Spin Instructor Gloria Soh Sets Expenditure Tracking Into Motion

This was originally posted on Planner Bee.

Fitness trainer Gloria Soh “really really loves fitness”. True to her word, even when she’s not teaching spin – which she does around four times a week – she’s still engaging in other kinds of workouts, like in the gym.

Happily, her active lifestyle allows her to decide her meals based solely on her cravings, something that she is “thankful” for.

“I did try to have a diet plan in the past but I felt like that was really too much effort and I just wanted to live and eat whatever I want,” she said. Instead of limiting her diet, Gloria tries to be mindful in choosing healthier options.

“When I order bubble tea I would choose 25% sugar instead of just completely stopping myself from drinking bubble tea, like how is that possible right?”

Similarly, when it comes to expenses, she doesn’t track how much she spends. She chalks this up to the fact that she hasn’t yet encountered a platform that has interested her enough to use it for a longer period of time – whether because of a lacklustre user interface or simply because she forgot to use it. (Sounds like perhaps she should give Planner Bee a try?)

We challenged this fitness nut to keep to a budget of S$100 over three days for her meals. Would Gloria’s relaxed approach towards what she ate and how she spent encourage or derail her efforts to stay within the budget?

Pedaling towards the long term

The vivacious spin instructor is pedaling not just towards her immediate future, but what lies further ahead. In the short term, Gloria aims to pay off all her debts and liabilities.

In the long term, her goal is to put her money to work to generate passive income for herself. “Now I’m working for money. After that, please, money, work for me,” she said.

She believes that earning passive income is “one of the best ways” to attain financial freedom – with the larger purpose of being able to do the kind of work that she loves and is passionate about.

Pro tip: Find out how to put your money to work with Planner Bee’s guide to the top-rated robo advisors

Watch the video to see whether these far-reaching aims were enough to keep Gloria on-track as she took on Planner Bee’s challenge.

Planning for social occasions

After going through the challenge, Gloria highlighted that her lack of planning might have undermined her efforts to keep on-budget.

This was especially underscored when she headed out with friends, which tended to lead to over-ordering and forgetting about how much she should spend.

“Then I guess that’s the end of trying to stay within your budget,” she said sheepishly.

Hence, strategising in advance on how you can stay focused on and achieve your financial targets, can be a great way of preparing for how you should spend during unexpected or spontaneous occasions, or when you’re in a group setting.

Read more: Create a Personal Budget You Can Actually Stick To

Eating everything, in moderation

On top of that, Gloria found that keeping an eye on what she ate was not much of a concern for her, even when it came to fast food or other food typically thought of as unhealthy.

“As long as I make sure I don’t eat it every day or excessively, I think that’s ok,” she said.

In the same vein, Gloria advised against feeling bad or guilty about indulging in such food, and letting that get in the way of savouring your meal.

“It’s really ok if you’ve already bought it,” she said.

“Feel happy, enjoy the food that you have already purchased. Eat it!”

Read more: Making Food, Fitness, and Financial Goals Work Together With Pilates Teacher Daniel Chan

This challenge was part of Planner Bee’s #SgFitnessPros series, where we challenge savvy fitness pros to eat better and spend better. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more of such videos!

You can also check out our Money Journals series, to catch a glimpse of how everyday Singaporeans and Malaysians are earning, spending and investing.