It's been 3 full weeks since we started on the Slow-Carb diet, and so far, the results are in: Jiajia and I have lost a combined 20 lbs or so. Our pajamas fit much better, our faces are more pointy, and most importantly, I'm beginning to see faint outlines of those elusive abdominal muscles, with pretty much no exercise! Running the diet without "essentials" such as rice, noodles, bread, fruits, and all the goodies we used to enjoy has trained our bodies to reject processed foods, which is a blessing in disguise. Today's our "cheat" day, or the day on which we can eat whatever we want for a 24-hour period. I can honestly say I don't enjoy the sweets as much as I thought I would. In fact, the packaged sweets taste very chemical in my mouth. Which sucks! However, we're much happier for it, and we look forward to every Saturday when we get to plunge into "junk" food and all the joys that come with them. We'd love to hear your stories on dieting and fulfilling your new year's resolutions Add Comment Being a true fan of the ultimate Connector-Maven-Salesman, one Tim Ferriss, Jiajia and I have decided to embark on a fat-loss / exercise regimen using Tim's buffet, as outlined in his new book, The Four Hour Body. Our main goal: to be in the best shape of our lives come Wedding Day on May 15th, 2011. Preparation for regimen:
 These are kettlebells, get one and start swinging! Last week, I had the pleasure of chatting with my friend, Dr. David Tian, the "Asian Rake." David has been an instrumental guide in my personal development, and is one of the top men's dating consultants in Asia, if not in the world at large. If you want to learn about how to constructively build your personal happiness, look no further. You can read more of his wisdom at his website, asianrake.com.
Below are some of the interesting topics we explored:
领悟幸福——常想一二 11/30/2010
人生不如意十有八九，无论你处在任何时间和地点，有意无意的总会听到身边的朋友或者路人对生活的抱怨。似乎没有烦恼就不是活在人间，或许生活中真有那么多不如意，如果是，岂不是那我们活着太没意义太痛苦；如果不是，为什么我们听到的抱怨总是多过喜悦。
事实真是如此吗？快乐的事情真那么少，获得快乐真那么难，我们有没有思考过真正让我们不快乐的原因，是讨厌的人让我们不快乐？是不快乐的事让我们不快乐？我想真正的原因是我们没有去发现快乐，快乐被我们忽视了，却夸大了不快乐的事，所以我们才觉得生活不如意的事这么多。 所以真正寻找快乐的方法其实是放大快乐的事情，即使不如意之事有八九，那么也有一二点是好事，那么我们为什么不反过来，放大一二点，而忽视那八九点呢。当然当我们真正遇到困难或者烦恼的事情的时候，可能要很快做到这点不是那么容易，当人养成一种习惯后就很难改变，但是如果我们真有心改变的话，就从现在开始，改变处事态度，从小事做起，坚持下去，养成习惯后你会发现你的处境慢慢发生改变。 Yesterday evening, I had the honor of chatting with Mr. Alan Webber, co-founder of Fast Company magazine and recent author of the book Rules of Thumb. Having met Alan the previous weekend while he was on the last leg of his worldwide tour here in Beijing, I knew that he would have many nuggets of wisdom to share with us. You can listen below to our conversation on family, social phenomena, and specific advice on how to build a solid foundation for happiness. Our chat has been split into two parts: The first part focuses on Alan's upbringing, the story behind how he found the love of his life, and about the positive effects that he and his wife had on their children. Here it is. The Art of Delaying Gratification 11/22/2010
After reading my friend David Tan's latest blog entry this afternoon, I stumbled upon this hilarious video: Oh, The Temptation from Steve V on Vimeo. It turns out that a professor named Walter Mischel conducted a study at Stanford University in 1972 on small children not unlike the ones in the video above, using marshmallows to test psychological endurance. The kids who showed the most restraint turned to be more competent in life - happier, had better grades and were more fit. It made me wonder how long I would've lasted before chomping down on that tasty treat.
The lesson: Good things come to those who wait. In today's fast-paced, instant gratification society (China's no exception), we are constantly tested by supposedly "new" urges and stimuli - that new iPhone (gotta have it!), new bottled drink (gotta try it!), new car (girls would love me if I had that!), new girlfriend (check me out now, girls!) - that generate an endless cycle of unfulfilled needs. I, like everybody else, am not immune from the clutches of these powerful forces, but I'm actively trying to find happiness in restraint. Here are just some of the things I've incorporated into my life recently: Here\'s to Halfway 11/19/2010
 Yes, that's the real GG Bridge behind us 2010 has been full of lessons, but the biggest one has been this: happiness must be actively pursued. The inspiration for the title of this blog is the beautiful lady I'm holding in the above photo, who's shown me that happiness is not an end goal, but a living, breathing wonder-organism that has no bounds. Halfway to Heaven began as a theme for my birthday party, coming up in a week, as the midpoint between the day we got engaged (May 22, 2010) and the day we plan to celebrate our marriage (May 15, 2011), but has taken on a much larger meaning over the course of just a few days. We've decided to write our blog because we want to share our thoughts and offer solutions on how exactly to navigate social relationships within our culture, happily. Since we are both Asian - I am Taiwanese American Chinese, and Jiajia is Native Chinese, naturally our perspectives are based on our Asian heritage. However, we hope that our musings and suggestions will benefit everybody who takes the time to read, regardless of culture or race. We are writing for those who who care about - our family, friends, and strangers who may take a little comfort, hopefully, after sharing some thoughts with us. Here's to a great remainder of 2010, and an even greater 2011. | Join us via RSSArchivesJanuary 2011 CategoriesAll Please help our charity by clicking on the banner below:
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Halfway to Heaven: Musings on Happiness in Asian Relationships
半路到天堂：领悟幸福
半路到天堂：领悟幸福
