![]() ![]() That meditation can take place while walking her dog, a terrier mix. Through any form of exercise, it’s to help make what you do more efficient.”Ĭhang, a Kakaako resident, starts her mornings with a brief meditation, which she defines as a time and space to not think about anything and set the tone for the day. “Anything that we do is all about breath. “Yoga’s something I think anyone can do,” she said. ![]() It’s a way for people to gain a greater awareness of the present moment, she said. When Chang talks about yoga, she gets excited about its physical, spiritual and mental benefits. She worked at luxury resorts in Asia for about seven years before taking up her current position at The Kahala Hotel & Resort in 2013. “He was the one who inspired me to give back to the community, to cultivate seeds of inspiration for other people,” Chang said.Īfter powerlifting, Chang briefly competed as a bodybuilder before pursuing a career in hotel spa management that would eventually take her to Bangkok, Beijing and Shanghai, where yoga became her dominant passion, so much so that she got certified as a 250-hour yoga teacher. Austin was the founder of a Seattle nonprofit in 1994 called the Austin Foundation, which encourages disadvantaged youth and their families to live an active lifestyle. My arms are strong enough to catch you if you fall.”Ĭhang also counts the late Willie Austin, also a champion weightlifter, as one of her inspirations. Chang still vividly recalls a nightmare about being unable to do consecutive backflips. One of her earliest mentors, physical education teacher and gymnastics coach Sue Turner, inspired confidence in Chang, who in turn has shared that with the people she has coached. In powerlifting there are certain ways of breathing that make your lift more efficient.”Ī natural athlete from a young age, Chang started competitive gymnastics in first grade in Seattle and went on to become a high school gymnastics team coach. “Breathing is part of anything we do in life. “Yoga became a part of that just as a natural progression,” Chang said. Yoga was a good complement for that since she needed to stretch her muscles after working them so intensely, and there are similarities in the role that breathing plays in both yoga and weightlifting. She lifted weights three hours a day Monday through Friday. “I didn’t use any strength-enhancing drugs or artificial stimulants.” “I was one of the few Asian women competing,” she said. And at 5-foot-1 she defied stereotypes of a petite, Asian woman. ![]() Weights took center stage in her life, though: Chang earned six world championship titles. Yoga became an important part of Chang’s fitness routine at about the same time she started lifting weights during her first year at Seattle Pacific University, where she majored in physical education. She teaches classes in the hotel’s new health and wellness series, which started Saturday with family SUP yoga and continues with partner yoga Feb. Visit for full schedule.Ĭhang, director of spa and recreation at The Kahala Hotel & Resort, prefers yoga, stand-up paddleboard yoga and moonlight meditation. April 13, Moonlight Mudra Meditation, $5 per person. March 16, Barre on the Beach, $25 per person 6 p.m. » Workout routine: Daily morning meditation, yoga three times a week, core conditioning three times a week And she could bench-press 205 pounds, too.īut today the 45-year-old Chang only needs the weight of her body to gain strength and fitness. A powerlifter with a background in competitive gymnastics, she could stand over a bar weighing 450 pounds and lift it off the floor. There was a time in Spring Chang’s life when she could lift more than twice her body weight. ![]()
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