Ring Theory: Do not conceive to the point that you miss out on doing.

I don't like to live life through exhausting amounts of thinking. Frankly, it is a waste of time. Life is the here and now. I can only control what is before me; not events of the past, or future. My actions at the moment are my only concern. When that instance is gone, then I move on. In this way my mind is never cluttered with over-analytical evaluations. People often think to the point that they frustrate and confuse themselves. They stumble over ideas and concepts to the point that they can no longer decipher between what is real and concrete, and what is abstract and surreal. Instead, one should take from a lesson what is needed, and then discard what is not.

Improve your ring generalship by applying minimalist thinking inside the ropes. Once a match has begun don't bank on your opponent waiting for you to decide what is the best course of action. One has to know and feel what needs to be done. Indecision and hesitation is a disaster waiting to happen when your sparring. The knowledge that you need to defend yourself against an adversary should be at the forefront of your mind instilled through constant training. A good fighter remains in a state of readiness, so that their actions are in the present; not an after-thought that came too late. Readiness is derived through practice that teaches the processes of conceivable reactions in the ring. Master the processes and you will be able to act without thought.

Gym Fashion Mistakes

Discretion is the better part of valor. Exercise good judgment when you decide what to wear to the gym. I understand that fashion is a matter of personal choice. But frankly some wardrobe decisions do not make sense to me. Just because some popular clothing item looks good being adorned by a mannequin in a store front window, does not mean it will flatter you in the same way.

Whoever said, "clothes make the man", clearly did not live during the age of spandex. It seems the fashion police and animal rights activists have been so concerned with manufacturers and consumers of fur clothing that they let the spandex abuse crisis slip under the radar. I blame spandex for my chronic case of T.M.I. (Too Much Information), which is what I get every time I have to bear witness to a guy walking around the gym in tight spandex shorts with a clearly formed impression of his tally-whacker and goody-bag highlighted like an outlined chalk figure at a murder scene.

Women are also culprits of committing heinous acts of spandex abuse. Some women try to squeeze into elastic outfits that did not fit them 3 years ago, when they were ten pounds lighter and two sizes smaller. The elasticity of spandex does have its limits. Tease me with a little flesh, and save some for the imagination. The seepage of ass, breasts, love handles and saddle bags, along with textile jammed into the crevices of a woman's body is not sexy at all. The only things ladies will attract with this look are maladjusted perverts, and yeast infections.

To avoid social embarrassment, ridicule, finger pointing, and disgusted looks, here is a list of ten gym fashion faux pas:

1. If you decide to go commando (under-wear free) underneath your bottoms, make sure there are no peek-a-boo gaps that will allow everyone to see your secret garden.
2. Full-figured women and husky men should stay away from horizontal lines that run across the body. It gives the visual perception of making one look bigger, in addition to looking like a prison escapee.
3. If you need to get a running start to get into a pair of shorts or pants, they are too small for you. You probably have not fit those bottoms since primary school. Likewise, if putting on your top feels like a wrestling match, once again it is too small for you!
4. There is a casual atmosphere at the gym, but it's not so casual that you can start wearing your under-wear as outer-wear. Perhaps people who spend a lot of money shopping for these items at expensive boutiques do not want attention to their bloomers to be limited to themselves.
5. Wearing shades while listening to, "I Wear My Sun Glasses At Night" on your ipod might seem like a nostalgic idea. It's a thought that should be saved for karaoke night. Sporting shades inside the gym makes you look either blind or stupid. The eighties are gone, get over it.
6. Tying a sweat shirt or jacket around your waist does not avert attention to your ass. It is like trying to throw a napkin over an elephant to disguise the fact that it is there. It only makes sense that if you add layers to an area that is already pronounced, it is just going to appear even bigger.
7. Do wear gender appropriate clothing. Guys wearing crushed velvet scooped neck tank-tops from the Miss teen section is a no-no. Only Prince can pull off some fashion discord like that. Women should not try to look like studs. It's unattractive to see a woman wearing over-sized men's clothing draped all over her body. A sweat shirt that has sleeves five inches past the tip of the longest finger, and bottoms with an inseam twelve inches from the ground will make any woman look like M.C. Hammer.
8. Don't show up to the gym an expect to workout with boots, sandals, dress shoes or some other ill choice of footwear. The reason should be self explanatory.
9. If you workout in the same outfit 5 days a week, but wash it only once a week, than you are both stinky and unfashionable. You should give serious consideration to adjusting your wash-to-wear-ratio.
10. No man or woman should wear leg warmer socks. The Jane Fonda/Flash Dance era is over.

Note: in case I go senile in my older age and I am unable to make this plea, if anyone out there ever sees me at the gym wearing a tank-top, suspenders, plaid Bermuda shorts hiked up to my chest, long dress socks to my knees, and sandals, do be kind and shoot me.

Thursday, 9 December 2010, the AirAsia Philippine Patriots came from behind in the waning seconds of the game to beat the Westports KL Dragons at Ynares Sports Arena 73 - 71. However, any discouraging effects the Dragons may have suffered from the loss were laid to rest by thoroughly beating the #1 team in the ABL, the Chang Thailand Slammers, 77 - 57 this Sunday, 12 December 2010, at MABA Stadium, Kuala Lumpur.

Both the Dragons and the Slammers came out the gates slow. The conservative pace continued throughout the first two periods. In the second half the Dragons finally decided to shift the fast-break from 2ND to 5Th gear, and then red-lined there way to a decisive victory.

The Dragons' over-all performance was very good for several note worthy reasons. The team showed it can bounce back from a disappointing loss. Secondly, bench players made a significant contribution towards the Dragons' win tonight, which shows these players are starting to develop confidence and skill. Delivering quality minutes off the bench takes some of the pressure off the starting 5 and will go a long way in closing out the season with a winning record to secure a play-off spot. Third, the defense was awesome. The Dragons nearly contested every Slammer who tried to score inside the paint. Nakiea Miller didn't just block Slammers' shots tonight, he engulfed them, and then stamped the ball with 'return to sender'.

What wasn't positive are some problems the Dragons have been routinely suffering from as a team: missed free-throws, streaks of poor shot selection, and bad execution of set-plays. Errors like this cost points, or lead to mismanagement of the clock. The Dragons' coaching staff needs to address these issues immediately; it has been going on for far too long.

The stats for the Dragons' top performers haven't been released yet. But since I witnessed the game, I can tell you that Nakiea Miller, Guganeswaran Batumalai and Rudy Lingganay will be on that list. But regardless of who scored the most points, it was the entire Dragons' defense that scorched the Slammers to get the 'W'.

Partner Ab Exercise

There is a limit to what you can ask your training partner to do for you. This ab exercise crosses those boundaries.

How To Tell If Your Girlfriend's a Psycho

Does your girlfriend...

1. Constantly call you throughout the day to update you about what she is doing and/or she wants you to update her about what you're doing?
2. Ask your opinion about how she looks, and then harshly judges the sincerity of your answer?
3. Tell you "if you loved me, you would do it" (which means anything from showering her with a dozen roses to throwing yourself off a high cliff)?
4. Obsess over getting ready to go out to the point that it grates on your nerves and leads to an argument (thereby sapping any joy out of attending social gatherings together)?
5. Celebrate the anniversary of every event and occurrence in your relationship including the mundane?
6. Feel the need to assert to other women that you and she are an item?
7. Seek the attention of other men, even in your presence?
8. Tell you " she likes taking care of you?
9. Tattoo herself to you every moment you are together?
10. Talk about what the future of the relationship will be (i.e. marriage, kids, residence, etc.) without having any prior discussion with you on such matters.
11. Have dramatic mood swings from she loves you more than life itself to throwing angry public tantrums?
12. Try to be physically intimate at inappropriate times, ask you sensitive questions in mixed company, or provoke any other actions that makes it seem like she is testing you?
13. Become physical during arguments?
14. Tell you "I don't know what I would do if you left me"?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, chances are you have a crazy and deranged fatal attraction on your hands. Take out a restraining order, and then run for the hills.

Do You Know The Difference Between Whole Grain & Whole Wheat?

Both terms sound like healthy options, which they are. This is especially true when you compare whole grain and whole wheat products to bleached flour products such as white bread.

Ultimately, whole grain reins supreme over whole wheat, because of the way the grain flour is processed. With whole-wheat flour, the grain goes through a refining process that strips the end product of some vital nutrients. Whole-grain flour is exempted from this process, and thus the end result still maintains all of its nutritional content.

For better health choose whole grain products over whole wheat. Bleached flour products should be eaten sparingly, or avoided altogether.

On Saturday, 4 December 2010, the Westports KL Dragons didn't have a stellar performance, but it was gutsy enough to beat the Brunei Barracudas 95 - 87 in over-time at MABA Stadium, Kuala Lumpur.

Until the over-time period, neither team was able to establish more than a marginal advantage over the other. The lead swung back and forth for 3 and a half periods. Then the pillar of the Dragon's Defense, Nakiea Miller, fouled out with about 5 minutes left in regulation. Once the perennial shoot blocker vacated the floor, the Barracudas wisely started attacking the rim. They eventually pulled ahead of the Dragons, and then held a 3-point edge with 16 seconds remaining in the game. At this juncture the Dragons called timeout to set-up their final play, a 3-point shot by Patrick Jan Manlawe Cabahu. He missed and got fouled in the act with just 1.6 seconds from the final buzzer. Unfazed by the pressure, Cabahu confidently preceded to bury all 3 foul shots to send the game into over-time. The momentum of surviving an 8-count carried the Dragons through OT, and allowed them to finally distance themselves from the Barracudas.

There is a saying, "sometimes it's better to be lucky, than good". The Dragons were a little of both last night. From my line-of-sight, Cabahu's rushed and off-balance 3-point attempt in the closing seconds of the game didn't look likely to go down. Thus fouling the shooter in this particular instance was a huge mistake by the Barracudas, and a lucky break for the Dragons. However, the fact that Cabahu nailed all three foul shots in crunch time was skill.

Besides winning the contest, the Dragons proved to themselves that they could resourcefully do so without one of their key starters for a long stretch of the game. Good teams find a way to pick each other up, when the x's and o's aren't going quite the way they planned. I noticed when Miller fouled out of the game, he was cheering and imploring his Dragon mates to rise to the occasion louder than anyone else in the stadium.

Top performers for the Dragons include Nakiea Miller with 28 points and 12 rebounds, Patrick Jan Manlawe Cabahu scored 16 points (3 of those points with the weight of the game on his shoulders), Alex Hartman contributed with 12 points and 7 assists, while
Angelus Raymundo finished the game with 12 points and 8 rebounds.

Compliments of last night's victory, the Dragons move up from #3 to #2 ahead of the AirAsia Philippine Patriots, who they defeated a week ago. Ironically, it's the same team they play next at Ynares Sports Arena in the Philippines. This should prove to be a firecracker of a game, because of the equal competitive nature of both squads. Also, dare I say that some Philippine Patriots' fans might be looking for some pay-back for the bottle of liquid that was thrown at the head of a Patriots' player during the last meeting between the two teams on the Dragons' home court. Granted, the Dragons organization offered an official apology. The ABL fined the Dragons USD5,000. Now no outside food or drinks are allowed inside MABA Stadium.

The Gatorade I purchased at the game was promptly dispensed into a light-weight flimsy plastic cup minus a quarter of the bottle's content that didn't fit into the cup, but I had to pay for every once none the less. I was not even offered a straw_I suppose it might have been maliciously used to spout liquid or blow darts. However, all this may not be enough to satisfy some angry emotionally charged fans in the Philippines.

If it is any consolation to Philippine Patriots' fans, I would like to break my size 12 Timberland boots off in the ass of the person responsible for making me have to drink my Gatorade out of the crappy strawless cup in the picture.