This Malaysian Doctor Shares Why There’s Nothing Better For Your Health Than a Good Run

Did you know that almost half of Malaysians are either obese or overweight? In fact, we’ve actually been given the unwanted title of Asia’s fattest country for years now, most notably in this piece by the New York Times. Wah, why are we so famous for all the wrong reasons?

So how exactly did “Malaysia Truly Asia” become “Malaysia Fattest in Asia”? In order to find out, we decided to get in touch with a local doctor to get her insights on the matter as well as what we can do to improve and become a much healthier nation.

Bubble teas and other unhealthy lifestyle choices 

Image for illustration purposes only | source: lacrucci

Speaking to Dr. Lim Pek Yean, a Resident Medical Officer at the Wellness Centre of Sunway Medical Centre, she details her own experience of dealing with an increasing number of overweight and obesity-related patients in the past few years.

“There have been an increased number of young patients with obesity, hypercholesterlemia and even diabetes. These can be related to unhealthy lifestyle choices that Malaysians make daily.”

She further clarifies that these lifestyle choices include an unhealthy diet as well as a lack of physical activities. The recent bubble tea craze is a prime example of Malaysians not prioritizing a balanced diet whereby when the sweat sugary drink is not consumed in moderation, it may lead to serious health repercussions.

“Bubble teas contain a high amount of sugar and calories which are very harmful to the body. If not wisely consumed, it may lead to obesity and diabetes.”

Besides being bad for your health, bubble teas also pose a threat to the environment as its plastic packaging may look nice in your Instagram feed but gravely affects Mother Nature due to its indecomposable plastic properties.

Malaysians only start to exercise when faced with health issues

Source: halodoc

Back in 2016, our then health minister, Datuk Seri Dr. S. Subramaniam commented that most Malaysians only start to exercise regularly when they reach the age of 40 to 50, usually when they discover there’s a health issue affecting them. Unfortunately, this statement still rings true today, as according to Dr. Lim,

“Most Malaysians tend to only start eating healthily and exercising regularly when their health deteriorates or see people around them diagnosed with certain diseases.”

Instead of waiting for illness to strike, regular exercising should be the norm regardless of age with Dr. Lim recommending Malaysians to have aerobic exercise such as running, cycling or swimming 3 to 5 times a week. Each of these exercises should be 30 minutes per session for a total of 150 minutes weekly.

“A healthy lifestyle with regular physical activities and healthy diet is of the utmost importance and it is never too late to start now.”

Nothing better for your health than a good run

Source: Sunway The Good Run

One particular aerobic exercise that benefits Malaysians the most is running. According to Dr. Lim, regular aerobic exercise such as running brings with it tonnes of health benefits such as:

• Helps in the regulation of cardiovascular efficiency.
• Regulates the sugar level in our blood.
• Decreasing the chances of being overweight and maintaining optimal weight.

Relating back to a survey conducted in 2017 which puts Malaysian workers as the most stressed within the ASEAN region, regular exercising through running may prove vital to combat and alleviate such alarming stress levels.

“Research has shown that physical activities such as running help to improve one’s mood and reduce anxieties. Besides that, running also helps against insomnia by helping one’s sleeping patterns to return to normal.”

This is particularly imperative seeing how approximately 35% of our population suffers insomnia symptoms with 12.2% having chronic insomnia. Woah, didn’t know we’ve got such a serious sleeping problem within our country!

Seeing how beneficial running is for our health, Dr. Lim welcomes the trend of running events that is on the rise in our country. She further commented that these running events encourage and influence Malaysians to participate in a healthy physical activity regardless of age and gender.

“It is a really healthy practice that embeds healthy living within our culture as well as raises health awareness among the public.”

One particular running event that Dr. Lim and most Malaysians are excited for is Sunway The Good Run, now back with all its awesomeness and wholesomeness this 20th of October!

This awesome running event is all about doing good for the community and the world. and features THREE categories and ONE awesome cause!

Here is everything awesome about Sunway The Good Run you should know about:

• GOOD because all collections go to a cancer-focused organization!
• GOOD because its the only run on the elevated BRT track.
• GOOD because you can go the extra mile with 20km run, in conjunction with Sunway Medical Centre’s 20th anniversary.
• GOOD because you can bring your own bottle and refill at dedicated water stations.
• GOOD because you are supporting waste reduction.

Wah, The Good Run indeed! Besides the 20km run category, there are two other shorter run categories which you can check out below:

Interested? Better hurry up and sign up now before all of the slots are taken! Enjoy a 10% group discount (minimum 5 pax and max 10 pax) when you register together with your friends and family. That way, you can live a healthy lifestyle together whilst at the same time contribute more to cancer patients who are in need!

Join in the fun and run a great race without leaving any wastage this 20th October with Sunway The Good Run!

Awesome! To find out more regarding Sunway the Good Run and for registration purposes, visit their official website www.sunwaythegoodrun.com or their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/SunwayTheGoodRun/.

#BYOB #sunway #sunwaymedicalcentre #sunwayforgood #20thanniversary