We ladies love pampering ourselves at the weekend with a sumptuous afternoon tea at the best cafes. Flowing dresses, pretty clutch bags, scones with clotted cream and jam, and a good hot pot of jasmine (for me) and Darjeeling (for Karly) tea are a few of our favourite things.
We give the impression that we walk only with tiny, elegant steps, and the sportiest thing we would do is whip cream for fairy cakes for the YP team.
No one seems to know we do enjoy the outdoors, and don't fear the sun, however fierce it might be - that's what sunscreen is for. And to prove it, we decided to row on a stretch of the Shing Mun River in Sha Tin. But, of course, it wouldn't be possible without a crash course at the Sha Tin Rowing Centre.
Before getting onto the water, coach Wong Chi-wing taught us the basic movements on an ergo. Although the machine doesn't float, it is a good way to train beginners. We sat upright on the ergo's movable seat, adjusted the foot straps and took hold of the T-shaped handle with both hands.
What comes next takes perfect co-ordination between the arms, legs and back - and that's challenging. You always start by extending your bent legs until they are straight, then leaning back and pulling your arms towards you. This motion, known as 'drive', is where the majority of the power in each stroke comes from.
The classic errors we made were hunched backs and moving our arms in a circular motion instead of horizontally. It also took time to get used to the idea of breathing in while on the drive motion, and exhaling while recovering to the initial position.
Karly, with her longer limbs and stronger core muscles, repeatedly beat me on minute-long tests. But we didn't stand a chance against our coach, who rowed twice as fast.
