Choo Sung-hoon maintains training routine ahead of MMA retirement match

During the final day of a Taiwan trip aired on the 3rd, 51-year-old fighter Choo Sung-hoon performed a solo workout wearing ankle weights despite drinking until 2 a.m. He is currently training at half capacity to prepare for his retirement match at BLACK COMBAT 17 on the 21st.

Fighter Choo Sung-hoon, aged 51, has surprised onlookers by maintaining a rigorous self-management routine even while traveling ahead of his mixed martial arts (MMA) retirement match. Despite drinking until 2 a.m. the previous night, he headed out for a solo workout in the morning, revealing that he is currently adjusting his training intensity to about half capacity to ensure he can perform at his peak during his final match. The scene showcased both a fighting spirit that defies age and professional restraint.

In the final day of the Taiwan trip featured in the SBS Plus and MBN variety show "Real Man's Trip in Taiwan," which aired on the 3rd, the final morning of the journey for Choo Sung-hoon, Kim Jong-kook, and ZICO was revealed. On this final morning, Choo Sung-hoon left his companions with only the word that he was going to exercise and headed out alone. Even amidst a travel itinerary filled with sightseeing and food tours, he did not abandon his daily routine as an athlete.

In particular, Choo Sung-hoon focused on his workout under the hot sun while wearing ankle weights on both feet. Despite enjoying a late-night drinking session and going to bed at 2 a.m., he did not skip his morning exercise. The training habits ingrained in the body of a fighter who has competed on the global martial arts stage continued even at a travel destination.

Explaining his reason for continuing to exercise, Choo Sung-hoon said, "Broadcasting is broadcasting, and my work is my work." It was a firm principle to enjoy the filming and the trip as a broadcast, while treating the training that must be done as an athlete as a separate domain. His attitude of separating work from leisure reflected a professional sense of duty acquired through a long career as an athlete.

When production staff asked if he had increased his training pace, Choo Sung-hoon instead drew a line. He replied, "No. I shouldn't step on it too hard yet. I am doing it while stepping on it about half way." He further explained, "Because I have to build my physical condition so that I can always step on the MAX (during the final match)." Rather than pushing training intensity excessively at the moment, he is gradually building his physical state so that he can exert his maximum capacity on the day of his retirement match.

He did not hide the physical changes that come with being 51 years old. Choo Sung-hoon confessed, "I think I work harder now than I did in the past. In the past, my stamina would improve even if I did a little, but now, even if I do twice as much, my stamina does not improve." He acknowledged the reality that while he could feel stamina improvements with relatively less effort in his youth, he must now train much harder to maintain the same level of condition.

Nevertheless, Choo Sung-hoon said calmly, "I can't help it because of my age. I am working hard." Rather than making excuses due to age, his attitude of putting in more effort to match his changed physical condition was impressive. He showed the seasoned skill of understanding his current body and preparing for his final stage, rather than blindly insisting on the training methods of his youth.

Choo Sung-hoon is scheduled to fight his MMA retirement match at "BLACK COMBAT 17" on the 21st. As he approaches the end of a long fighting career, his morning workouts during the trip and his statement that he has "only stepped on it half way" are raising expectations for the final fighting spirit he will show on his retirement stage.

Read the original (Korean)