My favourite Youtube fitness channels

hello from Taiwan!! (: *waves*

this is such an inappropriate time to be doing this post with all the pigging out in Taiwan haha. ^if you see the title, i've been wanting to do a post on this since the longest time. ever since i got back from exchange (can't believe that was nearly a year ago :'( time flies), i was trying to lose the weight i gained on exchange. proved to be horrendously difficult. i lost a little, then hovered around the same spot for about half a year?! before i finally, FINALLY started losing weight this year! (though i'm sure to gain back everything with all these eating....oh dearie me). so i thought it'd be appropriate to share what i've been doing now that i finally started losing weight! - this is going to be a pretty wordy post btw...but you can just scroll past the words to the videos further down if that's all you're interested in (: -

i suppose you all know that i love to eat. ;) i live to eat. and i exercise to eat haha.

i used to HATE exercising when i was younger. i was just a bag of lazybones. and now, i definitely can't say that i love exercising - that would be too much of a stretch - but over the past few years, i've come to accept it (that it's necessary, considering how i love to indulge in food. but also knowing that it's simply to stay healthy!) and i've found a way to incorporate it into my life in a way that i enjoy (: i think that's the most important thing about exercising (and eating for that matter) - to find a type of exercise that you enjoy, and find a routine that you can sustain. no point pushing yourself for a month and just burning out/injuring yourself and never want to/be able to exercise ever again. 

i've found that i prefer exercising in the morning best! that works for me. i like to get it over and done with haha. and after that i feel happy that i can go on indulging in food for the rest of the day knowing that i've got my workout settled, without having to worry that it's gonna rain, or that i have too many things to do and not be able to squeeze in a workout. plus the sun is usually less harsh early in the morning, and i definitely prefer running when the air is still cool. morning air always smells so nice and fresh ^^ i usually wake up between 7.30am-8am to exercise. if you're not a morning person, this obviously ain't gonna work for you - so find what's optimal! some people love the tranquility of exercising at night, whereas i'm too afraid to run outside in the dark. it really depends on your preference, and what kind of schedule you can stick to.

talking about the schedule, i used to wake up at 7.30am every single morning to run (except for one day of rest). used to. haha I'm lazier nowadays. so i alternate my days of exercise instead, but i still get in 3-4 days of exercise a week. and i vary my exercises as well. it really depends on your schedule, to see how you can fit exercise in as a regular routine. but don't ever use the excuse of 'being too busy', because if you put your mind to it, you can MAKE TIME for it. that is what i always strongly believe in. (says me for now, while work hasn't started. i really don't know how i'm going to fit in my exercise when i'm working...sigh)

okie enough words for now. as mentioned above, i usually exercise every other day nowadays and i alternate running with other exercises. i tried out Pilates for the first time ever when i came back from exchange and absolutely fell in love with it! 

i also tried out antigravity yoga and barre classes at Upside Motion which i thoroughly enjoyed as well! (: 

i love going for all these classes, and it's really another thing altogether when you're working out with other people and you've got an instructor there pushing you to carry on. i also really enjoyed how all these class sizes are pretty small, which allows for more individual attention and coaching. 

unfortunately attending these classes are pretty pricey, and i haven't managed to afford them at this point obviously, so i found a cheeper, and also more convenient way of exercising! i went on a craze searching for youtube fitness videos and these are some of my favourites! (:  i always go for those which require no equipment except for a mat (i've been wanting to get light weights, but i haven't managed to find cheap ones :/ any recommendations?) so it's really good for getting my exercise fix at home.

Blogilates

i LOVE her videos. Cassie is absolutely crazy and she makes a lot of noise in her videos, but her exercises are awesome. don't try this video if you're just starting out bcos it'll KILL YOU. i died after 4mins into the video (because it was the first one i ever tried). but her workouts are really really effective!! they're my favourite and i really feel so much more toned after working out to her exercises for the past 8 months. also love how they are pilates-centered. these workouts will leave you dripping with sweat at the end (okay sorry gross :p) and you know you've worked out hard ;) she comes up with new videos on a regular basis, so it's great for those who love variety (like me!) and are always up for something new. no need to worry about plateau-ing with new exercises all the time ;) the videos are 5-20mins long in general, so i usually combine a few for an hour of exercise.

GymRa

if you think it's too troublesome to manually combine exercises for your workout, check out GymRa! (: they have lots of 30min-1hr long exercises so just take your pick and get into your workout! the good thing is that it also includes warm up and cooling down, so it's really a full comprehensive exercise. and side note for guys... : the figure of some of the models are -> :O 'nuff said. and it's the best motivation for girls (though it's pretty unattainable imo hahaha).

BeFiT

i love this channel for the variety of exercises it has. there are many different instructors with different styles ranging from pilates, to cardio stuff, yoga etc etc. some are harder, while there are some which are for beginners, so play around and take your pick.

special shoutout to this workout by Ballet Beautiful (on BeFiT) because i absolutely fell in love with it when i found it!!! it's crazy tough, but totally reminded me of the Xtend Barre classes i did at Upside Motion. for ballerinas or just those who want a figure as gorgeous as a ballerina, this one's for you (: 

Fitness Blender

i don't really use this channel that often, but their website is pretty interesting as it allows you to select the exact type of workout you are looking for, and it'll fish through its entire library to find the perfect video for you.

hope this helps!! (: and remember that abs are made in the gym and shown in the kitchen ;) so eat healthy too!! :) i obviously don't have abs haha. but anyway i'll be doing a post on my salads really soon!