New Year's Resolution 2013

I want to give this a try. Hopefully, on 31st Dec 2013 I can cancel off most of these.

1. Nak sentiasa solat awal waktu
2. Nak mula pakai stokin (wei, ni memang paling susah dah lama giler nak cuba istiqamah tapi susah yang amat. Cuma skarang tak pakai sandle nampak kaki dah, pakai covered shoes. Semoga tahun 2013 berjaya once and for all. Insyaa Allah)
3. Nak sentiasa ada minimum RM5k dalam bank
4. Nak kurangkan shopping. Ok tipu.
4. Nak jadi lebih fit. (Fat percentage iols nak bawah 20% with high muscle mass. Takpelah kalau orang cakap bahu besar, badan keras, bontot leper macam jantan. Tak kira nak jugak)
5. Nak berat 55kg.
6. Nak berkhidmat dengan parents lebih daripada sekarang.
7. Nak baca Quran hari-hari. Sikit pun jadilah.
8. Nak masuk pertandingan lari. (Start with 5km, 10km, so on...)
9. Nak travel lagi banyak to countries I haven't been to
10. Nak buat umrah.

Hehe. Dah azan maghrib. Jom Solat. ;)

XOXO,
Aisha

Gym Culture: Playing By Different Rules.

I knew trouble was on the horizon the moment a friend of mine told me probably about half of the guys at my gym is taking steroids and supplements like fat burners are like their Vitamin C.

When I started going to gym regularly 3 years ago, I’m actually glad somebody told me not to take supplement or fat burner too early on, when you can still lose weight the natural way. But after a while, you do reach a point of your natural limit, and you need to make a decision. Do you want to take it further? I believe that’s an individual choice. My basic science understanding regarding fat burner is, taking fat burners can prevent our ability to burn fat the natural way. Meaning that you’ll eventually become dependent on what you take and that it will lose some of it effectiveness. Our body will quickly become aware of the extra chemicals and so believes it does not need to burn as many itself. Or maybe the product increases our basal metabolic rate but may eventually disrupt our natural thyroid production. Same goes with hormones. Do you rather have extra of the fake testosterone rather than real one? IS IT WORTH IT? You choose.

I bet in any gym there are few ‘awesome’ looking people who stand out instantly among a sea of people with average looking bodies at best.  And that sea of average looking bodies at best people will think, “I need to find out what he/she doing so I can start doing it too and look awesome as he/she does”. Same goes when we look at fitness models, bodybuilders and A-list celebrities. We look at them, see the results they’ve gotten, and our first instinct is to replicate whatever it is they are doing.

Now here comes the part that separates average people with principled people.

It seems like a great idea and we’ve all probably been there before. But in reality, most of this hormones/stimulants/chemicals have different side effects in different people. I mean, its biology! Who can tell what works fine for them will work with our body just as good without the side effects?

What I learned is that, the next time some big guy (or big girl) comes over to give you training advice that is not inline with what you read and teach yourself, be careful. Chances are they are using whatever god knows drugs and chemicals. And if he does, whatever worked for him won’t work for you because you’re playing by very different rules.

And btw, I cannot wait to start training with my pink gloves. hehe. Tetiba kan kuar tajuk? takde kena mengena pun. Sukati i lah. Lol 

 XOXO,

Aisha :)

Pray.

"There will come a day when this veil of deception will be lifted. On that Day, we will see the true reality. On that Day, we will realize that two rak`at (units) of prayer were greater than everything in the heavens and the earth. There will come a day when we would give up everything under the sky just to come back and pray those two rak`at". -YM-

One thing I hate during TOTM (no, not the cramps) is the fact that I cannot pray. 

Few times people tell me, "You kan alim...you solat". Ramai orang rasa solat, pakai tudung (tak kisahla khusyuk or betul ke tak tudungnya) tu dah kira alim. Padahal, itu adalah requirement basic setiap orang Islam. If you believe in the day of judgement you should know that the first thing Allah will ask is about your 5 daily prayers. Kalau kita ni pemurah macam Oprah Winfrey pun tapi kalau tak solat rugi je sebab awal-awal dah fail dihisab. 

But what I'm trying to say here, we don't need to wait until the day of judgement to know the result of our Solat. Solat is like our daily conversation with Allah. Try this, lepas habis salam, duduk 2 minit talk to Allah in your Doa about your day. Dulu my doa selepas solat is very typical (belajar dari sekolah rendah). Yang biasalah, doa Allah ampunkan dosa, doa untuk ibu bapa, doa nak kaya, doa jadikan kita ahli syurga, etc. etc. Bukan nak kata doa tu bosan ke ape tapi macam dah jadi habit so kadang-kadang tak feel sangat. What I start doing recently is I talked to Allah about my day especially when I had a bad day. Dulu untuk benda-benda cani call kawan-kawan, lepak McD makan eskem nangis cerita kat member kan? haha. Sampai member pun nak muntah dengar benda yang sama 10x. Bukan itu saje, dahla sedih tak hilang tambah gemuk plak makan McD kan? Ehh..terbabas. Sorry. hehe

Try talking to Allah whatever you want to talk to your spouse, best friends or boyfriends. Susah nak cerita, you need to experience this yourself. Kena concentrate, believe in your heart that He is really listening to you. One can only experience it to know. Lagi seronok kalau time Qiyam. Bole nangis sepuas-puas hati. Subhanallah, few times after I did this my life transformed. The way I see things changed, the burdens i feel semua hilang. Rasa lega. My problems become solved. And the best part is the closeness to Allah, which I thought was unreachable for me. 

I'm not even writing this to tell you why you should pray, it is just the results of praying that you can cash out. TODAY. NOW. You don't even have to wait until the day of judgement pun. 

He Listens. He really does. Janji Allah itu benar. 

Believe that whatever your problem is, Allah can help you. So talk to Him. Pray. 

XOXO,

Aisha

As 2012 comes to an end.

Ehem.

Before I decide what are my new year resolutions for 2013, lets just summarised what I learned so far. Thinking about life and sorting out what we have learned is just as important as planning our life ahead. Kan? Besides I'm still high on endorphins from working out so I cannot sleep. So here goes. 

I am 27 and this year I learned that...

1. I don't have to be good at something to enjoy doing it. Practice and consistency is the key. 

Gym is like my second home nowadays. I started going to gym consistently since September and i swear the first month was damn challenging. Making the time to exercise and setting goals are hard enough, but adding to that is the muscle soreness that comes with adapting to the regime. Nak gosok gigi pagi-pagi pun susah, nak pakai baju pun sakit. Haaa. 

Setiap kali rasa sakit badan dan malas nak pegi gym, I reminded myself not to 'manja' sangat. Practice! Practice! over and over again! macam dalam poster Body Pump tu, "When your body screams, tell them to shut up". 

The result i got after only 3 months has been amazing. Well of course, I'm still struggling at the gym. It never gets easier. Doing lunges with 8kg dumbbells, 30 jump squats, sumo squats, or push-up row still scare the hell out of me but I do it anyway. The pain? Don't bother me that much anymore :)

2. Always always vision your end result

Credit to Mr. FRH that introduce me to MC Barao. Lol. I want that body:

Weight: 115lbs

Body fat: 12%

Muscle mass: 101.2lbs

Measurement:32-28-33

OK, this may be like aiming for the moon. But they say, dream big. If you miss, you will still land among the stars <3 :)

3. When it comes to relationship, don't let the same people drain you over and over again.

It's not hard to find someone who tells you they love you, it's hard to find someone who actually means it. So don't rush love, don't settle. 

Here some self-explainatory pictures. Go nuts!

4. Stand up for yourself, don't expect somebody else to do it for you

When face with conflicts, always be honest with yourself and others. Not to the point that honesty becomes inconsiderate but it's better to be upfront when you have to rather  than concealing things and expect it to get better. 

5. Never have expectations when it comes to people other than yourself. 

I learned the hard way that biggest disappointments in life are the result of expectations. So I'm keeping it low, or have no expectations at all. It is better not to assume, not to wonder, not to imagine and not to obsess. Always love and accept the real people in front of you, not the fantasy of who you hope and wish these people could become. Ok tak? :)

6. Take take take risks!!

Take risks, make mistakes. So what? So bila ade peluang buat benda yang menakutkan, redah je. Set. 

6 points cukup lah. Laterrrrrr...

Life is a journey, often difficult and sometimes incredibly cruel; but you are well equipped. :)

XOXO,
Aisha :)

How shall i start?

I know you can find gazillions of blog entries and articles on how to lose weight on the internet kan? Some are good. Some are bullshit. Some are just plain boasting. Personally, I don't believe everything i read or heard that easily. Kumpul knowledge banyak-banyak dan you decide what's best for you. (Baca dah banyak, buat nye tak jugak. Ye tak?)

1) SHOULD I DEPEND ON PRODUCT OR SUPPLEMENT?

For me, losing weight is easy. Keeping the weight off forever is what scares me. Historically (cewah) I've been on few slimming products. Memang cepat pun hilang berat. Naik balik pun cepat. Lalai sikit je, ha mula lah naik. Lagi satu semua produk ni banyak kena minum air. Ada yang 3L-5L. I used to bring 5L of water to work everyday for 2 months. Gigih tak mengangkut? Sanggup pegi toilet sejam 2-3 kali? Sanggup???!

Satu lagi, for how long are you planning to use the product? If you plan to use it forever and possibly a side income, then by all means please do so :)

2) CAN I JUST RUN OR JOG?

Can. if you simply want to lose weight but not many runners have hot, beautiful and muscular body. You notice? But still, being able to run half or full marathon is very impressive. Kan kan..

3) SHOULD I HIRE A TRAINER?

Yes. If :

a) You have the means

b) You are busy, you don't have time to figure what and how to exercise the right way

c) You are motivated enough but need an extra push

d) You don't like working out alone. (Monolog u cani: Macam freak je weh sorang2 dari satu machine ke satu machine. Losernyeeee! maluuuu!)

No. If :

b) You are too lazy to exercise. (Having a trainer won't make you rajin, its all in your head)

c) You always come out with 300 reasons for not working out. Better don't waste your money. You are already hopeless

d) The reason why you want a trainer is because trainers are HOT! Auww (this is by far the worst reason to have a trainer)

In my case, I enjoy having a personal trainer. :)

4) I DON'T WANT TO LIFT WEIGHTS.

Then don't. 

Just don't say to people (out loud) that you don't want to lift weights because you are scared it will make your biceps huge like poppye or Chyna. 

Because you won't. 

5) WHAT SHOULD I EAT

Eat in moderation, learn to control your food intake. Choose the right food. 

Forget:

1. Air manis

2. Kicap

3. Sos

4. Mayonis

5. Roti putih 

6. Bergoreng-goreng

7. Excessive garam. Buanglah MSG dalam kamus hidup anda

8. Carbonated drinks

9. Fast food

10. Desert (this is hard, but try lah. Kalau tak makan ni kejap je bole hilang berat)

WEIGHT LOSS IS A JOURNEY OF SELF DISCOVERY. YOU DECIDE WHAT YOU WANNA DO. HOW FAR YOU CAN GO. HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT. 

OR..

YOU CAN STAY FAT FOREVER.

ITS YOUR CALL

XOXO,

Aisha ;)

I am back, better than ever ;)

Omaagad.

Its been one year since I write. You noticed the last post was about new year resolution? Lol. Then i stopped because at one point, it felt like my life is a diary laid bare. Konon tak cool. Ceh. But hell, looking back I'm glad i did.

Sebab ape? Sebab my memory is so short term, and getting shorter nowadays. 

Sebab writing helps to remind me that I have purpose in life. To share my thoughts, insights and maybe few advices to whoever going through similar circumstances. Or sway people's thinking in a certain direction? :p (Yela from malas exercise kepada rajin exercise ke..from penakut nak speak up jadi lebih brani ke..pada yang malas nak sambung belajar kepada rajin ke..kan)

Maybe I can the change the world? hehe

But honestly, i need to stay connected. Doing what I do, I don't have time to socialise with friends other than on Whatsapp and facebook. Pathehic. Keluar jalan tengok movie? karaoke? dating? memang tak lah. And next year (ehem ehem) probably i'll be busier than ever. Keluar berjimba hanyalah tinggal kenangan manis kot. sob sob

So. Hence the need to blog. (panjangnye mukaddimah ko nyah!)

What I did sepanjang 2012? Cekidaud yo! Ok rempit ejaan tu. Lupakan! Check it out! 

1.  I started working with a pharmaceutical MNC. In Sales! 

Ramai orang melayu tak suka buat kerja sales. Tapi sekarang dah makin ramai daripada dulu. Takut kot sebab being in sales you need to be competitive, it is by hook or by crook performance based and need to achieve your target. Even i interview for a different position back then. But the company requires sales experience lebih kurang camtu lah. So I tercampak kat sales department. Coming from a GLC background, i immediately fell in love with the people, the work environment, the supportive bosses and of course my work. The time is flexible and the variable pay is quite high. And so, i was hooked ;)

And while doing my MBA, I realised that sales experience do come in handy. You want to climb the corporate ladder, and want to do it fast? Make sure you have sales experience in your resume ;)

2. I'm a certified scuba diver 

Diving can be scary at first. I mean, you can mati lemas, kena gigit haiwan laut, your tank habis oxygen or you can hilang tiba-tiba kena culik ikan yu. Kan? MEMANG PUN!

Memang cuak gila tapi best sebab by your second dive and after you overcome sakit tekak dan pedih mata yang tak terkata-kata, you see the underworld is so huge and you are only one teeny-tiny creature. It is so damn beautiful. In 40 minutes at 20ft below the sea level, I said 'subhanallah' more than ever. Hati tak berhenti cakap 'Ya Allah, cantiknye'.

But then again, I experienced Mabul underwater. Kalau you pegi semenanjung Malaysia pastu nampak air keruh dan seekor ikan nemo je jangan marah I. hehe.

3. I am healthier! 

Ok semua orang tahu I obsessed pegi gym dah hilang berbelas kilo. But I'm only halfway through my goal. Bulan March 2013 baru bole cerita success story. Kalau success la. Kalau tak, diam je. Yadaa Yadaa. Bosan. Tapi yang penting, bukan kurus je. Yang penting kena exercise dan kena jaga makan. I nak promote healthy lifestyle. Bukan setakat kurus wow dah sexy. Ok bye. 

4. I started travelling

So far I've been to Japan, South Korea, Scotland, England, Wales, South Africa, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia. More to come in 2013! Muda-muda kena travel, cari pengalaman tengok negara orang. Orang Jepun suka beratur. suka sangat. hobi diorang beratur. Weirdo.

Tengok gambar masa i gemuk. Nak amik gambar kena angle tepi. Haaa siapa rasa dia gemuk, amik gambar cani. Kalau taknak, exercise! Semua angle boleh amik lepas tu :)

Next post, my new year resolution! Hehe.

XOXO,

Gossip Girl 

Aisha Mohamood 

2012 Resolution. It took me 26 years to realise this. Have you??

Assalamualaikum ya'll.

3 more days to go before we welcome 2012 and bid farewell to 2011. I personally feel that 2011 is the year i grew a lot spiritually and getting to know what actually my life is all about. Some of you may think who needs another new year resolution? It will only lasts until March anyway. Until recently, what i learned about new year's resolution is pretty much from CLEO magazine. I want to lose 20kg!! Or get that senior executive position!! Or I'm gonna get married!! Or I'm going to get a diving license!! Yada yada. I don't realise how secular the world has make me.

You see, I'm a planner freak. I often feel empty without having any strategic goals to achieve. And Alhamdulillah, I achieved a lot of things that i THOUGHT i wanted. It looks like I'm all set and ready to face new challenges and new life goals.

But having said all that, why do i feel tired but unfulfilled? It feels like I'm constantly in search of something more fulfilling after achieving each goals. At one point, losing 10kg is a piece of cake. (Keeping the weight off is THE challenge but i couldn't care less, losing it is freakishly easy)

This coming year, it'll be different. I already found my ULTIMATE LIFE GOAL. Whatever my resolutions would be after this are my MEANS for me to fulfil that lifelong goal. The challenge is 100 times harder and the reward would be 1000 times better InsyaAllah.

The goal is to be closer to Allah. To my religion. Period. That simple. (CLICHE nye la minah kan!!!)


The thing about this ultimate goal is, it should NOT BE ONLY MINE. If you are a practising Muslim, you pray 5 times a day, you fast during Ramadhan, you went to or want to go to Haj and you believe in Rasulullah S.A.W...you might want to take this seriously. 


After understanding this is your goal as a MUSLIM, now its time to pick your means toward achieving it for this particular year.

In general, Islam teaches its believer to look for balance in life. We don't want to miss out on 'Dunia' at the same time collecting good deeds for 'akhirat'. As long as you put your deen and akhirat in front of dunia, InsyaAllah you will be fine. But how do we do that? What is the thin line between putting akhirat above everything else and yet get akhirat at the same time? (Yaaa..this is the part that took me twenty freaking years to get it through my thick head) 


For me, (this part varies for different individual) i want to achieve these 7 main things in life until the day i die. I will highlight the sentence that making it a MEANS to the ultimate goal of getting closer to Allah.

1. DEEN -  I want to be a good muslimah. I want to be that sort of person who put religion in front of everything else.

2. EDUCATION - I want to finish DBA. Knowledge is the foundation of Iman

3. CAREER - I want to be somebody significant in the company. I want to contribute. We need more successful practising muslims to influence and be decision maker. 

4. FAMILY - I want to keep good ties with them. I strongly believe that successful people have good relationship with their family. Soon, insyaAllah to learn how to be a good wife and how to raise little khalifahs


5. FINANCE - I want to have lots of money. Who doesn't? But money would stay only in my HANDS never let it touch MY HEART. Spend money on people, not on self. (Dalam setiap harta kita sebenarnya ada bahagian orang lain, bukan semua hak kita)


6. HEALTH - I want to be healthy and fit so i can live long. Our body is Allah's gift. It is definitely an important tool for us to make ibadah. Hopefully, being healthy means I can wake up at night and pray. 


7. SOCIAL LIFE - I want to surround myself with the best of people. Intelligent people with ethics and values. People that can help bring the best in me. Do you know that our social life is about the average of 5 people we spend most of our time with? Who do spend time lately? Look at your friends. They are YOU.

These seven aspects are my MEANS to get closer to Allah, which is my GOAL. In each of these seven part, Al-Quran and Sunnah teach me some very specific way to follow. You see how balanced and complete ISLAM is my dear friend? Subhanallah. Everything is laid bare in front of us. Its either we go and look for it or get distracted by something less significant.

Its all about a change in perspective. Let me give you an example of how wrong and twisted things could be if we don't put Allah as our goal.

Heedless goal: Get married to Mr. X

How to achieve: We make doa to Allah to let me marry Mr. X. If he doesn't want to, open his heart ya Allah...let him see me and only me ya Allah (contoh doa kita la kan..cewahh)

Problem: Our knowledge is limited. Does marrying Mr. X makes me close to Allah? Even if he is the best Muslim guy there is. If marrying him do not make me closer to god would you still wants Allah to grant you that wish? Whats your choice? Your Deen or your Man? If deep down, you are picking your Man...TETTTTT. 

Lets turn the situation around if we put getting closer to Allah as our goal.


Goal: Get closer to Allah

Means/Tools: Make doa, istikharah, etc. to let us marry Mr. X if the marriage is good for my relationship with Allah. If Allah give him to you, it is for the best. If not, forget Mr. X, look for Mr. Y. (wink wink)


Selingan, this is my favourite ayat from Surah Al-Furqan, 78 (if i'm not mistaken)

"Ya Tuhan kami, anugerahkan kami pasangan dan keturunan kami sebagai penyenang hati dan jadikanlah kami pemimpin bagi orang-orang yang bertakwa."


There goes. Honestly, what i write is nothing new. Its just a new and better perspective that i feel i need to share with people close to me. It change my life and how I see the world. It feels like my journey now does not lead me to nowhere. It leads me to Allah, insyaAllah. I hope it can help you too. :)

Wassalam.