Hongkong Star Alex Fong Shares How He Got Ready For Shirtless Shoot, Months After His Weight Soared To 83kg

Staying in all day during the pandemic will inevitably lead to some weight gain, especially if you’ve dropped the ball on your home workouts (happens to all of us). And even a former professional athlete like Alex Fong Lik Sun  — no, not the other Alex Fong — was not spared.

In a series of Instagram posts that started going up last Tuesday (Jan 5), the 40-year-old, who represented Hongkong in swimming at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, got candid about piling on the pounds in early 2020 and then successfully shedding them before Christmas.

At the beginning of last year, when the COVID-19 outbreak was in its early stages, Alex still managed to keep in shape by swimming 20km a week. However, he was soon struck by “pandemic fatigue”, and to make matters worse, both his acting career and business at his swimming academy were badly hit. This left him with “no desire to continue fighting”, and his weight ballooned to an all-time high of 183lbs (83kg).

Instead of wallowing in self-pity, he and a group of friends — he describes them as “middle-aged Hongkong men from different backgrounds” — decided to embark on a 30-day non-stop workout challenge. 30 days eventually stretched to 212 days, and by December 14, Alex’s weight dropped 26lbs (11.8kg) to 157lbs (71.2kg).

Now, Alex wants to use his journey to encourage others, and is even launching a calendar featuring lots of photos of his ripped bod. (But of course.)

He also shared a detailed and lengthy post documenting how he lost 6.7kg in a month to get ready for the shoot.

While he undoubtedly looks great, Alex clarified that this isn’t the most muscular he has looked for a shoot, nor is his body fat percentage at its lowest in the pics. However, he said that the weight loss method he employed this time round was the “most relaxing” one.

As the fourth wave of COVID-19 infections in Hongkong eventually made it difficult for Alex to go out and exercise, he relied mainly on his diet to lose weight. For 30 days, he did intermittent fasting by eating only one meal a day, which was dinner, and he was also on the keto diet.

“I still eat out, but just no fruits, no sweeten drinks or even zero cal soft drinks, no alcohol, no rice, no bread, no noodles of course in case u guys don’t know, hehe (sic)” he wrote in English.

While that’s still a lot of no-no’s, Alex said that it was much easier compared to how he lost weight in 2019. Back then, he shed 2.7kg in 10 days by eating nothing but “room temperature salad and meat” with black pepper and no sauce. He also swam 4km every day.

“Although it was only for 10 days, it felt very tough, and I never looked forward to my next meal ‘cos I knew it was only going to be salad,” he recalled. “This time, I found myself thinking of what to eat at night during the day! It wasn’t difficult! But of course, eating just one meal a day needs some adapting to, so we can start by reducing one meal a day.”

​It’s been three weeks since the photos were taken and Alex had no shame in admitting that he has gained 5kg and gone off the keto diet, although he has continued to eat just one meal a day. “Don’t worry, friends, it was my choice to stuff myself with food. When there is a need for me to lose weight, I will do it again.”

After sharing a few more tips, Alex concluded his post by saying that each person’s body is different, so his advice is to try out different diets and exercises to see what suits them the best. “After all, we want to look a little better, be a little healthier, and be a little happier! Let’s work hard together. Jiayou.”