She was the only adult learner in her kids' wushu class

While watching her two young children practise wushu from the sidelines 13 years ago, business development manager Michaela Lim found herself mesmerised.

Chinese martial arts seems fun and challenging, she thought.

Then 34, she decided to join her children in their wushu class, despite being the only adult learner.

She had enrolled them in the class to build up their grit and discipline as well as to get them to better appreciate Chinese culture.

Ms Lim continued with wushu even after her children, now 19 and 16, stopped going for classes.

In 2015, she started joining wushu competitions at the encouragement of her coach.

Ms Lim, now 48, has since won 15 medals, including clinching the gold medal for the long weapon (pudao) category at the 8th World Kungfu Championships held in Mount Emei in China's Sichuan Province in 2019.

She has set her sights on competing in six wushu categories, from short weapons like broadsword to fists such as the northern and southern fists. Last year, she took part in the International WuDeBei Traditional Wushu Competition, which was held virtually because of the Covid-19 pandemic. She received gold for these six categories.

Ms Lim, who works in the aviation industry, enjoys the challenge of learning new things.

"I get to learn a new routine for every new weapon. Every type of weapon is interesting."

Recalling a close shave with a drunk when she was studying in Canada, she says she also picked up wushu for self-defence.

While wushu is "non-combative", she says she has learnt to be mentally prepared to deliver a punch if necessary.

For her, the most challenging aspect of learning wushu is memorising and perfecting the routines.

Unlike younger learners who can pick up new moves fast, she takes days, weeks or even months to "internalise a routine".

"As I grow older, I adapt slower," she says. "Because of that, I have to put in a lot more effort than younger learners."

To strengthen her body to be in optimal condition, she wakes up at 5am every day to work on her core muscles. She also attends classes every other night to master her routines.

"You have to pay the price for the goals you want to achieve," she says. "You are in total control and that's what I love about wushu."

While she feels empowered and stronger after mastering wushu, she gets her fair share of ageist comments.

"I have received comments like, 'Was it a walkover?' or 'Was there no other competitor?' when I won my first gold medal," she says. "There's no end."

However, this has not deterred her from advancing towards her goals.

"One thing I've learnt is that there will always be naysayers in everything we do. If I stop, I will never reach where I want to be."

Correction note: This article has been edited for accuracy.