Taking a walk in nature is an inexpensive and accessible form of exercise that has been shown to provide several health benefits such as:
Singapore may be small, but there are plenty of parks and nature reserves to explore! We’ve prepared a list of Top 15 Parks To Explore And Bond With Your Loved Ones below:
Not sure what to do this weekend? Enjoy the benefits of nature and take a walk in the park with your loved ones! Don't forget to gear up with a proper pair of running shoes, umbrella/poncho in case of wet weather, natural insect repellent such as citronella oil and lotsa water.
How does stress cause one to gain weight? While the immediate response to acute stress may be a temporary loss of appetite, and therefore a possible weight loss; for some people, chronic stress may result in stress-eating, which results in weight gain.
Some of us swear by a tub of ice-cream or pack of potato chips to help relieve stress, but we all know that doesn’t bode well for our waistlines... What else can we do to overcome stress-induced weight gain?
Instead of stress-eating, try these methods:
Exercise is the best method to beat stress-induced weight gain as it releases endorphins, which have natural stress-fighting properties and helps to lower stress hormone (cortisol) levels.
The main cause of stress-induced weight gain are carb cravings induced by cortisol, which encourages your body to store fat - especially visceral fat - which is particularly dangerous as it surrounds vital organs and releases fatty acids into your blood. Regular exercise can serve to repress appetite increase and stop carb cravings by controlling insulin and blood sugar levels.
Studies have shown that getting an average of 6½ hours each night can increase cortisol levels, leading to a bigger appetite, and eventually weight gain. Try to get at least 7-9 hours of sleep to help curb those cravings! If you have to pull an all-nighter for work, school or party - or all of the above - try to repay the sleep debt with a few nights of solid sleep to bring your hormones back into balance!
Foods that are high in dietary fibre include fresh fruit and vegetables, fish, yoghurts, brown rice, whole-wheat/whole-grain products. Including more high-fiber foods in your diet helps to curb carb cravings as it tends to be more filling than low-fiber foods. You’ll be more likely to eat less and stay satisfied longer, which aids in weight loss in the long run! Read more benefits of high-fiber foods here.
Schedule a time-out from hectic days to help you unwind and re-focus. Choose activities that are unrelated to food, such as taking a hike, reading a book, getting a massage or taking your dog out for a walk. Leisure activities may seem like the last thing on your mind with looming deadlines, but taking a breather helps you to feel refreshed and improves your mood, so you are less likely to overeat.
The act of de-cluttering your home may serve as a therapeutic experience. Being organized makes us feel more in control of our lives, which allows us to be better prepared when faced with stress.
According to a study in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, women who described their homes as “cluttered” had higher levels of cortisol compared to women who felt their homes were “restful” and “restorative”.
Share with us your favorite stress-reducing activities and tag us @sgpilatesfitness on Instagram!
HELLO!
Do you know we started Pilates Fitness Monthly Flow Challenge back in 1 October 2015? It's been almost 10 years! We are glad that our members are still motivated by Monthly Flow Challenge and continue to benefit from it through the thousands of FREE classes we give out monthly.
Start acting by block booking the recommended classes till November 2015!
With planning, determination and execution, you would not only be able to complete Flow Challenge, but also get a fit and pain-free body.
We have exactly 19 days to go before we end the 28 Days Pilates Challenge!
We hope that you are seeing the results from following our workout plans. As your fitness, strength and stamina improve, you may face what we call the fitness plateau - working hard as normal but seeing very little results. At this point in time, integrating your workout routine with high intensity workouts will push you past the plateau into the next stage.
We have prepared 3 workout plans to meet 3 fitness goals, namely:
We have also uploaded 2 HIIT Mat Pilates workouts into our Youtube channel.
The easier version is the 10 minutes HIIT Mat Pilates with 40 seconds workout and 20 seconds rest. The more intensive version is the the 10 minutes HIIT Mat Pilates with 50 seconds workout and 10 seconds rest.
Follow these workout plans to get your fat burn going and body aches melting away!
With planning, determination and a little strategy, you would not only be able to complete the 28 Days Pilates Challenge, but also get a fit and pain-free body ready for the year end celebrations.
Remember to do your Body Composition Analysis every week to track your progress! You can use your unique ID, to see how you pit against other challengers at our scoreboard.
Hi!
Steps:
1) Set a (realistic) target for yourself.
You can refer to the table below as a guide for your ideal body fat percentage.
2) Break your target into bite-size weekly milestones.
Plan and track the number of classes you need to lose your desired body fat percentage.
Experiencing the journey as it unfolds is as important as reaching your destination. We must celebrate little victories along the way.
Let me share a short story. I recently went on a 2-weeks "hardship hiking and camping trip" to exotic outer Mongolia. One item on the itinerary was to climb up a 900 metres sand dune. A 900 metres hike is pretty easy to hike up a standard mountain track but it's massive work on a sand dune! If you have not tried climbing a sand dune before, let me tell you - it is one step up and two steps down. The soft sand sinks with every step you take; it is major quads, hams and balancing effort to keep yourself upright against the steep sand dunes. To actually make progress on the soft sand, I not only need to have the strength but also to double my speed to prevent myself from climbing on the spot like a silly girl!
Halfway through the climb, I was thinking to myself - Why did I put myself through this? Why am I paying so much money to torture myself? Is the scenery at the top really that awesome? And how am I going to get down later???
I toyed with the thought of going down mid-way. And then, I saw my friends waiting for me at the top, waving at me and cheering me on with big smiles on their faces. That was when I realised that they were so happy because they have won (not because they were at the peak). They had won the fight against themselves. They persisted despite sliding down again and again. They were so pleased with themselves for not giving up.
And so, encouraged by them, I took every step up as a little victory. Slow and steady, I ascended and reached the peak (see picture below).
Every step is important - no step is ever wasted. It is not just about meeting our goal; it is about believing in ourselves and that we can achieve anything as long as we keep trying.
Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is victorious! ~ Paulo Coelho
With this, I would like to encourage you to attend at least 2 Pilates classes a week at Pilates Fitness. Redeem a bonus gift from us at your second class of the week between 5 October 2015 to 31 October 2015. We have new prizes for you every week.
With the haze saga still brewing strong, exercising indoors is the best way to keep yourself toned and aches-free!
