LI TV Asia general manager Anne Chan was busy practising her tennis serve at her condominium tennis court in Mont Kiara when I met her recently.
It was Wednesday and from 7am, Chan spends an hour training with her coach Ramachandran Ramaiah before heading to work.
She looked good in her white Reebok outfit and a decade younger than her 37 years.
An hour later I learnt why. When she is not playing tennis, she is either doing a few laps in the pool or cardio workouts in the gym or running in one of Kuala Lumpur’s city parks on Sundays.
Serve it up: Chan on her daily routine workout. One of the perks of leading and living a healthy lifestyle, she said, is that it makes her energetic, healthier, happier and younger!
“I am into athletics. I love tennis, swimming, running — everything about the outdoors. It gives me a sense of balance in life which is why when I landed this job to work in Malaysia five years ago, I was ecstatic!,” the former Hong Kong Eastern District swimming champion said.
Having been born and bred in Hong Kong, Chan confessed that she never got used to the cold.
“I love the tropics and the weather here is perfect for my outdoor activities,” she said.
Chan spends at least seven hours a week working out and that could mean tennis sessions in the morning, followed by a few laps in the pool and maybe workouts in the gym.
During weekends she loves running at the Taman Tun Dr Ismail or the KLCC park.
“I also like the way Putrajaya township is built — it is really nice for running,” she said.
Chan is also doing some agility training to help strengthen her arms and legs for tennis and swimming.
“In my line of work things can get pretty hectic; so I try to lock in at least five to seven hours of sports a week. Sports is my balance — the key is to arrange a time schedule and keep to that schedule,” she explained.
“I don’t go out every night. For me, sports is relaxing especially after work,” added Chan.
Work requires her to travel a lot and she spends two weeks a month in Kuala Lumpur and the rest of that time she is either in Singapore, Jakarta or Hong Kong on business.
“I find that after all those cities, I tend to find my balance when I come back to KL. This city inspires me, and in order for me to be inspired I need to be in the right state of mind hence, I need that balance,” Chan said.
Asked what she thinks of KL’s infamous traffic, Chan replied “Every city has its congestion problems and if you think KL is bad, have you been to Jakarta?”
“Yes there are some bad times especially when it rains but it’s really not that bad,” she said.
So is there life other than sports?
“I am a shopaholic. I love shopping and I do buy a lot of sports attire these days though there was a time when I was into shoes,” she said.
These days, Chan prefers to go to Hong Kong when she wants to shop and sees Kuala Lumpur as her sports city. And when she is not working out or shopping — she enjoys cooking.
“I prefer eating healthy and I try to drink as much water as I can and consume lots of vegetables. My mother gave me a slow cooker when I left Hong Kong and I would throw some stuff into the pot and add in at least five different types of vegetables and let it cook for hours and have that for dinner.
“I also make salads as I prefer to eat more veggies as greens make me energised. I grill and pan-fry most of my food. I am not a great cook but you are what you put into your mouth and I prefer to have control in what I eat,” she added.
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