Some friends say I'm a changed woman - one even went on to say that I've gone over to the "dark side" of becoming a health freak!

It's all thanks to a BodyAge media challenge where each of us is given 16 sessions to work out with a personal trainer (PT) at California Fitness – to be completed in two months. The person with the lowest body age wins. I took it as the opportunity to kick start my body into a healthier regime. In the health and fitness department, I’m guilty as charged.

I haven’t exercised for the last four years. The closest thing to exercising is my morning rush-hour dash to the bus-stop and stair-climbing the escalators. I have considered dropping off a bus-stop early and walk the rest of the way to the office. But that never happened.

In my initial assessment, I was underweight and my fat mass took up a fourth of my total body weight! My bicep strength was fair and my flexibility rated on a low. My body age was a year younger than my chronological age. I was told it’s not bad for someone who doesn’t exercise. I told Nik, my then PT (who sadly left after my 10th session) that my aim was to gain some weight and look more toned. Nik then drilled on the fact that I have to eat more than my usual – even indulge in some fast food if I can so that I have enough fuel to burn when I exercise and enough to feed my muscles. I can’t believe someone’s telling me to indulge in more junk food!

Basically I have to eat before and after each workout. Many envy me for the licence to eat as much as I can. But the irony is that I don’t enjoy eating. Basically I’m your “eat to live” rather than “live to eat” girl. The increase-your-food-intake part proved to be a bigger challenge for me. Life’s unfair that way.

Having a PT assist in my workout is a real morale and motivation booster. Now I know why celebs can’t do without their PTs. What’s great after the workout is that I feel totally recharged and energised, my mind stayed alert throughout the day and above all, there are no more aches on my neck and shoulders. For once, I wasn’t gagging for a massage every other week. My new body age reads a drop of three years off my first assessment. Not a lot.

But more importantly, I’ve gained 2kg in weight, increased bicep and abdominal strength, my flexibility rated good and I’ve lost 5kg of fat mass! Hooray! I’ve done myself proud. Regardless of whether I win this challenge or not, the important thing is that I’ve learnt to be healthy again – and trust me, that’s the hardest thing to do when you don’t love exercise by nature.