Women transform their lives through workouts

Left breathless

Like Li, Sun Pengying, who is in her early 40s and comes from Hangzhou, has forged a new life for herself through exercise, and now boasts tanned skin and toned muscles.

She was a full-time mother before she started a workout routine in 2019. After giving birth to her son, Sun's weight rose significantly, peaking at 95 kg.

"I was out of breath after climbing just a few flights of stairs, and my weight really gave me trouble in taking care of my family," Sun said.

"I then realized that my health was hanging by a thread and that I needed to lose weight immediately."

After taking a 5-kilometer walk each day for a month, Sun joined a gym near her home run by the Hilefit chain, where she tried a range of activities, including dancing, lifting barbells, and boxing.

"It was really hard initially, as I had to stop after 10 minutes or so during a class, which usually lasted for 50 minutes," she said.

But she persevered — weaning herself off snacks and going on a diet. In a short time, she lost 7 percent of body fat and more than 10 kg in weight, while also building up her strength.

"Those changes gave me the motivation to carry on," Sun said, adding that she became particularly fond of boxing. The friends she made during boxing classes inspired her to lift weights to build her muscles.

After more than a year's training, Sun became a Body Combat coach at Hilefit in July 2020. Body Combat is a high-energy workout inspired by martial arts.

"It was hard to imagine that I could become a coach, considering how lazy and sedentary I was before," Sun said, adding that exercise has also made her more outgoing and optimistic.

She is now in good shape, weighing 60 kg, with 18 percent body fat and 27 percent muscle mass.

Many of those Sun coaches, who have followed her from the start, have been amazed by the changes she has made to her life, and have started to take up strenuous training sessions themselves.

Sun also hosts livestream broadcasts on Tuesday nights in which she gives fitness instructions.

She said she is delighted to have found a new path in life and to be involved with the fitness program.

"Being a full-time mom didn't give me such high self-esteem. I hope to continue with a high level of exercise for as long as possible and to make more people aware that exercising can be fun," Sun added.