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Travel: Paris Day 1 – Musée de l’Armée + Les Invalides + Napoleon Bonaparte Tomb + Eiffel Tower

Back to travel posts! Right after we arrived in Paris, my husband and I freshened up and went straight to exploring for a bit. The first stop was Musée d’Orsay.

And since it’s summer in Paris and it was about two in the afternoon, we found the longest line known to mankind.

Of course, my spirits weren’t dampened. We each have a Paris Pass! Surely, there’s a special line. Yes, there is! But it’s also equally long. *insert disappointed face emoji here 😒*

For those who haven’t heard of the Paris Pass, it’s your ticket to a lot of the attractions in Paris and includes a lot of perks and freebies too. Oh, you can also opt to get a train ticket with them that will give you unlimited Metro rides for the duration of your stay.

Some would say it’s kinda gimmicky but you actually save money and time by using it if you plan to go to a lot of museums and attractions. Since it’s the husband’s first time in Paris, we had a pretty tight itinerary so we could go to a lot of the ‘must-sees’.

Sadly, we had to skip Musée d’Orsay for this trip due to the crazy line. I really wanted to go show him my favourite Renoir which can be found in this museum. 🙁 Weird enough, we didn’t have the same problem with the Louvre. But I’ll talk about this on a different post.

We then moved on to Musée de l’Armée which is something we’re really excited about.

Almost Diplomatic - calorific - Diplomat’s Wife - Travel - Paris - Musée de l'Armée

France’s National Military Museum is located inside Les Invalides. A compound in the 7th Arrondissement that houses a couple of beautiful buildings that relate to the country’s rich military history. Aside from Musée de l’Armée, you can also find a couple of war monuments, a hospital and retirement home for war veterans, and even a former Church that houses Napoleon Bonaparte’s tomb. We’ll get to that in a bit. 😉

 

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Update: On our way back to KL!


Hi everyone!

I’ve been MIA for quite a while on the blog due to our 3-week trip in Europe. As I’m typing this (on my phone), the husband and I are currently waiting for our boarding call here in Schiphol airport. We’re flying to Dubai then finally to KL.

It’s been a great trip and I can’t wait to share everything with you guys! Expect a barage of travel entries and videos soon!

I originally planned to post while travelling which is why I brought my laptop. But in the end, I was too focused exploring with my husband then spending time with members of my family living in diffirent cities within the continent. 😂

I love Europe but I must admit that I am now missing KL – my friends, people at the embassy, and our own bed! I also miss going to the gym (Impulse Studio!) since I’ve been feeling guilty towards the end of our trip over everything I ate! Alvin and I did gain a few pounds (see photo above!) but nothing too serious. Whew! 😁

Anyhoo, we’re boarding soon. Will be updating this blog within the week. Promise!

Much love,

Carol

*Trip is not sponsored by any country’s tourism department, company, or brand but by my side of the family living in Europe.  😊

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Fitness + Video: Win 10 Sessions of EMS Training at Impulse Studio!

Impulse Studio, EMS Training, Workout, Quick Workout, Fast Workout, Bangsar, Platinum Sentral, KL Sentral, Electric Muscular Stimulation, Promo, Giveaway, Free

Hi my loves! Since January, I’ve made the decision to be healthier by training regularly and burning all the food I eat (which is a lot, I admit). I tried Electric Muscle Stimulation (EMS) training in Impulse Studio and I never looked back. 😉 I got so hooked, especially with the crazy-fast results and the fact that I only have to do 2 sessions a week for 20 minutes each.

I’ve been writing about my journey ever since and I’ve been so passionate about it that I cant help but tell you guys how awesome it’s been for me through this blog. I look fit and I’m actually stronger that I ever was before, thanks to to this training. I won’t babble too much about it anymore since I have written about this extensively in the past. However, I want to share some good news to my fellow clients at Impulse and lovers of EMS training here in Malaysia.

By sharing your success story to your family and friends, you might just win yourself an extra 10 sessions! All you have to do is talk about your progress and how the training is working out for you so far and share it on social media. Are your arms toned now just by going for a few sessions? Has it helped you over come stress?

Let our friends in Impulse Studio know about your success as well by using the hashtag #impulsing. They will be gathering your entries soon so do view the terms and conditions of the contest by clicking here.

If you haven’t tried EMS training yet, you still have a chance to join and experience the benefits it can give you. I felt the first changes in my body just after 3 sessions! You might just make it to the contest deadline. 😉

And if this hasn’t convinced you enough, I guess you should read more about why I fell in love with EMS training as well as the results that I got just after 12 sessions. You can also watch this video Impulse Studio recently put together where you can see me doing actual training – at my most unglamorous state ever! But don’t worry. It’s totally worth it! 😉

You can also watch this video at Impulse Studio’s blog. They have branches in Jalan Telawi 3 (Bangsar), Platinum Sentral (KL Sentral), and G Tower (KLCC) – and a couple more opening soon!

Hope to bump into you guys at the studio soon!

Love,

Carol

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Fitness + In Photos: Impulse Studio is now in KL Sentral!

Bangsar, Easy Workout, Effective Workout, Electrical Muscle Stimulation, EMS, EMS Training, Fast Workout, Fitness, Full Body Workout, Gym, Health, Impulse Studio, Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur Gym, Malaysia, Malaysia Fitness, Modern Workout, Muscle Training, New Workout, Strength, Tone Muscles, Workout, Workout Video, XBody, KL Sentral, Platinum Sentral,

Just thought I’d share the great news with you guys! The gym I go to, Impulse Studio, has opened a branch right in the middle of the city – which means it’s now nearer to where I live! Just a short monorail ride away.

Oh, and that means no more excuses for me when it comes to exercising. 😉

You can now do your Electric Muscular Stimulation (EMS) training at Impulse Studio in Platinum Sentral, a building connected to the KL Sentral station. Yay for easy access! (Especially for people like me who can’t drive myself to places. Haha!)

(RELATED POST: Fitness + Photos: Major Improvements Just After 12 EMS Training/Workout Sessions (20 mins each) Later!)

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Fitness: The Simple (BASIC) Exercise Moves That Gave Me Toned Legs and a Perky Butt – FAST

For most of my life, I’ve always been the skinny girl (much to my dismay). But these days, I’ve been getting so many compliments about how toned and fit I look. That’s all thanks to doing EMS training religiously, of course.

I couldn’t be any prouder of what I’ve achieved so far. Especially since I worked so hard for it! Granted that my workout is only twice a week for twenty minutes each session, the high intensity made sure that I got the results I wanted – fast.

(RELATED POST: Fitness + Photos: Major Improvements Just After 12 EMS Training/Workout Sessions (20 mins each) Later!)

Most of the people who noticed a difference on my body often point out that it’s my legs and my butt that look so different nowadays. And since everyone’s been asking about it, I figured – why not make a post about it?

https://instagram.com/p/0zEgk6Cqfy/

My butt actually went from pancake-flat to perky and my legs went from thin, chicken-legs to toned. I keep talking to people how I love wearing skinny jeans and shorts these days.

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Fitness: Healthy Post-Gym Snacks/Food (How I Curb My Cravings! Eat This Instead of That!)

Eat This Not That, Eat This Instead of That, Healthy Food, Healthy Food Alternatives, Raisins, Banana, Orange, Nuts, Yogurt, Healthy Snacks, Workout Snacks, Post Gym Snacks, Fitness, Impulse Studio, EMS, EMS Training, Kuala Lumpur

After battling a really bad case of allergies (which later turned into an infection), I am back to blogging! Yay! It’s kind of hard to write when your brows and eyes are swollen. But I look like my normal self now so I’ll just tell you guys more about that later. Today, I want to talk about FOOD and cravings!

As you might know by now, I’ve been doing EMS training regularly as my workout at Impulse Studio the past few months and the results have been ah-mazing! (Check them out here!)

I love EMS! In fact, my husband will even go as far as saying that I’m addicted to it.

(RELATED POST: Fitness: 9 Things I Love About Electric Muscle Stimulation (EMS) Training at Impulse Studio in Bangsar)

The next thing I should be telling you is how I’ve been eating more and more healthy food to aid my training. But alas, if you’ve been following my Instagram, you’d know that going on a healthy diet is a huge challenge for me and I’ve been eating some carb-rich, oily, dishes that has “A million calories!” written all over them. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever been on a diet longer than 24 hours for my whole life. I even failed on juice cleansing so bad. I ended up just drinking the juice with my usual meals.

Impulse Studio is located in Bangsar. And that location is both a blessing and a curse. I love going to Bangsar as that neighbourhood is super fun with quirky shops. I never get bored walking around the area after training. However, there are also a lot of restaurants in that place. Crepes, steaks, Thai food, sushi! You name it, it’s just a stone’s throw away from where I workout!

I dunno if it’s just me or what – but during those last few minutes of my workout, just when I know it’s about to end, I start imagining what I’ll be eating after! I start craving for burgers and sweets. I even think of all the restaurants in the area that I can just walk to after my shower! The McDonald’s that’s like a block away from Impulse isn’t helping my cravings either!

After a really intense workout like EMS Training, you’ll definitely be hungry. And in fact, you should eat! But the question is, will your food actually work with the training you just did to help your body be healthier or take you a few steps back when it comes to your progress?

So, to help myself instil a bit of discipline to my cravings and my tummy, I did a bit of research and asked people who know better than me when it comes to nutrition, about healthier (but still great tasting) substitutes to my usual cravings. And because cutting down my food intake is just near to impossible, I decided that if I’m going to be eating more, then I might as well opt for nutrient-filled food that will help me recover from intense workouts rather than junk, right?

I’ve tried them all and so far, they’ve been working pretty well for me. And don’t worry – I won’t be waxing poetic over kale and other greens. Not really the biggest fan of greens, to be honest. And I did promise great tasting alternatives, didn’t I?

Putting this up here for posterity’s sake and so I can look back at it whenever I finish working out. But don’t judge me when I post gelato photos on Instagram. I’m allowed cheat days, aren’t I? I’m still doing baby steps here. 😉

Without further word vomit from me, here’s my no-diet, crave-curbing cheat sheet! I hope it helps you out too! 😉

1. Instead of ice cream, go for yogurt.

Yes, you’ve heard of this one before. But some say that a lot of yogurt brands are actually not as healthy as you might think. Sugars, calories, etc. But at the end of the day, yogurt still has less of those than ice cream. I also opt for Greek yogurt these days or the low-fat, high calcium ones that Anlene has. Just so my brittle bones and teeth get some extra love.

2. Instead of candy or chocolate, go for raisins.

It’s the snack my grandma used to give to me after school and I still love it up to this day. Raisins make me forget about candy in an instant. They’re chewy too which is a plus!

Raisins do have calories. But they’re the good kind that’s filled with nutrients! They also contain protein, fibre, potassium, and iron.

3. Instead of French Fries, go for nuts

This one is hard to curb. Fries are so effing good! And I’ll admit, to me, nuts are not entirely God’s gift to human kind. They’re hard to bite on which can be a nightmare for my brittle teeth (they sometimes crack while eating really crunchy food) and nuts get in between them too which can make flossing a tedious task. But the health benefits make the hassle and extra care worth it. Whenever I feel like taking a short stroll to McDonald’s to order a large pack of fries, I force myself into a cab so I can go home straight to where my stash of nuts are.

Almonds, cashews, and walnuts have been linked to lower cholesterol levels. Walnuts are also rich in omega-3 which is good for your heart while almonds are packed with fibre and Vitamin E which is a powerful antioxidant. Cashews, meanwhile, carry iron and zinc which are good for your brain and eyes.

4. Instead of milkshakes, go for granola smoothies

https://instagram.com/p/0E0M4CiqXF/

I’m lucky that Impulse Studio in Bangsar is right next to LA/PA, a restaurant that makes awesome granola smoothies so I usually get mine from there. But they’re also quite easy to make at home (if you’re not lazy like me). Just mix milk (almond, coconut, or hazelnut milk would be better), frozen fruits, and granola into a blender and voila! A sweet, nutritious, and very filling drink. 😉

Oh, and add a bit of dark chocolate, if you must. 😉

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Apologies!

Wow. There has been a major lull when it comes to my blogging the past few weeks. My apologies, my dears!

A new blogpost will be up by tomorrow evening here in KL — I promise. It’s a post on the perfume tea party I attended a couple of weeks back. I can’t wait to share with you guys how much fun that was. More beauty reviews are also lined up in the coming days. ❤️

Again, i’d like to apologise for the lack of updates as I had family visiting us this month and I’ve been extremely busy taking them around and doing stuff for the embassy as well (but I’ll tell you more about these later on). So by tomorrow, I should be back to regular programming. 😉

More later. Promise!

Love,
Carol

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Fitness: 9 Things I Love About Electric Muscle Stimulation (EMS) Training at Impulse Studio in Bangsar

For 2015, I promised that I will take working out seriously. The goal is to be healthier, stronger, and to get toned. At 32-24-35, I’m what most people would call ‘skinny’. I’m considered tall for an Asian girl but I wear XS-sized clothes. Being thin gave me a false sense of security on how healthy I am.

But the truth is, despite being the farthest thing from looking obese, I’m actually ‘fat’ and unhealthy on the inside. Eep! I eat a lot of junk food and carbs are usually on the menu as well. I was never the type who exercises religiously. I did it when I felt like it and I thought that was okay.

But now that I’m 25 years old and I’ve gone from daily-on-the-go journalist to freelancer, I am more sedentary with a metabolism that’s slowing down.

Oh, and did I mention I’ve been eating the same amount of unhealthy food? So. It’s time for a change. I have moved on from my home workouts and every-now-and-then runs to actually going to the gym regularly! Can I get an applause out there? 😉 I’ve been going to Impulse Studio in Bangsar and I gotta say, it’s been fun!

The workouts are hard and I’m currently sore all over but trust me – I’m coming back for sessions! 😀 And that says a lot cos I tend to just stop doing workouts when I find them too hard. Really. But since I started going to Impulse Studio, I’ve been more motivated to work out and get healthy. Here’s why: Continue reading

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Changes and boredom

KL is such an expat friendly city. It’s like Singapore, Hong Kong, and even Manila (yes, people! Manila is expat friendly! Come see it!). There are so many different things you can do that it’s actually hard to get bored.

Which is a good thing since my husband worries about me getting bored (which might lead to me getting cranky) here while he’s in the office. See, back in Manila I worked as a full-time journalist. I did TV and multimedia and was always on the go. I was doing things like this and before that, things like this and this. I’m pretty much out all day till a bit late at night – like 5 to 6 times a week.

I did stories on diplomats, foreign policy, and politicians. I covered the impeachment trial of the Chief Justice and did stories on the South China Sea/West Philippine Sea issue. I met lots of fun and interesting people. I also did stories on art, beauty, fashion, travel, and food which you can find here. It was so much fun but I was as crazy busy as my husband was back in the home office, making the move here to KL a welcomed change. Now, only one of us is crazy busy! 😉

definitely and obviously miss my job but the time to lie down and actually get to do some reading (I brought a lot of my books from Manila!) is such a glorious feeling! So different from squeezing in a couple of pages while my crew cab zig zags along Manila traffic!

Sometimes, I wake up basically asking myself: Do I really have free time? Or am I just forgetting something?

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Hello from Kuala Lumpur!

Hello from Kuala Lumpur!

We arrived in Malaysia on Wednesday afternoon and I am loving Kuala Lumpur so far!

We’ve only been here for over 24 hours and we’ve already reserved a condominium unit where we’ll be staying for the next couple of years – all thanks to Alvin’s new colleagues at the Embassy. They’re all so nice and welcoming which basically completes the package. We’ve been discussing how lucky he is to be selected for this post (and his first posting at that!) as it’s one of the Philippines’ most important. The relations are multi-faceted, our Ambassador is a very intelligent and hardworking man, the city is beautiful, everything here is just so convenient, and the cost of living is actually lower than other posts.

So basically, he will be learning a lot from his new boss and colleagues while enjoying the perks the city has to offer. He will be very busy though because he will be swinging between the embassy’s political and economic sections, handling important issues. But that only makes him more excited due to all the things he will learn and the training he will undergo by working with some of our country’s top diplomats. I’m so happy for him!

As for me, I’ll be very busy in the coming days, making our place liveable. This weekend, we’ll be going out to buy our first batch of furniture. We’ll be renting an unfurnished apartment so I will be able to go crazy on furniture and decor shopping.

To be honest, prior to our move to KL, I have already set my sights on a couple of prints we’ll be hanging in the living room. I saw the prints online, fell in love with them, and was just too happy when I found out that the shop that makes them is right here in KL. I don’t need to have them shipped anymore, costing me less money! Yay! We even received beautiful photographs from a friend’s photographer boyfriend which I will have framed in the coming days – I will be using them to decorate the guest’s room and dining area. I’m just too excited that I’m already blabbing about my domesticated plans.

Kuala Lumpur’s City Centre is basically a huge shopping complex. Not really a shopaholic but it’s nice to know that they have 3 major sales here annually where malls go crazy when it comes to dropping their prices. The next one is this July and I’m already seeing signs that say “Sale”. Great! Just in time for our furniture buying spree! I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled and my fingers crossed for beautiful, discounted pieces. 😀

But first things first. We’ll have to submit papers, photos and other requirements for the stay, open bank accounts, get local phone connections – and do other errands that will make living here in KL official. Everybody at the embassy’s been so helpful, Rommel from the political section and his wife Grace who works at the cultural section even showed us around a bit today. We all had lunch at Din Tai Fung and Pavilion where I over-ate and then we had dinner at one of Alvin’s bosses’ house – Ms. Tonette. KL is like food heaven and we are being fed like crazy (Filipinos bond over food!) so I really need to find a yoga studio soon or start running at KLCC park as soon as our running shoes get unpacked.

More later,
Carol

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