Category: Healthier Lifestyle

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

Did anyone ever notice how almost every aerobic/kick-boxing/gay dancing class has an instructor that’s out of shape and 20 other people that are also of round variety? I mean, how do you expect to get in shape if the instructor looks like he’s/she’s been eating sambosa for the past 20 years? To add insult to injury, the obese members are forced to perform high kicks. It’s like show girls, but with a lot less turn-on and a lot more LOL.

And what about those self-proclaimed gurus roaming around the gyms of Kuwait? I’ve researched on a couple of famous gurus to see what they were up to. One of them refuses to work with drug-free athletes; he won’t even turn to look at you if you approach him with the “I’d like to do this naturally” speech. The last guy that did ended up in the hospital urinating blood; due to 5 anabolic and androgenic compounds that he were recommended to take (this was partly the client’s fault since he didn’t know bodybuilding involves a nutritional plan and intense training). Another guy trains both naturals and chemically enhanced athletes, but fails to inform young amateurs of the consequences associated with early AAS drug use, which they subsequently fall victims too.

Awesome Super Friends
I’m here to discuss health and fitness professionals and practitioners in Kuwait who talk it and walk it. In the pursuit of spreading the influence of a healthier lifestyle, I’ll be providing information about competitors who I am more than glad to lose my business to. They all have the passion, the drive, the experience and the ability to motivate others in attaining a healthier lifestyle.

Consequently, I’m planning on crushing each and every one of them so by the time you read this, they might be dead. They also might end up in my belly. My 7% body fat belly.

As a gym owner, I constantly get asked by many people about what the right exercises are, what the right diet is and about how many freaking Pinkberry yogurts are acceptable. (Depends on what you’re trying to do; again, depends on what you want to do). Sometimes, I find I don’t have the time to answer questions in detail, and that makes me feel, as the self proclaimed Master of the Fitness Universe, like I have failed you. And I do not like to fail.

Here’s a list of people (in no particular order) you can consult about health and fitness in Kuwait, or as I like to call them, my awesome super-friends, who I don’t necessarily know personally. (You can call them people who are not quite as awesome as I am.)

As most of you might have noticed, while in New York I ate a lot of burgers. Many people thought I was actually posting too many food posts but they would have been a lot more if I posted about all the burger places I went to. Before going to New York I had a list of around 60 burger places I wanted to try out which I got from the blog A Hamburger Today and even though I didn’t even get close to trying out 60 burger places I did have on average two burgers a day while in New York. And guess what? I lost weight!

Before I went on vacation I spoke to Fahad and I told him that there was no way I could eat healthy on my trip. It was New York and I wasn’t going to spend my time looking for something healthy to eat. He told me as long as I was going to do a lot of walking than I could eat whatever I wanted as long as the proportions weren’t too big. He told me I also had to have a meal every 3 hours. I could also have dessert if I wanted but it couldn’t be part of my main meal, it would have to be counted as a meal on its own. So if I had a burger at 12PM I could have an ice cream at 3PM. I thought that was fair and took his advice.

My morning started off either with a big breakfast from a cozy diner near my hotel or a McGriddle from McDonalds. I stuck to places near my hotel since I needed to have breakfast an hour after waking up. That would happen around 9 or 10am. Then, 3 hours later I would have a burger, 3 hours after that dessert (usually a chocolate cone from Pinkberry or a cookie from a bakery), 3 hours after that another burger and finally my last meal at night would be dinner at one of the trendy restaurants near my hotel.

I rarely had fries with my burger, I think I only had fries 3 times on my trip. I would also always order only 1 burger but sometimes it would be a double patty. One great thing (or it could be a bad thing) about New York is the fact I think by law they need to display the calorie count of everything on the menu. So one time I was at Wendy’s for example and I felt like a double bacon and cheese but then noticed the calorie count and decided to go with a regular double cheese burger instead. I think the calorie count helped me save a ton of calories. It was also one major reason I didn’t have french fries with my burgers since if I did the calorie count of my meal would double. I also went with Coke Zero over regular Coke since that was another easy 200-300 calorie saving.

I walked a lot, around 12 hours and the only time I took a cab was to and from the airport. I was using the subway mostly and it was mostly from Brooklyn where I was staying to Manhattan which is where everything was located. While there I walked everywhere and only took the subway if I was in a rush like to catch a store before they closed. One night I walked back to my hotel even which was around a 8-9KM walk according to Google Maps.

The result? I left Kuwait weighing 77KG and I came back weighing 76KG. I thought I had lost more weight but I am not disappointed losing only a KG with the food I was eating. Now that the vacation is over and I’ve returned to Kuwait I’m eating healthy again and today was my first time back at the gym since I left. Until my next burger rampage…

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

The Question

Fahad,

I have a question. This may sound really stupid. But, other than weight concerns. What other reasons are there for eating healthy?
What I mean by that is lets say someone does not have any weight issues. What benefits does eating healthy offer them? Apart from like getting all the required nutrients perhaps.

Like if someone is not fat and dont get fat, why shouldn’t they eat sugar? Or why shouldn’t they eat lots of fat? Or white bread? Or cookies? Cakes? Big Macs? Fries? Sodas?

I mean we always look at this from a caloric and weight loss/muscle gain perspective. But, beyond that, what are the long term impact on health of eating well beyond just getting all the required nutrients?

Can you talk a bit about that.

– Ed

The Answer

Well Ed, I am cleared to tell you how much wood a woodchuck could chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood.

“Ed: I often wondered about this phenomenon. Do tell.”

A woodchuck could chuck as much wood as a woodchuck could, but really, who gives a damn about a woodchuck?

On a serious note, I found this question too significant to include in the comments below my last post. I will be answering Ed’s questions in the order I see fit.

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

Your world rocked in 3, 2, 1….

And we’re back with part 2 of my original post (Herro Prease!) that seemed to cause more racial and homophobic controversy than health and fitness orientation and guidance.

Taste Buds
I’m often criticized for my diminishing taste buds. When on a strict diet, the food consumed tends to taste awful and total caloric intake is extremely low. I’m eating 6-8 small portions per day of gooky old-fashioned oatmeal, funky-smelling boiled eggs, cold and barely chewable chicken breasts, tasteless and dry brown rice, and a lightly sweetened protein shake that tries its best to taste like a Johnny Rockets milkshake, but is actually one notch above dirt, and dirt can taste like ice cream when dieting.

So Masta of da Universe, if taste bud BAD, how can we trust you, haaaa!?
Have you ever sat next to a person who has been dieting more than 3 weeks? He/she will stare at you eating that burger and those fries. Moreover, they’ll tell you how to lightly dip your food in ketchup. What’s even more annoying, they’ll screw you over for not eating your entire meal; I should know, since I’m that annoying person. Lastly, I base the meals I eat on the ingredients used and how I feel after consumption. Through trial and error, I’ve discovered how long it takes my body to clean itself out if I just ate a fatty and carby meal.

Breakfass!
I am not a morning person at all. I hate the sun and anything associated with looking at the sun. I’ll even wear sun-glasses indoors in the morning, and I could care less if it made me look douchey. (If anyone has any job offerings somewhere cold and dark, please let me know.) In the meantime, I can’t deny the sensation of breakfast food. Once in a while, I’d wake up early on weekends and just have this strong urge to ditch my gooky oatmeal and boiled eggs for some tasty restaurant-served breakfast food. Before I begin, you need to take these points into consideration:

• Upon waking from 8-10 hours of sleep, our bodies are deprived of nutrients and water.
• Our inner functions tend to work optimally in the A.M., providing a challenge to any calorie intake; you can actually get away with a large thick pizza for breakfast and it’ll have a hard time storing itself as fat (assuming your healthy and fit).
• Eating breakfast at a maximum of 1 hour after waking up will provide your metabolism with a boost from heaven. The earlier you eat breakfast, the better.
• Eating breakfast more than 90 minutes after waking up will skyrocket your chances of obesity by 150%!

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

Consistency in dieting can be a challenge, especially when living in a country that endorses food more than anything else. Most of our days start out with food, some coffee and dessert, a little strolling around and shopping, and some more food. And at night, a small gathering of friends that involves barbecuing and a lot of muffins.

Some clients, relatives and friends call me every weekend, with inquiries such as “I’m at Gaucho. What do you recommend?” or “Pinkberry! Yay or nay?” and “Dude, why isn’t my girlfriend returning my calls?” For starters, you can’t really go wrong with Gaucho if you stick to Filet De Lomo; Pinkberry’s loaded with 20g of sugar per serving; and you should try being less douchey.

I’m not saying you should eat out everyday, but when you’re cornered into a meal, the right recommendations will prove useful. Moreover, dieting puts you in a state of hunger similar to that of a heroin addict; aching and scratching for that next meal. One last advice before I start dissecting each and every restaurant: if it tastes too good, then it’s probably not what you’re looking for.

Oh, Fahad-san! Ret us begin with hearthy restaurants!

What I hate more than carb and fat-infested fast food chains are eateries that preach about health, but are everything but healthy; which is why I’ll be poking at them first:

I just realized that just over a year ago I posted about the McGangBang and how great it was but now I haven’t had a McDonalds burger (or BK, KFC, Hardees etc..) for nearly a year. I’m eating a lot healthier, having a ton of salad and not really missing any of the fast food. I went from eating at those fast food joints practically daily to never. I think it’s like quitting smoking (I don’t smoke but I’m guessing). It’s difficult at first but then once you’re off you’re off.

The 3 Club are going to be organizing the first official triathlon in Kuwait this month dubbed The Flying Start Triathlon. The event will start off with a swim, followed by cycling and ending with a run.

Registration is free to 3 club members while none members will have to pay KD25 to participate. If you’re interested or want more details check out their website [Here]

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

“Man’s proper stature is not one of mediocrity, failure, frustration, or defeat, but one of achievement, strength, and nobility. In short, man can and ought to be a hero.” – Mike Mentzer, the father of High Intensity Training.

If you’re eating a snicker’s bar, drinking a Red Bull and smoking a cigarette, then put your weapons down, step back slowly and carefully, and take a good gander (wow, GANDER, where did that come from?) at yourself. What you’ll probably see is regression; the convergent evolution of man, but in a very bad way.

Devolution, or the opposite of evolution, is what we are currently witnessing with the entire world. In a recent study that took over 10 years to accomplish concluded that males 10 years ago were manlier than males today. The study also concluded that the farther you go back, the larger “bowling balls” males had.

My grandfather had 4 wives, with a total of 13 kids. I’m willing to bet that your fathers, grandfathers, and the fathers of your grandfathers went through the exact same trend. I’m also willing to bet that no one in present time has a pair (biologically speaking) to do the same.

High Rate of Impotence & Erectile Dysfunction

On the 23rd of March 2010, Al Watan Newspaper published an article on it’s first page stating that Kuwait’s fertility rate is at risk. Moreover, it also stressed the high rate of impotence and sexual dysfunction. I’d like to add in my own theoretical opinion by saying that a lot of men are at the lower end of normal testosterone production, which is OK, but puts you just a few notches above a female. Yes you concerned female, you might be as manly if not manlier than your husband, boyfriend or whatever relationship you decided to pursue.

Seriously though, low-testosterone is also a contributer to the increase of divorce rates in Kuwait; females are not getting their fair share of manhood.

“Yeah..but how is that of benefit to us, Oh Master of the Fitness Universe?”

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

“Dude, I’m really skinny up top, but down below I’m a MESS!”

“I’ve been doing ab work for ages! I literally spend hours in the gym everyday crunching and leg raising my butt off! Why do I still have this belly!? Where’s my six pack!?”

“I might as well paste that muffin I just ate on my thighs, because eventually that’s where it’s going to end up.”

“I’m a 27 year old guy that has better breast development than Pamela Anderson!”

“I’ve been on Lipo-6 for 3 months! Nothing happened!” Me: what’s your diet like? “I pretty much eat whatever I want.”

These pretty much sum up what I am about to tackle today (and obviously the title). Before I do, I’d like to point the finger of blame:

1) Training is 20-30%; it only refines a physique.
Nutrition is the other 70-80%.
2) Abs are made in the kitchen.
3) Why are you crunching with no weights when you clearly don’t have any abdominal muscles?
4) The abdominals are a muscle. If you work a muscle everyday it’ll shrink and never grow.
5) If you eat like a pig and train like a horse, you’ll lose overall weight; except for those stubborn fat stores you want to get rid off.

Too many of you quit too early to see any significant results. You tend to give it all up once results start to slow down. It took you years to gain all that fat, so why do you expect to lose it in such a short time?

It’s hard to make your first million, but once you do, you’ll know exactly what kind of work ethic you’d have to give in order to get it. Same thing goes with a set of abs or shapely thighs; you’re pretty vague about how long or hard your journey will be, but once you give into the commitment then it’ll be all worth it.

I’m here to serve as a guide to that journey, where simple bouts of information may prove useful for that much needed push you’ve been looking for.

Local blogger and teacher Miss Farah posted something which I wanted to share with my readers. One of her kids in class had brought only chips and chocolate for lunch (pic above), so Miss Farah sent a letter to the parents explaining to them how unhealthy that was for their daughter. Next day she checked the kids lunchbox and this time the little girl had cucumbers, carrots, croissant, corn and juice (pic below).

I thought it was great of Miss Farah for caring enough to contact the parents and I thought it was also great from the parents to actually listen to her. Hopefully the lunchbox continues to stay healthy and other parents reading this can do the same with their kids. You can check Miss Farah’s blog [Here]

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

It’s almost summer time and all the gyms around Kuwait are packed! People have locations to travel too, beaches to swim in and jet skis to ride, but you got to look good doing it. What’s the sure-fire, shortcut approach and rapidly fast solution to all this? A truckload of performance enhancers, dietary supplements and A LOT of chest and bicep exercises! That was the norm back in my university days, but people now demand abs too; but no legs, definitely no legs. They are evil and such a pain in the butt when exercised.

The summertime crowd is a lot more demanding and highly impatient in comparison to other seasonal clients. They expect so much in such little time. Moreover, they tend to quit early if extreme results are not presentable within 72 hours, literally. This is how a typical meeting with an average “I need to look like 50 Cent within a month” client:

Client: “All I’m looking for is definition. I need to tone my arms a bit, expand my chest and work on my abs. As you can see, I’ve got the jello jiggles all around dis area yo.”

Me: “How long do I have in order for to make these changes?”

Client: “Brah! I’ve got a month and I’ll be hittin’ da beaches of Ibiza. If things don’t work out with da visa (that rhymed, dude must be a rapper), I’d might extend it for another month and go to Sharm.”

Me: “What you’re asking for is a shortcut, which is highly unlikely since you’ve got no muscle for me to tone and a spare tire around your waist.”

Client: “NO YO! I’ve heard Core Fitness does wonders. I need to lose all of this and gain poundage’s all ova my upperbody. Wam, bam, do me SON!”

Me: “Uhh, no, we don’t offer doing anyone, we just provide you a diet plan, a workout plan and absolutely no happy endings.”

Client: “And yo, no legs. I’ve got more jiggle than Santa Claus lying around this lower area as you can see, so no leg workouts whatsoever. I don’t want to be looking like an Egyptian belly-dancer yo.”

Me: “I hope you realize you’re whiter than I am. Anyways, cutting out legs isn’t a good idea; it’s literally half your body. If you want those changes, you have to give us a minimum of 2 months. It’s a lifestyle.”

Client: “Dude, I’ll pop pills! I’ll drink dem powders! What’s dat white stuff called? Crac….I mean creatine? Yeah, I’ll give that a try!”

Me: “No. What’s your current diet like?”

Client: “I’m not a breakfis’ person, so screw dat. At around 11 am at work, I pass by a Starbucks and order a triple-shot-venti-half-caf-half-decaf-French-roast-2 caramel pumps-extra-whip-non-fat-mocha-with-extra-foam……Oh, and a low fat muffi’. At home, I eat pretty much what I want and for dinner, strictly fast food.”

Me: “I swear to God, if you don’t stop talking like that I’m going to punch you on the face.”

Client: “Ok man, jeez…so I’ll give you two months. Does that work for you?”

Me: “Two months, our workout routine and a strict diet plan should do.”

Client: “Ho-nee FUT! DUDE, DATS INCWEDIBUL! You ma boi!!!”

Me: “Get the f%$k out.”

Health and fitness is a lifestyle. If you want to look good and feel good from this day onwards, you need to understand that it requires a lot of effort at first, and once you get used to it, it’ll be like breathing air and drinking water.

Reality

For every goal you set, commitment must be taken into consideration; the greater you want the end result to be, the harder you have to push yourself to achieve it. For example, in order for me to maintain the current weight and body fat percentage I am on, I’d have to consume a specific amount of calories, weight-lifting poundage’s, and rest and recovery. Since summertime is approaching, my meal plan has to be a lot cleaner, sometimes tasteless and slightly low in calories, with the addition of cardiovascular activity. If I expect a leaner set of abs, I need to put in the effort in order to achieve this.

A lot of you have slowly introduced this lifestyle and are witnessing good results. If you’ve currently stopped producing any significant results (i.e. fat-loss or muscle-gain), your eating and training habits have to be a lot stricter, which may include cleaning out or adding in calories; this is only assuming you’d want more results.

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

Core Fitness has been in business for close to 2 years. We’ve jumped into the market with very high risk, doubtful but hopeful. We originally started out with a much larger area (1,000mtr2) and slowly trimmed it down to roughly 300mtr2. Our risk was high as it is, so might as well shrink a few things or two.

In order to sell the service being sold, we needed believers, people who can witness results and talk about it to other people.  And so, we brought in 10 clients with different goals, interviewing them one by one before and after our prescribed 7 week cycles. The amount of questions had no answers. With all my knowledge, I could not convince any of them that our 20 minute workouts achieved anything. I even pulled in science to explain that it’s more than possible to benefit from 10 minutes of what we were doing. I don’t blame anybody since common sense tells us that the more time we put in the better results will be.

Finally realizing that no amount of words can explain what we’re trying to sell, I simply gave up and said “Guys, go try it out. If you don’t like it you’ll get your money back.”

“That was intense!” Client #1

“HARDCORE!” Client #2

“…….”Client #3. His blood-sugar level crashed. A diabetic who didn’t eat a single calorie since breakfast.

“Huuuuh, huuuh, huuuuh…man…gi..give me a few minutes to catch my breath!” Client #4. He puked 10 minutes later.

The comments above were what our clients said after their first 20 minute workouts. Thankfully, they’ve all signed up and witnessed great results. However, this proves nothing to the people who have yet to enroll at Core Fitness. After interviewing numerous clients throughout Core’s tenure, I’d like to think that I can finally explain why our 20 minute workouts work.

Short and Sweet

The first obvious question that pops to mind is the 20 minutes. What can we possibly do in such a short time? If you think about it, that’s exactly it. We realize that 20 minutes is a short duration and we also realize that in order for a client to achieve results is by pushing him beyond his physical potential, which involves a lot of boot-camp style training and attitude. Secondly, pushing someone to the brink of insanity in 20 minutes involves some sort of motivation, hence the personal trainers responsible for pushing you towards your limits.

Back in January I joined Core Fitness and the first thing they did was take my measurements so I can compare them 7 weeks later. Well it’s been 7 weeks and I finished my first course and here are the results:

	Before	After
Weight	84.7kg	80kg
BMI	25	23.6
BMR	1946kcal	1881kcal
Fat	20%	17%
Fat Mass	16.9kg	13.6kg
Fat Free Mass	67.8kg	66.4kg
Total Body Water	49.6kg	48.6kg
Chest	99cm	101cm
Shoulder Girdle	55cm	57cm
Thighs	56cm	58cm
Arms	28.5cm	29.5cm
Hips	105cm	100cm
Waist	98cm	93.5cm

What do these numbers mean? Basically my weight has gone down from 84.7 to 80 and that includes gaining around 1.7kg of muscle. I’ve lost fat around my waist and hips (I actually had to add two new holes on my belts) and I’ve added muscle to my other areas like chest, shoulders, thighs and arms. My aim wasn’t to lose weight but gain muscle mass and right now I’m actually below my ideal weight. But, this is just the middle area because I’ve lost weight in fat and now will gain weight with muscle which is why most probably when I get measurements again in 7 weeks time I would either be the same weight or hopefully more.

The first week was very intense, I didn’t puke but I very nearly did, like just about to but didn’t. It was a killer and it scared the shit out of me but I kept going back and I now actually enjoy going to the gym. Even though its still exhausting, I no longer feel like I am going to die from a heart attack or puke. The lessons are as advertised, just 20 minutes long and I go 3 times a week. I’ve refused to do any work out or cardio during my off days since what attracted me to Core Fitness was the 20 minutes 3 times a week selling line. 20 minutes 3 times a week was all the time I had to give and wanted to give and I’ve stuck to my guns. My cardio hasn’t improved that much because of that since I was advised to run during my off days.

Every week I have a different trainer that takes me through the 20 minutes of workout. Whats cool about that is every trainer has their own style of training and exercises so once my body feels like it’s getting used to a routine, my trainers change and I’ve suddenly got to survive and get used to a new routine. After every 20 minute session I get a fully body stretch out by the trainer which is nearly as grueling as the 20 minute workout.

One of the cool things I like about Core is the SMS’s I get on the day of my workouts. They serve as a reminder on what time my course is but they also provide health tips as well like the following:

Hi Mark! Workout today at 8:20PM! FYI: Drink 1 glass of cold water 15min before a meal gives your metablism a 25% boost!

Hi Mark! Workout today at 8:00PM! FYI: Studies show that people who drink 3 servings per day of Green Tea lost more fat around their midsection

Hi Mark! Workout today at 8:00PM! FYI: Pizza? Choose Domino’s. 1 small order, thin slices, add anything, but ditch the ground beef and pepperoni

I was given a nutritional plan when I first started which you can see [Here]. It wasn’t too difficult to stick to since it mostly involved eating what I usually eat. The biggest change was the breakfast and dinner. Breakfast I used to have pancakes from McDonalds while dinner I used to have a lot of carbs (3 turkey & cheese sandwiches or bread with labneh for example). For breakfast I now have sausage & egg mcmuffin while for dinner I either pickup 2 chicken taouk + 2 meat tikka in a plate (no bread) from Kebabji near my house or I grill steak at home. I get my steak (fillet) from a butcher but recently I started getting ostrich steak from Sultan Center which I found out has the superior nutrient content of red meat while having less fat than a chicken breast. Too bad I can’t have it breaded and fried! Oh and another big change is the greens, I now eat a lot more vegetables and salads. I used to barely eat anything green before but now I want to eat them. For example when I go to Le Notre I usually order a fish or meat dish and their sides are usually rice or potato. I now have them swap them for steamed vegetables. It’s really weird but I think I do this because I want to get healthier and I am seeing my self get fitter.

I’m not perfect though and I do cheat but I like cheating. I look forward to cheating because it helps me stick to my diet. For example I passed by Chocolate Bar twice during this 7 weeks and overdosed on chocolate (enough to last me through the 7 weeks!) and once a week I pick up a Cadbury Flake or a Twix from the bakala. Oh and there was the Ferrero Rocher incident. The one thing though I am REALLY craving but can’t and shouldn’t have is the molten chocolate cake from Chili’s. It’s always on my mind but I’ve still managed to resist it!

So that’s basically it. I am going to sign up for another 7 weeks and I want to continue improving. I’m going to have Fahad post about Core Fitness to give you guys a better idea of what it involves since it’s his gym and he will be better able to explain it. I will definitely post my measurements again after 7 weeks and we’ll see how things changed.

Posted by Fahad AlYehya | Core Fitness – Kuwait

Eating out isn’t necessarily a problem, but can be a fuss to those around me. I start by scanning the restaurant’s menu for a lean source of protein, followed by a good source of carbs and a great source of fat. Usually, I pick a great option, a good option and a decent option; the waiter that’s about to approach me is bound to shut me down with words like fried, breaded and sauteed, so might as well make due with other sources since I’m already at my 3 hour mark and my muscles are aching for some food.

Me: “I’ll have the Cajun Chicken Platter with no Monterey jack cheese, crisps, refried black beans and mashed potatoes.”

Waiter: “You mean you want the Cajun Chicken Platter with absolutely nothing on it?”

Me: “Yes, but I’m not done yet. Do you serve sweet potato?”

Waiter: “No sir, we only serve mashed potatoes.”

Me: “Do you mash it in with butter?”

Waiter: “I’m not sure sir.”

Me: “Would you ask someone that knows please.”

Accompanying Friend: “Dude, are you serious? No he’s not doing that.”

Me: “Ok, may I have a baked potato please.”

Waiter: “I’m sorry sir, we serve only mashed potatoes.”

Me: “Are they mashed before or after they arrived in the kitchen?”

Waiter: “After sir.”

Me: “Ok, so take one unmashed medium sized potato and bake or boil it.”

Waiter: “I’m sorry sir, we cannot do that.”

Annoying Fat Friend: “FHAID! Cut that crap out! I want to order!”

Me: “Ok Ok. I’ll have the Cajun Chicken Platter with nothing on it, and only broccoli on the side. Is the broccoli sauteed or steamed?”

Friend: “F*ck you.”

I am literally a waiter’s worst nightmare and I don’t care. I even question a restaurant’s supposedly healthier options, and after a thorough investigation (i.e. annoying the hell out of the restaurant’s staff) it doesn’t seem healthy at all. I persuade any health conscious individual to do the same.

The Awesome Subject at Hand

I was contacted by a 248am subscriber in order to help him out with a diet plan. His routine was simple and average, and could easily relate to anyone who decides to pursue the healthy lifestyle, so I used him as an example in order to explain the ins and outs of nutrition calculation and timing. Hopefully, I’ll be able to simplify things as much as possible.

I’ve been visiting Bayan Dental for over 5 years now. I first found out about them from Zaydoun and ever since me and Nat have been getting all our dental work done there at their Salmiya branch. They were actually featured in my Miskan project back in 2005 as Day 303 which is where the picture above is from. Once every few months I pass by my dentist (Dr Samer Khaddour) for scaling because I know that the longer the gap between my visits the more I am going to suffer during my session so I try to keep the gaps small. My dentist and Nat always seem to team up on me since they find my fear amusing but I’m slowly slowly getting over it.

Anyway I recently got approached by Bayan Dental and got offered veneers for free if in return I could post and explain what veneers were on my blog and also about my experience getting them installed. I didn’t have a clue what veneers were but after a quick google followed by a detailed explanation from Bayan I found these two words the best way to explain them… Hollywood smile. Veneers give you the perfect smile and you get them installed in one hour without any pain or anesthesia and they last forever.

I asked them if my dentist could install them for me and since he specializes in restorative and aesthetic dentistry they told me it shouldn’t be a problem. Since then I’ve already had a couple of visits with my dentist getting a mould of my teeth done so I could see how my teeth currently look and how they will look once I am done. They will be sending me a bunch of pictures of difference cases before and after veneers so I could share them here with some proper information about veneers and how they work. For now I thought I would post this to keep everyone in the loop on whats going on. If you have any questions about veneers (and I guess anything dental related) you can post them below since someone from Bayan will be reading the comments and answering any questions you might have.

Since we’re on the subject of dentistry for those of you who have a fear from dentists you could post what concerns you have below and I could try to answer them from my experience like for example how much pain or discomfort a procedure might have or how long certain things take etc.. I haven’t done all the procedures but I think I’ve done most of the general ones. One thing I’ve learned from my experience is that if you have a dental issue now and you don’t take care of it, it will only get worse tomorrow and the fix becomes more complicated.

Update: If you’ve never been to Bayan Dental before, just mention my blog when you go in and you will get a 17% discount on non cosmetic procedures.