Singapore #Fitspo of the Week: Magan Ho

Life goes beyond the digits on the scale and your body is capable of so much more! Yahoo’s #Fitspo of the Week series is dedicated to inspirational men and women in Singapore leading healthy and active lifestyles. Have someone to recommend? Hit Cheryl up on Instagram or Facebook!

Name: Magan Ho (@saturdaybaby)

Age: 35

Height: 1.52m

Weight: 49kg

Occupation: Senior dietitian

Status: Married

Food: Anything and everything (except innards), though I do try to get as much fibre in as I can. I'm trying to minimise my alcohol intake now because it really does nothing for you. I'm a huge snacker though; I can munch non-stop after dinner all the way till bedtime so I try to reach for lower calorie items like popcorn, spicy seaweed and frozen fruits like blueberries. I started this frozen fruit habit a few years back when I first got into long distance running, mostly to help with recovery, but have continued snacking on them even when I'm not prepping for any races because it has a similar texture to sorbet, which is so nice and refreshing in this weather.

Exercise: I used to do a HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workout and a climb and two runs in a week, or clock up to eight yoga classes but after having a kid, I've been reduced to being a weekend warrior, so now it's mostly a mid-distance run on Saturday and two yoga classes back to back on Sunday. When I'm prepping for a run event, then my focus shifts to running a bit more so it would be a long distance run and yoga on the weekends, and may include a short weekday run after work.

Q: When you were younger, were you active in sports?

A: I started out with netball in secondary school, sailing in junior college, then dragonboating when I was at the National University of Singapore. I also dabbled in climbing for a year or two before leaving to do my Masters in Melbourne. As I was a broke student, my then boyfriend (now husband) very generously sponsored my gym membership so I started getting into strength training, which evolved into powerlifting when I came back to Singapore after completing my studies.

We both got into it for a while and even competed at a few meets. I'm particularly proud of a random online competition where I did 21 pull-ups to win a tub of protein powder, haha! I also took a term of aerial silk classes to support a friend who opened a studio. That was really fun for me as I had the strength to get myself into and out of poses.

What did you get into as you got older?

Nowadays, I'm prioritising the longevity of the sport, with minimal injuries being the goal here, so I'm doing mostly running and yoga now. I started out doing half-marathons, then full marathons. I just completed my seventh full marathon in May this year and am looking to get more under the belt. My personal best (PB) is 4hr 33min but that was done overseas in cooler conditions so I'm still trying to see if I can replicate those results here locally. My PB's nothing fantastic (in fact, once I looked up the qualifying times for the Boston Marathon for fun and I only very narrowly made the cut for the 75-year-old female category) but I don't want to give myself too much pressure or it'll take all the fun out of it.

How did you settle into this routine of yoga and running?

Cornered into it, actually. The weekday evenings are pretty much gone because I'm usually the one who does the whole pick-up and night-time routine with our two-year old so I'm left with only the weekends. I wish I was disciplined enough to be the kind of person who goes out for a run at 10pm after putting the kid to bed, cooking dinner and doing the dishes but hey, adequate rest and recovery is an integral part of any decent training plan, right?

How has motherhood changed you?

Better-toned arms, for sure. Jokes aside, I used to do a lot of abdominal exercises because I wanted to see the long lean lines on my tummy. I now know that it doesn't work that way. Now, when I exercise, I do it with the goal of getting stronger in mind, so that I can carry my kid when he doesn't want to walk and so that I can keep back pains at bay for as long as possible. I now do it for a (hopefully) lower mortality so I can see my kid grow up and still have a good quality of life after I retire.

Also, in my line of work, we see many elderly patients who present with sarcopenia, frailty, malnutrition, oftentimes all three together. On the other end of the spectrum, you see young adults in their 30s who present with myocardial infarcts and strokes. I'm terrified of being in their shoes, so I try and do what I can to stay out of them.

How do you find time to keep an active lifestyle and balance work and parenting?

I see exercise as self-care and it's a priority for me because I know if I don't look after myself, then who will? You can't pay someone to exercise for you. It helps that I have a supportive husband, who, most of the time, does not complain about me going on long runs. We will try to arrange our schedules to make our separate fitness regimens work.

For example, I would go for an early 7am run with a friend and end at 9am, at which time he would bring the kid to meet me at my finish point. We would then usually bring the kid to a water play park in the area, have brunch together before he heads off for his gym class and I bring the kid home to have a bit more mother and son time before I put him down for his nap. I'm quite proud of the way we handle our schedules because it allows us both to have pockets of me-time and yet still be able to spend quality time together as a family.

When you were younger, did you experience any incidents that made you feel insecure about yourself?

Oh, for sure. I have had relatives compare me to my sister (who looks drastically different from me – she's more slender and fairer), and ask me if I've gained weight when we meet at Chinese New Year, that sort of thing. Now that I’m older, that sort of comments would just be water off a duck’s back, but back then it definitely make me more self-conscious about my appearance.

When did you feel the least confident about yourself?

Probably during secondary school and junior college. I was carrying more weight then and didn't really understand the role that nutrition and exercise played in weight management, and had no clue about the different types of training you could do. During university, I went for a three-month-long work and travel stint in the United States and gained 3kg.

When I came back, a close friend suggested that I join dragon boat and I did, and was introduced to a whole new world of pain. It was then that I started taking my training more seriously. We had weekday 7am MacRitchie canoe sessions before lectures, weekend water training and even training that you did in your own time. But it all paid off eventually and we won the inter-varsity PM cup that year!

Did you ever struggle with your body?

Definitely. I used to hate the way my legs look because they're short and more chunky than the average waif Singaporean girl. For a short while, I used to sell hand-painted shoes and had posted a photo of myself wearing them. In the photo, the main focal point was the shoes and the photo was cut off slightly above the ankles but a friend had commented that my legs were chunky. I remember thinking, "How can you even tell?"

I felt so exposed. It was only a passing comment but it made a mark. My weight has fluctuated a bit over the past two decades too. I went from being a pudgy teen, to an even pudgier undergrad, then I lost the weight and maintained through the postgrad days, then I gained it back after I started work, so yes, I have definitely struggled to manage my weight over the years.

Thankfully, I have a much better understanding of food, nutrition and exercise now. Healthy eating isn't complicated or difficult. You can still have your croissants and cakes, it really is all about the portion and frequency.

Are you satisfied with your body now?

I’ve learnt to accept my body and work with it. These chunky thighs can do barbell squats and marathons, they carry me to places I want to go, plus they make for a comfy seat for my toddler, and for that, I am grateful I have a whole, and healthy body.

Have you ever received any comments about your body? If you could change anything about yourself, would you?

Most comments I get now are generally positive. I used to wish I was taller with longer legs but being short has its advantages too. Like with deadlifts, the distance I have to pull the weight is shorter than someone taller, and I’m able to touch my toes easily without warming up. Having longer legs will probably make running longer distances a bit easier but I wouldn’t be able to shop in the kids section so even though I keep going back and forth, no I wouldn’t change a thing.