The Setback
Banker Kenneth Ang, 25, is someone you wouldn’t want to trade punches with: This chap is well versed in muay thai. He looks every inch the lean and mean fighter. In fact, he’s working towards his first competitive fight. Yet, he recalls a time when he was more tubby than toned. And his rotund figure earned him the indignity of being mocked by a friend. He explains: “My buddy poked my belly and said: ‘Girls don’t like this; they like this.’ And he pointed to his toned abs.”

The Wake-Up Call
Fat jokes aside, what set Kenneth’s mind on losing the flab was his medical examination result earlier this year. His doctor told him his blood pressure reading was dangerously high at 190/150. The GP warned that Kenneth was at risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke if he didn’t lose weight. Kenneth admits his fitness then was terrible; a short walk left him breathless. A sedentary lifestyle and bingeing on chocolates, snacks plus supper contributed to his figure.

The Plan
Kenneth started with the easiest way to lose weight – running. But he craved something more intense and action-packed, so he gave muay thai a try. After his first lesson, he fell in love with the martial art and worked his exercise routine around this. He also picked up dragon boating along the way.

For breakfast, Kenneth munches on a sandwich and washes it down with low-fat milk. Lunch is always a serving of steamed chicken breast. Kenneth keeps dinner a simple affair – he would snack on fruits or low-fat, low-salt baked beans.

“I do two hours of muay thai six days a week, and also run four times a week. Each time, I run 5km,” says Kenneth of his exercise routine. Every Sunday, he squeezes in a session of dragon boat training.

The Reward
He embarked on his weight loss routine in April, and lost a whopping 22kg by the time July arrived. Best of all, he reined in his blood pressure level to 140/100. “I think that’s way better than before, and I don’t have to worry about having a heart attack at 25,” he says. At work, he is now more energetic and his colleagues say he has a newfound confidence – in fact, he seems like a different person.