‘Design your life through sports’

This is the last installment in a three-part series featuring athletes who help people transform their lives. ― Ed.

Beauty must be gained through hard work and perseverance, said Jung A-reum, a celebrity lifestyle and fitness trainer and former Miss Korea beauty contest winner.

Those in pursuit of it must first learn how sports or regular exercise can help improve their physical and mental beauty.

“The problem in Korea today is that people take sports or exercise too lightly,” Jung, 35, said in an interview with The Korea Herald.

“If you are just working out to make yourself look good in a bikini during the summer, or to emulate somebody else’s good looks, the stress won’t go away ― in fact, you’ll feel a different kind of stress, so you’ll never be free.”

Making a “detailed and active” plan for daily workouts based on one’s physical condition is critical, Jung said. This means that those who seek to “change and gain beauty” both inside and outside should set personal goals.

“I hate the expression ‘your dreams will come true’ and self-help books without specific information on how to set and implement goals,” she added.

For instance, if a person wants to lose weight, set exact goals, such as lose 1 kilogram per week “by any means necessary.” If that person meets this goal and loses more than 1 kilogram per week, he or she will gain not only confidence, but also will be able to heal oneself and, most importantly, go through a life-changing experience.

“We need to design our lives through specific action plans with a key focus on making a change through sports and workouts that are right for you,” Jung said.

She added that not everyone is cut out for lifting weights or doing aerobic exercises. A trainer should not force someone interested in playing golf to start with weightlifting, but encourage that person to play more golf.

As the person’s golf skills improve, he or she will be bound to learn that they will need to improve their muscle strength to send the golf ball farther. Then, they will seek weightlifting to further their skills in the sport.

“This should be the way to approach sports ― according to one’s interests and needs, step by step,” she said.

As an active blogger and social network user, Jung seeks to help people change through storytelling with information gained both from her personal experience and studies.

She said she was once “fat” when she was in college, weighing over 80 kilograms. She wondered then what she could do about it without depending on her parents. The simplest solution was exercise.

Jung made a plan to lose weight during the break, and worked out ― lifting weights and running ― for four to eight hours a day. In three months, she reached around 49 kilograms. Then, she joined a beauty pageant and won the Miss Korea title in 2001 as part of her personal mission to “reward herself for the achievement.”

Since then, Jung has been sharing her story and knowledge on personal home fitness and ways to change lives through sports via her blog (blog.naver.com/nar_style) and social media site (@areumjung). She has also appeared in TV programs such as variety and comedy shows ― not as an actress or fitness coach ― but as a “lifestyle storyteller and designer” to encourage and motivate people of all ages to exercise regularly.

Jung’s favorite workout is squats, a full-body exercise. “You can do squats at home, using your whole body as a weight to increase the muscle strength of your lower body, especially your hips,” Jung said.

“Anyone with basic core strength can do this at home, even if you are busy. It is one of the simplest and most effective exercises and you can see immediate results.”

Without proper knowledge of sports and health, people will easily lose interest and motivation, and this can negatively affect not only the people but also the society.

“Ultimately, it comes down to this: sports, exercises or workouts should help make us happy and energetic so that we can pursue our passions for a long time,” Jung said.

“Without strong hardware, which is our body, our software ― our spirit and desire ― cannot last long.”

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)