Pro bodybuilder Joan Liew's expert tips to win weight loss battle
Professional bodybuilder publishes first book on long-term weight management
Local professional bodybuilder Joan Liew has been helping clients achieve their health and fitness goals for the past 25 years.
Now, she has taken it a step further by publishing her first book, The Skinny Sumo Wrestler.
It contains tailored methods, easy tips and useful information catered to the Asian market, for those looking to understand how to achieve long-term weight management without extreme dieting and 'yo-yo' weight loss.
The book took Liew, 43, two years to complete, "longer than I expected it to be".
She told The New Paper: "It was indeed challenging, given my demanding work and training schedule.
"I was also actively competing at the Pro stage."
Liew scored a first for Singapore when she was honoured with the esteemed International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness Pro Athlete status in 2017.
An accredited fitness trainer and a certified ISSN Sports Nutritionist, the gold medallist is also the co-founder and director of boutique gym Fitness Factory.
About five years ago, Liew realised that most of the diet books available in the market "did not address the local culture and Asian diet".
Written for people above 30 years old, The Skinny Sumo Wrestler contains seven breakthrough strategies.
They cover areas such as addressing cravings and how to gauge the right amount to eat without over-eating, learning the nutrition value of some of the most popular local hawker food, as well as understanding food advertising so as to identify between fact and fiction in a smart way, thus leading to better diet-related decisions.
The book does not ignore fitness junkies either, as it contains a section on the myths and common mistakes surrounding resistance training, and why it is so critical for the success of weight loss.
The driving point for Liew was her strong belief in "the importance of nutrition, and how one's eating habits can shape his or her health status".
She said: "To effectively lose weight, one has to adopt a holistic approach, with the right balance of exercise and how to feed the body.
"Extreme diets are often hard to sustain, and deprivation of certain nutrients is not ideal for optimal performance."
The Skinny Sumo Wrestler's main factor lies in its ability to "show that the best diet is the one you do not even notice".
Liew will be signing copies of The Skinny Sumo Wrestler at her book launch on May 10 at Fitness Factory, 82 Boat Quay, from 5.30pm.
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