Walking with celebrities: Almost 300 show up for Jack Neo’s weekly morning exercise

Waking up early on a weekend to go for a walk may sound like a drag to some, but what if you were accompanied by local director Jack Neo?

Almost every Sunday morning, the 62-year-old invites people to join him at a set location, usually near an MRT station, for a walk that spans about six to eight kilometres.

Yesterday (Nov 6), he told Shin Min Daily News: “I didn’t expect so many responses from netizens. Only 40 people participated in the morning exercise in the beginning, but soon it was over a hundred, then 200, and now it’s almost 300!”

Jack told the Chinese daily that the idea for the walk came to him during live broadcasts he did throughout the pandemic. As restrictions eased, he suggested to his followers that they should go for morning walks instead.

He publicised the walks on his Instagram recently, saying that “all were welcome”. 

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“We do some exercise, sit down and sing songs. The whole thing takes about three hours,” he wrote. “Sometimes we walk eight kilometres, but don’t underestimate yourself. When so many people walk together, time flies by!”

According to Jack, the youngest participant he has ever had was three and the oldest 80. 

“Every four kilometers, we’ll stop to sit and communicate with one another,” he told Shin Min. “I also teach them to sing some old songs [while they walk] and their responses are very enthusiastic, like bringing up army songs they used to train with.”

The longest distance the group has walked has been 10km, but Jack found that everyone was tired and felt that eight kilometres was the sweet spot.

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Rain or shine, the small army of walkers gather to get some exercise. Although if it does rain, Jack has it covered as there’s always an alternative plan.

“The last time we planned to go to Fort Canning, it rained in the morning, so we went to Clarke Quay instead,” Jack said. “Taking shelter from the rain and doing 10 laps around the neighbourhood is fun too.”

It’s not just fans who join Jack, some of his celebrity buddies who have gone on the walk include actor Henry Thia and host Ke Le, and as of yesterday, actors Zheng Geping and Vincent Ng.

ALSO READ: After over 10 years away, Vincent Ng took a week of filming for new movie to get used to acting again

drimac@asiaone.com