Till We Meet Again

Let’s go back to the good ol’ days where no later to latest mobile phones exist. Where the machines we call aren’t electricity generated and the aid of transportation is either by mere walking or with horses, camels, or *insert any four-legged animal that can support transportation here*. Some primitive age, maybe? Let’s dredge up on how people lived before the digital age, specifically, how they found their selves smitten.

·         Meeting. Of course how could you not know a person without meeting him or her personally? You’ll notice a passerby and then you’ll realize he or she is indeed more than meets the eye. So you move closer, sneaky but not in a freaky way and move even closer just to get the chance to talk to her. Sure it still happens up to this time, but what gives it a nuance is that today, people asks the other’s number before even asking for a name. So call me, maybe?

·         Serenade. One of the customs and rituals of courtship, which by the way now seems quaint and outdated or can only be seen in fancy restaurants which implies the restaurant as high end. But with todays age? Ooh, all lofty eyes on the lover. But before, heart-felt serenades are really appreciated. Ask the elders! Nowadays, I tend to notice couples share music by plugging mobile earphones to each other’s ears with only having one piece each. Refresh me what sweet is.

·         Small talks. How can one fall to the other if no means of communication is initiated? It all starts with small talks. And when the girl is being wooed, it may turn to long talks. Well, as lovers go, couples talk about everything and nothing in particular. What’s more special with couples before is that it suffices the quality time they need. Unlike now with digital age, you just keep each other’s smartphones beeping. Although there is nothing wrong with that, but it has been proven that the less quality time you spend with your loved one, the more chances of infidelity to creep into your relationship.

·         Dating. This of course is essential. In this way, you give each other time to know both of you more. But how do people date before? There weren’t devices to notify the other that he or she is going to be late or something. And nope, let’s go passed through the pagers or beepers. They affirm the time and place before they part ways—making punctuality their strong points. Be there in time or your lover will surely get mad at you. It’s never a good idea for a girl to wait so guys before values being on or before time. 

Most couples these days conduct dating oftentimes on the day they want to date. “Hey baby, let’s meet tonight at blah, blah, blah.” What’s worst they even come late even if it has been said that meeting time should be sharp. Couples before deserve a hands down. And as they have shared their time together in a certain place, be it parks, or having picnics where they can feel close to nature, they never fail to utter the words: Till we meet again. And then seal the day with a kiss.

The Sweetness of Doing Nothing

With all the progress and developments technology has to offer, do we still have time to pause and simply do nothing? Nowadays people can get out of their houses without their pants on, but not without their smartphones. Everyday, we try our best to keep up with this fast paced world, running and working for dear life without stopping. The complete 24 hours of the whole day seems to be insufficient with all the things that we have to do and accomplish for the day. And what do we get after working our ass off for the whole day? Can you honestly and with conviction tell me right now that you are a hundred percent fulfilled with your life?

Sometimes it is best if you pause for a while, take a step back to have a better view of your life in a good distance, reflect, and just watch your life roll out in your eyes. Have you seen this movie entitled Eat, Pray, Love with Julia Roberts in it? Well, originally it is a book that was later on adapted in to film because it really is a good one. It’s a story about a modern day woman trying to find meaning and purpose in life. 

Just like you and I, this woman is trapped in the world of useless commodities until she finally decided to give it all up in her desperate search for meaning. She went to different parts of the world trying to chase her heartbeats. One of the most striking lessons (at least for me) that I picked up in that movie is that part where they taught her the idea of the sweetness of doing nothing. Turned out that Europeans have this tradition where they, unlike the Americans, take some time off to savor their every moment.

You can start just by taking a day off, don’t go anywhere, and just stay at home all by yourself. This will work best if you remain alone for the rest of the day. Wake up late, and prepare a hearty meal, with your favorite wine. Don’t eat in a hurry; let it sit in your mouth satisfying your taste buds in all possible way. Enjoy every ingredient you lovingly added in what you are eating, and top it off with the kick of your wine on the side. To complete the equation, play your favorite chill and feel-good music. Turn up your player’s volume, or you can make use of your trusty mobile earphones so as not to disturb your neighbors. Stare in blank space, but not with a blank stare. Analyze your life and try to create a mental picture of what your plans are, how you want to implement those plans , and lastly make a firm decision on where you want your life to head on.

It turns out, doing nothing isn’t exactly doing nothing! You are simply plugging the holes in your life in the process. Don’t get so caught up in the ways of the world; keep yourself grounded and enjoy the sweetness of doing nothing.

Workout Myths Busted

Workout practices happen to come out from everywhere, but not everything is effective. There are those that make us counterproductive instead. It is a fact that exercise is such a hard work. Wasting your energy on something that doesn’t bring results can frustrate you and make you give up on your dream of having a perfectly fit body. Read the rest of this article to know the workout myths that you shouldn’t be doing anymore.

1.       Walking or running a mile burns the same amount of calories. If you are just a new recruit to the fitness bandwagon, then you may be confused with the myth just stated. While walking is good for the physical fitness of the body, it doesn’t do much compared with running. Running requires 40% more energy than walking; thus doing the former will allow you to burn more calories by going through the same distance. Get out there and run while listening to upbeat music through your mobile earphones to keep up the pace and stimulate your mood.

2.       Morning exercises burn more fat. Studies have found out that morning exercises don’t increase the body’s metabolism any more than exercises during the rest of the day. So working out during mornings isn’t that advisable at all; the effects are just the same. Do it according to your convenience. Anyway, the most important thing is that you did your workout no matter what time it’s done.

3.       Exercising allows you to eat whatever you want. If one of your reasons for working out is to make you less guilty in satisfying your high-calorie cravings, then I am certain that you won’t be meeting the real objective of your endeavour. You may tell yourself that you burned this much calories in your workout session, but you reward yourself twice as much as the amount you burned. What you’re doing is like equipping yourself with a replacement battery for the energy you lost working out. The best thing to do is to monitor your caloric intake to make sure that exercises have an effect on your figure.

4.       Crunches will give you washboard abs. Crunches target the abdomen and surrounding areas causing the muscles to bulk up. You may have hard and well-formed abdominal muscles as a result of months of doing crunches, but they won’t appear if they are hidden under a layer of fat. What a waste of effort. To flaunt your abs, be mindful of your diet. Stick to healthy, fresh foods. Take note, crunches alone isn’t sufficient for having washboard abs that show.

5.       Cardio is the best way to lose weight. A lot of people who only want to shed off those extra pounds hit the gym just for the cardio. If you’re not adding strength training, such as weightlifting, then that practice won’t be effective at all. Strength training is an important part of any exercise routine. The more muscle mass a person has, the higher his resting metabolic rate will be; hence burning more fat.

6.       Stretching before a workout. Back in your formative years, you were taught to stretch before going for a strenuous activity. Stretching before a workout doesn’t make you perform better. It will only be the same even without stretching. In fact, stretching before working out has been shown to only waste time. Instead, why don’t you use the time saved from stretching to start with your workout sessions.

With the ineffective practices put aside, you’re sure to have that perfectly fit body in no time.