Category Archives: AFT Interviews

AFT Interviews, AFTNews, AFTNews, Features Australia/NZ, Features Singapore, Pods Malaysia, The Kurang Manis Podcast

AFT Interviews: Dr. Desmond Menon on genes & if we’re predisposed to diseases of our parents

Video

Team AsiaFitnessToday.com speaks with medical lab scientist and founder of R3Gen Dr. Desmond Menon based in Perth, Western Australia. Dr. Menon consults on medical and sports medicine projects, but what’s most interesting was his early days as a researcher, where he was his own experiment. Growing up as a kid with asthma, Dr. Menon looked to science to get himself fit and healthy after a string of allergic reactions to prescribed medications. Today, he supports a number of University-based sports medicine projects, one of which looks at the effects of the menstrual cycle on the performance of elite female cyclists.

AsiaFitnessToday.com’s The Kurang Manis Podcast co-hosts Jasmine Low and Nikki Yeo met Desmond at The Fit Summit in 2019, and have been keeping in touch about DNA testing methods, genetics and our predisposition to diseases our parents had/have.

We asked Desmond to explain what his job entails, and he shared that his work in Medical Laboratory Science is an area specialising in ensuring that the appropriate biomarkers are collected and analysed the correct way to ensure that the results obtained are valid and provide accuracy. Nowadays, most medical/sports science projects, especially multidisciplinary projects have very complex agendas and hope to investigate multiple variables within the study. When there is blood work involved, often there is not enough understanding within the team or enough funding within the project to thoroughly consider the requirements to ensure that appropriate markers are taken and measured at the appropriate timeframe in an appropriate protocol to ensure validity of the results obtained from the analyses.

“I have seen projects where the principal investigator was essentially experimenting with varying centrifuging speeds to find out what would provide him with a ‘good sample’ to analyse for blood markers studied within his study.

There are procedures already established in medical laboratory science, such as the rotational speed and gravitational force required, depending on the analyte to be measured, when centrifuging blood collection tubes.

Additionally, when blood is collected for storage as well, there are variables that will also need to be considered to ensure the integrity of the sample is maintained throughout the storage period and how it is treated to ensure that results obtained from analyses thereafter are still valid.

In some studies, samples require immediate analyses as the results dictate the following steps for the participant within the project. 

What I do at R3Gen, is to help to meet these requirements by ensuring that samples are analysed ‘STAT’ to accommodate the project protocols, organising the process from pre-analytical blood collection, all the way to post-analytical result provision and sample storage if required for future analyses, cost effectively.

What this does for projects is to help investigators dedicate their focus and time on the actual project instead, and freeing up their limited resource to ensure the proposed intent of the project is not short-changed.“

As the work of a Medical Lab Scientist can get technical with jargons, we asked him more questions from a ‘layman’ to gain more understanding into his work. This is what we discovered…

Understanding genetics and lifestyle

AFT: Can a couch potato be transformed, coached and guided into the fastest runner on the track and field?

DM: The intervention. As an experiment, one has a protocol requiring them to lay on the couch, eat whatever they want and be as sedentary as possible. The other has a protocol requiring them to have a regimented diet and planned intense activity during their day. Each therefore, as a result of their interventions, encourage very different genetic expressions to meet the demand set out.

It’s not that complicated if we wanted to encourage a positive/healthy change. It’s a issue of mind over matter, and thereafter, it’s really an endurance race to see how long you can keep your new intervention going.

Maximising performance is ultimately about a body’s propensity to enhancing its plasticity. With training, plasticity is attained. Looking at it simply, it’s about effecting an underlying lifestyle change.

Understanding your body’s physical baseline

AFT: So what you mean is we are able to increase and improve our baseline with the correct training and interventions in lifestyle and diet?

DM: Interventions – from a scientific perspective, it’s an intervention. For an everyday person, it’s a lifestyle habit. 

There was a study done on 70,000 nurses who were in the 40-65 years age range. They were selected to participate in a Nurses Health Study. They found that there was a huge correlation between chronic diseases and their movement patterns, there was a direct link on those who moved more and those who didn’t. 

AFT: Do our genes alone predispose us to a particular health condition? 

DM: Looking over a broad time frame, the Centre for Disease Control USA (CDC) reports that genes do not predispose us to the health condition. Therefore, while our genes provide us with a blue-print, a lot of what is expressed from our genes is actually quite plastic and is a reflection of the intervention that we provide.

AFT: In a recent conversation, we discussed habit and culture at home. Our health is not merely a physiological or gene makeup, it’s very much a cultural and habitual makeup too. Imagine a child growing up at home where his father imposes his eating beliefs, lifes and dislikes upon his child. It’s what the father brings home, what he eats, or snacks that the child will learn and adopt.

DM: Here’s some information I have found to be interesting. Grandparents have a big part to play in the grandchild, especially from the maternal side. Here’s the explanation from a physiological side. If a female child, whatever a grandmother goes through in her life, has an impact on her genetic expression (that’s her lifestyle intervention). These expressions invariably have an effect on her eggs she is carrying. If one of those eggs contribute to a conception of a female child, during the development of that fetus, the eggs in the fetus also start to develop 8 to 20 weeks after it has started to grow. As such, whatever the grandmother is exposed to in her lifestyle in essence has an impact on her future child, and that of her grandchild. 

AFT: Tell us a little about the types of fitness interventions.

DM: Exercise movements can basically be split up into different modalities. Concentric moves for example a flex going up stairs or eccentric moves for example a controlled extension like when you’re going down stairs. These are antagonistic moves and give an idea how your muscles work.

It requires a certain amount of energy or resource from our bodies when applied. How much exactly we don’t know, but if we understood that, we could then prescribe it better. They found that participants going down the stairs had a more significant benefit seen in their health markers – insulin sensitivity increased, bone density increased and cholesterol decreased. 

It provides some insight into how exercise could be prescriptive. So by understanding this kind of exercise, one could then prescribe more efficient options to patients.

AFT: Hypothetically, can we transform a couch potato into the fastest man on the planet? Imagine Usain Bolt or Nicol David, an athlete whose body is so efficient, and if we turn them into a couch potato with bad habits, what would then happen? Desmond suspects that scientific evidence suggest that we can definitely provide an intervention to transform the couch potato participant into something closer to an Usain Bolt.

DM: An elite swimmer expands less energy to swim across the pool as his body is fine tuned to it as compared to a less than healthy individual.

GLUTS 4 gene, expressed based on lifestyle

DM: GLUTS 4 gene is considered one example of a lifestyle gene. It’s expression is altered by the level of muscle contraction. Failure to be active enough, could lead to the body being predisposed to diabetes by storing a lot of insulin. 

In the video above, I shared a photo from my school days – I was an avid distance runner weighing in at only 69kg in my competition weight. I injured my knee (torn ACL and partial torn meniscus) in the army, and had to change sport. I got addicted to lifting weights in the gym as a result of seeing gains from physiotherapy on my legs post knee surgery. I had to undergo surgery to reconstruct my ACL. In that short amount of time that I was off my feet or on crutches, the loss of quad muscle was very visible. It is almost like an intervention experiment on myself, where the intervention here is the removal of as much muscle activity in my left quad over that period. It was shocking to see how fast your body decides to remove that musculature as a form of conservation of energy and resource. 

After a few years of weight lifting, I managed to weigh in at 110KG with 12% body fat. While Dr. Desmond considered it an improvement, his mom’s was of the opinion that he had ruined her good work by looking “buff” like that. What it was for him, was a science experiment. He diligently weighed what he ate and how he trained to better understand the correlation between the intervention and the epigenetic expression.

Coming from an active family, Dr. Desmond’s mother was a runner for the state of Perak, Malaysia. His maternal great grandmother lived up to 100 and his maternal grandmother will be turning 100 soon. It seems health & fitness is a natural state of being for his family.

At one point, he collected data of his own blood work to determine the impact of his training and diet on his health markers and was able to see how his body was responding to what he was doing. It took a good number of years, but progressively trained the body to accept 8 meals a day from 3 to 4 meals before, while still maintaining an average 12% body fat. (At that point he was eating 8 meals a day like a gym fanatic. Also knew what he was doing with exercise.) In pathology, he learnt about the association between high CK and CK-MB (proteins present in heart muscle, also in skeletal muscles) with cardiovascular episodes. He found that the intense gym training produced abnormally high levels of CK and CKMB in his blood that looked like he was having small little cardiac episodes, but were actually attributed to the high amount of skeletal muscle tearing (hypertrophy) from his intense gym sessions. 

AFT: How do we then measure a person’s baseline, or maximum exercise intervention before the body shows a high or overly high CK/CKMD level. Is there a sweet spot between exercise and too much exercise? 

DM: Essentially, we need to understand that our baseline changes according to our lifestyle (intervention protocols).

In many professional athletes, part of their routine is having blood test done to identify how well their body is coping with their interventions and ensure that their body is showing signs of being in optimum performance. There are a whole barrage of markers that can be capitalised on if need be. For the everday athlete, perhaps these are not necessary or available but there are more basic markers readily available that can be capitalised on by anyone concerned about their health to ensure that their body is performing well to their lifestyle interventions. When monitored over time, these can provide a good indication over time of how we’re coping.

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Special Bonus Edition on Spotify Only features “Lorna’s Kitchen” by Singapore’s Jazz Great, Jeremy Monteiro

We are pleased to feature a song written by Singapore’s great Jazz muso Jeremy Monteiro, dedicated to his aunt Lorna. Titled Lorna’s Kitchen, we know for a fact that her Debal curry is divine. This episode is dedicated to Lorna – an amazing person whose fiery curry speaks volumes for her passion for life. We love you, Lorna! 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/45wR2xW5NjDZtIRHBq00of

This interview was recorded live with special guests in the panel:

  • Datuk Nicol David, World No. 1 Squash Champion, voted The World Games Greatest Athlete of All Time
  • Dr. Pran Yoganathan, Gastroenterologist & hepatologist
  • Papi Zak, Standup comedian

Listen all platforms

AFT Interviews, AFT Podcast, AFT TV, AFTNews, AFTNews, Features Malaysia, Pods Malaysia, The Kurang Manis Podcast

AFT Interviews: Nicol David, The World Games G.O.A.T.

Video

Livestreamed Interview with Datuk Nicol David, World No. 1 Squash Champion, named The World Games Greatest Athlete of All Time.

The Malaysian retired professional squash player is currently in her second base Colombia, South America and met with Asia Fitness Today co-hosts Nikki Yeo in Kuala Lumpur and Jasmine Low at the studio in Sydney on 5th February 2021.

With a huge total number of votes, 318,943, Nicol David 🇲🇾 was voted as the greatest of the 24 sports legends that started the race on 8th January 2021. Tug of war legend James Kehoe 🇮🇪 is the first runner-up with 113,120 votes, and Larysa Soloviova 🇺🇦, The World Games Champion in powerlifting 2005-2017, second, with her 80,790 votes. Marcel Hassemeier 🇩🇪, victorious lifesaver, with 79,760 votes got very close to 3rd place. All in all, 1,204,637 votes were cast in the poll. Read full article about The World Games Greatest Athlete of All Time here: https://www.asiafitnesstoday.com/?p=8952.

Visual Highlights

The Kurang Manis Podcast, Season 1, Episode 1 (9/2/21): Datuk Nicol David

Listen to the interview with Datuk Nicol David, World No.1 Squash Champion voted The World Games Greatest Athlete of All Time | Listen All Platforms

AFT Features, AFT Interviews, Features Vietnam

Vu Huyen Thuong (Vietnam) expresses her feelings through art

AFT speaks to Hanoi-based artist Vu Huyen Thuong, who shares her feelings about people and life through her paintings and installation work.

“My art works focus on the connection between the past and the present. In that context, human is the centre”

Vu Huyen Thuong

AFT: Tell us about your environment, while growing up.

Vu: I live a very peaceful life in Hanoi. I was born and raised in a happy family, full of love and responsibility. Since young, I’ve been encouraged to pursue my education and practise good self-discipline to achieve success so I can be someone my family especially my parents can be proud of.

2) What influenced you artistically?

Vu: When I entered the art world, my constant inspiration was around the theme of people, us humans. I observed my peaceful world and interacted with gentle people, pleasant, kind people, I learned how to love, to share, sympathise and understand humanity. How humans show compassion for one another, how they sympathise and show mercy to those who may be less fortunate, how they refrain from cruelty. It is through human eyes that I’m inspired to create more works that depict human kindness, aspiring for a better life!

AFT: Which art piece did you submit to the International Surrealism NOW exhibition and why?

Vu: The first piece of art I sent to the International Surrealism Now Exhibition in 2010 was the “Eye” (oil on canvas). In this work, I used the eyes to evoke the humanity in it. Eyes like people gathered in a certain miniature world, flying, free-falling, many eyes are lonely, many others are protected by human hands. Some eyes are protected until they fall down; and the eyes removed (or leave) from protection of hands. In my view, our life is the same. The work is only conceptual about a certain aspect of life with a primitive view of human fate.

the eye – Vu Huyen Thuong
(oil on canvas)

Surreal works that promote ideas, contemplations, strange things, near and far from the real world, make you soar in creativity whether reasonable or unreasonable, real or unreal, ideas.

Surreal style is always very unique, interesting, strange and new.

The eye and detail – Vu Huyen Thuong
(oil on canvas/ 120x85cm)

AFT: Did you paint during the Covid-19 pandemic? What did you do to pass time?

Vu: I made two paintings. One named “Open the door” and another one in progress entitled “When the love dies …”

I observed many countries undergoing a very difficult period especially when high number of deaths were recorded. In my country, we were always on high alert but many of us complied with the state regulations and stayed indoors, not going out on the streets, avoiding crowded places to protect ourselves and the community.

Open the door – Vu Huyen Thuong
Oil on canvas/ 80x110cm
When the love dies… Vu Huyen Thuong
Oil on canvas/ 80x110cm

AFT: What is the one thing you strive to do with your art? Do you think you’ve been successful?

Vu: The only thing I do with my art is to be creative and remain constantly creative. I have had certain success on the path of art from the beginning until now, winning awards while still in school. I participated in many events accompanied by famous international artists, participated in many significant exhibition activities in the country and internationally. For
me, success takes time and is a form of ‘gathering moments’, even experienced people must try until they want to stop. To achieve success, there is no way but to try to assert myself in my career and I always set goals to accomplish and to succeed.

AFT: Is there any work that you have not finished or can’t complete? What happens then?

Vu: I have many plans and goals to accomplish, this takes time to implement it. I have things to be done and I do not allow myself to leave any work unfinished, so all the things that I do have to be done by a timeline. My character is such that I must finish what I have set out to do.

AFT: Is health and fitness important to you as an artist? Care to share about your daily routine?

Vu: For me, health is very important, almost the first indispensable factor in life in general and career in particular, and similarly, I believe it is an important factor for an artist. If you have good health and you maintain it by living a healthy lifestyle, it will help you to complete the work you want in good spirit, good intellect. All of that would then contribute to promoting and inspiring even more creative ideas.

Habit? I exercise when I can, I jog every day (morning and afternoon), “eat clean”, minimise fat, increase resistance. Diets makes an important contribution to staying healthy. I work a lot on the computer and sometimes it’s an overload of work where I sit for many hours to complete the work.
During those times, I tend to gain weight. I like a slim and healthy body, so I know I must arrange my time so that it’s balanced and I stay healthy.

AFT: Finally, what’s your ultimate favourite thing to do?

Creating art is the most important thing for me. This career is a great passion for me, so creating art is not just a hobby but my life.

Team AFT thanks Santiago Ribeiro & Vu Huyen Thuong for participating in this interview.

Visit the artist’s official blog: https://vuhuyenthuong.blogspot.com/

Learn more about the International SURREALISM NOW exhibition: https://www.facebook.com/internationalsurrealismnow.org/

AFT Features, AFT Interviews

In the mind of artist, Chih Hui Chuang (Taiwan)

AFT catches up with Chih Hui Chuang whose works include oil painting, contemporary wood carving, composite media and ceramic sculpture creations.

油畫 當代木雕 複合媒材 陶塑創作

Artist: Chih-Hui Chuang (Taiwan)
Title: Who am I?
Type: Acrylic Painting-2016
莊志輝-我是誰? Acrylic Painting-2016
Artist: Chih-Hui Chuang (Taiwan)
Title: Emotions
Size: 75X34cm
Type: Acrylic on canvas-2016
莊志輝-心緒 -75X34cm-Acrylic Painting-2016
Artist: Chih Hui Chuang (Taiwan)
Title: Number Games
Size: 72X34cm
Type: Acrylic Painting-2016
莊志輝-金錢遊戲-72X34cm-Acrylic Painting-2016

“My paintings are inspired from the world, an ode to the heart, a reflection of the disorder of our sad world, but I believe there’s still hope and it lies in the goodness of grateful hearts,” says Chuang.

我的繪畫來自人間，歸於人心，悲人間之失序，喜人心之善性猶存。生命之可貴，在於生命本身所散發的強韌生命力。在於其多元序列之美。對人性劣根的描繪，只為照見人類本然的真實面貌。唯美使人賞心悅目，此乃人情之屬，美醜交加則近於天理大自然之屬，繪出人世本位與良知。

AFT: Tell us about your environment, what was it like where you grew up?
你長大的環境是怎樣的？
The ocean was my childhood companion, and the blue sky held my soul. I grew up in the Penghu Islands in Taiwan. The people here are simple and kind. They live by the sea and live a simple life. In the summer, the sun is so warm. In the winter, there’s a vicissitude of wind gusts. I like to run and jump and let my body take flight against the wind.
海洋是我小時候的玩伴，藍天是心靈的溫床。我成長在台灣的澎湖列島，這裡的人們純樸善良，以海維生，活得簡單。
記憶裡夏天的太陽好熱情，冬天時狂風吹拂，宛如一幅滄桑的美景，我喜歡頂著風奔跑、跳躍，讓身體短暫的飛行。
AFT: What do you think influenced your artistic eye?
你的藝術眼光是受了什麼影響而來的？

It is in my nature to be attracted to things new, to novelty. In our country, art education is our cultural heritage, we take pride in learning the skills of creators of the past. When I was exposed to the Western Renaissance in high school, I realised then that art has no boundaries, that we are no longer painting for the Gods and the rich, and that I was able to invoke my own emotions, express my inner feelings and create art.

我的個性喜歡新奇的東西，早期在我們的國家，美術教育是一種傳承，複製過去創作者所留下來的技巧與樣版。高中時接觸到西方文藝復興運動，才知道藝術沒有邊際，不再為諸神及富人而做畫，回到自身的感受而創作。

AFT: Which pieces of works did you submitted to the International Surrealism NOW exhibition and why?
請問你向這次國際SurrealismNOW展覽提交了你的那一幅作品？為何會選擇提交它？

These three pieces of work were exhibited in a world tour exhibition a few years ago. I stayed near a Hong Kong train station and for 60 days, I observed and created works on site. People seem to live their lives in a hurry, I watched a large number of passengers who entered and exited the subway station every day, they were coming and going just like innumerable cans being canned on an assembly line in a factory. I meditated and realised how precious it was to be able to think independently and live our lives the way we design; not copying success models of others or constantly pursuing material satisfaction. As an artist, it is my hope for people to find the purest versions of themselves instead of living like others, explore infinite possibilities of oneself, and explore and understand this world and this universe.

這件參展作品，是我前幾年進行世界巡迴展，停留在香港站60天，從日常中觀察並在當地創作的。我深深感受到這裡人們生活節奏匆忙，大量的乘客進進出出地鐵站，我想像著日日從火車上上下下的人們，就像一間大工廠的生產線上，無量被複製的罐頭般。 我沈思著，人能獨立思考並活出自己的樣貌很珍貴；而不是一昧複製別人成功的模式，並無限上綱的不斷追求物質與金錢。我希望，人人能找回最純粹的自我，而不是活得像別人，能挖掘自身無限的可能性，並去探索和了解這個世界丶這個宇宙。
AFT: Did you paint during COVID19? What did you do to pass time?
在這個covid19 疫症期間你有沒有畫畫？在這段時間你是怎樣渡過的？

Creation is a daily routine of my life. So I didn’t stop creating at all even during the pandemic. All the things that happen in the world, add up to enriching my creations and reflect my thoughts at the time.

創作是我生活的日常，即便是在疫期，我從不停止創作。世上所有發生的事情，堆疊出我藝術創作的養分，記錄著我生命存在的想法。
AFT: What is the one thing you strive to do with your art? Have you been successful?
你為藝術最努力做的一件事是什麼？成功了沒有？
Art to me is a concept and a responsibility that I work very hard and honestly to create. Art helps me understand myself. It helps me understand how the world operates. I can only pray that those who view my work will be able to appreciate my work, understand me and value me as a person beyond my possessions. Whether or not I’ve been successful at achieving this, what’s more important is that I continue to be in the process of creating art and I am still alive.

藝術，我認為是一種理念，一種責任。我努力並誠實的面對創作，從中更理解自己丶理解人世間的運作及最有意義的本質，並祈願觀者能從我的作品投射出什麼，例如：關照自身的處境丶擁有與價值。關於成功否，我一直走在藝術過程中，我還活著。

AFT: Is there any work that you have not finished or can’t complete? What happens then?
你還有什麼作品還未完成或不能完成的？如果不，你會怎樣了？

I think that life in itself is an unfinished creation, so my work is not yet finished but one day it will be complete.

我認為生命的存在就是未完成的創作，所以我的作品還未完成，有一天，我一定會完成。

AFT: Is health and fitness important to you as an artist? Would you care to share about your daily routine?
你認為作為一個藝術者，健康和運動很重要嗎？你能分享你每日一定做的事情嗎？

Having the right mood is very important for me. I try to remain in a calm state as far as possible – it is easier to understand when doing things. When I get up in the morning, I tend to flowers and trees, irrigate the garden, wash and feed my chicken, collect eggs, enjoy my my daily Buddhist ritual, have breakfast, and start my day of creation.

心情很重要，我盡可能把自己的心放在平靜的狀態，做起事情來比較容易理解。 早上起來看看花草樹木，幫他們灌溉丶幫他們洗滌，餵食我養的幾隻蛋雞丶撿雞蛋，每天禮佛，用早餐，開始創作的一天。
AFT: Finally, what’s your ultimate favourite thing to do?
最後，你能分享你最喜歡做的事情嗎？

Be with my family, be able to talk about what I know, and share my creation with everyone.

跟家人在一起丶聊聊我知道的事情，把創作分享給大家。
Team AFT thanks Santiago Ribeiro, Chih Hui Chuang and Yami Su-Min Yang for making this interview a reality. We also thank Eve Wong for her assistance in preparing the English – Chinese translations.

Visit the artist’s official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/chc888/

Learn more about the International SURREALISM NOW exhibition: https://www.facebook.com/internationalsurrealismnow.org/

AFT Features, AFT Interviews, AFTNews, Airsports, Sport

A moment with Markus Haggeny, FAI Secretary General

It is apparent that Markus Haggeny has a heart full of love for air sports. He is passionate about it and its participants’ safety especially during this time of the COVID-19 crisis. But don’t take our word for it, read on below to find out more about this magnanimous man.

Clark Hot Air Balloon Festival 2019, The Philippines. Photo: writer’s own.

Markus Haggeny was named as the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) Secretary General on 15 April 2020. He was appointed as the Acting Secretary General in December 2019. He is not new to the Federation though – he was the Sports & Event Director, a role he held from 2014.

If you are wondering what he does exactly at the FAI, here are some words of introduction by Markus Haggeny himself –

“As the newly appointed Secretary General of the FAI, the World Air Sports Federation, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, I’m responsible for the smooth running of the FAI Office, which is charged with the day-to-day operations of the Federation. Together, the FAI staff, officials and volunteers strive to fulfill FAI’s mission to promote air sports and recreational flying around the world. This includes the ratification of world and continental records, and the sanctioning of competitions.”

Air sports from an early age

Markus brings with him an “extensive international corporate experience, which gives me the valuable insight into the business world that is so vital for International Federations today.” This is on top of his years of experience as a pilot and air sports official.

If you caught the word “pilot” in the previous paragraph, you will be forgiven if you thought that Markus Haggeny was an airplane pilot. His first foray into air sports was on a hot air balloon.

Paragliding at Jugra Hill, Malaysia. Photo: writer’s own

“‘Vocation’ is the first word that springs to mind. I developed a lifelong interest in all things flying when I was a kid, thanks to my family’s involvement in hot air balloons – my father had been flying for many years when I first set foot in a basket. That’s why I can say that training to become a Ballooning pilot came very naturally for me.

One thing led to another, and I began competing. Not long after, I was keen to take an even more active role in the ballooning community, and I organised numerous events, and represented Germany in ballooning for many years: In 2014 I joined the sports department of the FAI Office and now, at 60, my enthusiasm for flying remains unchanged, so much so that I have recently started Paragliding, which I thoroughly enjoy. Air sports are for anyone, at any age!” he happily enthused.   

FAI and COVID-19

Now with the appearance of the coronavirus and the world adapting to a new normal he says the FAI is changing the way they approach things.

“Stabilisation and consolidation are the key words at the moment. Given this unprecedented Coronavirus situation, it is more important than ever that we, the elected representatives, staff and officials, fly through the turbulence as a united front. Similarly, I think that now, more than ever, is the time to nurture the bonds within the air sports community, to strengthen the relationships with all the officials and members, and to support those that need assistance. These are the priorities right now,” he says.

When asked about how COVID-19 has changed the landscape of air sports worldwide, he says, “Unfortunately, 2020 is a peculiar year for everyone, including all those involved in sports. For example, at this time of the year, our events calendar is usually packed with hundreds of championships and regional events involving thousands of pilots and skydivers around the world. Sadly, many of these competitions had to be postponed or cancelled because of the pandemic: the paramount concern of FAI and our event organisers is public health and safety.”

Making a joint effort

He also says that “Uncertainty is our main challenge here. Nobody knows how the situation will evolve, how fast the situation will improve, or even when the pilots will be able to train properly again. We have to stay flexible and to adapt to whatever challenge is thrown at us, like the rest of the world. I am sure that our global air sports community will adapt to the many challenges that society is faced with.”

His remark was in response to what kind of changes on future air sports events will be organised. But all is not lost though as there are already plans in place.

“In this difficult context, I am pleased to say that FAI and the air sports community is making an extraordinary joint effort to overcome this crisis. We are developing new tools to work together remotely more efficiently, and we are supporting the event organisers as best we can, so they can find solutions to hold their events at a later date,” he says.

The Olympics

When asked about the inclusion of air sports in the Olympic Games, he is frank with his answer.

“This is not our prime focus, given the current state of affairs. However, FAI is a proud member of the Olympic Family and we share the values of the Olympic Movement, even when not participating in the Games,” he says.

“The Olympic Games is a wonderful event that we would be honoured to be part of. At this moment in time, we are proud of our status of IOC-recognised Federation,” he added.

This pride goes back full circle with his involvement with FAI, as it gives him the opportunity to not only practice but to promote air sports at the same time. He says, “This makes me happy to get up every day.”

To all of the air sports athletes out there itching to fly again, he has these words of advice:

“Please stay home, practice social distancing and stay healthy. In aviation we say: ‘Take off is optional, landing is mandatory’. The message being – make wise decisions, be aware of your responsibility to and for others and look ahead to the future. We will fly in safe conditions again together soon.”

AFT Features, AFT Interviews, AFTNews, Sport

Lee Xin Ni: Malaysian Table Tennis Fireball

If you met Lee Xin Ni at a mall, you’ll be forgiven for thinking this 13 year old is a pushover. Shy in demeanor, she obviously doesn’t speak much but when she does, it hits the ball (pun intended).

Although she is yet a household name, Xin Ni was in the sports spotlight when she won her third singles match over Poland at the 2019 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Cadet Challenge. Her win meant the Hopes Team, that she was part of, went into the Finals to meet Team Europe.

Lee Xin Ni (1st from Right) with her ITTF Teammates with their Silver medals. Photo courtesy of TTAM

Meanwhile, she won the bronze medal for mixed doubles with 16 year old partner Choong Javen at the 56th Malaysia Open Table Tennis Tournament held in December 2019.

So what makes Xin Ni tick?

She lives with the mottos, “Have a dream” and “Work Hard”.  And she does work hard indeed! Practicing six to seven days a week, her training begins at 5pm. She says she begins by stretching for about 15 minutes then move on to warming up with some table tennis with her sparring partner or senior players. After that is 1.5 hours of drill practice where her coaches will help her improve her technique. Next, she plays some matches before cooling down.

But the sacrifices are worth it. As of our interview, Xin Ni has visited no less than 12 countries and met friends from around the world, all thanks to table tennis She also enjoys being able to try the different cuisine each country offers.  

But her mind is not always on food though. Just like every professional athlete, she always prepares herself before going for a tournament.            Aside from setting a personal goal, she also will take the time to study her opponents.

Shy and sweet, Lee Xin Ni is a smash on the table tennis circuit

She takes competing seriously because she “enjoys the fighting process.”

Lee Xin Ni started playing table tennis at the age of six with the encouragement of her mother who used to play table tennis for her school. When asked if she considers table tennis a physical exercise, she replies, “Yes, because it can improve your speed, response, eyesight, judgment, and determination.”

So what’s next for this fireball? Hopefully we will see more of Lee Xin Ni in the near future and who knows, she may be competing in the Olympics in the near future!

Asia Fitness Today’s interview with Lee Xin Ni was held at the Table Tennis Association of Malaysia and was conducted by our intern, Dany Haiqal.

AFT Features, AFT Interviews, AFTNews, Sport

FPV pilots today, athletes tomorrow

A special feature on tomorrow’s athletes by creative, events and technology entrepreneur, Jasmine Low.

Two years ago, I had a dream of starting a vocational school to upskill the youth. I have come across many talented young people around the world who may not have the opportunity to go into college or university, but highly capable and adept with their hands and have technical expertise in fixing electronic gadgets, devices etc. When you’re in Kuala Lumpur, take a walk into any of the malls and approach a mobile phone counter. You’ll find these boys. And there are girls too! So the question is, if only we could train and upskill these youngsters in the doing and making of STEM, as opposed to the academic study in STEM. I’ve been researching and still am and the dream is getting close to fruition but not yet.

In 2008, my partners and I founded by accident, the GO INTERNATIONAL youth empowerment program when we took on the license to promote eSports with ESWC in 2008 then DreamHack in 2009, Global Battle of the Bands and most recently the FAI Drone Racing World Championship in Shenzhen this year.

Q. What’s your background and why drone racing?

It was a Miss World Malaysia competition that I worked on during my days as a PR Consultant for DDB PR that inspired me on to working on international competitions. In 2008, my partners and I brought the Electronic Sports World Cup (ESWC) from Paris to KL. From eSports, music, beatboxing, rubiks cubes to drone racing, we’ve just kept our ears close to the ground and listened to what young Malaysians like and we’re so happy 68 young Malaysians have been able to pursue their dreams and push their personal goals at international festivals around the world.

All our programs so far have been funded by corporate and government agencies – kudos and mentions to the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), Intel, DiGi, Cyberview, Yokohama Batteries, Tourism Malaysia, Malaysia Airlines, AirAsiaX, Gary of PLAY Interactive, Jack of DOJO KL, Nikki Yeo and my team at Go InternationalGroup.com.

Q. Why are you championing drone racing as a sport?

It promotes athleticism, and just drives kids towards excellence while doing something they love. Ya… remember Nintendo? Ya, same thing, using fingers to control la.
I’ve also been inspired into this journey by the sheer passion for airsports by the people like Tengku Abdillah of AFA, Aerolomba Magazine and Capt. Arif, Paraglider and President of the Malaysian Sport Aviation Federation. Meetings with them are fascinating and jaw dropping as they show you their latest antics in the sport they love so much.

Q. First you ask us to admit eSports as sport because it’s physically challenging (it is!!!), now you’re asking to admit dSports? What’s next? Paper plane flying?

Uhm… yes. This was a question posed by an official and I’m asked this quite often too by sponsors. Happy to report eSports is officially in 2019 Southeast Asian Games Philippines. In fact, paper plane flying or free flight was one of the earliest in “Aeromodelling”, as with drone sports and are sanctioned under FAI – World Air Sports Federation (doing the teeheehee dance)

Q. Alright. And all this leads to an increase of STEM uptake by our kids?

Absolutely! I’m in the media/publishing/events industry because as a Gen X-er, I was inspired by TV3’s Majalah 3, ABC’s 60 Minutes, MacGyver, Moonlighting and rainbow socks in Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. So media and content was my game! I loved it! But yes, with eSports, dSports and VRsports around the bend, we’ll definitely see an upswing of STEM uptake in schools.
This preamble leads to two articles recently published in New Straits Times article by SuLyn Chong and in The Star Online coverage by Sharmila Nair about the two drone pilots, their helper and Coach Shah Johan (Joe).
The trip was made possible by the collaborative efforts by Malaysia Sport Aviation Federation, MDEC, DOJO KL and Go International Group Dotcom. It also made it possible for two Malaysian pilots – Amir Rijal Haziq and Saw Zhi Ying to make a historical leap into the FAI world rankings because of the support given.
Thank you, everyone! Blue skies ahead, as they say in airsports!

Affiliations:
Asiafitnesstoday.com
Move8 movement
FEYST . Indie Youth Fest OFFICIAL
Malaysian E-sports Community // Go International E-Sports Cup

Drone Racing supported by #Move8pro advances youth in sports, fitness and wellness. Check it out here: www.move8.org

AFT Interviews, AFT TV, Travel & Wellness

Snowboarding and defying gravity!

Video

AsiaFitnessTodayTV: Snowboarding adventures from GoInternationalGroup.com on Vimeo.

Inspired by videos we’ve just shared in the AsiaFitnessToday TV Channel, we delve into movement exercises required to prepare for your weekend at the snowfields. Depending on the individual’s weight and height, leisurely snowboarding can help burn from 200 to 600 calories per hour for an adult under 90KGs. Go competitive and you could be burning triple of that! What this also means, is that your body will be undergoing intense workout while snowboarding, and ideally, a solid 4-6 weeks of preparation should get your ready for that spurt.

Muscles used while snowboarding

Firstly, let’s understand the types of muscles you’ll be using while snowboarding. Naturally strong muscles will help you last longer on the slopes. You’ll be using your quadriceps, calves and ankles for snowboarding. Your back will be at test too. Prior to a ski trip, it’s advisable to undergo some weight training to strengthen your hamstrings, thighs and arm muscles as well as strengthening your core. Some people head to cycling gyms to prepare their leg muscles. Here are some essential workouts to help in your preparation:

1. Up and down jump squats 

Squat down in position, then jump for the skies with arms wide open then land with your knees bent. Do this to help build power thighs for tackling big jumps.

2. Core strengthening exercises

Let’s work the obliques and abs area, since you’ll be using a lot of that area while navigating the snow. The medicine ball rotational throw is one of the most effective ones. Stand away from a wall with your shoulders facing the wall. Allow for about 2-3 feet. Hold a medicine ball, then twist your torso to throw the ball against the wall. Catch it when it comes back to you and repeat. To avoid injury, make sure you’re mentally and physically ready before throwing the ball. Be mindful, take your time, and strengthen your core (abs) muscles just as you’re about to throw.

3. Stationary Cycling

Riding helps to build endurance in your legs and stamina overall.

AsiaFitnessToday highly recommends working with a certified fitness trainer and keep safety first when working out.

Origin of snowboarding

Australian Darren Powell defied the laws of kinetic energy in 1999 when he recorded a top speed of 202 kilometers per hour at Les Arcs Resort, France. What a lot of people may not know, is that snowboarding was initially two skis strapped together by an engineer called Poppen in Michigan, USA. He attached a string to steer and it was called snufing – a combination of skiing and surfing.

Family bonding time at the snowfields

In a WhatsApp interview, Sydney-based business owner/restaurateur Madeleine Cheah shares that her family enjoys leisurely skiing, long walks and hikes as they work hard throughout the year in the hospitality industry. Vacations like these bring her family together and offers a nice respite from running their busy restaurants and cafes in Australia. Despite nursing a back injury and her husband his painful knees, both are determined to kick their heels back and enjoy the beautiful powdery snowfields of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, surrounded by France, Italy and Switzerland. Lying at the base of Mont Blanc, the highest summits in the Alps, this area is renowned for its skiing.

Thanks to the Luongs – Madeleine, Hieu, Andy and Matthew for these amazing photos and videos from their recent skiing and snowboarding vacation to Chamonix Mont Blanc!