Women who push their bodies to the limit

EARLY STARTER: Sasha Christian has been wakeboarding since she was five.

Sasha Christian practically grew up at Kallang Riverside.

Her mother, Mrs Angeline Christian, an avid weekend waterskier, would take Miss Christian, then three, and her five-year-old brother Max there every Saturday for lessons.

Miss Christian was waterskiing at three, switched to wakeboarding at five and at the age of 11, she took home the bronze at the Asian Wakeboard Championships and became the national wakeboarding champion.

Now 22 and a slender 1.61m, Miss Christian is a force to be reckoned with on the waves.

Having spent years skiing and wakeboarding, it is not surprising that she is tanned.

"I do get people telling me I'm very dark and (they) even recommend whitening products," she says.

But the SEA Games athlete usually laughs it off "because I like the colour of my skin".

"I suppose everyone has his or her own idea of beauty and it's just what suits an individual best," she says.

Miss Christian won the Asian Wakeboard Championships in 2009, took the SEA Games gold medal in 2011 and last year, she won the gold at the Asian Beach Games in Phuket, Thailand. Now, she is focused on the upcoming SEA Games in Singapore in June.

CAUTION

Plastic surgeon JJ Chua says sun exposure is the main culprit of skin ageing and cancers.

"Sunburn is (the) worst but slow gradual sun exposure is also harmful, especially in small children taking swimming lessons as most sun damage occurs before 18 years old.

"So parents need to put on sunscreen for the kid at least 10 minutes before exposure and reapply every hour if swimming, playing in the sand or surfing," he says, adding that sun damage is cumulative and the damage cannot be removed.

BUFF: Powerlifter Chew Feng Yi says being muscular is her ideal body type. ST FILE PHOTO

Ms Chew Feng Yi, 28, smashed four world records in the powerlifting event of the Arnold Classic Australia last month, but her buff image sometimes does not go down well back in Singapore.

"My physique is a result of my training. I train first and foremost for functional fitness and performance, not aesthetics. But of course, looking this way is a happy by-product for me," she says.

Some people view the 1.56m, small-framed woman as "bulky or excessively muscular, especially for a woman".

"But I'm used to it and it doesn't bother me because to me, this is my ideal body type," she tells The New Paper on Sunday.

But Ms Chew was not always like this.

"I was never obese as a child, but I was a little chubby," she recalls.

"I remember once in secondary school when a classmate mentioned to another friend of mine that 'her thighs are so large' (referring to me). I overheard that conversation and was somewhat affected by it."

It was around then that she also caught a bit of football fever during the 2002 World Cup matches and would play football and basketball during recess.

"That increased my level of physical activity somewhat and also improved my fitness, and resulted in me dropping some excess weight," she says.

Ms Chew really started getting into sports and exercise only when she joined the canoeing team in Raffles Junior College.

"I started building more muscle mass in canoeing when we began doing strength work.

"My muscle definition improved significantly when I cleaned up my diet and continued training hard," she says.

Now, the bulk of her nutrition comes from whole, unprocessed foods such as meat, seafood, eggs and fresh vegetables.

"My activity level is significant and I carry a high level of muscle mass compared to the average female, which means that my metabolism is higher than most.

"I believe in eating healthily 80 per cent of the time but I also allow myself room to eat things that I enjoy.

"I do have my indulgences - I think many people are aware that I do enjoy food, especially a good hotel buffet," she says.

CAUTION

Obstetrician and gynaecologist Christopher Chong says it is not natural for most women to have six-pack abs.

"Usually, women need to have little fat around the abdomen for the abs to be prominent. Severe exercising can reduce fats and cause muscle groups to be prominent," he adds.

Dr Chong advises against taking medication such as steroids as prolonged use can cause muscle wasting.

This is something Ms Chew is also against, and she says she is thankful for her good health and being injury-free.

"I am happy with the way I look as it also allows me to perform at the level necessary to do well in my athletic endeavours."