So when Rau wanted to kick-start a healthy lifestyle, AIA Vitality was what he turned to for motivation. Finance manager Rau has always loved shooting hoops and didn’t care much about injuries he would sustain playing his favorite sport. Back then, he weighed 101kg and because of this, each time Rau played basketball, he would end up being injured. Overtime, his injuries became worse that he decided to give up the sport altogether.

He thought he could pick up a different sport – which he did two years ago by joining runs and obstacle races. Unfortunately, due to his fitness level, Rau struggled to finish his first event - the Spartan Beast 21km race with 30 obstacles to hurdle through. He ended up being demotivated and almost gave up on the idea of taking up any form of sports due to his weight. “I became lazy and gained more weight due to my unhealthy eating habits,” shares Rau.

Fortunately, his friend David Yap, who is an AIA Life Planner, encouraged Rau to join AIA Vitality knowing that Rau was an existing AIA customer. This proposal came at the right time as Rau realised he needed to start making little changes to lead a healthier life.

It wasn’t easy at first. “Getting started was the toughest – my body just won’t listen to me! I was lethargic all the time. When I started the AIA Vitality programme, my goal was to achieve 8,000 steps a day. I would try to do it over a period of five days but if I couldn’t, I would instead do it within three days with more steps. Staying on this target helped my body to adapt and I started to push myself further,” explains Rau.

After the first two weeks, Rau managed to complete 12,500 steps on most days. A few months later, he became more and more active and fit that he started joining running events and even signed up for obstacle races again. “I joined AIA Vitality in April 2018 and two months later enrolled myself in Fitness First to enjoy the discount on gym membership fees which helped me gain more AIA Vitality points. I went on to successfully complete my first marathon. This motivated me to keep going and decided to participate in the Spartan Ultra 50km run with 70 obstacles,” says Rau.

Due to these lifestyle changes which resulted in a healthier and fitter body, Rau was able to complete the race; recognising it as one of his proudest achievements in life. He also joined his first ever triathlon, where he had to cycle for 42km, run for 10km, and swim for 1.5km. Rau says it is easier to be committed to a healthy regime with AIA Vitality. He goes for health checks regularly and eats better. On days that he doesn’t run, he swims. Having a workout buddy also helps him stay focused and determined. “After joining AIA Vitality, I asked my friend Danaraj to join me. My Life Planner David signed him up and now we both work out at the gym as well as join races together. Danaraj joined in June 2018 and three months later, he did a 100km run in Fraser’s Hill. He’s always been active but with AIA Vitality, he’s even more focused in achieving his health goals!” shares Rau. Rau also says the 10% discount he gets as an AIA Vitality member whenever he shops for fresh fruits and vegetables at Jaya Grocer motivates him to stay on course of his healthy lifestyle journey whereas the free TGV Cinema movie passes and up to 50% off AirAsia flight tickets are awesome bonuses. Being an AIA Vitality member also made him realise that he could enjoy other benefits through his AIA insurance plan such as receiving a yearly cash bonus of up to 20% of the basic premium paid for A-Life Cancer360.

“My state of health and lifestyle have changed for the better since joining AIA Vitality. I now believe that I can achieve so much more when I put my mind to it. The programme really motivates me and pushes me to achieve my desired health goals,” says Rau. Find out how you can make AIA Vitality #YourHealthyBuddy at www.aia.com.my/aiavitality.