FOO Kai Bing, Kelly (Jockey Club Academy Hall)

How many pounds did you gain during the Chinese New Year holidays?

Pardon my frankness, but honestly, the scrumptious food I gobbled down during the festive season is making me pay. I have been thinking of hitting the gym every day to shed the extra pounds. Obviously, this thought has remained just a thought, as I have never got to doing it.

It takes a great deal of determination to exercise daily. (Or is it just me?) There is an interesting man in the residence who exercises more than anyone I know. He is Dr. Kevin Downing, the Hall Master of Hall 2 and the Acting Hall Master of Hall 9.

Dr. Kevin Downing manages two residence halls and he is the Director of Knowledge Enterprise Analysis in the Office of the Vice- President (Research & Technology). Despite his hectic schedule, he visits the gym at least 5 times a week, 1½ hours each visit. You might wonder where he gets the time to do that. In fact, Dr. Downing hits the gym every morning at 7:30 before he goes to work. (Yes, no joke, he is running on the treadmill when we are still happily tucked in our warm beds.)

I could tell from Dr. Downing’s tone and expression that he truly enjoys every single minute he spends in the gym. He was a rugby player and power lifter in his younger days. That was when he developed his discipline in exercising as he trained for competitions. This discipline spilled over and became a well-grounded principle in everything he does in life. Dr. Downing realized that he could achieve much more in life if he did everything with discipline.

Just when I thought Dr. Downing is someone who simply does not enjoy sleeping in, he confessed that there are days when he just does not feel like dragging himself out of bed. (We all know how that feels, don’t we?) And when that happens, he often reminds himself how much he loves the after-feeling of exercising. “The after-feeling is so amazing. I feel so recharged and ready for the day ahead!

Exercising benefits us in many ways. We become healthier and fitter; we live longer; we meet more people. Let’s learn from Dr. Downing and make exercising our addiction. After all, it is indeed the best addiction!

Dr. Downing’s words of wisdom: “The world is full of things humans cannot control; exercising is one of the few that we can; take advantage of that.”