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entertainment

Muay Thai Champion & Supermum Sunny Coelst

The breeding of a true champion and a true superwoman in her own right! Meet Sunny Coelst, mother of two, fashion designer, actress and muay thai champion! Is there anything she can’t do?

What’s your background and where do you consider home?

I was born in Korea but raised in Belgium where I studied fashion. My first job was as a lingerie designer in Hong Kong. I also learnt to tattoo at the same time whilst picking up Muay Thai. I definitely consider Hong Kong home. I love this place and its energy. I feel like everything is possible here.

How did you get into Muay Thai and why did you decide to start competing competitively? Were you not afraid of getting injured?

I’ve always wanted to learn boxing but my dad didn’t think it was a sport for ladies. I’ve always loved the technical side of Muay Thai and I see it as a chess game. I don’t step in the ring to go to war. I want to be cleverer than my opponent and fight with my brain. I was also never scared of getting injured. with muay thai, the damage is mostly superficial (bruises, cuts). A few weeks and it’s gone!

How do you prepare for your fights both physically and mentally?

I would train 5-6 days a week. Twice a day. Mornings would consist of cardio and I would alternate between long distance running with sprints and stairs. Afternoon sessions was muay thai training (technique, pad work and sparring). The hardest part reducing your weight. For 6 weeks, you diet. You can’t drink, can’t celebrate, it’s hard on your social life..

What’s your fight record?

18 fights – 11 wins, (5 by KO!), 1 draw.

Super impressive! As you’ve won several titles to include the WMC and WKBC Asia Championships (please explain what they are), what’s the biggest title you’ve won?

Those are the different federations. For each of them, there are different titles (Asia, Europe, World, Intercontinental). The first title I won was the WKN European title in Belgium. It was probably the most significant one in my career as I won in my home country in front of my friends and family. I then won two more in Hong Kong at the I-1. The WMC Asia belt and the WKBC Asia belt.

I also heard your fights were interspersed between your two pregnancies! That’s incredible. How did you do it?

For both pregnancies, I kept training till the day before I gave birth (I would adapt my training obviously). Being fit before and while pregnant will help you with losing the weight after you give birth (I gained 17kg during each pregnancy!)

Do you have any secrets to defeating your opposition?

I have a good hands… and a secret high kick!

You also recently starred in a movie called “Lady Bloodfight”. Can you tell us more about it?

Lady Bloodfight is the female version of Bloodsport (with Jean Claude Van Damme). It is a Hollywood production about a female underground tournament (The Kumite) and I’m one of the fighters. The director is Chris Nahon, of “Kiss of the Dragon” with Jet Li and “The Empire of Wolves” with Jean Reno; and the main actress is Amy Johnston (Scarlett Johansson’s double in Captain America). Check it out!

I hope no one was injured in the process!

There have been some bruises, but the beauty of the movie is that all those fights are fake… You don’t really touch your opponent. So it was actually really hard for me to adjust! (laughs)

So have you officially retired from the ring now?

Yes, with two kids and two jobs, it’s hard to keep training twice a day every day…

Tell us about Ultim8 and how you got into it.

I couldn’t find any cool shorts for ladies when I started Muay Thai, so I started to make my own! They got noticed and I received a few orders, but soon I couldn’t make them all by myself anymore so I found a factory, a brand name, and Ultim8 was born!

Having accomplished so much, what would you say that has been your most major achievement to date?

I have two beautiful, healthy daughters and a very supportive husband (who was my cornerman during my fighting career!). I’ve managed to unite my two passions for a living: Muay Thai and fashion design. I love my job and being my own boss, means I can spend time and take care of my kids too. I truly have a happy life and I couldn’t ask for more!

March 15, 2016 0 comment

Hong Kong Live Play

World’s 1st BearCamp & Strongman/woman Championships (Hong Kong)!

written by Antonia Da Cruz

Brought to you by Ursus Fitness (March 12-13)

Two competitions are available for men and women to enter mid-March. BearCamp uses back-to-back Strongman equipment such as log bars, kegs, and tyres. Performance will be judged on timing/reps; and Strongman/woman which will use iconic Strongman equipment with emphasis on maximum weights. We speak to the co-founder of Ursus Fitness, Santina Philips to find out more about what it takes to be a Strongwoman!

You recently achieved a huge feat by being able to flip a 300kg tyre! Tell us more, how long did it take you to achieve this and how does it feel?

I’ve been practising Strongman for around a year and a half now it was a real struggle the first time I tried to flip the 120kg! Since then I’ve always been eyeing up the next sized tyre wanting to accomplish a new PR (Personal Record). It finally got to the stage where I was ready to try the 300kg tyre, it took a week of attempts but I managed it in the end and when I got it over it felt great!

How did you become involved in URSUS Fitness? What is the ethos behind it?

I met my business partner Gary training in the Lamma jungle when I came across new equipment and movements I had never seen before. I became addicted to the Strongman style of training especially as I saw how quickly and positively it changed my body. I was stronger, faster and leaner than ever before and the training was so fun. There’s nothing better than the real life events of dragging, lifting, carrying and pushing Strongman challenges you with to build real functional strength.

“Ursus” means bear in Latin, which reflects our primal approach to fitness. But don’t be intimidated – it’s just fun and games really!

Tell us about the early bear camp days. How did you manage to move all that apparatus on a daily basis? Surely it must have been a workout in itself!

We held Bear Camp in both Lamma and Cyberport and it had a great primal and raw feel to it out in the jungle. If it weren’t for the 5 tonne truck of equipment my business partner and I had to drive around Hong Kong and then single-handedly drag, roll and push into various locations I would’ve done it forever! Like you said, it was a great workout, just with 400kg tyres it wasn’t sustainable long term.

Can you tell us a bit more about the different types of equipment and its purpose? I understand you actually make the atlas stones yourselves!

The Strongman specific equipment we have includes beer kegs, tractor tyres that aren’t only used for flipping, sledgehammers, a Conan’s wheel (which is multifunctional also acting as a Viking’s Press and Car Lift), log bars, and sleds accompanied with harnesses strong enough to pull a jumbo jet! Gary and I take a real “hands-on” approach, and I mean that literally. We do make all the atlas stones ourselves and we don’t even own a cement mixer!

What is the most gruelling workout you’d like to recommend to our members?

Personally I think Bear Camp is still the toughest as it challenges both your strength and endurance.

How should our members mentally and/or physically prepare before class?

Always make sure to get warmed up as if it involves heavy lifting, it’s important to never compromise form just to lift more. Also don’t be intimidated by the different equipment, and be prepared to get a sweat on and have fun! All our movements are scalable so that everyone can join in!

Lastly, any recovery tips?

Sleep and nutrition are key. Get enough sleep and make sure you eat well – lots of vegetables, good quality meat and healthy sources of carbs. Supplements such as multivitamins, protein powder, glutamine, BCAA’s and Omega 3s are also important and key to helping recovery. I also use my HRV (heart rate variability) readings to help me plan my rest days and train smarter. This is used as a tool to indicate stress levels to be used daily to decipher how ready you are to train. It’s common for people to overtrain nowadays so it’s important to implement rest days into your training programs.

Registration is now open for the World’s 1st BearCamp and Strongman/Strongwoman Championships this coming March. If you think you have what it takes? Then sign up now (www.ursusfitness.com)! Good luck!

February 4, 2016 0 comment

Live Singapore

Curious About Dance

written by Natalie Ryneveld

Meet Natalie Ryneveld, part of GuavaPass team Singapore, is sharing insight to one of her new year’s resolutions. Here’s her How to Guide: Adding Some pep into Your Workout Routine!

Confession: I’ve never been that into Dance classes. I used to prefer dancing at a bar or club with my best friends using the classic liquid confidence. However, one of my new year’s resolutions was to go out less (to the benefit of my wallet and my health), but I realized I would miss dancing because I didn’t really do it anywhere else!

I decided to try out some of the dance classes on GuavaPass. I found out:

I was definitely breaking a good sweat (did you know you can burn between 500 and 1000 calories during an hour of dancing?)

I actually had a blast!

I definitely recommend taking a dance class or two to change up your routine 🙂

Bolly Dazz class at Bolly Dancing was amazing! For those of you who don’t know what Bolly Dazz is (I had no idea going into it) it is essentially a Zumba class but with Bollywood influenced music and some international top 40 hits! Fun fact: Bolly Dancing is the inventors of this class and they also teach it in New York and India.

Lucky for us, GuavaPass has scored more slots and classes at Bolly Dancing. Be sure to grab a friend and check out a class! Here’s the schedule below:

Bollydancing classes – 6.45 pm Monday | 7 pm Wednesday | 10.30 am Saturday | 1 pm Sunday

Bollydazz Fitness classes – 12 pm & 8.15 pm Thursday | 2.30 pm Saturday | 12 pm Sunday

Zumba Fitness classes – 8.35 pm Monday | 8 pm Tuesday

Piloxing classes – 8 pm Friday | 1.30 pm Saturday

Another great studio offering dance classes is Dance Embassy, who is offering a workshop on how to dance in heels on Feb 28th!

The instructor, Andreas, is someone you may recognize from the show the Dance Floor on Channel 5. He was one of the finalists! This is something you do not want to miss. Details below:

28 Feb 2016, Sunday | 4-5pm | At Recognise Studios, Orchard | $20 (this is the price of the workshop for each participant)

“Enjoy walking in heels? Try dancing in them while losing some calories and toning your muscles at the same time. A confidence boosting activity definitely worth trying at least once with the one and only Andreas! Guy or girl, doesn’t matter, strap those heels and werk it!”

January 27, 2016 0 comment

Live Singapore

Sunday Check In – Vol. 4

written by Tasha Kolonas

The excuse bug will bite us from time to time. No matter how much you think you’re trying – there’s an ever growing list of reasons why you can’t get up for a sweat sesh.

Crank up the volume and get those toes tapping! Our Sunday Check-In is ready to ignite some enthusiasm for the week.

Rise & Shine

There’s no perfect way to wake up, but those mornings where you wake up without an alarm with minutes to spare is cause for a smile. Roll around in bed a little longer to Ratatat, Cream On Chrome.

Cardio Burn

Turn up Tommy Trash, Luv U Giv and count down to 3 sets of 20 high knees, 20 jump squats, and 20 mountain climbers. Careful, you’re heart might drop out!

Pump & Grind

Get down to a push up position and get ready to grind those abs to ZHU, Paradise Awaits (RÜFÜS Remix). Do 3 sets of 20 or 30 cross toe touches, with your legs going in and out. Make sure those butts stay down!

Lift & Tone

Prepare for a butt burn session. Remember (if done correctly) this is a leg workout not an arm workout, so make sure to get the right weights for your body. Hit play to Calvin Harris & Disciples – How Deep Is Your Love (Chris Lake Remix) to help you through 3 sets of 10-20 reps of kettlebell swings. Focus on sitting back, swinging through the legs, and squeezing your butt and things at the top.

Relax & Recover

There’s no better way to soak up all the benefits you’ve rocked up this week, from the sweat drenching sessions, than to kick it back in a warm bath. RÜFÜS, You Were Right will serenade you as you bathe in the glory!

January 24, 2016 0 comment

Live Singapore

Sunday Check-In – Vol. 3

written by Tasha Kolonas

Sometimes waking up feels incredible. If you’re having one of those days where you can’t wipe off the smile off your face and your mood is so intoxicatingly positive you want to give everyone a hug, then you should put that energy to good use. Start your week with this week’s Monday Check In.

Rise & Shine

If you’re feeling groovy and you’re in the mood to dance it out in the shower, The Black Keys Howlin’ For You will guide you through every refreshing drop.

Cardio Burn

Crank up your metabolism with three sets of sprints to Prodigy, Breathe. Set your treadmill to six 1-minute alternate intervals of 11 km/hr (6.8mph) and 6 km/hr (3.7mph) – you’re heartbeat will know you mean business.

Pump & Grind

Tiesto, Adagio For Strings is ready to help you tone up those legs and booty. Get yourself ready for three sets of 15-20 jump squats! Swing both arms to help you and be sure to land on soft knees.

Lift & Tone

Disclosure, White Noise will solve your woes while you complete three sets of 15 tricep dips. The father your feet are to your bum the harder these get, so why not challenge yourself?

Relax & Recover

Grab a seat, take a breath, and soothe your pains to Moby, Porcelain.

December 6, 2015 0 comment

Live Singapore

Meet The Team – Rhyce’s Week in Sri Lanka

written by Tasha Kolonas

The GuavaPass family is lucky to have such a diverse bunch of fitness enthusiasts from around the world spanning our teams in Asia, Australia, and in the Middle East. Introducing a new series to peek inside our world!

We want to share with you just how awesome the people behind our brand are. These are the individuals who work hard behind the scenes to make every GuavaSweat possible and in the spirit of exploring different studios and fitness classes, we’re really about harnessing an adventurous culture!

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Meet Rhyce, the General Manager for team GuavaPass Singapore. A model on the side, he’s more than just his good looks! Moving from Melbourne in 2012, Rhyce established a career in marketing before making the jump to join GuavaPass’ founding team. Here’s a peak inside his amazing trip to Sri Lanka!

“Life will always get busy, make time to do the things you love.”

Day 1: – Myself and 2 buddies fly into Colombo Sri Lanka from Singapore. Approx a 3.4 hour flight. Once arrived, we then went on to take a further 6 hour car ride to the Villa in Ella!!

After an exhausting 10+ hours of travel, we have arrived at 98 Acres lodge, situated up in the hills of Ella, with truly breathtaking views.

Day 2: Waking up at 5am, we have planned a hike to world’s end. An exhausting but very rewarding 10km hike.

After our hike, it was a race back down the hill to catch the next train. It was a fantastic experience – The train is actually in motion as I was hanging out!!

Day 3: Once again waking up around 5am for a quick breakfast, with amazing views! Then off to the tea factories to see the whole tea making process. Fun Fact: Did you know that the highest quality tea is produced from the top 3 leaves of the tea tree? The tea factory we went to produced 9 tons of tea per day!

Day 4: Rise and shine with some early morning Yoga. Even when I travel, I like to always try and fit in a yoga session when possible and practicing in locations likes this definitely makes it much more memorable. Namaste! Fun Fact: Yoga is great for mind, body and soul.

Its now time to finish our times in the hills and head on down to Mirissa, another 5 hour drive. We thought it best to make a pit stop at Udalawala National Park for a Safari and to see some of my favorite animals in the world! The Elephant. Fun Fact: This park is 30k hectares of protected land.

The journey continues down south as we make our way towards the beach for some in the sun! Accommodation at Sri Sharavi Villa, highly recommended! Amazing service right along the beach.

Day 5: Time for a Yoga fix once again, followed by breakfast + GuavaPass check in. It’s not work if you love what you do!

December 2, 2015 0 comment

Bangkok Live

Meet The Team – Kari’s South African Adventure

written by Tasha Kolonas

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Meet Kari, from team GuavaPass Bangkok. Coming from South Africa, this beautiful blonde made her first solo move abroad to Thailand in 2012. Let’s join her on her recent trip home!

Day 1: Straight to Clifton 2nd beach for some sun, sand and a game of beach bats to heat up before going for a dip in the 11’ degree ocean!

Day 2: An early morning gallop up the hills in the spectacular Paarl Valley vineyards.

Day 3: A quick healthy breakfast and we are off to summit Lion’s Head. From the top is this idyllic view of Table Mountain; Cape Towns very own natural wonder of the world.

Day 4: Dinner with the family at one of my favourite restaurants in the Franschhoek Winelands. Foliage, their outstanding wine selection and the owner’s personal touch to each dish really makes it a MUST!

Day 5: So many exquisite tracks to choose from. Today I chose a quick, relatively flat 12km track, which leads to views of the Wemmershoek dam in Franschhoek. Lola the #GuavaPug really loved the views too.

Day 6: After all the #GuavaSweat it’s time to enjoy some tourist activities and indulge in some natural Froyo.

Day 7: Time to get glammed up and enjoy some Champagne and sushi making at another great vineyard, Leopard’s Leap.

Day 8: Cape Town has something that Bangkok really lacks. Mountains! So I just had to enjoy one last view of Table Bay before heading back home to Asia.

Day 9: An afternoon of massages and pampering at Santé Winelands Spa in preparation for the big day.

Day 10: The reason for my short trip to the Mother City ends on a Rose Farm in the Wellington wine district standing next to my best friend as she gets married.

November 25, 2015 0 comment

Live Singapore

Monday Check-In

written by Tasha Kolonas

Cheers to a new week! There are a million things you said you want to accomplish this week. It feels like a never ending checklist, but don’t stress. Organize and prioritize your goals to get your mind ready for the week. We are also here to help!

Rise & Shine

There will be days when you need to skip that hot shower for a lip biting cold shower to wake you up. Ease your shivers to Tom Misch, Dawsons Heights and start your day with a big smile.

Cardio Burn

Grab those gloves and get all that angst out on a punching bag; vary your punches from slow and hard punches to quick lighter punches. Dr Meaker, Fighter will cue you in.

Pump & Grind

Spark your energy with repetitions of high knees. Get those arms chopping straight and charge through like wheels on a train to Bassjackers, Mush, Mush.

Lift & Tone

Everyone wants more tone to that booty, so grab a kettlebell and add some weight to your squats. Remember not to rush through the movement (i.e. imagine sitting on that imaginary chair) and let Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Thrift Shop help you hit the right tempo.

Relax & Recover

Living in the hustle and bustle of city life doesn’t allow most of us much time to unwind. Sometimes all it takes is a quick moment of stillness to give your mind and body it’s much needed break. Imagine lying on the beach and All Saints, Pure Shores will take care of the rest.

October 4, 2015 0 comment

Live

Stay Fit On Holidays

written by Bailey Brown

The temptation to laze around and avoid staying active is easy when on vacation. Everyone (or I should say most) gets this cheeky feeling of wanting to skip staying active while on holiday. For those of us who admit to this guilt and want a solution, here are some quick tips on how to stay fit while on vacation.

Step 1: Bring your trainers/sport shoes/runners/sneakers (whatever you call them!)

This is where the downhill spiral of vacation guilt often begins. Do not let yourself fall into a lull because once you’ve jumped into the slump it takes double work to get back into it!

Take advantage of your vacations days. You have an opportunity to use your free hours to explore a city, to stay away from a chair and desk, to be away from the computer and to have time to focus on you. Go for a run, do a circuit, go for a bike ride, or go paddle boarding.

Avoid excuses; there are plenty of exercises and activities you can do without any equipment or a gym. All you need are those shoes (to protect your knees, joints, and feet) and the willpower to get through it.

Step 2: Think moderation and portions.

Trying new delicacies is part of the appeal of travel, especially when you’re vacationing to a new destination. The temptation is to eat more than you actually need to. Trust us, we know what you’re going through!

The trick is not to restrict yourself completely where you’re missing out on new experiences. Think moderation to resist that urge. Cut portions of guilty foods in half or less and allow yourself to indulge on each delicious bite slowly (remember, it tends to take 10-15 minutes for your stomach to register it’s full!).

Overall, never loose sight of the bigger goal in mind. A vacation is great to loosen up and relax, but don’t forget about how your want to feel when the holiday is over!

Step 3: Walk when you can.

The easier and typically quicker choice is to jump into a cab or rent a car but if you’re in a location where walking to your destinations is doable, then start walking! Those step counting apps aren’t for nothing; walking helps keep your body in motion and therefore burning more calories versus sitting in a stationary position. This is probably an obvious fact, but it can’t hurt to share a reminder to plan your vacations around optimising what you can get out of each experience. Walking is also a great way to discover places anyways!

The main thing about staying fit on holidays is to eat in moderation and stay active.

September 16, 2015 0 comment