At 63, yoga-based training on Hong Kong rooftop a shock for lifelong sportsman
Wanting to get back his physical edge, but determined to avoid gyms, Anthony Root signed up for outdoor training classes – and quickly changed his view of yoga as mild exercise for the lazy
“When you have spent most of your life exercising outdoors, it’s pretty hard to start working out in a gym – in fact, I find being in a gym stifling and boring,” says Anthony Root from the expanse of his rooftop in Hong Kong’s south side, overlooking the South China Sea.
Rain, hail or shine, this rooftop is where the 63-year-old trains twice a week with his personal trainer, Jinhwa Kim from Ape.Fit.
When the American moved to Asia in his 40s, Root maintained the outdoor lifestyle he had grown up with: an active regimen of tennis, mountain biking, hiking and diving. But a demanding career as a managing partner of a Wall Street law firm soon curtailed his passions.
While he enjoyed the “adrenaline rush of leading high-profile deals and the cultural diversity of global travel”, Root soon realised the lifestyle was costing him his strength and, worst of all, his mobility.
“I was always proud of my strength and endurance both in work and outdoors. I knew the incessant demands of my professional life were taking a toll on my body, but I ignored it for years,” he says.
“I never expected the acceleration of change as I crossed key age thresholds, particularly 50 to 60. It was a huge psychological blow to realise my body was deteriorating and I was shocked by how much harder I had to work simply to stay in the same place.”
