LILIAN TAN - Malaysia's Pride.

Lilian in contest preparation mode.

 Introducing, once more , Ms.Lilian Tan , a Penangite who certainly does not need anymore introduction in Malaysia as she has been glossing the pages of so many local newspapers as well as appearing on several local television talk and game shows.



As one can clearly see, her passion for bodybuilding and fitness has driven her to achieve so much , that obviously did not go un-noticed here in Malaysia. Malaysian Guiness Book of Records has just recognised her efforts and will be awarding her with an honourable recognition award. Quite an accomplishment for this mini power house.



Lilian , a certified ISSA trainer , is currently residing in Kuala Lumpur where she is running her Personal Training business. A very motivated and energetic individual, Lilian has helped many of her clients achieve their goals through proper training and nutritional guidance.

Walking the runway at a fashion show.

For those seeking guest appearances and talks , modelling ,  professional guidance on Personal Training , whether it is bodybuilding , weight management , toning or anything related to health and fitness , you can reach Lilian Tan via email - tgrwmn1@hotmail.com

Interview With Power Couple, Terry Gallyot And Lilian Tan

Interview With Power Couple, Terry Gallyot And Lilian Tan
Written by: Lai Wee Kiat  |  Date: Dec 20, 2010

Lilian Tan and Terry Gallyot are certainly a power couple (They are currently engaged to each other). The former has won four ladies’ bodybuilding contest and the latter has won countless bodybuilding titles, which he couldn’t keep track of, including a Mr Asia title. Read on to find out what these two veterans think about the sport and their steps to success.


Lilian Tan and Terry Gallyot are certainly a power couple (They are currently engaged to each other). The former has won four ladies’ bodybuilding contest and the latter has won countless bodybuilding titles, which he couldn’t keep track of, including a Mr Asia title. Read on to find out what these two veterans think about the sport and their steps to success.

 













Wee Kiat: Hi guys. So, what got you two into bodybuilding? How old were you then?

Lilian: Oh! Oh! I want to answer this for Terry! When Terry was like 3, he saw some super hero cartoon and was inspired by it. Ok, that’s all I know. I suck. Haha.

Terry: Haha. I always like the strong and muscular physique like the Hulk, Spiderman, etc. Plus, my uncle and cousin were into bodybuilding, so I guess it’s in the genes. Then after a few years of learning the tricks of the trade, I joined a gym when I’m old enough and started training seriously. I never intended to compete but I wanted to see how far I can go.

Lilian: As for me, I got into bodybuilding (and not physique contest) by accident. I was a sick child and in my early teens, I picked up swimming until I was in college in Palomar College, California. One day, the pool was under renovation but I was restless and needed to be active. So my aunt introduced me to the gym and I got a great membership offer. I started with lots of cardio and by the time the pool was renovated, I lost almost 20lbs! But a trainer took my body fat test and it turned out that my body fat percentage did not drop! So I lifted and got stronger. I could even see my biceps popping and would prolong my tooth-brushing in the morning to look at them. Someone told me that I should compete. Then, after watching my first bodybuilding contest, Mr Penang, I decided to compete.

Wee Kiat: I see. What is your track record to date?

Terry: I have too many to remember actually. I’ll just list down the highlights of my career. I got a silver in Mr Commonwealth 98’, I placed first in Mr Asia, top 15 in the World Championships and won a number of local contests.

 




















Lilian: I’ve won the International Natural Bodybuilding Association (INBA) Ms San Diego twice in the women’s bodybuilding category; I got 2^nd in the IFBB San Diego Border States and I won the INBA Ms USA. The Ms USA qualified me to the Natural Olympia, where I wanted to represent Malaysia but I wasn’t allowed to by the Malaysian bodybuilding federation because female bodybuilding was banned in Malaysia. So I represented USA and got silver in the amateur category and 3^rd in the professional category. After that, I took a long break until 2010, which is when I competed in the Multi Asians in Singapore and got 3^rd in the women physique’s category.

Wee Kiat: So tell me, how did both of you met?

Lilian: An official actually gave me Terry’s number and told me to call him about representing Malaysia in Muscle Mania.

Terry: Yes, I remember that time. She was like, “I AM LILIAN TAN! I WANT TO REPRESENT MALAYSIA!” Hahaha!

Lilian: No I wasn’t! Anyway, in 2009 I finally got a Facebook account and I added Terry on it. Then, we started chatting and chatting. Honestly, I was trying to avoid him on Facebook because he kept talking about bodybuilding and during that time, I didn’t really train much and was over it. And after more and more chatting, he went, “Why don’t you come home and marry me?” To me, that was psycho! I thought that he was insane! So I told him, “I must have a good reason to come all the way back to Malaysia”. So we kept on chatting and our relationship became serious from March 2009 onwards. We were practically dating online and after that, we started texting and calling each other. We took the effort to go online at a fixed time because of the 16 hours difference between our time zones. On the phone, we chat for up to six hours! My phone bills skyrocketed during that time. After all this, suddenly, the idea of marrying Terry was closer to reality. So I told my mom that I’m coming back to marry Terry and she was like, “Are you sick?” But I did and now I’m in Malaysia pursuing freelance personal training.

 




















Wee Kiat: Wow. That was beautiful love story! Let’s talk about training. Could you two describe your training?

Lilian: I’m more consistent with cardio during pre-contest season. In the off-season, I just do it every now and then. As for weights, I train five times a week, or more accurately, 3 days on, 2 days off. I go as heavy as I can with few reps. Quite often, I listen to my body and determine what’s best for it.

Terry: I perform 10-12 reps per set, and 4 sets per exercise, always to failure. My pre-contest and off-season training is pretty much the same, except that I may use higher reps.

Wee Kiat: What do you think about training protocols such as High Intensity Training, German Volume Training, etc?

Terry: I think training protocols are just marketing ideas to make the creator seem smart. Training is all about pushing your body to perform its max. And you can just follow any routine as long as you do just that.

 















Wee Kiat: I see. Do you have any advice to the younger guys who are planning to get into bodybuilding?

Terry: Study hard, get a real job and bodybuild as a hobby.

Lilian: I noticed that Malaysia got into weight training only recently. However, most ladies only perform cardio workout, which isn’t optimal. They should weight train too instead of misinterpreting that weights will make the bulky. And in general, women should be more conscious of their health.

Wee Kiat: Thanks for your time Terry and Lilian.

In great shape to take on the world

This is an article on my woman Lilian Tan which was recently published in the Star papers dated 15th Nov 2010. Finally some recognition for women who carries the Malaysian flag high and proud in international events.

 

 

 

  

 

 

Lilian Tan - center, Terry Gallyot - in blue.

 

 

In great shape to take on the world

By RONNIE OH
north@thestar.com.my

IT is quite rare find a woman involved in a men's sport like body building.
Penang-born Lilian Tan is one such woman who stumbled into the sport by accident.
Despite having to endure the pain she had to put her muscles through just to excel in the sport, her determination and eagerness to make the country proud had paid off, more than 20 years after she decided to take up the sport seriously.

She became the first Malaysian woman to take part in a major competition namely the South East Asian, Asian & World Bodybuilding & Physique Sports Championship which was held in Singapore last month.
Lilian, a freelance International Sports Sciences Association certified fitness trainer in Penang, flexed her muscles to third placing in not one, but two levels of competition.
She walked away with the bronze medals at the Asian level competition and also the World Women Model Physique 160cm category.

"It was like a dream come true as until recently, women's bodybuilding was banned in Malaysia due to some opposition by the religious department which deemed the sport as inappropriate.
"This forced me to represent the United States in the Woman's Bodybuilding Open category and Professional category, finishing with a silver and a bronze respectively in 2004.
"But after a six-year lapse, my dream of representing Malaysia at an international level took a twist. I was thrilled to learn that women today are no longer banned from participating," she said.
Lilian explained that instead of bodybuilding, women are allowed to feature in the fitness and physique category.

"I did not have much time to prepare for the event, since the invitation came six weeks before the actual event but this did not stop me from grabbing the chance to don national colours."
Lilian attributed her success to former Mr Asia Terry Gallyot, who was also six time Mr Malaysia, as the tips she received were invaluable.

Her success has put the country on the world's bodybuilding map and this serves as a "warning" to renowned Asian countries like Thailand, South Korea, Indonesia and even China, that Malaysia is ready to end their dominance.

She said she was close to tears when she came to know that she had won the bronze medals, adding that she felt so proud to be able to help Malaysia gain recognition in the women's category at the Asian and World level.

Her feats are made even more memorable as swimming was her first love.
Lilian, who went to the United States to pursue her academic and swimming careers, saw her life taking a sudden twist when her varsity pool in San Diego had to undergo renovation.

Determined to maintain her level of fitness as a competitive swimmer in her high school days, this prompted Lilian to go to the gymnasium for her daily workout routines.
It was there that she was coaxed into taking up bodybuilding as she had been blessed with the physique of what a bodybuilder needs.

Initially, she was not convinced but she slowly grew to like workouts. The transition to bodybuilding was made easier since she had a competitive background in swimming.

The string of titles which followed subsequently, served as a boost for Lilian to venture further into the sport, with the highlight of her new found "love" unfolded in 2004.
Her success in capturing the overall crown in the Miss USA Natural paved her way to the International Natural Body-building Association Pro Card, an award which recognises her as a qualified trainer.

It was only last year, after a residing in Califonia for 20 years, that Lilian decided to pack her bags and head home, just to be closer to her family and as well as to begin a new chapter of her romance with bodybuilding.
With the two international medals in her collection, she is looking forward to her new goal.

She is planning to move to Kuala Lumpur from Penang to further enhance her career as a certified trainer and help other Malaysian women fulfil their dreams as well.

"Although I am still hoping to be blessed with the opportunity to compete and represent Malaysia again next year, I feel the time is right for me to give back to the sport and country."

Lilian can be reached at tgrwmn1@hotmail.com

Mr.FusionExcel - a photo report for now.

For more pics please visit http://picasaweb.google.com/dymen13/MrFusionExcel2009

Gallery courtesy of Dymen13 of PROBUFFEDBODIES official photographer.

LILIAN TAN - INBA CHAMPION 2004

Back in the late 80's, Malaysia used to have women's bodybuilding alongside the men's event's at both state and national level and we used to send them to international events too.Unfortunately there were some serious opposition by certain religious departments that deemed womens bodybuilding as inappropriate and so on.

It is such a shame that they mix religion with sports.So eventually, the local federation did not want to logger heads with those so called religious people and their organisation and made women's bodybuilding obsolete.Such a waste as I truly believe that Malaysia has some really good potential champions to offer.

In neighbouring countries such as Thailand, Singapore, Phillipines, Korea, Japan and the list goeas on, they have actually such a good and strong womens team that has made it up to such high ranks internationally.

As for Malaysia, I have one very good example.Her name is Lilian Tan from Penang, Malaysia.Lilian moved to the States some 20 years ago.Currently residing in San Diego, California, Lilian was a huge fan of bodybuilding.Coming from a competitive swimming background I guess the transition to bodybuilding came relatively easy as both sports demanded a lot of commitment.

She put every ounce of energy along with a lot of sweat and tears into taking her physique to the next level.At that point, she had contacted our Malaysian federation about the possibility of representing Malaysia in womens bodybuilding and they basically said...No, sorry, we don't have women's bodybuilding here.They then gave her my contact number for her to reach me to find out more about other possibilities such as Musclemania and that's how we met and had a wonderful relationship develope over time.

Now I'm speaking on her behalf to the local federation about reinstating women's bodybuilding in Malaysia.They need not do an open event to public, instead do a selection and send the women abroad to compete and get some form of recognition.Of course the federation should cover the expenses for these women then as it is the only appropriate thing to do since these women will be representing the country.Anyway, the federation has mentioned that they will look into this matter at their next meeting which is taking place soon.

In the mean time, here's what Lilian achieved at her last show in 2004.She won her division and the overalls at the INBA Championship and was selected to represent team USA at the natural Olympia and came in 3rd as a pro.Watch the video clip and see what i mean when i said Malaysia has potential champs just waiting to burst into the scene.

Enjoy!!!