and decided to start working on something for myself. So, like most Asians, I went back to working for my family. The family business may not be completely mine but I have a large enough interest in it that it was like doing it for myself. Then, when things started going well, I finally decided to set up something on my own.

I am not alone. Lots of people are in this situation. And we consider ourselves fortunate. And because we consider ourselves fortunate, we put everything we have into work. Work becomes the priority to the exclusion of everything else, including fitness.

I, of all people, know that’s a mistake. But I made it. I now weigh a fraction over 100 kilograms, the heaviest I’ve been ever. I am just plain fat.

So what am I going to do?

I started out by taking what holidays I could. What I really needed was about two weeks off, but with my work schedule, that was impossible. So I went away for short holidays of three or four days at a time and slept through most of them. I would never get that rest at home.

I am making it a priority to make sure I get enough rest to exercise effectively. If this means taking the occasional 20-minute nap in the afternoon while everyone else is working, so be it. I’m in the office at 6am and usually stay until 6pm or later. A short break in the middle of the day will harm no one, and if the emergency is truly dire, people can just wake me.

And, from this past Sunday, I started making time to exercise once again. That’s another break in the day the office is just going to have to live with. So far it’s been three days of exercising every day and I am really happy. I admit it’s easy for me in that I really love to work out. Now let’s see if I can rest enough to have the energy to work out consistently.