Salute to the Health-Conscious Singaporeans!
Who are Singaporeans?
Singapore's indigenous population was originally Malay. As it was under British colonial rule since 1819, traders and workers came in from China, India, Sri Lanka, and other neighboring countries. Its multi-ethnic population has reflected this history ever since. Today Chinese, Malays, and Indians form the three largest ethnic groups. They constitute 77%, 14%, and 8% respectively of the population. The remaining 1% are Eurasians with a sprinkling of people of other descent.
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| President & Prime Minister of Singapore |
None of these major groups is homogeneous. Chinese community as a whole come from different provinces of mainland China and therefore speaks mutually incomprehensible dialects. Malay group includes Indonesians speaking Javanese, Boyanese, and other dialects. The most diverse Indian group consists of Tamilians (more than half), Malayalis, Sikhs, Sinhalese and Pakistanis. While Malay is the national language of the country, the four official languages of Singapore are Malay, Mandarin Chinese, English and Tamil.
In September 2023, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, the first Non-Chinese, was elected President with a record 70% votes. Prime minister Lee Hsien Loong, the eldest son of Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew, has been in office since August 2004. A former army officer and Cambridge-educated mathematician, he followed his father into politics in 1984 at the young age of 32.
Healthy Lifestyle
In the mornings as well as in the evenings you can find all the well-maintained public parks busy with elderly people, middle aged, and youngsters engaged in various types of fitness activities including walking, jogging, running, cycling, skating, and other exercises. These, of course, do not include people working out in private gyms, swimming pools, jogging tracks, tennis courts etc. available in various housing societies. On the whole, Singaporeans are generally health-conscious and are mostly on the leaner side, with only 14% of the population involved in smoking.
In the public parks (most of them smoke-free) you can see groups of elderly Chinese as well as people from other Asian countries widely practicing Yoga and traditional Chinese mind & body exercises, including the popular Tai Chi and Qigong. These are widely accepted as an effective, low-cost, and safe exercise approach to keep one's body and mind fit and fresh.
Tai Chi / Qigong
Exploring ECP
Yesterday, I took a break from my daily morning Yoga session and decided to explore the 15 km long East Coast Park that stretches along the south of Marine Parade, Bedok, and Tampines. As my holiday in Singapore is coming to a close in a few days, I thought I must drop my Yoga routine and watch attentively how other people spend their mornings outdoors.
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| My Yoga Spot |
During the walk I observed people performing various types of exercises in groups, mostly to the accompaniment of soothing meditative music. These exercises possess a similar philosophy - gentle movements performed in coordination with muscle stretching and relaxation, slow breathing, self-awareness (mental focus), and a meditative state of mind.
Yen-ch'i Exercise
One group was involved in Yen-ch'i exercise. This is a Taoist breathing exercise that allows the breath to flow out to all parts of the body.
I talked to an elderly woman of the group who had a radiant face exhibiting good physical and mental health. She is 83 years old, was born in Singapore, and had worked in the Customs department in an administrative position. Her parents migrated from China.
She said that their exercise session goes on from 7 to 8-30 am without any break. Then all of them go to some Hawker Center (see below) for a hearty breakfast before they disperse by 11:30 am to get back to their homes.
Walking Meditation
I saw another group of elderly people. They had split themselves into two batches each going around a tree in continuous slow movements. From a distance it appeared as if they were holding mobile phones in their hands and looking at the screens!
The fact is that they concentrate on the tree by looking at it through their fingers and walk around it gaining energy from the tree. It is an interesting meditation to relax and heal oneself.
Tai Chi and Qigong
Tai Chi and Qigong epitomize traditional Chinese wisdom and culture. They evolved over several centuries through continuous modification and development. There are only subtle differences between the two; Tai Chi has a martial arts lineage while Qigong primarily aims at wellness. Chi or Qi refers to the energy that motivates human life activities. Their practice aims to achieve the balance and unification of Yin-Yang, a Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces.
Cycling
In the East Coast Park, cycling is a great way to enjoy nature while getting a good workout too. For those who don't have their own bikes, one can easily hire cycles from the traditional rental shops. For millennials, new mobile app-based cycle rentals are also available.
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| Cycles Rental |
Hawker Centers
Hawker Centers are large open-air food courts that house many stalls selling a wide variety of affordably priced food. They serve everything from full meals to snacks and drinks. The selection covers local dishes as well as flavors including Chinese, Malay, Indian, and western. They are mostly conveniently located at the heart of housing societies.
Singapore's Hawker Food Culture: What to Eat & How to Eat
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| Photo Credit: ALAMY |
Expat Lifestyle
This health-conscious environment also positively affects the expats living in the country. Taking my own family as an example, my daughter is active with yoga as well as dance; her husband takes part in the yearly Marathon race and therefore needs to be physically fit throughout the year; my granddaughter is a gymnastics enthusiast, also pursuing swimming and dance; my grandson is an all-rounder activity involved in cricket, squash, swimming as well as chess and drum lessons.
Today is the inauguration of the newly developed KPMG Wellness Garden consisting of a therapeutic garden and a fitness play garden that will be released to the public. This is in the Siglap area of the ECP.
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| Wellness Garden |
Singaporeans are living longer than ever before. It is ranked third in the world for life expectancy with an average of 83 years. However, despite living longer, Singaporeans are experiencing an average of eight years of ill health during their old age.
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