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It's hard to stay in shape in Taichung. The lifestyle here
seems to discourage physical activity of any sort, even walking.
How many of us have found ourselves using our scooters or
cars to make even a ten-second trip down the road to the corner
store? When you add in all that fattening Taiwanese food,
you've got a recipe for excess poundage. What can one do to
stay in shape?
The situation may seem hopeless, but take heart; there are
many small pockets of rebellion that have emerged to battle
this tide of inactivity. You'd be surprised how much there
is to do here. If you're into competitive team sports, a few
of the top ex-pat outlets in Taichung are ultimate frisbee,
soccer and ice hockey.
The Taichung Ultimate Frisbee scene has been cruising along
for quite a while now. Its focal point is Hsiang Shang Middle
School on Mei Tsun Rd. (about five minutes south of Taichung
Kang Rd.) Every Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m., people descend
upon the center of the school's track to play a game that
can loosely be described as a blend of football and frisbee,
but really is just an excuse to run yourself into the ground
for few hours. People divide into teams and play until darkness
transforms the frisbee into more of a hazard than a collective
focus. It's a lot of fun and is easy to learn; all you need
to know is how to chase a frisbee up and down a field. Anyone
is welcome to play. Most of the players are men, but it's
not uncommon for women to participate. The game is wide open
and you don't have to be a superstar athlete to have a good
time. It's one of the city's more regular and reliable ways
to get some enjoyable exercise.
In addition to Ultimate Frisbee, another popular team sport
is soccer, though I advise that you don't call it "soccer"
in front of any Brits - they'll give you such a hard time
that you'll wish you were dead. Soccer is usually played on
Sunday afternoon against various local universities and clubs.
For more information, call Jeff at 376-7645.
If, however, your interests lie mainly in winter sports, then
you're in luck; Taichung is Taiwan's ice-hockey mecca. Teams
make pilgrimages from far and wide in hopes of getting some
"ice-time" on Taichung's newly built, full-size
skating rink - which is also the only one in the entire country.
The A-1 Ice World arena (466 Honan Rd., tel. 258-0258, just
two blocks north of Taichung Harbor Rd.), has a skating-surface
which is surprisingly good. For the past couple months, late-night,
full-gear (though, no contact) games have been played every
other Saturday. Plans are in the works to start a league sometime
in February. Players' ages and skill levels vary greatly,
but everyone has fun with these good-natured contests. Hockey
is an expensive game to play, especially in Taiwan but if
you were born with a stick in your hand and a puck in your
mouth, then I recommend you pay a visit to A-1 Arena.
If you are more interested in just going for a leisurely skate,
ice-time is quite affordable. On weekdays, you can skate all
day for NT$150, while on weekends the price jumps to NT$200
(skates, helmet and elbow pad rentals add up to another NT$60).
Many Taiwanese are quite curious about skating and, if you
go, at the very least you'll have a great time watching local
young people trying to learn; their enthusiasm more than makes
up for any lack of grace.
There's a smattering of other weekend activities available,
though less regularly. I've played touch football and I've
even heard of rugby and Gaelic football. Mind you, to find
these unadvertised enclaves of activity, you'll have to do
a bit of sleuthing. But that's O.K. because Taiwan's foreign
community is the world's smallest gossip pool; just go down
to a local ex-pat hang-out and ask someone.
If basketball's your game, all you have to do is find a couple
of like-minded friends and make a visit to almost any local
school yard on a Sunday afternoon; there's always a game to
be had. Expect fierce competition however - school kids here
take basketball very seriously. That's not altogether surprising
though, considering that in Taiwan, Michael Jordan's more
popular than sliced bread. A volleyball team is also in the
making. Nancy Miller (tel. 462-3187) is currently looking
for people who want to play either indoor or outdoor volleyball.
If you are not the competitive type, there are many things
for you, too. This list is by no means comprehensive. If all
else fails and there's a sport that you want to play, organize
it and I'm sure that others will join.
Perhaps the best way to stay in shape though, is to leave
yourself opportunities for little everyday workouts. Be creative
and make your own workout routines, whenever you can. One
way I stay in shape is by living on the sixth floor of an
apartment building that has no elevator. I live precisely
84-steps from the earth (a fact I'm painfully aware of every
time I climb the stairs), but I must admit climbing innumerable
stories of stairs, day after day, certainly keeps your quads
toned, and your glutes tight.
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