Journey to Manhunt Singapore 2014 (Part 8)

We're exactly 2 months away from the Final show of Manhunt Singapore 2014 and everything seems to be building up now! Loads of media coverage and publicity events!

So in this post, I'm going to share with you guys what went down on Manhunt Singapore 2014 Press Conference.

Date: 26 June 2014
Time: 3pm
Venue: Filmgarde Cineplex at Bugis+

All 26 of us reported at 12pm and in this short 3 hours, we had to go through rehearsals, collect our outfits and most importantly, getting our hair styled and make up done!

A shot with Ram after claiming our sponsored outfit, PUDU Singapore

We were told to be creative with our outfits

Putting my new flops from Bali into good use

Next stop, we had to gather for rehearsals.....

In position! (frm left: Daryl, Baron, Khalis, Ehten, Jason)

Some random shots while Reeve and I were queuing up for hair styling & make up

Another shot with the guys!

When we were all styled and ready to rock the stage, there was a segment called "Relac one corner!!!"

Don't we look Badass?!

The 3 sleepy guys!

And the moment that we've all been waiting for..... time to rock the stage!!!

Love this shot! Paparazzi feel!!

Lining up before entering the hall

Our lovely makeup artist, Ben, making sure that everyone look their best

Time for my self intro

Done with the 1st segment.. moving on to SWIMWEAR!!

Shot with Reeve!

Gun were definitely not loaded! SKINNY!

Guess what we did immediately after the swim wear segment?? Put our clothes back on la!!!! haha.. so we all went back up to level 7 for group photo taking..

16 Junior Manhunt contestants

I was also lucky enough to be one of the few to be featured on The Newpaper & Newpaper Video.

Feels really great to be featured when it comes to health & fitness

Click here to find out why some of the contestants think they are sexy!!
Manhunt Singapore 2014 Press Conference

So that's all for the happenings during the Press Conference. It was a super fun experience! Really enjoyed the company of all the contestants. It doesn't feel like we're competing again each other at all. I will like to thank Edward for taking all these wonderful photos and keeping us entertained throughout the entire event.

Many more events and happenings coming up so you better stay tuned. Meanwhile, train hard & God bless!

Journey to Manhunt Singapore 2014 (Part 7)

So here I am. Back again to complete my Lab Series post! This post is going to be really fun simply because Lab Series did something really beneficial for all 26 Manhunt Contestants! Ready to find out? Lets go!!!

After having our skin analysed at Lab Series Store @ Ion Orchard, I didn't know what the staff was going to do with all the data. We then found out that there was going to be a Lab Series workshop of all 26 contestants the following Saturday.

Boy were we in for a treat! Never crossed my mind that I will attend a workshop for skin care but thanks to Manhunt & Lab Series, we are all able to understand the importance of maintaining a healthy skin from a young age.

Believe it or not, it was my first time meeting some of the fellow contestants! Was really great to finally meet everyone in person and to be honest, the atmosphere was really positive and everyone was just so genuine towards each other!

Here are some of the happenings during the Lab Series Workshop

Presenter going through some fun facts of mens' skin

We were given Lab Series products based on our skin analysis results! Time to was our faces!

Changing a new basin of water for the next segment with Nigel

Next it was time for some shaving! Believe it or not, I've never shave my beard in my life! 

So after the workshop, we were told that there'll be a short interview with last year's Manhunt contest, Rafi.

Click to watch my interview

Nicholas & I chilling!

So here are the products that I've received from Lab Series.

I've been using these products for the past 2 weeks and I'm loving the results! Will like to take this opportunity to thank Lab Series for being so generous to all the Manhunt Contestants! We're all sold to this brand already because it is truly a really awesome brand. Big thanks to Edward for taking time off to snap all these photos for us too! 

Will be back soon with more interesting posts! Till then, take care & God bless!

Journey to Manhunt Singapore 2014 (Part 6)

Now now.. with the increase of Manhunt events happening, I'm quite behind in my blog post for my Manhunt journey. So I'll be using this post to clear 3 events and all of them are by the amazing LAB SERIES.

Received a phone call from Debbie (our hardworking coordinator) that myself, together with 4 other contestants, were invited to the Introducing of Singapore's New Celebrity Endorser at Kuro bar.

Everyone should know who the new Celebrity endorser is by now but if you're still unaware, it is the one and only Shane Pow.

Courtesy of www.hisstylediary.com

I've always heard of the skin care brand Lab Series but I was really impressed with the history, vision as well as the brand positioning of Lab Series when the Brand Manager, Christine did the opening speech for this event.

Shane was then introduced to the public as the new Celebrity Endorser. We were then directed to this really cool room with 3 huge posters of Shane for the signing of the event.

We managed to grab a shot with Shane too!

Kelvin Lee(Beam Artistes Manager), Nicholas Ngo, Reeeve, GuoJin, Me, Baron

A shot of Samuel Seow

The following Monday, the 5 of us we invited to Lab Series store at Ion Orchard for a mini tour as well as to get our skin tested. I was really impressed with the amount of thought put in when designing of the store. As you may already know, Lab Series is a skin care brand that only focuses on Men. So naturally, the store is designed  for the convenience and comfort of men. That's such a refreshing thought isn't it? Been awhile since I heard some emphasis on men being placed during any decision making process!! *Two thumbs up for Lab Series*

After the introduction to the store, it was time to get our individual skin analysed. As there were only 2 counters to do that, the rest of us decided to have some fun!

Next, it was my turn to get tested!!

The consultant explained every step clearly to allow me to understand what she was actually testing with the diagnostic tool. The result is broken down into 5 components: Flakiness, Tone, Texture, Oil Level & Firmness.

Next, based on the results from the analysis, the consultant will use the recommended products to do the 3 steps facial regime. Any one from the public can enjoy this service too!

And like every event, we always end of with a nice group shot! Thank you so much to Edward for taking time off to snap photos for us! Really nice of u.

Really though I have the time to cover the Lab Series workshop in this post. Seems like my wrong! Will be back really soon to cover that!

Have a great weekend everyone and stay fit & healthy!

How fitness has changed my life!

It's been almost a week since my last post and it's time to take you guys on a short trip down memory lane. In this post, I'll be sharing with you some really retro photos of myself (as well as some of my friends who were in the photos..sorry guys!! Good old days ya).

The intention of this post is to show you how my physique was like before I started my fitness journey. Everyone's physique is different and we should all embrace our genetic make up. It is really important to know your body type before prescribing the type of fitness regime and food intake so quick crash course before we start......

I bet this is the most widely used image for body type and it's already getting boring!! But I can't find anything better or clearer than this so here we go again.

From Left to Right:

Ectomorph

An ectomorph is a typical skinny guy. Ecto’s have a light build with small joints and lean muscle. Usually ectomorph’s have long thin limbs with stringy muscles. Shoulders tend to be thin with little width.

Characteristics of an ectomorph

• Small “delicate” frame and bone structure
• Classic “hardgainer”
• Flat chest
• Small shoulders

Mesomorph

The mesomorph body type responds the best to weight training. Gains are usually seen very quickly, especially for beginners. The downside to mesomorphs is they gain fat more easily than ectomorphs.

Characteristics of an mesomorph

• Athletic
• Generally hard body
• Well defined muscles
• Rectangular shaped body

Lastly, we have the Endomorph

The endomorph body type is solid and generally soft. Endomorphs gain fat very easily. Endo’s are usually of a shorter build with thick arms and legs.

Characteristics of an endomorph

• Soft and round body
• Gains muscle and fat very easily
• Is generally short
• "Stocky" build

Here's a quick test to find out your body type:

As you can see in the photo, wrap your fingers around your wrist reaching for your middle finger with your thumb. 

There will 3 possible scenarios:

1) Your thumb and middle finger are not able to touch one another(Endomorph)

2) Your thumb and middle finger are just touching one another (Mesomorph)

3) Your thumb is able to overlap your middle finger (Ectomorph)

From the photo, you can clearly see that I am an ectomorph. 

But here comes the tricky part... 

Can we be a mixture of 2 different body type? There are many debates over this issue and I personally like to think that it is possible. I think that I have a bit of mesomorph in me as well because with good training and nutrition, I can put on good lean muscles as well.

Now back to history, I used to be really skinny and lengthy (Ht 180 Wt 60kg) when I was in Secondary school and there were loads of interesting nicknames given to me back then. One that I remembered very clearly was CHICKEN WING!! Not really sure why.. but maybe because I was just skin and bones.. just like chicken wings. I often wondered how I managed to get some pretty girlfriends during my Sec sch days!!

Thumbs up for the baggy jeans and colour combi!! =)

I tried to eat as much as possible but I can't seem to gain any weight at all. I was constantly getting remarks that I should be eating more because my younger brother is taller and bigger than me. 

I was introduced to the weight room by my best friend, Nicholas, back when we were in Secondary school but it never really appealed to me. But when I turned 18, I started becoming really annoyed with the way I look and decided to start researching on gym workouts. Back then, the internet was still quite a new thing and information wasn't as readily available. I relied purely on books and magazines from the library to help me get something started.

Photo taken on my 18th bday.. with some push up regime. Pretty genetically gifted I must say!

Poly yr 3 project. I should be weighing around 70kg then

I managed to gain about 15kg during my poly days and my enlistment came. So I pretty much stopped training and only resumed when I entered SIM. 

Played loads of tennis when I booked out from camp

Emo kid trying to look cool.. Yr 1 of SIM

Organiser for SIM-RMIT Sports day 2007

I left army weighing around 70kg and was looking really slim once again. So I decided to kick start everything from scratch and make sure I did it right this time round. There was plenty of information on the internet and also more people around me were working out. So that made things much easier than before! 

Post workout selfie with Jovin. Before selfie became a hit!

And that was when I realised that this is something that I'm really passionate for and decided to get my PT cert.

I became a Personal trainer in 2008 and really enjoyed it! Still giving training till today because it's something that I am really passionate for and believe that it will be able to change someone's life as well.

Got featured on CLEO Magazine in 2010

Thanks for reading and for those of you who felt that I'm genetically gifted and have it all easy.. here you go!

It's really quite a journey for me and I believe that everyone's fitness journey is unique in its own way. But one thing is for sure, it is never going to be easy. And no one should opt for easy! So train hard and enjoy your very own fitness journey!

Take care & God bless!

Journey to Manhunt Singapore 2014 (Part 3)

Almost 2 weeks after my first Manhunt photoshoot, I was invited to Samuel Seow's birthday party together with the other manhunt contestants. I was really looking forward to the birthday party as I didn't get a chance to interact must with the fellow contestants the first time I met them cos I had to rush off immediately after the shoot.

So the location of the party was at Hood Bar & Cafe located at Bugis+. I came down from an evening programme for HPB's Lose to Win Season 7.

Warriors of LTW Season 7 (North Zone)

Was feeling famished when I arrived at Hood bar and was the last one to arrive.. So no chance to eat!! Went through a quick brief by our manager, Kelvin Lee, and found out that there was a segment where we had to be topless! *TOPLESS AGAIN??* No one informed me that I had to be topless.. so zero preparation was done prior to the even!! I concluded that whenever there's an event for Manhunt.. be prepared to be topless!! *lucky never eat*

The time was here and we were told to get in position to do a mini cat walk down the red carpet and up the stage for a short self introduction. We had a really cheeky emcee that night, Jaymee Ong, and she made it really fun for the 6 of us on stage.

The night ended with a heavenly cake, but sadly, I didn't get to try it! And that was how the night ended.. a group shot outside Hoods bar!

Group shot to end the night! What a fun bunch!

Was called back to Beam Artistes on 2nd April for an interview. A whole long list of interesting questions were answered during the interview session and I hope that it'll be shared somewhere soon!

Lemme take a selfie!

At the end of the interview segment, I was told to record a short video clip to introduce myself as well as to thank my family & friends. First time speaking in front of the camera! It was really fun but loads to improve!

You guys have been officially been brought up to speed for my journey to Manhunt Singapore 2014. The next time I'll be meeting with the the Manhunt gang should be in early May!

I've been really enjoying myself with training and dieting throughout these 3 months and have really seen my physique evolve. There's so much more to be achieve and I'll continue to work harder each day! If you guys are looking for fitness tips, do ask and I'll try my best to address them =)

Thanks so much for reading! Till the next blog post.....