Welcome to MFP in China
rogerbosch
Posts: 343 Member
Good that you found this group! If you are in China, or if you are planning to move to China and at the same time stay fit, this group might offer some good tips to help you cope. And although China might be to big to get everyone to meet in person, we all have AT LEAST in common that we are far from home, and use MFP. That should be enough to find some online friends here!
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Hey, depending on your political view I am currently living in ROC, in Taiwan. Just moved here 2 months ago and trying to find my way. How long have you been in China for? How long have you been trying to lose weight in China? How's it going for you?0
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Been here for 7.5 years now (teaching English all this time) - and 4 months ago I decided it was time to get in shape! I've got a 4 year old son so I can't stay behind. Since I would not like to go to a local gym I'm doing my workouts at home; got my weights at Taobao, one of the advantages of living in China!
What do you do in Taiwan?0 -
I'm also an English teacher. Teaching kids at a cram school. This is my first time teaching English. Before, I was teaching adults in Canada for a year and a half. Before that, I taught in N. Africa.
Asia is definitely interesting. I'm not sure what it's like in China but in Taiwan their idea of healthy is eating lots of noodles and rice. I'm trying to do my best and steer away from most of it but I sure get a lot of odd looks when I ask for no rice with my meal. The culture where I am is very much into eating out for 3 meals a day.
I'm doing my own circuit training and fitness videos. It is A LOT hotter here than in Canada, where I'm from, so it seems like I'm burning more calories doing the same types of exercises.
What do you find are your biggest challenges of being healthy in China?0 -
One of the things I hate here is that either there is no caloric information on the products, or in case of imported stuff, a huge sticker has been placed exactly there to replace it with Chinese humbug info.
I find the local Walmart a disaster: no tuna, no muesli, no whole wheat bread. If I want to get decent food I need to go to Metro, where I'm facing the sticker problem.
Eating out I usually visit the local sushi bar, korean food or a beef steak restaurant. I know it sounds awkward being in China, but I try to stay away from Chinese food.0 -
Wow! In Taiwan they have a lot of nutritional content on their food packaging. The odd thing doesn't. It's just the eating out part that kills me a bit. I haven't been here long enough to know how much oil, salt, and sugar that they put in their food. I have started dipping my cooked veggies in hot water and it takes off some of the oil.
When I get my schedule sorted I'll be able to cook more at home.
I like your idea about keeping away from Chinese food in China. I also seem to be doing the same thing.0 -
Hi i am also an English teacher in China. Its been 2 years i am living in the Shandong province. I have decided I have to lose weight once and for all but I miss home and my friends who used to be my cheerleading team. It is hard to get healthy and find a good gym where I live I mostly cook all the time so I know what I put in the food but sometimes it is hard ****ing calories when there are no labels or the indication is false. Well i just put the zumba DVD i am waiting for my mom to send it to me .0
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Hey, everyone! It is so good to see there are other MFP users in China. I just moved to Hebei province a month ago to teach English. Since the school has provided me with some money to spend in the canteen, I've been eating a lot of meals there. However, there is so much oil. I really need to start cooking some healthier options at home.
There isn't much of a smog problem in my city, so I've been able to walk and run quite a bit. I find it interesting that a lot of people online have talked about problems with gaining weight here. Prior to coming to China, I had though it would be easy to lose weight if I stick to the Chinese diet. I now know that is not always the case.0 -
Welcome Emily,
I totally thought I could lose weight here easily too. I listened to a lot of my Asian friends in North America that said the food was so healthy here. Now I know their idea of what healthy food is QUITE different then mine.
Oh and Nadine I'm a huge fan of Zumba! Have the dvds and the Zumba 2 on Wii. They don't do that much sitting on the shelf though
. I did 30 mins today which felt great. 0 -
Well I can wait to receive my package. So I can Zumba. I lived in Dominican Republic for 2 years and I iss dancing so I am counting the day 23 to be actually right now I am walking everyday I have 30 day shred from Jillian but its getting borring I dont want to go to the gym they are really dirty and the smell is awfull . So no other choice i order everything from the States and my mom sends it to me . God bless her .0
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An alternative to having DVDs shipped from the U.S. is to purchase them through iTunes. You have to watch them on your computer, but at least it is free delivery and instant. I just bought a yoga video on there.0
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Hey do you guys have Moon Festival in China or mooncakes. Just went through my first festival. I tried one mooncake and had no idea there were 1200 calories in it! Thankfully I only ate a bite. It wasn't even that good to me.0
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Hey ONEBLUESOCK!
I am also in Taiwan. It's SO hard to eat healthy here unless you take full advantage of the veggiemarts. I've been here for 3 years. Gained weight my first year but learned my lesson and started cooking in more than eating out and trying to avoid the late night 7-11 runs.
I'm in Kaohsiung. Where do you reside?0 -
Hey do you guys have Moon Festival in China or mooncakes. Just went through my first festival. I tried one mooncake and had no idea there were 1200 calories in it! Thankfully I only ate a bite. It wasn't even that good to me.
My friend sent me a piece in the NYTimes last year talking about the Mid-Autumn festival, which explained that the mooncakes are PACKED with calories! For something I do not think tastes good, it's amazing they can be so high in calories.
Just started up with MFP about 4 days ago, and I am so happy/surprised to find a group for expats in China! Glad I am not the only one trying to get fit while living in the land of oil soaked foods.0 -
Welcome rmims316. Hope everyone is still doing okay in China! I know I am. Two months ago I got a membership at Powerhouse Gym - go there abt 4 times a week. It's a welcome change after having constantly worked out at home.
Still hard to find good foods without paying too much, so mostly I stick with chicken breast, although I'm pretty sure that what they feed the chickens here can't be all that good.0 -
Hello everyone......been in China for 3 1/2 years.....started as a teacher and now work for a French Pharma company in Guangzhou. Lived the last two years in Chengdu and the food there was amazing which it seems helped me get into the shape I am now. Too much Sichuan food......Joined a gym a couple of months ago and slowly working my way out of the hole. Recently found MFP and it's been great helping keep track of calories even here. I am surprised at the number of times I scan the upc code and it actually pulls up nutrition info.....anyway.....Hi and good luck to everyone on their goals!0
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Hey everyone! Hope you didn't fall too hard off the horse over the holidays.. I am back on my 30 Day Shred after a few hiccup days of my own for XMAS and New Years. I am in a rather small town in Hubei, which has severely limited me to at home workouts.. I am doing Jillian Michaels 30 DS- it's fast and intense, and easily done in my room! For those of you who might be experiencing troubles of not having a gym to go to down to I strongly suggest looking for some at home workouts! I personally suggest the 30DS, it's quick and gives you real results! Good luck guys! Stay strong!0
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Good to see you back on track Rmims "Jillian" 316! What's everybody first name anyway? Mine's not hard to guess.
I'm curious about your New Year's prepositions if you have any at all… I've taken up the idea to run half a marathon in March, which is part of Chongqing's International Marathon event. It means I'm giving my legs a little bit more attention (2 days a week instead of 1) and I've started a running schedule, where I try to be careful not to run on leg day. Also spent three days analyzing my feet and finding the right shoes, resulting in ordering a pair of Newton's from Taobao (probably fake ones hehe).
Well, it's 2013. I have to say, health-wise the year started a lot better than the last. Hope this goes for everyone here.0 -
Been working for a tech firm here for about 5 years now. First day with MFP, and I was surprised how many things I can just type in the Chinese pinyin for and find it, even breakfast street food. Probably not the most accurate count for the rare times I eat it, but at least gives an idea. My hangup when I tried other similar plans is I couldn't find nutrition info for most of the food here, but seems MFP has a much larger collection of items.0
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你们好！Fellow Chinese expat here. I moved to Beijing from Canada at the end of August 2012 and have lost about 35 pounds since. I'd love to share tips for staying healthy here in China. With food safety concerns, I often find my stress levels around food choices and grocery shopping pretty high. Also when I do need to eat in restaurants, discerning what the healthiest choice is and the nutritional content can be a bit of a struggle. Any suggestions that have helped you manage here?0
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Hi everyone!
Lived in Beijing for about two years; gained over 10 kilos. Now I'm in Shanghai. I was able to lose some weight when I visited home for a month, but now I'm falling off of the wagon. That Chinese food, I just love it!
Glad to see there are other people around, too! Hoping to get that motivation back.0 -
Hi All
I'm glad there are a few others around! I'm in Beijing and have been here about 1.5yrs.
I hate that the sticker goes right over the nutrition info! (I understand it but it frustrates me) mostly i hate to say I shop at April Gourmet for any packaged food and the rest I try and just stick to fruit and veg.
There is a gym across the road from me but they close a lot so I often do a Jillian Michaels dvd. I've just started training for the Great Wall 1/2 marathon on May 18th and I'm terrified!!!0 -
I was wondering for all those in China if this happens to you. I work in an office building. I have started to bring my lunch just because it is easier to calorie control that way. When I get ready to get my lunch out all of my co-workers run to the fridge to see what I have brought. They make comments if I bring a salad like "No warm food for lunch!?!?!?". They then begin to ask me all about if I cook at home, do I like Chinese food (standard questions here) and other things about my lunch. They like to do group community style lunches where they all share what they bring. I don't mind sharing my food it's just I don't want what is being offered back
. I have found myself hiding my lunch at my desk and sneaking to the microwave to heat it up after they are all done with lunch. I am not upset or anything over it just wanted to know if anyone else has had the same experiences?
Also I saw someone posted about being able to type in Pin Yin into the calculator and it pulls up some stuff. I was just wondering what those things are. Most of the time I have to try and estimate what I am eating ingredient by ingredient instead of Jiaozi (dumplings).
Cheers!0 -
I can emphasize with you. Chinese are a naturally curious people, and are not very sensitive if it comes to keeping their nose out of someone else's private matters, whether it's what a doctor is doing to you, what you earn, what you are reading on the train, or what you are eating. It's what you said: everything still seems to be part of the community and not sharing for them is awkward.I was wondering for all those in China if this happens to you. I work in an office building. I have started to bring my lunch just because it is easier to calorie control that way. When I get ready to get my lunch out all of my co-workers run to the fridge to see what I have brought. They make comments if I bring a salad like "No warm food for lunch!?!?!?". They then begin to ask me all about if I cook at home, do I like Chinese food (standard questions here) and other things about my lunch. They like to do group community style lunches where they all share what they bring. I don't mind sharing my food it's just I don't want what is being offered back. I have found myself hiding my lunch at my desk and sneaking to the microwave to heat it up after they are all done with lunch. I am not upset or anything over it just wanted to know if anyone else has had the same experiences?
Also I saw someone posted about being able to type in Pin Yin into the calculator and it pulls up some stuff. I was just wondering what those things are. Most of the time I have to try and estimate what I am eating ingredient by ingredient instead of Jiaozi (dumplings).
Cheers!
I'm me, though, and I was brought up with Western ideas, and it annoys me incredibly if someone is invading my privacy (especially when I'm tired or when I really want to get away from all the hectic after a hard day of work) or wants to get something from me (usually for their own benefit or out of blunt nosiness) that's not their business. So then I just close the door.
As a teacher, however, I usually lunch with expats who share the same values. So yea, if I were in your shoes, I just would either lunch alone, or just act dumb and eat, until everything is already in the process of digestion.
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Well, the smog has cleared in Beijing so I'm feeling more inspired to try and get back on track with the healthy living... No one's resolutions really kick in til ChunJie do they? I started using MFP in the UK when I was back for a stay and despaired at the idea of trying to track calories in China - still doubtful it can be done accurately but maybe if I'm part of a group I'll be less tempted by 24hr junk food delivery
Go Team China! 0 -
The 24 hour food delivery is a killer! I did solve this but only because we moved house and I can't seem to say the name of the street we live on (well I can say it but no one understands it!) so I couldn't call McDonald's or anything.
Sorry no useful suggestions for the lunch thing 0 -
Happy Chinese new year!
Been living in Shanghai now for 7.5 years. I have no problem eating many good foods according to www.bulletproofexec.com.
Things like avocado, grass-fed butter, good quality milk, eggs, vegetables.
My wife is Shanghainees and i live with their parents, we have a 5 year old daughter and the next baby is due for beginning of March 2013.0 -
Happy New year! I was looking for a group based in Hong Kong. There doesn't seem to be one, but I found you all instead! Hope you're willing to take me....one forum, two systems, and all that ? ;-) Kung Hei Fat Choi!0
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Welcome Genkimom and xinnian kuaile.
The gym is closed here during these days and I miss working out. Also tracking calories is hard with all this dining out... Luckily all is almost back to normal.0 -
Yeah CNY is no fun if you have to track your calories and with the gym being closed there isn't much chance of working off those calories. But thankfully next week is back to the grind so hopefully we'll all get back on track!0
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Good to have the gyms back open....I might have over done it a bit in my excitement to get back in the gym.0
