Elderly fitness expert Wang Deshun

When it comes to "Elderly Fitness Master Wang Deshun", the core positioning has never been "the standard answer to fitness for the elderly", but a living example that breaks the rules of age - his existence proves that there is never a unified template for the lifestyle of the elderly. Whether it is fitness or pursuing dreams, as long as it suits you, it is not too late to start at any age.

These words are not empty talk. Many people’s impression of him still remains on the T stage of China International Fashion Week in 2015: The 79-year-old man wore coarse trousers barefoot and walked out with his upper body bare. His tight muscle lines were wrapped in his shiny wheat-colored skin. If it weren’t for that With his gray beard and fluffy white hair, the audience thought he was a young male model who had just debuted. When the video of that day went viral on the Internet, several kids in my circle of friends who shouted "I'm old at 30" every day silently deleted the emo posts they had just posted.

However, when talking about Wang Deshun in the fitness circle, there are always two completely different views. One group thinks that his training model is not universal at all: When he was young, he was the mainstay of a drama troupe, and his decades of physical training are there. Later, he trained systematically for ten years in order to rehearse pantomimes, and his foundation of strength, flexibility, and core control is much better. It is suitable for young people in their twenties and thirties, and his training system actually combines the body control logic of drama performances, which is completely different from the differentiated training of ordinary bodybuilding enthusiasts. If ordinary old people follow his example of lifting irons and paragliding without any foundation, they will easily get injured. Two years ago, there was a 72-year-old man in the gym near my home. After watching Wang Deshun’s video, he deadlifted 30 kilograms. His waist collapsed and he lay down for half a month. It still hurts when it rains.

But Wang Deshun himself has never said that he is a "fitness idol", nor has he advised all elderly people to train like him. I read an interview with him. He said that when he started working out, he didn’t do it to build muscles. He had to perform in "Living Sculpture" and had to stand still on stage for dozens of minutes wearing tights covered with bronze paint. If the muscles are loose, they can’t sustain the effect. Later, he got used to it and it became a part of his life. Now that he is over 80, he does not pursue any heavy weights. He adjusts the amount of training every day by himself according to his physical condition. If he is in good condition, he will swim an extra 200 meters. If his waist is uncomfortable, he will switch to slow walking and Tai Chi. He never competes with himself.

On the contrary, a friend who does research on aging society told me that Wang Deshun's greater significance is not in the field of fitness at all. In the past, everyone's impression of the elderly seemed to be nailed down to "bringing up grandchildren, dancing square dances, and queuing up to receive eggs." It seemed that after the age of 60, you should not have your own hobbies or try new things. Wang Deshun practiced abdominal muscles at the age of 70, walked on the catwalk at the age of 79, and went paragliding at the age of 85. In essence, he changed the saying "age is just a number" from chicken soup to a real reality - it does not mean that all old people should go to the gym and catwalk. If you want to learn watercolor at the age of 70, or want to take the high-speed rail to see the great rivers and mountains of the motherland at the age of 80, it is absolutely fine. You don't have to be tied up by the words "you should do whatever you are at any age."

Speaking of which, I met a 68-year-old Uncle Zhang in the gym before, and he started working out under the influence of Wang Deshun. He doesn’t train heavy weights, so he does shoulder, back and core exercises three times a week. His frozen shoulder was so severe that he needed help from his wife to get dressed. After practicing for more than a year, he can now lift his 4-year-old grandson above his head with one hand. He also climbed Mount Huangshan with a senior mountaineering team. When he meets people, he says to everyone, “If I hadn’t seen that old man Wang Deshun, I thought I would have been paralyzed on the sofa for the rest of my life.”

Of course, there is really no need to deify Wang Deshun. Previously, a marketing campaign trumpeted his "80-year-old body with a 20-year-old body." He himself came out to refute the rumors, saying that he also has white hair, presbyopia, and back pain when he wakes up in the morning. Fitness only allows his body to support what he wants to do. He is no different from those old men who like square dancing and playing chess. They all find a way to live a comfortable life.

I came across his short video a few days ago. The 87-year-old man was wearing a white-washed shirt and teaching several older men to practice core movements in the open space of the park. The sun fell on his white beard, shining brightly. Someone held up a mobile phone to take a picture of him and called him a "fitness expert". He waved his hands and smiled, saying that he was not an expert, he was just an old man who couldn't sit still.