HAIR: RICKY KWOK; MAKE-UP: KAMEN LEUNG; PROP STYLIST: ESTHER VAN WIJCK; STYLIST’S ASSISTANTS: SPENCER FUNG, NICOLE WONG, HELENAYEUNG; WITH SPECIAL THANKS TO TIMOTHY OULTON AND HOMELESSwhen they reach a goal. Now, when I reach
a goal, I’m already thinking of the next one
the day I reach it.” The words of her coach
help explain this attitude: “Compliments and
applause all happen outside my door,” he
says. “To reach the highest goals, my students
must commit to three principles: show up,
listen and do the work.”
Increasingly, however, Sabrina’s
motivations are broader than personal
fitness goals. “With sports, you can always
do more,” she explains, “but what I really
want to do is inspire other people around me
to be more aware of the benefits of health
and fitness.” The week before our meeting,
she gave a talk to a group of University of
Hong Kong students about goals and found
herself discussing exercise and sport and
their ability to transform people’s lives. She
wants to start working with charities that get
underprivileged children involved in sport.
“It’s not always about buying people books,”
she says. “Exercise gives you balance.”
While her physical transformation
has been impressive, it’s the mental and
emotional shift that’s had the most impact on
Sabrina and those around her. Her training
has given her a fortitude and discipline of
mind. “It’s about getting the mind ready
all the time, 100 per cent of the time,” she
explains. “I’ve been able to apply that at
home and at work.” And she is rightfully
excited and proud of what she has achieved.
“Two years ago I would never in my
wildest dreams have imagined that I would
have done all these things. Whether it’s
running a 10K or going to Mount Fuji or
running up a hill with stitches, I just would
not have imagined it. You wouldn’t have put
my name and exercise in the same sentence.”
The main lesson she’s learned from the
experience? “Given my journey, I would just
say always do your best; you never know
what the outcome might be.”found the balance. I drink two or three glasses
of wine a day and, when I’m not on a meal-plan
week, I eat everything, from carbs, to steak,
to little bits of dessert, cheese, everything. It’s
just portion control.”
Sabrina is even allowed to eat her favourite
treat—ice cream—four times a week. “You
don’t really have to deprive yourself or cut out
any categories of food. If you want a burger,
have it. Just skip the mayonnaise and ketchup
and half the bun.” Also stashed in her Mary
Poppins handbag is a tub of carrot sticks,
which she carries at all times to avoid cravings
and sugar lows leading to food purchases. “I’ve
learned to snack before meals when I’m not
hungry,” she says. She allows herself the odd
lapse too. The night before we meet, Kevin
wanted them to dine at Nobu following a
tough day at work. “He said, ‘Hey, forget your
meal plan,’ and I thought, ‘You know what,
you’re right.’”
Her transformation has also inspired
Kevin—and friends and other family
members—to pursue a healthier lifestyle.
“They have gone through the same adjustment
and evolution that I have, and now lots of
them are asking if they can train with me or
be involved.” Kevin has recently joined her
on the regime and her father, Victor, who
initially had reservations about the intensity
of her training, will now suggest that she turn
up the dial on the stepper when she’s in the
gym. Sabrina’s secretary has taken up walking
for an hour with her husband each evening
and delights in researching fitness challenges
in which Sabrina and others in the office can
participate. “People close to me have picked
up the exercise bug. I find it very rewarding.”
Initially, Sabrina’s motivation was weight
loss—she lost 18kg in the first four months and
3.5 in the next two—but once she achieved
her optimum weight (“I’m there now, but I
fluctuate”), she started to focus on challenges.
She did her first 10-kilometre run last year
(“for me, that’s a lot”) and recently returned
from Japan where she ran a 14-kilometre race
at Mount Fuji and then climbed almost to
the top. She’s considering signing up for the
staircase race up the ICC in December (2,120
steps to the top). She’s always focusing on the
next goal. “Too many people just celebrateScan the QR code to see our behind-
the-scenes video with Sabrina,
or watch our cover come alive by
downloading the Awethentic app
and scanning the cover“If you keep letting meetings, lunches and other
engagements take priority, you will never get the
workout done. So once I have one booked in, it
doesn’t change unless I have a board meeting”
hong kong tatler. september 2017 177