IS MALAYSIA REALLY IN BETTER SHAPE TODAY?

With mega gyms mushrooming all over the country and the fitness industry thriving here in Malaysia (which I believe is still very much at it’s infancy), I must say that over the past few years, I have personally noticed an increased INTEREST among the public when it comes to keeping fit. Yes, there are definitely way more gym goers now than before.

Even just last night, while I was having dinner at Finnegan’s at MidValley Megamall, this guy at the table next to me was showing off his fancy new dumbbells to his friends at his table. He was even making a fool of himself in the restaurant trying to simulate a run with his new toys, but hey.. that tells me something besides the fact that he’s had too much to drink - its the fact that he is interested to keep himself fit. It’s a good thing… really… but let’s just take a few steps back and think of the bigger picture today - are we, as a nation, really in better shape today than we were before?

Look around you the next time you’re out in the city - we have access to exercise facilities, gyms, freely available information on health and exercise, healthier eating options at certain places.. but as a nation, has it really brought us any good?

The rapid developments in the areas of science, nutrition, the better understanding of the human body today… has it impacted our lives like it should? Is our nation today in a better state than it was before?

Many of us were taken by surprise with the shockingly true statistics when the New Straits Times ran a frontpage story entitled FAT NATION (yes, thats us - Malaysia) last year on the 29th of September, 2006. The MySon (Malaysian Shape of the Nation survey) revealed that:

- Malaysia has the MOST number of fat people in the Asean region, exceeding that in many developed countries, including Germany and France
- 54% of our adult population are either obese or overweight, up from 24% 10 years ago.
- 48% of our adult males and 62% of our adult females are fat.

The report also went on to reveal the reason which was believed to be the cause of all this - the good life, and the unhealthy lifestyle in Malaysia. Too much fast food, carbonated drinks, and a lack of exercise (for example, today, we prefer lifts/escalators instead of stiarcases).

Honestly, I dont think that living a good life is a decent ‘excuse’ to justify the state some of us are in. It is more of the changing of our lifestyles, which comes along with the good life we’re living today.

Our jobs today are more sedentary in nature than ever. We hire foreign labourers to get the hard physical jobs done. When was the last we picked up the broom and swept, and mopped our floors dry at home? We’ve left it all to the maids we hire from Indonesia. Some even get the maids to wash their cars.. or send it to the automatic car wash.

Now, food.

A simple example of the McDonald’s outlets in the United States having healthier grilled options, and KFC having GRILLED CHICKEN (yes.. they’re not stuck with FRIED chicken only) shows the pathetic immature state of the demand for healthy eating options here in Malaysia. It’s sad, honestly, and you may be amused to know that I sometimes have to resort to squeezing my chicken nuggets between paper towels or wiping off the mayonnaise from the burgers at fast food restaurants here just so that I can have my own version of a healthy menu item.

Then, there is white rice. Now, don’t get me started!! Ridiculously large helpings of white rice is basically our staple food. Many say that rice is ‘fattening’ (by the way, I dislike that term because ANYTHING eaten in excessive amounts lead to weight gain, not just rice!). If it’s not rice, then it’s white bread. In Malaysia, the Malays love the breakfast of white rice cooked in coconut milk - Nasi Lemak (so famous I think it should be called our National Dish!). Nasi Lemak is a real killer when you take into the consideration the sambal (ground chillies paste) which come soaked in a pool of oil. The Chinese love pork, the Malays and Indians (Indians especially!) consume way more rice than they should with oily curries, spread over 3 large meals over the entire day, not inclusive of the snacks in between. The portions/ratios of carbohydrates, proteins and fats have all been distorted. Today, instead of consuming a balanced meal consisting of protein + carbo + fats, alot of times, our plates are filled with carbo, more carbo, fried carbo, steamed carbo.. all topped with a little bit more carbo. I’m sure you get what I mean.

We also take more coffee/tea breaks than we need to, and these breaks are accompanied by curry puffs, doughnuts, and yes, even NASI LEMAK again. I was once at our Ministry of Defence for a 10AM meeting, and their break included oversweetened coffee, fried noodles, and yes.. NASI LEMAK. This is the culture we’ve grown to practice.

Although us Malaysians are more health conscious today than before, and gyms mushrooming all over.. are we seeing the results we rightfully deserve? Or has it just become another fad, another craze to be seen carrying a gym bag at a cool looking gym, or simply the craze of having a gym membership?

Are we really reaping the benefits of the growing fitness industry here or have we just found the biggest and sneakiest excuse to GET FAT? You tell me. How many of us can read the above statistics and proudly say - Hey DM, thats not me..?

As more of us become busy, the more time we spend sitting still at our offices with sedentary jobs, I really wish that progress would mean a progressing healthy lifestyle too.

You know people… I actually started this writeup to comment on the opening of the new True Fitness gym at Petaling Jaya… I even took pictures of gym under construction with my camera phone - but it kinda got skewed to something totally different.

taken from dailymuscle on March 28, 2007