Spotlight: A great way to have fun and get in shape

Kevin Laliberte for Spotlight

Are you ready to party yourself into shape?

Thats exactly what the Zumba program is all about.

Zumba is an exhilarating, effective, easy-to-follow, calorie- burning dance fitness-party thats moving people toward joy and health, says Falher area Zumba instructor Diane Dolhan.

Zumba classes feature exotic rhythms set to high-energy Latin and international beats. Before participants know it, theyre getting fit and their energy levels are soaring! Theres no other fitness class like a Zumba Fitness Party.

She adds the best part of it all is that its easy to do, effective and totally exhilarating, often building a deep-rooted community among returning students.

Dolhan, a qualified Zumba instructor since November of 2011, is once again launching the local fitness-oriented program in Falher beginning Nov. 6. Weekly classes are being offered to anyone over the age of 12 each Tuesday evening from 7:30-8:30 p.m. at Guns N Buns Fitness Centre.

The local program drew an average of about one-dozen women last year between the ages of 20 up to age 60-plus.

Last years participants really enjoyed the music and had fun while exercising, she says, adding you dont have to be in tip-top shape to take part.

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Spotlight: A great way to have fun and get in shape

Bandar Seri Begawan - With the Olympics having come to an end recently, more Bruneians are paying greater attention to sports and healthy activities. An increasing number can be seen working out in the health clubs, enjoying state-of-the-art fitness facilities.

Despite the increase in fitness and health awareness, Fitness Education and Certification courses are lacking in Brunei. Fitness Zone, being the most active health club in Brunei, is taking a bigger approach to encourage and sponsor local fitness enthusiasts to go abroad for their fitness certification courses. One famous fitness programme, Les Mills, is always looking for new recruits to join their team of 75,000 certified instructors working in 14,000 clubs across 80 countries.

According to Wu Chun, the founder of Fitness Zone, "Never underestimate what Bruneians can do. As long as you are passionate about what you are doing and you have a strong will to make it happen, it will materialise. Our coaches do their best to get people to dig deeper, go harder and reach higher. They motivate bodies, inspire minds and lead the way to positive change. Not many people are that committed but its great to be one of the few."

Emily Wong, a member-turned-Les Mills instructor at Fitness Zone who is now certified with the American Council of Exercise, said, "The Les Mills programmes have really changed my life. I first started participating overseas and was happy to find out that the local Fitness Zone offers the programmes when I returned."

A majority of the local trainers have also pursued their degree education in the UK and Australia, and have been greatly influenced by the healthy lifestyle abroad.

Fitness Zone currently has 10 expatriate trainers and 15 local trainers who are internationally certified.

--Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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Fitness Zone Helps Enthusiasts With Certification Courses

OTTAWA B.C. Conservative MP John Weston, his fitness instructor wife Donna, and their three soccer-playing kids all have black belts in tae-kwon-do.

When Weston arrived in Ottawa as a rookie MP in 2008, one of the first things he did after noticing the unhealthy lifestyle of many MPs was to set up a program to encourage parliamentarians from all parties to swim, run or walk once or twice a week.

On Monday, the 54-year-old, Mandarin-speaking, Harvard-educated, marathon-running lawyer went a step further with the introduction of a private members bill to create a National Health and Fitness Day.

Westons bill calls on municipal governments to provide free or reduced-rate access to their fitness centres the first Saturday of June each year.

His goal is to create the fittest nation on earth a tall order given that the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development says Canada has one of the highest obesity rates in the western world.

And just last week, Statistics Canada reported that 31.5 per cent of Canadians between ages five and 17 are overweight or obese.

Excess weight among children leads to diabetes, high blood pressure, and thickening of the arteries in adulthood, West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast MP Weston said at a news conference in Ottawa on Monday.

This is the first generation of Canadians who will die at a younger age than their parents, he said, according to a copy of his prepared statement.

Weston told reporters his proposed bill is about fitness, not fatness.

We are not creating a National Skinny Day. My wife Donna, a fitness instructor, likes to tell me Im way too thin. And, while some people may see losing weight as an end in itself, todays initiative is not about that.

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B.C. MP calls for National Health and Fitness Day

Workplace retirement plans for pro athletes

You might not think pro athletes earning millions would have to worry about the risk of outliving their retirement savings. But when you consider their retirement could conceivably stretch 50 years or more, that risk isn't so far-fetched.

Even with the most popular major sports leagues offering such benefits as pensions and 401(k) plans with employer matches, an athlete's relatively short career could make it hard to save adequately using those plans alone.

"They're not going to be able to put away in qualified retirement plans enough money to live on," says Andre Mirkine, president of the Sports Financial Advisors Association. (Qualified plans refer to those with tax advantages.)

"Then it's incumbent upon the advisers who advise them to try to convince them to save," he adds.

Sometimes, former athletes run out of retirement savings chasing after wild investment deals, says Pete D'Arruda, a Cary, N.C., financial planner who frequently advises athletes.

"Many athletes take a lot more risk than they should after their playing careers," D'Arruda says.

Players in these seven sports organizations, at least, have a formal employer-provided benefit plan to get them started. But data from players unions and collective bargaining agreements show that, when it comes to retirement security, the playing field is decidedly uneven.

Baseball was the first U.S. pro sport to have a pension plan, starting in 1947. Today, players become eligible for the minimum pension after just 43 days of service time at the major league level.

MLB pensions are reputed to be among the most generous in sports. Players accrue full pension benefits when they achieve 10 years of service time, making them eligible for $200,000 a year for life (the maximum allowed by law in 2012) at the age of 62. The pension is joint-survivor, meaning surviving spouses are entitled to some pension benefits. In addition, MLB members with four or more years of major league service time are eligible to continue their health care coverage at a cost of at least 60 percent of their chosen plan.

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Retirement benefits of professional athletes

Workplace retirement plans for pro athletes

You might not think pro athletes earning millions would have to worry about the risk of outliving their retirement savings. But when you consider their retirement could conceivably stretch 50 years or more, that risk isn't so far-fetched.

Even with the most popular major sports leagues offering such benefits as pensions and 401(k) plans with employer matches, an athlete's relatively short career could make it hard to save adequately using those plans alone.

"They're not going to be able to put away in qualified retirement plans enough money to live on," says Andre Mirkine, president of the Sports Financial Advisors Association. (Qualified plans refer to those with tax advantages.)

"Then it's incumbent upon the advisers who advise them to try to convince them to save," he adds.

Sometimes, former athletes run out of retirement savings chasing after wild investment deals, says Pete D'Arruda, a Cary, N.C., financial planner who frequently advises athletes.

"Many athletes take a lot more risk than they should after their playing careers," D'Arruda says.

Players in these seven sports organizations, at least, have a formal employer-provided benefit plan to get them started. But data from players unions and collective bargaining agreements show that, when it comes to retirement security, the playing field is decidedly uneven.

Baseball was the first U.S. pro sport to have a pension plan, starting in 1947. Today, players become eligible for the minimum pension after just 43 days of service time at the major league level.

MLB pensions are reputed to be among the most generous in sports. Players accrue full pension benefits when they achieve 10 years of service time, making them eligible for $200,000 a year for life (the maximum allowed by law in 2012) at the age of 62. The pension is joint-survivor, meaning surviving spouses are entitled to some pension benefits. In addition, MLB members with four or more years of major league service time are eligible to continue their health care coverage at a cost of at least 60 percent of their chosen plan.

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Go long: Retirement plans for pro athletes

Defined Benefit Retirement Plans Play Strong Role in Employment Decisions

TORONTO , Sept. 25, 2012 /CNW/ - Compensation preferences among Canadian workers reveal that a secure pension plan is an increasingly important component of an attractive pay package. According to a survey by global professional services company Towers Watson (NYSE, NASDAQ: TW), one-third of Canadian employees would be willing to sacrifice a portion of their compensation in return for enhanced retirement security, while one in four would agree to forgo a bonus in exchange for additional retirement benefits.

"As financial insecurity becomes more widespread, Canadian workers are increasingly interested in a secure rewards package with retirement benefits they can count on" said Ian Markham , Retirement Innovation Leader for Towers Watson. "While Canadians have traditionally looked to employer-sponsored retirement plans as one part of their financial future, the fact that so many workers are willing to trade pay increases or bonuses for enhanced retirement security points to the significant unease that many employees hold towards financial planning for their retirement years."

"The survey results clearly reflect concern among Canadian workers about whether they will outlive their retirement savings" said John McIntosh, Plan Design Issue Leader at Towers Watson. "If this concern translates to widespread delays in retirement, Canadian employers will be faced with many challenges from the shifting workplace demographic. An older workforce could affect everything from health and productivity to succession planning and the expectations for training and development of the next generation required for future growth."

Pursuit of Retirement Security Affects Employment Decision For sponsors of Defined Benefit (DB) plans (plans which pay a regular monthly benefit), the news is more positive. The Towers Watson survey found that 50% of respondents with a DB plan identified their retirement program as a key reason for joining their current employer, compared to 30% of respondents with a Defined Contribution (DC) plan or Group RRSP, where the payout is dependent on the investment fortunes of the plan member.

DB plans appear to play an even more significant role in retention. Depending on age, between 62% and 71% of Canadian DB plan participants cite their retirement program as a compelling reason to remain with their current employer, compared to between 30% and 50% of those with a DC plan. Younger DB plan participants under 40 years of age were twice as likely to stay with their current employer, compared to those with a DC plan.

The survey also revealed that a change from a DB plan to a DC plan has a strong effect on employee commitment and loyalty. While 75% of respondents whose DB plan had been changed in the last three years, but remained DB, say that they would like to continue working for their employer until they retire, that number decreases to 53% for respondents whose employers have changed to a DC plan.

"In both good and bad economic times, building and keeping a talented workforce remains a critical business need. The survey findings reinforce the idea that organizations sponsoring DB plans can achieve a more stable workforce than those offering a DC plan," said Markham. "Understanding worker preferences toward their reward programs creates an opportunity for employers to highlight the value of their retirement plans to current and prospective employees a potential advantage for any business that places a priority on retaining talent and organizational experience."

About the Survey

The 2011-2012 Towers Watson Retirement Attitudes Survey includes responses from 1,577 full-time Canadian employees at private-sector organizations with 1,000 or more employees. For more information, visit http://www.towerswatson.com/canada-english/research/7717.

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Employer-Sponsored Retirement Programs Take on Heightened Importance for Canadian Workers, Towers Watson Survey Finds

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Transamerica Retirement Services announced today that it has received 38 Best in Class ratings by retirement plan sponsors in Chatham Partners second quarter post-conversion customer satisfaction survey. The survey measures the overall quality and management of Transamericas plan installation process according to the first-hand experiences of retirement plan sponsors.

Transamerica is focused on helping people retire with confidence, and Chatham Partners survey of plan sponsors helps us fine-tune the services we provide. With the survey, we continuously monitor key drivers of satisfaction, which help us deliver a best in class experience during the first stages with new clients, said Stig Nybo, president of Transamerica Retirement Services. We are pleased that our newest clients continue to give Transamerica high praise for exceeding their expectations.

The Chatham Partners post-conversion survey is integral to Transamericas efforts to consistently monitor its plan installations as part of its process for continuous advancement. The survey respondents manage the retirement plans of small- and mid-sized U.S. businesses.

Transamerica received Best in Class ratings from retirement plan sponsors in the following areas:

Overall Impressions of Transamerica

Overall Impressions of the Conversion Experience

Conversion Project Manager

Management of the Conversion

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Transamerica Retirement Services Receives 38 “Best in Class” Ratings in Chatham Partners’ Post-Conversion Customer ...

By JOEY JOHNSTON | The Tampa Tribune Published: September 24, 2012 Updated: September 25, 2012 - 1:15 AM

He's the Tallahassee Kid.

University of South Florida senior quarterback B.J. Daniels once dressed in garnet and gold. He did the Tomahawk Chop. He dreamed of becoming the next Charlie Ward. He actually lived for seven years on Florida State University's campus, where his father was a dormitory director.

In time, he grew into one of Tallahassee's greatest high-school athletes.

He was the city's favorite son.

And now he's the enemy?

"It's got a little circus aspect to it, doesn't it?'' Daniels said. "It won't have anything to do with what happens between the white lines.''

When slumping USF (2-2) faces No. 4-ranked FSU (4-0) on Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium, Daniels' presence makes it part-soap opera, part-grudge match. And in some cases, it compromises the loyalties.

"We hear it 10 times a day,'' said Daniels' father, Bruce. "So many people say, 'I'm a Seminole, but I'm pulling for B.J.' "

Daniels, trying to right USF's ship after a horrific 31-27 loss at Ball State last weekend, said he won't be nervous. He has been here before. On Sept. 26, 2009, the Bulls weren't given much of a chance, particularly because a season-ending injury to Matt Grothe forced USF to start Daniels, a redshirt freshman. How crazy was it? Before the game, Daniels remembers staring up at the seats where he once cheered for FSU.

Excerpt from:
For Bulls' Daniels, FSU game nothing personal

Almost half of China's ultra-rich saw their wealth shrink in the past year as the Chinese stock markets slumped, according to an annual ranking of the country's 1000 richest individuals, with those in the solar and textile sectors the hardest hit.

The average wealth of the country's richest fell 9 percent from the previous year to $860 million, while the number of billionaires fell to 251, from 271, the 2012 Hurun Rich List showed.

Of the wealthiest 1,000 individuals, 469 saw their wealth shrink, 291 saw their wealth grow, while 114 stayed the same. There were 150 new faces in the list this year.

Beverage magnate Zong Qinghou, who topped the list in 2010, regained the top spot with a personal fortune of $12.6 billion, thanks to his 80 percent holding of soft drinks brand Wahaha which reported net profits of over $1 billion last year.

Entertainment and real estate tycoon Wang Jianlin, who topped the rankings last year, slipped to second place with personal wealth of $10.3 billion. Wang shook up the entertainment industry earlier this year, with his $2.6 billion acquisition of U.S. cinema chain AMC Entertainment - the largest-ever international acquisition by an individual on the rich list.

But wealth in the solar and textile industries waned. Qiu Guanghe of garment maker Senmir, who placed at 58, saw his wealth plunge by 60 percent to $2.2 billion. While Zhu Gongshan, chairman of GCL-Poly - the world's largest producers of polysilicon and wafers used in solar panels, who ranked at 168, had his wealth decline by nearly 60 percent.

China's solar sector has been suffering from a sharp decline in profitability due to slumping global sales and high domestic competition, while growth in the mainland textile sector is slowing under weak demand both domestically and externally.

Adding to these pressures has been the dismal performance of China's stock market (Shanghai Stock Exchange: .SSEC), which is down 8 percent this year, after declining more than 20 percent in 2011.

For the first time since 1999, income from property dropped into second place as the top source of wealth, behind manufacturing. Nick Kounis, Head of Macro Research, Group Economics, ABN AMRO, says this is a reflection of the changing structure of China's economy, away from property towards consumption.

Slideshow: China's Wealthiest Billionaires

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China's Ultra-Rich See Shrinking Personal Fortunes

Samsung Electronics today announced its new lineup of high-performance SSDs designed for use in personal computers. The new series supporting SATA 6.0 gigabit-per-second (Gb/s) interface comes in two tracks; one for general computing purposes and another, an advanced lineup dubbed 'PRO' for serious users.

Samsung's tiered offering for professional and general user environments provides consumers a broader choice of SSDs to best suit their personal requirements.

The unrivaled performance of Samsung's SSDs lies in its MDX controller, which delivers superior performance, high reliability and sustainability that are among the product's proprietary features. The premium class 840 PRO provides 100,000 input/ output per second (IOPS) for random read and 90,000 IOPS for random write. Benchmark test on the overall system performance unveiled a three-fold advancement when applying the 840 PRO in place of a conventional hard disk drive.

Mr. UnSoo Kim, vice president of Memory brand product marketing team, Samsung Electronics, said, "Introduction of Samsung's 840 SSD series delivers considerable levels of advancements to the notebook user environment. As a technology pioneer, Samsung continues to raise the level of performance of SSDs and contribute to the growing global pool of users enjoying the conveniences of high-performance SSDs."

The new 840 series will be available globally from mid October through retail channels.

Source: Samsung

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Samsung unveils new SSD series