No Pain No gain

So there was this TA event, where we had to invite secondary school students over to teach them about safe use of the internet and such. It was quite a major outreach event and we had to organise games through which we impart valuable lessons on safe use of the internet. I'll let some of the pictures from the event speak for itself! All credits go to DMC, SP and its affiliates!

Its been indeed a stressful and rocky journey so far with its fair share of ups and downs. 

Now, where do I begin? 

When I came into DMC during my first year, it was a very foreign place to me as I never thought that I would ever go to a polytechnic. But nonetheless, I quickly acclimatised to it. The sheer amount of project and work that has to be done was mountains upon piles of mountains, 3 sleepless nights sequentially became nothing but a norm. The uniformed schoolyard system was a far cry from the completely free and independent system in of a polytechnic. Classes were short and few between, however the content taught in these modules far outweighed the content that were taught in secondary school. It was akin to being thrown into a zoo, a social zoo for the socially-capable and the colourful characters who roamed the compounds of SP. Especially in a place such as DMC, a garden of social butterflies. Not one for small talk and aggressive socialising, coming to school is like going to a party everyday. 

Another point is the dressing that is required, it's never an easy task to dress up and decide on clothes everyday so I gradually got smarter and picked out specific sets of clothes that were ready to be worn and mobilised. Much like a specific arsenal of weapons that complements each other, my 2 years here has really improved my sense of style and aestheticism -- dressing well is not a necessity but it speaks very highly of your self-perception and it does influences how people perceive and interact with you. 

The most amazing thing about dmc is the friends you make and the experiences you have -- it is really a one-of-a-kind experience as everybody are so loud and fun, there's never a moment of boredom and silence, always something to talk about and something to laugh about. It is a great party when everyone is around, especially times in The Agency when everybody is gathered, its literally a market of noise and laughter. 

My year 1 concluded on a bang with the DMC harlem shake, in which the whole cohort gathered to do a mass harlem shake party, which was filmed showed to everyone. The harlem shake was a very popular worldwide fad back in the end of 2012 towards the start of 2013. It was really a memorable and enjoyable first year indeed. There is still about 1 and a half year to the end of my DMC journey, looking forward to it with both trepidation and excitement, wondering what internship will bring and what the next year forth would bring. 

This is a social media infographic for the top 4 most utilised and popular social mediums in Singapore. It clearly shows how prevalent social media is in Singapore with over 74% of Singaporeans who use social media regularly, thats almost 3/4 the population of Singapore, equating to about over 4 million people in Singapore using social media on an almost daily basis.

What is bulking and why the need to bulk?

A period of time when the primary goal is to build muscle, gain weight and increase strength/power.

Calorie intake is increased so a caloric surplus is present.

1. How to bulk?

EAT BIG, GET BIG. Carbs are your best friends. Heavy carb sources such as pasta, brown rice,

oatmeal, whole wheat bread, beans and potatoes.

Protein sources – Red meat such as beef, fish, chicken, eggs, nuts or yoghurt etc.

2. How to bulk? (Method of counting calories).

First of all, one has to access his BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and maintenance calories.

I. http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/metric-bmr-calculator.php

II. http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harris-benedict-equation/

Macro Nutrients

• 1g Protein = 4cal

• 1g Carb = 4cal

• 1g Fat = 9cal

For optimal growth & recovery, the recommended protein intake should always be 0.8 – 1.2g per lb

of bodyweight. (lb = Pound)

**0.8g, 0.9g, 1g, etc, it doesn’t make a difference as studies have proven that 0.8g is adequate for

muscle sparing and muscle building.

Fat macro intake should be a minimum of 0.3g per lb of bodyweight

Let’s have an example.

My recommended calories to put on weight are 2800cal per day and I weigh around 165lbs (75kg).

Recommended Fat intake would be (165lbs x 0.3 = 50g) = 450cal

Protein intake would be (165lb x 1.2g = 198g) = 792cal

Carb intake?? ‡( 2800cal – 792cal – 450cal ) /4 = 390g

*Final figures are all estimated

Do take note, the calories that the calculator has provided may not be 100% accurate. Counting

macro nutrients is a matter of trial and error. One should evaluate their weight every week, in the

morning, before meal consumption and without clothes on (no homo). If you feel that you’re putting

on too much weight too quickly, readjust your caloric macros and decrease your caloric surplus by

100cal. If you feel that you’re not putting much weight, increase the caloric surplus by 100-200cal.

You don't need to eat 6 times a day. You just need to eat enough to fit your daily macros to put on

weight, and that can be in as many or few meals and/or snacks as you want.

Here are some websites/apps that you can use to count your calories.

• http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

• http://caloriecount.about.com/

• http://www.nutritiondata.com/

Supplementation?

I would only recommend supplementation if you can afford it. Well, whey protein = protein.

Supplementation is another word for “additional”. If you are unable to hit your daily protein macros,

do look into supplementation.

The supplements that I strongly encourage that you consume are fish oil omega 3 and a good multi- vitamin. Fish oil actually aids in reducing inflammation of the joints, especially the wrists. The result

is less swelling. When the swelling is reduced, so is the discomfort and reduction of use to the

affected area.

Thank you all for reading and I hope you’ll make it a habit to count your calories or just bulk.

"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." - Benjamin Franklin

“We're all gonna make it brah.” - Zyzz

“Don’t start this shit unless you plan on investing TWELVE GOD DAMN MONTHS before even

When you first start out bodybuilding, the number of supplements on the market are so varied and wide apart, it can often by rather confusing choosing the right and most important supplements with the limited budget that we have.

That said, we do our research and learn about different supplemets and purposes from the internet. However, there are many articles online exaggerating the importance of different supplements and its effectiveness -- they bend the truth about the real need for many different products as they are all just trying to sell and market their supplements anyway. However, bear in mind those articles could well be there just to promote and advertise some useless supplements that are bought and used merely based on placebo and make-believe. Point being is that; you have to actually purchase and experiment with different supplements itself to see how effective and Important each one actually is. That said, personal experience and experience from trusted acquaintances that are not ambassadors and endorsing any brands are the most reliable information -- people who don't make any money from talking about their experiences provide the most reliable information.

The list of supplements available on the market are endless and new products are being invented all the time, some which are completely pointless and products of marketing hype. 

In my opinion, and in popular consumer opinion -- the 4 MOST IMPORTANT supplements are:

1.) Whey protein

2.) Creatine

3.) Multi-vitamins and omega 3/fish oils

4.) Pre-workout 

Why these 4? 

1.) Whey protein: As said before, the most important aspects of bodybuilding nutrition are the macro-nutrients which are Carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Carbs are easily gotten through any foods that you eat, but the protein which is required at an amount of 1.5g/lb of bodyweight can be hard to be achieved through normal diet alone. Therefore, having a good whey protein supplement can make a drastic improvement to your nutrition plan. 

2.) Creatine: It is a substance found and produced naturally in the skeletal muscle in human body. It is mainly responsible for creating the energy that muscles need to work. By using creatine, strength gains will be the fastest and most obvious benefit derived from it. Next will come the lean muscle gains, the increase in explosive energy, greater mental concentration and focus, greater endurance, energy and boost in testosterone. 

3.) Multi-vitamins: Multi-vitamins are essential for meeting our micro-nutrient needs, don't ever neglect your micro-nutrients!

4.) Pre-workout: A pre-workout is effective but not a necessity. It gives a nice pump during  and significantly increases your intensity and focus during your workout, making your time in the gym far more effective.

Disclaimer: All photos are credited to SP and its affiliations!

So the SP open house event was held over 3 main days, 9, 10, 11 January and it was a relatively quieter event this year as compared to the year before. Nonetheless there was still quite a big turn-out of people. 

The CCA booths were brimming with activity! As you can see from the last picture of the relatively new CCA in SP, "SP Strongman", where the training mostly involves weightlifting and power-lifting, it was quite a spectacle at this booth as many young secondary school boys were all trying their hand at it!

The second last picture of the course counselling booths shows lecturers talking to the prospective students! Welcome to SP in advance (and to 3 years of torture)

Sp is indeed a place where you discover yourself, the friends you make here will be for life and the experiences leaving a lifetime impression. Doubts and uncertainties will definitely arise, but nothing is ever smooth-sailing. What we learn now in SP, be it from the classroom or interactions with friends and people around will be paramount to our working adult life. 

So I went to MUSCLEWAR 2014, held at NUS university cultural centre, an amateur bodybuilding competition open to everyone. There are 2 categories for the men, firstly there is the tertiary bodybuilding which saw many new faces and powerhouses this year and secondly there is the Open category, which graces all the Singapore bodybuilding favourites and old faces from competitions before -- basically the more advanced category. 

Some miscellaneous pictures from the competition!

ictures from both the open and tertiary categories!

Foreword:Mengting is a good friend of mine whom recently joined a fitness-pagaent competition organised by Nutrifirst, Singapore’s largest online supplement store http://www.nutrifirst.net/ . Below are a few words from her about female bodybuilding and pictures of her competiton. Whoever said lifting weights will make girls big blobs of muscle and veins?

All credits go to NUTRIFIRST and Mengting!

Background: I’m Mengting, a first year student pursuing a degree in Environmental Science and Engineering in the National University of Singapore. I have always been interested in playing sports ever since secondary school days but have only gotten serious with fitness for about a year. I have never competed in any professional field but am currently a participant of the Nutrigirl 2014, a fitness-pageant-like event organised by the largest online supplement store in Singapore, Nutrifirst. I obtain most of my knowledge in this field from experimenting the effects of different types of trainings and diets have on my physique, knowledge shared by my friends on social media sites such as Instagram, as well as forums such as bodybuilding.com. 

Training: Many have asked me about ways or tips and tricks to ‘tone up’ their body, to rid the ‘flabs’ on common problem areas such as arms, waist, back, glutes, and thighs. When confronted with such questions, I generally do not have the kind of answers that most people would expect. Personally, I do not believe in excessive steady cardiovascular exercises (such as long runs on the treadmills) because I have read from various sources that the fat burning effect of this exercise pales greatly in comparison to High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). HIIT is a type of exercise where the user reaches and maintains 80-90% of his/her maximum heart rate for any duration between 30 seconds to 2 minutes, rest for a similar amount of time, and repeats the cycle. However, the bulk of my usual training regime consists of heavy weight lifting. For compound exercises such as squats and deadlifts, I adopt the pyramid training style, where I slowly work my way up with ample rest time to the maximum weight for 1 full range of motion (i.e. 1 repetition), reduce the weight by about 2.5/5kg and complete the maximum number of repetitions for that weight, reduce the weight again and go again until the weight is lowered to the value that I warmed up with. This is the style of training which I respond the best to. However, one can never out-train bad diet. If one desires to achieve their ideal physique, proper nutrition is extremely crucial. After all, everyone can work out for 1hour but not everyone has the discipline to control what goes into their digestive system for the next 23hours. This brings me to my next point.

Nutrition: To begin with, I try my best to keep my diet as clean as possible. This means no process food such as fishballs, sausages, meatballs, hashbrowns etc. Also, I watched my sodium and fats intake carefully. There are various different kinds of eating lifestyles that fitness enthusiast adopt, some are more general/lenient (as some may perceive) such as ‘eating clean’, If It Fits Your Macros, Intermittent Fasting, etc whereas others might be more extreme (again, it’s subjective), such as Ketosis, Paleo diet, vegan, etc. Many females tend to fall into cycles of fad diets such as ‘juice diet’ or ‘cabbage soup diet’ or whatever other crash diets that deplete their bodies of proper nutrition in a hopeless pursuit to lose ‘weight’. When these females talk to me about losing ‘weight’ the first thing I ask them is “what kind of weight do you want to lose?” Weight is mere number of the scale. One can lose weight by dehydrating themselves in the sauna, losing water weight; she can also go on a 800kcal crash diet for a week and lose 3kg in a week and gain 6kg the following week where she eats normally at about 2000kcal again. Therefore, nutrition is key when we want to burn fats and retain muscle mass for good.

1.) They are already massive in size to begin with, so all they do is isolation exercises and a little bit of compound exercises to sculpt their body definition

2.) They spend a lot of money on steroids, supplementations and food. The amount of food they consume on a daily basis can be equivalent to a normal person's 3 day amount, and the steroids and supplementation will only multiply the results of their workouts, thus allowing them to train beyond a natural limit.

3.) they have different training cycles, mainly -- bulking, cutting and maintenance phases. Which means that they train differently all the time. So if we try to imitate their style, we might end up hurting ourselves instead.

The "iron guru" Vince gironda, one of the pioneers and most influential bodybuilders in the history of the sport is famous for saying bodybuilding is 80% nutrition, without diet and nutrition settled, the rest is pointless. That said, its important to know what nutrients are the most crucial in helping you to grow. 

The three most important nutrients are the macro nutrients, mainly:

1.) Protein

2.) Carbohydrates

3.) Fat

these are the main building blocks to helping grow!

Essentially, protein is the most important essence in bodybuilding because as said, amino acids and protein are building blocks for protein whereas carbs are meant to feed the high intensity exercises and the muscles. The golden rule for protein intake is at least 1g for every pound of lean mass you have. So for example, if you're 79kg, with about 15% body-fat percentage, that goes to about (79 - [79x0.15] = 67.15 kg) -- it goes to about 67.15 kg of lean body mass. Converted to pounds, it is 148 pounds of lean body mass. Applying the rule of 1g/lb protein to body mass ratio, you will require about 148 g of protein per day at least just for upkeep and growth, But depending on your personal goals, whether you're bulking or going on a slower bulk or just cutting, you will have to adjust your protein intake respectively.

Many bodybuilding fitness experts preach high volume training (light to moderate weights, very high rep range and many exercises) right from the start, and that has indeed worked for many people. But if you have just started out lifting and have never lifted before, it would be advisable to start off slow and easy first, and that means doing moderate to heavy weights, at a lower rep to build a foundation of strength and basic mass first before you go into higher rep ranges.

Barbell or compound exercises to build more major muscle groups are more advisable for this, as it does not isolate muscles but works them in a group instead. This does not prevent injury entirely, but it forces a more desirable form which is essential to effective training. Barbell movements build more strength as compared to dumbbells as well. 

It's definitely better to build some basic strength and foundation first before you move into higher volume bodybuilding training, the reason will be explained later on!

A "strong lifts" program is a strength training program that will help you gain strength, lose fat and gain a bit of muscle. It is a (5 sets x 5 reps) workout program that utilises all the barbell exercises in a moderate to heavy weight with a low rep range fashion. Examples of some exercises would be: 

1.) Squats

2.) Deadlifts

3.) Overhead shoulder press

4.) Barbell back rows

5.) benchpress

So what you do is alternate these exercises in a upper/lower body split, and throw in some bodyweight exercises and abdominal exercises and you have a plan going! For example: 

Upper body:

1.) Bench press 5x5 

2.) Deadlift 2x5

3.) Overhead shoulder press 5x5

4.) Shrugs 5x5

5.) Back rows 5x5

6.) Chin-ups 8x5

7.) Abs (Up to you)

Lower body: 

1.) Squats 7x5

2.) Stiff-legged Deadlift 5x5

3.) Barbell lunges 5x5

4.) Abs (up to you)

Or it could also be something like this: 

Workout A

1. Squat 5x5

2. Bench press 5x5

3.) Barbell rows 5x5

4.) Push-ups (3 sets to failure)

Workout b

1. Squat 5x5

2. Overhead press 5x5

3. Deadlift 1x5

4. Pull ups (3 sets to failure) 

(taken from http://www.muscleandfitness.com/workouts/workout-routines/get-jacked-shredded-stronglifts-5x5-program) 

1.) Find a gym and stick to that gym! The camaraderie and friendships you forge there will go a long way in motivating you!

2.) Set realistic goals -- and that means knowing what you are capable of naturally and taking it a step at a time. It is not meant to be rushed, it's a long and slow process that will be deeply rewarding and addicting

3.) Train with a partner or a mentor -- this is very important not just for safety, but also for bouncing of knowledge and motivating each other!

4.) Focus on your form and basic exercises first -- Using the correct form is the most important thing because will you then utilise and train the specific muscle properly

5.) Cardio -- to build up some basic cardio fitness which will help in your lifting

6.) Diet and supplementation -- I cannot stress how important this aspect is because diet and nutrition intake is almost 50 or 70% of bodybuilding. Plan your diet and research the proper supplementations to take! For starters, whey protein supplements are the most important, followed by BCAA or a good brand of pre workout to kickstart the body.

7.) Get adequate rest -- again, it is all about resting and recovery for the muslce

8.) Water -- This is a given. Drink moderate amounts of water because water helps to cleanse your body and helps in digestion. Amount of water to drink in bodybuilding is a very debatable issue as it is usually a variable in terms of one's personal fitness goals. But other than this, water is a very important factor

9.) Have a plan -- use a training log or notebook to keep track or plan training programs for yourself in training cycles and stick to it for the planned duration of time that you train. Knowing what you do or keeping track of it can help you feel more confident of your workout and keep a steady rhythm or tempo going when you workout. This can also help you envision your progress better, which can be very powerful in helping you achieve your goals.

10.) Do body part splits -- this helps you to hit every body part and muscle group in your body and allows for alternate muscle groups to rest and recover while you're training other muscle groups. For example: monday will be upper body, wednesday will be lower body, friday will be upper body and sunday will be lower body. This will maximise your time and workout. Also, include some  changes to your workout every once in a while to continuously shock the body into growth (this will be explained later on)

Firstly, you have to know that it is not just about mindless training day after day! It is also a sport that requires a vast amount of knowledge and strategic planning! 

Before you get started, the four most important factors to it are

1.) Training 

2.) Nutrition, diet and proper supplementation 

3.) Rest and recovery

4.) Consistency

These are the most important factors to getting growth in the gym! First off, going to a gym and training consistently is the first step to building yourself, but how do you build yourself without nutrition and diet to replenish the torn muscle cells? The whole idea of lifting weights is so you can tear your muscle cells in order for your body to grow bigger and denser muscles, so therefore nutrition is the most important factor for growth.

Resting and sleeping is the third most important thing, because only when you sleep and let your body rest, will your torn muscles be able to rebuild effectively and help you to grow. Sleeping is the most anabolic state that your body can be in, because sleep doesn't just allow your muscles to rest in order for it to rebuild and grow; sleeping has also been proven to increase testosterone levels naturally and at rather significant amounts. (Testosterone is the core hormone that is needed for bodybuilding, will be explained further later)  Therefore this only serves to prove that sleep and rest is one of the most important things for muscle growth.

Are you sure you want to get swole?

Weightlifting/bodybuilding is not just a sport, it is an art; a lifestyle. Before we start, there are three questions you need to ask yourself beforehand.

Firstly, it is not a 12-week program, it is a lifestyle. It is not just a 6 hours per week exercise regime, it is a 24/7 activity because this sport extends far beyond the borders of the gym, it is the things you do outside of the gym that really advances you in the sport. Are you willing to dedicate at least a quarter of your daily life and time to it, which also means time taken away from other leisurely activities in your life.

Secondly, how passionate or serious are you about it? Are you passionate enough about improving yourself and changing yourself that you are sure you will be consistent with your lifting? Because if you are going to give up halfway, there is no point in starting at all.

Thirdly, are you mentally ready and prepared enough for this? You are going to lose some things, a considerable number of things -- such as time, your chance to go to parties and hang out with friends and such. You are going to lose your chance to go out with your girlfriend, your chances to find love. You will lose many opportunities, just for this. You are going to lose even bigger things sometimes, such as your self-concept, your identity. You will lose yourself sometimes, because this is a passion that most people will not understand. The loneliness and misery that comes along in this journey, knowing that you walk your life alone will get to your head as well.

If you're still here so far, or feel you are ready enough to dedicate yourself to this -- good for you. But if you did not check any of the above questions, you are more likely to crumble early. It is not just a physical sport, it is also a mental sport. Of course, the above are not all the factors that will determine far dedicated you are, there are many other factors. Are you willing to go the distance? Because if you are, then all the best, let me guide you through this and walk with you as well, let me share my experience and knowledge with you, however limited it might be.