.svg){kind=logo}
The Shanghai grandmother gained some notoriety in recent months when her unexpected love of working out made national headlines. After starting to frequent the gym in December 2018, Chen shed 14 kilograms (30 pounds) in three months and now has the kind of flat stomach and toned muscles that people much younger than her aspire to. She has also gained a following on social media, amassing 410,000 followers on TikTok with her inspiring workout videos.
Chen, who turned 68 this year, told AFP at a gym in a Shanghai suburb, "I will work out as long as I'm still alive." Chinese state media enthusiastically covered Chen's story because it fits the government's push to encourage people of all ages to get fitter. This message has been amplified this year by the claim that being fit is one way to help beat the coronavirus, which emerged in Wuhan in late 2019.
She started going to the gym after a chance encounter with a personal trainer, spurred on by concerns about her deteriorating health and weight gain. But she has lost the weight, and she claims that last year, after experiencing issues with a fatty liver, high blood pressure, and eye cataracts, doctors gave her a clean bill of health. Chen, who has a 14-year-old grandson, recalled the shocked looks she received the first time she walked through the gym door. "They found it very strange, they don’t usually see people at such an old age who care about their health so much"
Despite leading an active lifestyle, Chen has no athletic background, and she claims that her body was so weak after giving birth that she had trouble getting out of bed when her daughter was very young. "If your muscles are strong and powerful it will protect your bones if you fall, " says Chen. "If your bones are weak, your muscles will help you recover."
"I commanded 'don't,' then stood up. I mentioned that I had been working out, so I'm good. "On an average warm fall evening, so-called "dancing aunties" swarm Shanghai's parks and public areas. "No matter how hard you square-dance, you can't reach my current condition," remarked Chen, flexing her biceps for the camera. "At our age it is not how much money you have, who you are, or how excellent your children are. You just want a medical record as brief as possible," she continued.
#HongKong #Health #Exercise #fitness #GuardianFitnessHK #hkfitness #hongkong #personaltraining #personaltraininghk
