https://www.scmp.com/rss/324032/feed Brian Adams is a contributor to the Life Desk of the SCMP and full time nonprofit communications strategist. He spends any free time exploring Hong Kong’s used book stores, building his ever-growing personal library of science fiction classics. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Can you imagine what you would eat if you had only HK$40 (US$5.10) a day for food? Or how you would get around the city with just a HK$50 weekly transport allowance? This the reality for refugees seeking asylum in Hong Kong, and for one week Mai Schroder is learning for herself how difficult these restrictions can be. Hong Kong’s refugee claim system leaves many tough questions The PE teacher has taken up the challenge to raise awareness of the plight of Hong Kong refugees, while also... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2112391/eating-hong-kong-refugee-teacher-lives-hk40-food-day-charity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2112391/eating-hong-kong-refugee-teacher-lives-hk40-food-day-charity?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Sep 2017 00:17:39 +0000 Staying fit can be a challenge and taking short cuts can frequently end in injury. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t look for ways to make training more efficient. One person who might be able to help is former pro rugby player Alex Poole, 43, who is helping people streamline the road to that ideal body with the help of science – specifically DNA. Poole’s love of science and fitness started when he was a student studying homeostasis – the self-regulating processes by which biological systems... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2100993/does-your-dna-hold-key-fitter-slimmer-you-ex-rugby-pro-alex?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2100993/does-your-dna-hold-key-fitter-slimmer-you-ex-rugby-pro-alex?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Jul 2017 09:35:41 +0000 Rarely does someone have the opportunity to put their athletic career on hold only to pick it up again decades later. Fewer still return to competition or take home trophies that second time around. Paolo Caputo, a 42-year-old Italian expat in Hong Kong, a competitive cyclist as a youth, has done just that. Caputo fell in love with cycling at an early age. “I raced my first road race at 10 years old and went on until 16, racing all over Italy. I won about 100 trophies, various regional... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2098643/italian-who-returned-cycle-racing-hong-kong-20-years-after?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2098643/italian-who-returned-cycle-racing-hong-kong-20-years-after?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 18 Jun 2017 04:03:38 +0000 As the general manager of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental, it would be easy to assume that Torsten van Dullemen doesn’t have time to stay fit. Yet the 48-year-old Dutchman competes in and wins triathlons. He somehow also finds time to spend quality time in the evenings and on the weekends with his wife and two teenage daughters. So how does he do it? An answer may lay in his Mensa (the world’s largest and oldest high-IQ society) credentials, putting him among some of the smartest people in the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2097910/hong-kong-luxury-hotel-manager-fitness-about-balance-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2097910/hong-kong-luxury-hotel-manager-fitness-about-balance-and?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jun 2017 09:17:24 +0000 Hong Kong is as much a city of change as it is one of tradition. It is home to longstanding restaurants and here-today-gone-tomorrow eateries. The latest attractions with all their bells and whistles must compete with the natural beauty of the parks and mountains. Such is the point of the latest Lonely Planet guide to our city, a much needed update to the former edition published two years ago. Lonely Planet’s China guide has come a long way, with 15th edition out this week Hong Kong native and... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2096683/whats-new-latest-lonely-planet-hong-kong-we-ask-writer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2096683/whats-new-latest-lonely-planet-hong-kong-we-ask-writer?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Jun 2017 05:15:18 +0000 What began as a loose discussion between two friends in a Sham Tseng pub has now grown into one of Hong Kong’s most entertaining trail runs. Known as the Country of Origin (COO) 30km Trail Run, almost 500 runners in 166 international teams will gather on Lantau on April 22 to dash up, down and around a course made by runners for runners. “For many people, myself included, Lantau has some of the best selection of trails around,” says Nic Tinworth, race director and co-creator of the COO. “Both... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2085788/humble-birth-hong-kongs-country-origin-trail-run?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2085788/humble-birth-hong-kongs-country-origin-trail-run?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Apr 2017 09:00:34 +0000 When Stephen Pau is not in the office advising ultra-high-net-worth families about their finances, you may find him running along Hong Kong’s many trails, training for his next ultramarathon. But Pau isn’t training to finish first or to set a new personal best – he’s putting his best foot forward to help charities raise funds. Pau’s story begins in the 1990s when, as a student in Britain, he ran mostly cross-country races with the occasional half marathon. While he did not consider himself a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2081570/no-mountain-too-high-hong-kong-charity-runner-stephen-pau?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2081570/no-mountain-too-high-hong-kong-charity-runner-stephen-pau?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Mar 2017 04:32:06 +0000 Hilary Faulkner is sitting on a bed in a small room, in the Hong Kong Integrated Oncology Centre, smiling and laughing as she recounts her ongoing battle with ovarian cancer. March is Ovarian Cancer Awareness month in Faulkner’s native Britain, and she praises the support she has received in Hong Kong, where it is the sixth most common cancer among women. “The chemotherapy nurses are the unsung heroes because they’re the ones that put the needles in, monitor you, phone you the next day to see if... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2079494/one-womans-hong-kong-ovarian-cancer-journey-and-her-positive?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2079494/one-womans-hong-kong-ovarian-cancer-journey-and-her-positive?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Mar 2017 00:03:56 +0000 The next time you hit the gym you may want to leave your smartphone in your locker. According to two recent studies, talking on the phone or texting during your workout can lead to less intense exercise and even lead to injury. “Certain cell phone functions, texting and talking, can be detrimental to a bout of exercise,” says Michael Rebold, PhD, an assistant professor of integrative exercise science at Hiram College in Ohio, who led the studies. The research team found that speaking or texting... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2071808/study-highlights-dangers-keeping-your-phone-handy-gym?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/2071808/study-highlights-dangers-keeping-your-phone-handy-gym?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Feb 2017 04:30:45 +0000