Month: November 2020

When you see the ease of how Loo Zi Jia does burpees, it’s hard to believe that she used to be overweight (72kg) in primary school and was in the Trim & Fit (TAF) Club.

Her life changed in secondary school when she played softball and then went onto play touch rugby competitively in Junior College, in university and at the local club level. She then joined the contact rugby national training squad and now the 24-year-old financial advisor is with the rugby national training squad.

“My competitive sports journey had its ups and downs. Three years ago I fractured my hand and I wasn’t able to do any strength training. I did a lot of cardio-intensive training and it made me lose so much weight,” she recalled. “At my lowest weight of 48kg, I felt horrible about my body. It affected my rugby performance a lot and I felt very weak.”

Thankfully, with the help of her coach and a nutritionist, she stopped being fixated on how she was at a disadvantage and instead, found ways to gain lean mass and build the strength she needed for her sport.

It took her a year to gain 10kg and then she faced another struggle – this time she felt she was fat even though she was stronger and fitter. It didn’t help that a bad break-up last December made her feel worse about herself.

Through the healing however, she learnt how to cope and came to terms that if she can’t love herself for who and what she is, she will never be able to feel satisfied with her life.

“In the past, fitness used to be a means of losing weight and also so I can eat more. But now, it has become my source of stress relief and it makes me feel good emotionally and physically. I feel way more energetic after I work out and this is my ‘me’ time,” she added.

“Just remember that the number on the scale does not determine how healthy or fit you are. It is just the quantity of matter you contain, not how much you should matter!”

*This #FitForAll series is brought to you by Rock The Naked Truth x HUAWEI, with the objective of promoting inclusivity for fitness. Fitness is for all and fitness looks different on everyone.

Zi Jia is wearing the latest #HUAWEIWatchFIT that has many features to aid you in your fitness goals – for just $148. Click here for more details!

Fitness was perceived as a “necessary burden” to Nadia Suprakash in her youth years. “This was exacerbated by the fact that I was never lean-bodied. Setbacks in my relationships then eroded my self-confidence and fuelled a warped perspective about being fit. Consequently, I became so relentless in trying to lose weight and achieve that ‘perfect body’ that I developed an eating disorder,” said the 31-year-old who is in sales and marketing.

At the age of 17, Nadia fell prey to bulimia – an eating disorder that involves a cycle of binging and purging – that plagued her for the next decade. A toxic relationship where she was often compared to other “hot girls” spiralled her bulimia into a worse state as she foolishly tried to meet his superficial expectations.

When this toxic ex eventually cheated on her, the bouts of emotional and physical damage landed her in hospital. Thankfully she ended the relationship and told herself she would work on her recovery.

Today, everything has changed for the better for Nadia. She joined a HIIT gym and the fast-paced and ever-changing workouts became something she looked forward to doing, not for the sake of losing weight.

“I found a strong and safe mutual support ecosystem at my gym and through my interaction with many like-minded individuals on similar journeys, my perspective on fitness has matured,” she said.

“Now I see it as a lifestyle and not one to please society. I’m more motivated, I eat better, I make smarter and more sustainable lifestyle choices. Moreover, I’ve learnt to love myself and my body. I am cognizant that I am a work in progress. Fitness is a journey for me and I will love, savour and enjoy every moment of it.”

In the past, she used to be impatient and would get upset easily if she did not see results fast enough. “I used to base the success of my fitness journey on the weighing scale instead of overall health. I had many bad days, so it took me a while to incorporate patience and consistency before I was able to not only see, but also feel the results,” she added.

There are easy shortcuts to losing weight but there are no shortcuts in fitness. It is all about consistency and commitment, a lifestyle that you embrace and embed into your daily life.

“There is no definition of fitness and how a fit person should look like. I love my body and I will advocate that everyone is beautiful. As long as you are physically fit and mentally resilient, you are in the best shape and form of your life. Skinny does not equal to being fit!

“My greatest fitness achievement is becoming the best version of myself. It is the ability to look at myself in the mirror every day and love the person I am seeing – loving myself for being physically stronger, mentally more resilient and being that much more self-aware.”

*This #FitForAll series is brought to you by Rock The Naked Truth x HUAWEI, with the objective of promoting inclusivity for fitness. Fitness is for all and fitness looks different on everyone.

Nadia is wearing the latest #HUAWEIWatchFIT that has many features to aid you in your fitness goals – for just $148. Click here for more details!