Exercising outdoors in Shanghai: Fitness for all in harmony with nature
This past Saturday, I got up at 4:30am, practiced pranayama (yogic breathing) for half an hour, and left my suburban home at 5:30am after a simple breakfast.
I walked 15 minutes to the nearest Metro station to catch the earliest city-bound train that departs at 6am. I was trying to reach a riverfront space along Suzhou Creek in downtown Shanghai before 7am, in the hope of joining early-bird exercisers and jogging under the morning breeze.
I chose the destination – a 4.3-kilometer-long esplanade in Putuo District – because it was one of the main venues for Shanghai's Public Fitness Day activities this year, which were held from August 6 to 14.
A more important reason, however, was that the esplanade area would be developed into a landmark garden along Suzhou Creek in the future. Xiao Wengao, head of the Putuo District government, confirmed the garden project in an interview on August 10.
A group of retired workers play badminton along Suzhou Creek.
It took me less than one hour – by subway and on foot – to arrive at the easternmost point of the esplanade. A group of elderly people playing badminton by a bamboo grove came into view as soon as I descended from a bridge across Suzhou Creek and began my westward trip along the riverside route graced by grasslands, groves and sports grounds.
It was the first time I saw so many senior citizens play badminton so energetically. They thrust forward and backward in quick and steady steps, trying to hit the shuttlecock back to their opponents' side on every shot.
As I looked on from the sidelines, I found they had fixed their net to a tree trunk on one side and to a bamboo stick tied to a moped on the other. It was indeed a great "design" improvised for a makeshift outdoor badminton court.
"You play well," I told an old man who paused for some rest.
He looked at me with a quiet smile.
"How long have you been playing badminton? Have you hired a coach?" I asked him.
"Most of us have played for at least 10 years," he said slowly, with a perpetual smile in his eyes. "We're retired workers; hiring a coach would be a luxury. We just keep practicing on our own."
As we chatted, a woman clad in a red, checkered shirt chipped in: "Guess how old he is?" She referred to the man I had been talking with.
"About 65?" I guessed as I looked him over again.
The old man grinned at my words but said nothing.
The woman laughed: "He is 75!"
Her hearty words awakened a corresponding cheerfulness in the old man, and the cheerfulness was contagious. Vicariously, I felt their simple satisfaction in a healthy lifestyle sustained with continuous exercises at a low cost.
The woman said she was 60 years old, one of the youngest in this group of elderly exercisers. She explained that they moved here for badminton games only this year.
"We used to play in a nearby park, but later we found that there are more shades here to shelter us from the summer heat, so we now come here every day except Tuesday and Thursday, when we go to play in an indoor gym," she said.
"Isn't it more expensive to play in a gym?" I asked.
"It's affordable, because we share the costs," she replied.
A group of young people pose for pictures after a jogging race along Suzhou Creek.
A quieter Shanghai
After saying goodbye to them, I began to stretch my arms and legs, ready for my exercise.
Then, as I jogged westward along the creek, I met more early-bird exercisers: An old lady was practicing tai chi in a small riverside forest; a young couple was running up and down a sloping grassland; a teenage boy was playing tennis against the wall of a brick house while his father looked on; a young woman was honing her swordcraft under the guidance of some senior people; and a group of young people just finished a 5-kilometer jogging race …
An old woman practices tai chi while others exercise in their own way along Suzhou Creek.
All these people I encountered and places I visited last Saturday morning revealed a quieter side of Shanghai, defined as it was by a sense of ease which could only be found and felt in the bosom of nature.
The morning scene along Suzhou Creek reminded me of what Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng said in a speech earlier this year: "Give the best resources to the people."
The future garden to be built around the 4.3-kilometer-long Suzhou Creek esplanade is part of Putuo District's plan to create "a half-marathon space" on its turf.
Suzhou Creek has 42 kilometers of riverfront paths, half of which are located within Putuo. To put it metaphorically, the district's riverfront paths lend themselves to a half marathon, which also covers 21km. Once completed, the Banma Suhe project will provide downtown Shanghai with a giant public venue for sports and recreation, accessible to anyone who likes outdoor exercises. The term Banma means a half marathon and the term Suhe means Suzhou Creek.
This project, along with many other similar ones being built across the city, will go a long way toward increasing Shanghai's per capita sports space from 2.35 square meters in 2020 to 2.6 square meters in 2025 – roughly keeping up with the national average level.
According to the city's masterplan (2021-2025) for public fitness, an additional 6 million square meters of public sports space will be created during these five years. As a result, there will be a public sports venue for everyone within a 15-minute walking distance by 2025.
A boon to health
Outdoor sports grounds like the Suzhou Creek esplanade I visited will contribute significantly to the city's future fitness landscape. Such accessible outdoor sports venues are no doubt a boon to public health.
"Outdoor exercise – sometimes called 'green exercise' – provides an array of benefits beyond those seen with traditional indoor workouts," Cedric Bryant, president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, wrote in a recent article for US News & World Report.
He explained that exercising outdoors "increases our exposure to sunlight, enhancing vitamin D production, which has been linked to improving mood, promoting bone health, boosting immune system function and reducing inflammation."
China launched its first Public Fitness Day on August 8, 2009, after the success of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. To celebrate the 14th Public Fitness Day this year, Shanghai launched a "super" campaign that extended to nine days, beginning from August 6. I didn't attend the opening gala of the event held at the Suzhou Creek esplanade on August 6. I chose to go later so as to see how ordinary people exercise on an everyday basis.
"What better defense can we have against possible illnesses than our health?" said the 60-year-old woman who played badminton. Her words manifested a spirit of persistence in pursuing a regular and healthy lifestyle.
"We must have patience and perseverance if we want to cultivate a lifelong fitness habit," said a senior long-distance runner I met as I walked along the creek.
In our casual conversion, I learnt that he was an award-winning professional long-distance runner, who retired at the age of 70 four years ago. He wore a pair of sunglasses and was well tanned. He looked so fit that I couldn't believe he's already 74.
"Many of my fellow runners have quit, but I've kept running all the time," he said with a touch of regret. The pleasure of running, he explained, lies in the running itself.
"We used to exercise at East China Normal University, and moved here in June this year after the riverfront space was renovated and reopened," he said. Now, he and some old pals run 20km every day along the esplanade.
"When the weather allows, I would first run 6km from my home to the riverfront space and then complete another 20km along Suzhou Creek. If it's too hot, like today, I would get here on a moped," he revealed.
The 74-year-old professional long-distance runner on a sports ground along Suzhou Creek
As we chatted away, some other senior joggers were cooling themselves with underground water siphoned from a roadside hole with a removable lid. Every one of them looked fit and was radiant with joy. They even encouraged me to join them in their regular exercises.
Why not? I will give it a serious thought, I told them.
One advantage of exercising outdoors is you may run into "good Samaritan" sports fans at any time, any place, who may earnestly share their experience with you and help you form a fitness habit that will benefit your health.
The 74-year-old award-winning runner advised me to buy a pair of thick-bottom sneakers so as to protect my knees in the course of jogging. He suggested I avoid running on hard, stone pavements.
"An asphalt road might be better," he noted.
"Learning is always more interesting when we have a community to learn with," Amaresh Ojha and Subhra Moitra point out in their latest popular book "Fitness Habits: Breaking the Barriers to Fitness." Both authors work for a leading Indian fitness technology platform.
"Science has proved time and again that any form of physical exercise is the fountain of youth and the best medicine for our brains. If you want to keep your brain healthy, young and vibrant, move your body every day," they further note in their book.
Indeed, what better place can we have for "moving our body every day" than an outdoor sports ground within walking distance, where experienced exercisers may help you with their expertise and encouragement?
As I walked back and forth along Suzhou Creek on Saturday morning, I saw a tourist wharf taking shape near a riverfront sports ground. The city plans to build eight tourist wharfs along the creek. Cruise services are expected to begin next month when the first four wharfs are built or renovated.
With the much-anticipated cruise services in place, more and more outdoor sports spaces along the creek will be conveniently connected, giving ordinary people more opportunities to engage in communal fitness activities that help everyone to live in harmony with nature and others.
A tourist wharf is taking shape along Suzhou Creek, paving the way for the expected launch of cruise services next month.
