So there I was lying on my back with a giant silver ball clasped between my legs while G tried to explain how I was supposed to do the exercise. "Just clasp it tight and lift your body off the ground, slowly.”

The man was trying his best and showing me how to do it without injuring myself and all I could think of was, “Damn, I must look like an idiot”. Just picturing it set me off...doing the action itself gave me an even harder fit of giggles. I tried hard not to bounce the ball off my face or sprain an ab as I huffed and puffed to lift the freaking ball. Yup, typical Monday evening.

The pursuit of health or trying to look good is really quite ridiculous.

I get to clasp a giant silver ball between my legs others go for boot camp, running, swimming, yoga, or whatever suits their fancy. Do we even realize how ridiculous we look trying to achieve that perfect weight or the ideal body? You’re sweating, you smell like shit and you look even worse...for what? Do you even enjoy what the hell you’re doing?

Throughout the years, I have one very important mantra when it comes to any form of exercise – I must enjoy it. No matter how silly it looks or feels, I have to like it, otherwise it serves no purpose. Lose fat or weight the quickest way? I’m not interested. Boot camp? Please, that was so secondary school and meaningless. Go running at some ungodly hour in the morning, hell no! I fail to see how any of these can be enjoyable to me.

But throw in some jazz classes, some wakeboarding, some salsa dancing and I’m there! It’s not just about losing weight, it’s about enjoying the process while you do so. What is the point of sweating it out in the gym if you hated every second of it? So you want to achieve your ideal weight or body, but wouldn’t doing something you love take you much further than doing something you hated? Sometimes, reverse psychology is bullshit.

In part, the value of exercise has been so ingrained into us these days by the media and school that not doing a form of it seems wrong. The reason why I’m doing more of it and incorporating personal training it is because I’m vain – I need to fit into my performance costume and I simply cannot have all sorts of flab hang out. Hence the extra time allocated but I don’t hate my sessions.

Ironically, I don’t hate my sessions. Despite my loathing for the people who just sweat it out at the gym aimlessly or just pop by to admire themselves in the mirror, I look forward to my sessions. It is a good form of working off stress and I’m constantly entertained by G, who tends to break out into song ever so often. Top that, gym rats!

The good thing is, I’m seeing results and not a moment too soon...ok, adjusting your diet is also important...don’t just eat rubbish or guzzle and still expect to lose anything.

Meanwhile, I’m going to continue my sessions and round it off with my best impression of looking like roadkill...I simply cannot bounce off the floor like a spring chicken anymore :o)