Jin Seong (real name Jin Seong-cheol, 64), famous for his trot songs such as ‘Andong Station’ and ‘Barley Hill’, has been fond of sports such as soccer and volleyball since his school days. He played volleyball at Buan-dong Elementary School in Jeollabuk-do. He could have gone to Jeollabuk-do Weightlifting Academy, but had to quit early due to family circumstances. After becoming a singer through great effort, he continued to enjoy soccer and tennis. He became addicted to badminton when he turned 50.
‘Huk huk…’ “Oh, you’re here? Please wait a moment.”
August 28th, morning, Goyang Badminton Club, Gyeonggi Province. Mr. Jin, who was playing badminton doubles, said with a smile. He threw his whole body to catch the hairpin that fell right in front of the net, and smashed the shuttlecock that was flying. Although his form was not good, he felt the experience of having played for a long time.
“I enjoyed playing soccer and tennis since I was in my 20s, but at some point I kept getting hurt. They are similar sports, but badminton is relatively easy compared to tennis, and it has good exercise effects. So I switched to badminton. It was 14 years ago, when I was exactly 50 years old.”
I started playing badminton seriously in 2010 when I moved to Goyang-dong, Deokyang-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do. There was a Goyang Badminton Club near my house, so I joined and played with the members. I couldn’t play every day because I had to go to the countryside for work, but I played at least three times a week. I play for 2-3 hours starting at 9 AM because I have a lot of schedules in the afternoon.
Badminton generally burns 300 to 500 calories per hour. Although it is played on a narrow court (13.4m X 5.18m for singles), it involves a lot of movement back and forth, left and right, and various techniques such as hairpin high-clear smashing, so it requires a lot of exercise. It is also called the best diet sport.
![Singer Jinseong: “I can easily sing 50 songs thanks to hitting the shuttlecock 3 days a week”[양종구의 100세 시대 건강법]](https://dimg.donga.com/wps/NEWS/IMAGE/2024/09/07/126894578.1.jpg "Singer Jinseong: “I can easily sing 50 songs thanks to hitting the shuttlecock 3 days a week”[양종구의 100세 시대 건강법]")
He also created a club called ‘Starminton’ by gathering celebrities who play badminton. Singer Hong Seo-beom and Hyun Sook, former wrestler Lee Man-ki and Baek Seung-il, and actor and singer Kim Sung-hwan are members. They do not meet regularly, but meet irregularly 2-3 times a year to play badminton.
Mr. Jin is paying more attention to his health after suffering from a serious illness. As is well known, he was diagnosed with lymphoma blood cancer in 2016, and then heart valve disease. He underwent chemotherapy six times.
“I was diagnosed with heart valve disease while receiving treatment for blood cancer. I needed to have a stent implanted, but at the time, I was receiving chemotherapy and taking medication, so the doctor said that if I had heart valve surgery, I might go into shock, so he replaced it with medication. That’s why I missed the opportunity to have the stent surgery. I’m still managing it with medication. There’s no cure for blood cancer. You need to manage it well on a regular basis. Exercise is very good. You need to move your body appropriately to keep your metabolism running smoothly.”
Mr. Jin emphasized the importance of health management since he was young. He said that he had been singing with a traveling theater company since he was a teenager, but he could not eat properly. He said that he drank a lot in his 20s due to his irregular lifestyle. He said that his body was damaged a lot and that it eventually led to blood cancer.
“In a way, I am a happy person. I have liked sports since I was young. If you are lazy, you can’t exercise. Even now, no matter how cold or hot it is, I wake up in the morning and go to the badminton court. Even now, I feel happy and joyful when I exercise.”
The reason Mr. Jin moved to Goyang-dong is also to exercise his body. He owns a farm of about 4,600㎡, and he and his wife Yong Mi-sook (62) are cultivating about 600㎡ of it. They are currently growing about 20 kinds of vegetables. When they are busy, they have to invest 2-3 hours a day. He said, “Farming is also a lot of exercise. Plus, since I eat organic vegetables that I grow myself, it’s like killing two birds with one stone.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines housework as well as exercise as excellent physical activity for maintaining and improving physical strength. Housework is considered as ‘labor’, but it promotes brain activation as well as physical activity. In addition, a study of retired elderly men found that among them, those who help their wives with housework (housework) are much healthier and live longer. In particular, elderly people who live long lives willingly and happily do housework even when people around them keep telling them to rest for the sake of their health.
Mr. Jin found stability when he got married late in life, at the age of 49.
“Actually, we didn’t even have a wedding ceremony, we just registered our marriage and lived together. That’s why I always feel sorry to my wife. I used to wander around like a vagabond, but now that I have a family, I feel stable. It’s not just me, but people in their 30s and 40s who are busy and live alone are also like this. You have to be capable to get married. You can’t just bring a woman along and make her suffer… That’s why I got married late, but thanks to my wife, I’m healthy both physically and mentally.”
Even when Mr. Jin was diagnosed with blood cancer, his wife Yong’s dedicated nursing was a great help.
He also played for a celebrity soccer team. He played for the Nam Bo-won soccer team run by the late comedian Nam Bo-won. He said, “When senior Nam’s health deteriorated, I was supposed to run the soccer team, but since I wasn’t feeling well either, senior Eom Yong-soo took over.”
Jin holds two to three concerts a month. When he performs with other singers, it is somewhat easier because he sings separately, but when he performs alone, he has to sing over 50 songs a day. He said, “When I hold a solo concert, I sometimes perform twice a day. When I sing over 25 songs at each concert, I get out of breath and it is hard. However, I am able to endure it well by exercising regularly.” He laughed, saying, “Because I am so healthy, I can sometimes meet people like (Kim) Sung-hwan and have a drink of soju.”
He spent his time as an unknown singer, releasing trot medley albums since his 20s, and debuted in 1994 with “Your Light.” After that, he continued to release medley albums and was called one of the “Trot Medley Four Heavenly Kings” along with Kim Yong-im, Kim Ran-young, and Shin Yu. “I’m a Fool” released in 2002 received good responses, and in 2005, he released “Don’t Tackle” which he wrote and composed himself, but he was unable to escape being an unknown singer.
He released ‘At Andong Station’ in 2008 but did not receive much response, but in 2012, Jeong Kyung-cheon rearranged ‘At Andong Station’ and it became a huge hit starting in 2014. He had to fight cancer after two years, but after recovering his health, he continued to have hits such as ‘Barley Hill’, ‘Ugly Guy’, ‘That Name, Mother’, ‘My Woman’, and ‘Salt Flower’ and is receiving much love as a top-class singer.
He said, “Now is the best time to be a trot singer.”
“It’s no exaggeration to say that trot is at its peak right now. Many young singers have been discovered through Mr. Trot and Miss Trot, and the base has expanded. These days, even elementary school students go around singing my song “Andong Station”… Times have really changed. Also, in the past, trot was thought of as a way to complain about one’s life, but now, with diverse lyrics and a faster tempo, young people have come to like it.”
So I am busier than ever. But I try to play badminton at least three times a week. It is a source of vitality for my health. I like to exercise, but I never overdo it. He said, “Your body needs to move in accordance with the flow to be healthy. Now, if I overdo it once, it is hard and I suffer for a few days.”
He said that he is happy with his life, building his body by playing badminton and traveling around the provinces to sing for his fans.
2024-09-07 16:33:26