Exercise – Page 2 – Cebu Sports Blog by John Pages

To my Best Friend: Happy Birthday!

First published in October 24, 2006, here’s a tribute to my best friend…

I don’t do this. Usually, I don’t yield space to send birthday greetings to friends. But this one’s special. This person is different. Someone I’ve known for many Septembers, opened my ears and listened to talk, someone whom I’ve heard sing—and what a voice, ranging from as high as Mariah Carey’s glass-breaking pitch to as deep as Aretha Franklin’s—and someone, with my wife’s consent, I’ve had the pleasure to spend almost an hour with each day.

Happy birthday, iPod! Yes, without the world noticing, it was five years ago yesterday—October 23, 2001—when Steve Jobs carried his baby on the palm of his hands and announced: “With iPod, listening to music will never be the same again.” Steve Jobs, what a proud dad you are today. While the walkman was “cool,” the CD “revolutionary,” and the turntable “all-vinyl,” the iPod is defined by more than one word: “It’s one of the most successful consumer electronics products—ever.”

Lift weights! Seven reasons why we should

Two weeks ago I bought myself a Christmas present: a bench press set with barbell and weights from JB Sports. With the dumbbells that I previously kept, I hung a full-size mirror on the cement wall, installed a portable speaker for the iPod Nano and created for myself a mini-gym at home.

Strength-training. Is it essential in sports? To musclemen like LeBron or Manny P. or Nadal—we know that weight-lifting has elevated their status to the top-most echelon of sports. But, to you and me, ordinary folks, is lifting weights important? To our fitness?

This 2009, if Barack Obama can… Yes We Can

Among all the superlatives that people attach beside the name of the incoming US President—“the first among 44,” “the new JFK,” “the savior of U.S.A. after the debacle named W.”—there is one more attribute that fits best on these back pages: “Exercise-in-Chief.”

Yes. Because while staring at Barack Obama’s scrawny look on CNN might give you the impression that, underneath that cover, he’s fragile and feeble—think again. He’s not.

Superman? Is he? Is there an “S” hidden underneath that dark suit? Ha-ha. It’s New Year’s Day—not April Fool’s Day—so I won’t lie to you in saying that he’s Will Smith-muscular.

Since you ate all fish, my advice: Be a fish!

ILOILO—Each Holy Week for the past three years, I’ve stayed at my wife’s uncle’s beach house in Oton, a town 20 minutes away from Iloilo City. Last year, I wrote an article in Sun.Star Cebu about a sport I exercised here each morning. Here’s a revised version of that piece…

Here in the rest house, right on the front lawn, sits a temptress. She’s dressed in all-blue, is sexy, and winks at me to jump on her. Her name? Swimming Pool. Ahhh… Is there any other four-letter word that best describes this lady in blue?

Why I Love…

I never used to drink one of the world’s most popular drinks. Every time I step inside Bo’s Coffee or walk beside a Coffee Dream kiosk—with no offense meant to Steve Benitez and Glenn Soco, my good friends who own our two most popular and home-grown coffee shops—I stare at the menu, pause for three seconds, and signal to order the same hot drink each time. Not cappuccino. Not cafe latte. Not a shot of espresso. But, yes, as corny as it sounds, a glass of hot tea.

Gift Suggestions For Christmas

If you’re still in search of gifts to hand out this Monday night, search no more: Buy the gift of exercise. No, no, no. You can’t burn calories for your mom, spouse or best friend—but you can buy a gift that’ll make him or her sweat. Here are some suggestions…

Treadmill. Ever since 12 months ago when I started running and running—my mileage up to 65 kms. per week now—the best purchase I’ve made is a treadmill. Our family started with a P25,000 machine. It was good. For six months. Then the rubber padding contracted a disease: It wouldn’t turn well. And so a few months ago, considering four in our family use the machine, we bought a P70,000 Kettler unit from JB Sports in SM. Today, if there’s rain outside or I want to sprint at 12 noon—which I would never do on the asphalt road—I jump on the treadmill. Simply put, it’s the best exercise equipment we’ve purchased.

Ho! Ho! Hold it!

“Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we shall…. diet!”

Haven’t you noticed? Santa Claus singing this tune every single Christmas for hundreds of centuries now to no avail? And for good reason…

Think of that mouth-watering La Marea warm-brownie cup. Or the turtle pie only Coffee Bean perfects. Or Homebakers’ merceditas and Leona’s Chocolate Surprise. Feast your taste buds on Victoria pineapple ham, Marca Piña queso de bola, fruit cake, Dondi Joseph’s red wines…

But wait, ho-ho-hold it! Before gorging any further, did you know that U.S. studies have concluded that the average weight gain during Christmas is seven pounds! Yup. Seven pounds of excess baggage. And we’re going to pay for it. Funny how we spend 11 months flicking that shuttlecock, pushing that barbell, or rolling down those tenpin orbs—only to lose it all in three weeks!

15 Ways To Keep Your Brain In Shape

My good friend Bobby Villareal sent these 15 tips a few days ago. They’re a must-read…

1. Just stop. Take 20-30 minutes out of your day to think about nothing. But don’t sleep – you’ve got to meditate. Sit still, reduce sensory input, and try to focus your mind on something like a calm scene or a color (to begin with thinking about something rather than trying to think of ‘nothing’ is easier). A study at the University of Kentucky revealed that subjects who took a late-afternoon test after meditating for 30 minutes had better scores than those who napped for the same time.

Spending P24,490 for a Happy New You!

I made a mistake. A few months ago, I wrote a column in Sun.Star Cebu entitled, “Spending P24,490 for a Happy New You!” It was new year and, I explained, what better gift to get yourself than a treadmill. Yes. That’s right. A treadmill. And a very inexpensive treadmill that costs less than P25,000. Aren’t treadmills supposed to cost much, much more? you ask. Yes.

Now, guess what? A week after the story below was published, our treadmill broke. It wouldn’t run. Tried to have it fixed but… no more. Hehehe. The lesson? Be careful what you write… Anyhow, here’s the piece below. And be careful buying that inexpensive item…