When I left the journalism field for a content role, the word content unnerved me.

I identified as a reporter. I wrote articles, reported on events and filed stories. Then, 'story' was regarded as old-fashioned and 'content' was in.

What is content? It seemed like an abstract concept or buzzword that marketeers came up with. Argh. Was I a sellout?

Almost five years into the industry, the word 'storytelling' has made a comeback. Now, the title 'storyteller' (these days, it can be anyone who creates content, be it videos, articles, photography) is everywhere.

On the other side, I've fallen in love with creating interesting and valuable content for people just like you or myself, courtesy of brands.

I like that content marketing benefits the audience/consumer/you/me. 

As with any kind of advertising, consumers need to be discerning. But the brand/content creator cannot simply fluff and bluff. To be successful, one has to offer information the audience finds relevant, helpful and entertaining.

In a world of countless options, people want to be loyal to a brand whose principles resonates with them.

Companies that have an ethos should use content to put the word out there. Your target audience/tribe/cult/following/people are waiting to be rallied.

Before I started working out, I never thought much about my body, except what I perceived to be my flaws and the inevitable sense of doom that as I got older this body was going to sag and falter. 

In the past year, I started marveling at the human body. I got to know the body I owned much better. I started to know her quirks and weaknesses and strengths, how my lifestyle or past lifestyle contributed, and how it is unique from any other body, how the same kind of training or movement would affect, for example, my partner's body and mine differently.

I learned that for every strength there is an opposing weakness and vice versa, and how life is a journey of gaining balance.

Common imbalances of the human body

Biceps versus Triceps
As most yogis would tell you, yoga works the triceps (chaturanga anyone?) more than the biceps. As a result of that, my triceps are much stronger than my biceps. For the first year of my training I only did some half-hearted bicep curls here and there but in 2018 my goal is to get my biceps to catch up. In general, my back is also stronger than my chest, which means busting out the dreaded reps of push-ups.

Glutes versus Quads
I'm quad-dominant, which is a nice way of saying glute-retarded. For the first 3 months of my training, I barely worked my glutes and didn't even realise it until I experienced knee pain and went to see a physiotherapist. Many people have trouble activating their glutes because the muscles are weak from sitting all day. I spent 6 months super conscientiously doing glute activation exercises and now they have no issue firing up. However, because I'd spent so many years being quad-dominant and walking with an anterior pelvic tilt, I am still doing stretches and exercises to achieve balance for this.

Left versus right
My left leg is both more flexible and stronger than the right. During compound moves such as squats I can feel the left supporting most of the load. During isolation exercises I can feel the left firing up more easily. What I do is to constantly think mind-body connection and try to get the right leg to do more work. I have also started working on doing single legged exercises to encourage the right leg to catch up.

Big versus small muscles
The big muscles of my core are well-defined, but the smaller muscles need to work too. I am working on activating certain deeper core muscles to ensure the big muscles only need to do their work well without overcompensating for the stabilisers- because only the stabilisers can do their job well. I am very core-motivated because I want to be in as great shape as possible for a future pregnancy. 

What happens when you're asymmetrical?

Everyone's bodies are slightly asymmetrical. This is completely normal and could be due to genetics or lifestyle factors. The problem is when the imbalance leads to pain, doubt or compromise. 

Sometimes my hips feel out of place because the dominant quads are pulling on my hip flexors, and this affects my gait. There is a visual imbalance between my legs which will only worsen if I don't work on fixing it. Ignoring my weak core stabilisers means the tightness I experience in my lower back may eventually reduce my ability to do a stiff-legged deadlift.

Facing your weaknesses and making them known

I believe seeking balance is the goal of our lives. We all have strengths and weaknesses; often opposing sides of the same coin. You probably already know your strengths. Now look for the hidden weakness and show that weakness to someone, whether it's your physiotherapist, coach, your manager at work or most importantly, your life partner. Who knows, they may have once had that weakness too, which means they can share how they overcame it. Your weakness may also be a strength of theirs, which means they can afford you help.

I've found that the more forthcoming I am with what I am lacking in and my desire to work on it, the more people want to and can help me. You don't need to be perfect or stellar at everything you do, but you never want your weaknesses to impact your strengths.

Find someone you trust and let them in on your search for balance. When progress comes you will find you have someone to celebrate with. 

"Happiness is only real when shared."

For close to ten years of my life, ever since I graduated from junior college at 18, I led a sedentary lifestyle.

In all those years, I had gone for a handful of yoga classes and maybe 5 runs. My only saving grace was I enjoyed walking and would often opt for a 15 minute stroll in the evenings instead of a public transport commute.

In July 2016, I decided to integrate exercise into my life again. My partner had picked up working out again for close to a year and I was motivated by that. I got onto a stationery bike in the gym, cycled at levels 3-5 for 12 minutes, staggered off and almost threw up after that. It took a good 15 minutes before the nausea went away. 

The first few months of working out were no doubt the most difficult. I'd never identified as a fitness/active person and even till today I am amazed how big a part of my life training is. How did I make it through the initial months? Here are some of the things I did that kept me going:

1. Find a good workout mentor
 He/she should be encouraging, knowledgeable and will lead you by example, by being consistent with his/her own workouts. You want a mentor who will tell you how it is ("You have to push yourself if you want to see results!" "The first few workouts are the worst, they're going to get better!"), offer you helpful tips ("Do these stretches if you're starting to feel tight." "Good form is the most important thing." ) and uplifts you ("See your progress? You were gasping the last time you did this!"). 

My partner is my workout buddy and without a doubt he is the biggest reason for my success on this journey.

You can ask a friend who workouts regularly to help you or even find a workout buddy online/in forums. In my experience, having someone who already has workout experience helps, so it's not the blind leading the blind. That said, a committed new-to-workout buddy will make a huge difference too.

2. Make working out simple and accessible
The first month I started working out, I did 'basic' things such as running and climbing stairs. I only had intermittent access to a gym and the rest of the time, I found activities I could do without any equipment. My workouts never took more than 30 minutes and I didn't need to go out of my way for them. I did a lot of reading online, learned about the TABATA method (A four-minute workout! I did sprints.) and followed body weight circuits from Kayla Itsines (28 minutes only) and FitnessBlender (anything from 10 to 90 minutes). You don't need to join a gym or completely rework your schedule to get some activity in.

3. Keep an inspiration board
Every morning before I got out of bed, I would scroll through Pinterest for a few minutes before gearing myself up for the workout of the day. I pinned images of girls who looked fit, who had abs, who were in gravity-defying yoga poses. I wanted to look like that, be like that and do those things. That was a huge source of motivation for me. I also pinned lots of motivational quotes that I would look at over and over and over again. 

4. Plan your workouts in advance
I worked backwards - deciding on the outcome I wanted and breaking down the steps necessary to get there. 

For example, I wanted to do a minimum of three workouts a week every week, planned them (for eg, one cardio, 2 times body weight circuits) and made sure I hit my goal by the end of the week. You need to plan and make time for your workouts, or the bed or a dinner out or a TV show will always call more loudly than your sweat sesh. The more you stick to your commitments, the more impossible the idea of letting yourself down will become. 

I also found that a 'lazy' goal like 'one run a week' or 'a yoga class a week' made little sense to me. It wasn't enough of a lifestyle/mental change. It also felt to me like a way to give yourself an 'out', to say you are being active, when you know the human body should be doing more.

5. Set a time frame 
Results don't come instantly. Just as one day of being inactive or eating poorly didn't put your body in its current state, you won't see results after just one or two workouts. I recommend aiming for 12 weeks of consistency.

The first month you will probably feel achy and out of breath most of the time, but by the second month, your body will have adapted considerably. I could barely do a lunge when I first started, but after 2-3 months, I could bust out 20 walking lunges with just some sweat. Tell yourself that no matter what, you're going to stick with this commitment for three months. 

By the time I'd completed 12 weeks of workout, whether I'd built my perfect body didn't matter, I was just so proud of what I'd managed to do I wanted to do more of it.

6. Never miss a workout
If you've committed to X number of workouts, always follow through. Sometimes life gets in the way, you may fall sick or have to work late. But each time you miss a workout, it gets easier to let another one go. One way to keep going is to make sure you complete the missed workout later in the week as soon as you can, so you know you can't get away from it. What matters is you plan and commit to yourself BEFORE you start, and not make easy decisions along the way. 

7. Reward yourself when you hit your goals
The first weeks I started exercising, I wore whatever I already had. That amounted to 2 sports bras, cheap tights and a pair of 5-year-old sports shoes that were falling apart from disuse. I would browse the athlete sections of shops (I started with the budget friendly CottonOn) and only allow myself to buy an outfit every month as a reward.  

I never used food as a reward, because I wanted the effects of working out visually and mentally and adding food to that just seemed like it would complicate things. 

I had never ever thought of myself as someone who was disciplined or into fitness. Now, 1.5 years in, I cannot imagine a life where fitness isn't a huge part of it. All these tips will help you stick to a routine, but ultimately you need to want it bad enough to do the work. Working out is hard, but the rewards you will get are massive.

Since my partner and I embarked on our fitness lifestyle a couple of years ago, chicken breast has been the holdfast of our kitchen. It's one of (if not the) best sources of lean protein around and a staple for bodybuilders and athletes and 'fitnessy folks' alike for that reason. 

Chicken breast was my favourite cut of meat as a child. But in the past years, we consumed it so often, I would dread mealtime if I knew chicken breast or fillet was waiting. (I was still good with thigh and wings ha ha.)

Last week I decided to whip up a Thai-inspired chicken dish for us and I'm happy to say that for one glorious meal, we were unfazed by the fact that we were eating chicken breast.

Cooking and prep time: 10-20 minutes

Ingredients (feeds a hungry couple post workout, or 3 regular people? Gauge according to the number of chicken breasts you usually eat.)

• *3 chicken breasts, minced (Use a food processor. I am not good with machines, so I get my strong brave man to do this part.)
• *At least a handful of basil leaves (I love basil, so the more the merrier for me. Look out for the Thai variety but any would do.)
• *Sea salt
• *Garlic (at least 3 cloves)
• *Olive oil (1-2 tablespoon)
• Vietnamese fish sauce
• Soy sauce
• Almonds (whole, crushed or chopped, or your other nut(s) of choice. I recommend around 15. You can count the number of nuts used according to your food goals.)
• Chili to taste (I cut up one small chili + used 3 shakes of chili powder) AND/OR 
• Half tomato or 5 cherry tomatoes, chopped up
• Bone broth powder (optional, 1-2 scoops)

Method

1. Mince chicken and marinate with 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 2 tablespoon fish sauce and sprinkling of salt (leave for at least 10 minutes).
2. Chop up garlic, wash and tear up basil leaves.
3. Heat wok, put in olive oil, lightly brown garlic. I use high heat the entire time.
4. Throw in chicken mince (the meat will likely start clumping up into one giant patty, leave it be for 30 seconds or so, then use your spatula to break up them and stir fry. It takes 2-4 minutes for the chicken to be cooked on the outside and for the pieces to break apart.).
5. Throw in basil leaves, tomatoes and nuts, keep stir frying.
6. Throw in bone broth powder (I recommend to mix with a small amount of water to prevent clumps, else you will need to stir even more rigorously).
7. Chicken should be fully cooked about 7-10 minutes in. Add more basil, chili, salt, soy sauce or fish sauce to taste.
8. Let it simmer until juices are more or less dried up.

Notes:

• If you don't have access to Asian sauces, you can recreate a similar taste using salt, honey and lime.
• I used a mix of salt and soy sauce because my partner is sensitive to soy and loves salt.
• *If you are simply looking for a meal for fuel, and just need a way to cook chicken breasts, the *starred ingredients are the absolute essentials to recreate the basic taste of this dish. Everything else is just going to make it tastier. 
• Overall cooking time is much shorter for minced meat. Plus, the chances of biting into a semi-raw chicken breast is drastically lower.
• Bone broth is rich in collagen and protein and is said to be great for joints, gut health and skin. I use bone broth powder to add a meaty taste to dishes, the same way one may use chicken broth or a broth cube or even the dreaded MSG. I use the Ancient Nutrition Brand by Dr Axe.

There is so much beauty in a pre-dawn world. 

For 8 years of my student life, I had to wake up at 4.15am to travel from Johor Bahru to Singapore for school. 

The chill of the air, the darkness punctuated by the last standing streetlight, the buzz of insects and chirping of the birds and the smile of the bus driver who only has a smattering of passengers. All of this I remember fondly.

The insidious violence of those mornings have also stayed with me. The harsh fluorescent light in my bedroom flicking on, cold water and a harsh facial scrub for ill-behaved teenage skin, being forced to gulp down breakfast with a churning stomach and the ever-present threat of being mugged as I waited for the morning bus.

The rising cacophony of car honks and the smell of exhaust -- they assaulted my senses and gave me a sense of safety.

As a young adult, I abandoned the act of waking up early and embraced the snooze button.

The past week, though, I’ve found the same wonder in those moments before the sun creeps up, in the stillness, in opening my eyes and experiencing the cycle of light and darkness human bodies are built to go though. And now, because it is my call, because this is part of a ritual, because it is done with intention, I feel a spark of excitement as I flutter into consciousness. I know that if I get up in the next minute I am going to be rewarded greatly for that one single bit of effort, that this decision will change the course of my day.

The sky is a dark bluish grey as my beloved and I fold and elongate our limbs, as we shake the drowsiness from our bones. The bed creaks as we step out. 

Together, we've completed our first act of the day, one part of a promise to own this life together and for each other.