IN A perfect world, most girls would opt to spend all their time looking gorgeous, with perfectly manicured nails, not a hair out of place and dressed in fabulous (albeit uncomfortable) clothes.

Today's woman, however, has taken on a different idea of beauty - it's not the clothes, makeup or hair. It's health.

Yup, dull as it may sound, most women agree that the only way to remain beautiful inside and out is to keep fit - and they're starting young.

Friends Mayuri Rathakrishnan, Vanmathi Veerasingam and Andrea Tan Wern Ying have been fitness fanatics since they were youngsters in secondary school

"Taekwondo was the sport to do when we were growing up," says Vanmathi, 25. "When you go to college and are bogged down with so much work, however, it's difficult to find the time to exercise and most women tend to sacrifice their health."

Vanmathi doesn't let this stop her, however. She prioritises health, rising early in the morning to do yoga and exercises on her own.

"All the motivation I need is looking in the mirror and deciding which parts of my body need improvement!" she says, giggling.

The three friends were at the kickboxing area of the Nike This Is Love fitness event for women at the Asia Pacific Auction Centre in Subang when approached.

Kicking a punching bag proved therapeutic, and the girls might just give learning kickboxing a try.

Andrea works as an engineer, but finds time to play basketball with her friends several times a week.

"Even if there's no one to play with, I shoot hoops on my own, just to get the blood flowing," says Andrea, 25.

Participants let out some steam as they tried their hand at punching bags.

"It's very important to keep in shape by exercising, but also to keep the stress away. When you're studying so hard, sometimes the best thing to do is take a break and sweat it out," says Mayuri, 20, a Bhartanatyam dancer.

Her dance routines are extremely physically demanding, but she doesn't find it a bother at all.

"Aside from dancing I still do taekwondo. I've grown up doing sports my whole life, and maybe that's why it's easier for me to get up and go, compared with people my age who are not used to doing sports," she says.

Engineer Lindsay Leong couldn't agree more.

"I used to play basketball, tennis and I was a cheerleader in school, but I know of friends who just can't get into the whole exercise routine because they are simply not used to it," says the 23-year-old Perak native.

The engineer was trying her hand at rock climbing with a friend, and had just managed to reach the top of the wall.

"If nothing else, achieving something physically challenging is very gratifying. Wall climbing seems like fun, and I might try it out again another day, if I have friends to go with," she says.

Extreme sports/exercise routines have become a hit among young people, who get bored easily and are always up for a challenge.

Until around five years ago, few would have dreamed of scaling walls with their bare hands.

"I guess it's a more interesting way to keep fit than jogging, going to the gym and the usual fitness techniques," opines Lindsay.

Over at the pole dancing section of the event, Farah Zuhaila and Yuana Diah self-consciously mirror instructor Emily Tan’s movements.

Later, breaking into a sweat, they admit it's not as easy as it looks.

"First of all, it's the stigma of pole-dancing being associated with strippers that you have to get over - and then you realise it's really exhausting to hold your whole body weight up with one arm!" says Farah, 21, who studies estate management in UiTM, Shah Alam.

"Plus, without music, it's a little difficult to get into the moment," she adds.

Her pal Yuana enjoyed the session, but might just stick to hockey, a sport she has been playing since she was in secondary school.

"Traditional sports and today's extreme exercise methods are so different - but they serve the same purpose. It all depends what you find interesting enough to pursue long term," says Yuana.

The two friends aren't fitness freaks, but plan to take up some permanent form of working out. Abruptly, they say goodbye and move on to discover other new and exciting fitness routines.

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