Tech university helps students lose weight

Aligning with the national 'Weight Management Year' campaign, Dalian University of Technology in Dalian, Liaoning province, recently promoted two special 21-day courses to help young students grappling with their extra pounds.

During the first session, which ended prior to the May Day holiday, 33 participants collectively shed 132.4 kilograms of weight, reduced a total of 116 kg of fat, and achieved a cumulative decrease of 50.3 in body mass index — an estimate of body fat based on one's weight and height. "Through weight loss and an improvement in physical fitness brought about by scientific training and a disciplined lifestyle, I could tangibly experience the principle of 'effort yields results'," said a participant who chose to be identified by his surname Jia.

While the national campaign calls on the public to focus on weight control, healthy eating and regular exercise, the DUT course covers scientific exercise, healthy eating and psychological counseling. Students can take the course to substitute for mandatory physical education tests and earn credits from it as an extracurricular exercise. The second session concluded late last month. "Thanks to Liu Changchun, the late head of our physical education department, who was also the first Chinese to ever compete in the Olympics (in 1932), and other sports predecessors, our university has always maintained a strong sports atmosphere," said Gao Fengshan, deputy head of the DUT's School of Sports and Health.