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Bernice Chan

A New Year’s resolution in early 2021 to eat healthier had unexpected but welcome consequences for Shanghai native Jenny Yue.
The resident of Vancouver, in the Canadian province of British Columbia, not only lost more than 22kg (48 pounds) but also took up bodybuilding and launched a freeze-dried-fruit business with her husband.
Yue, 30, and husband Han, 32, from China’s Henan province, were working together as project managers to implement an online medical record system across British Columbia for the health services authority. When the Covid-19 pandemic struck in early 2020, they were forced to work from home while minding their 18-month-old son.
Jenny moved to Canada with her family around age nine; Han arrived later. The two met while working at the same company and married in May 2019.

The medical record project required working with healthcare professionals and patient data, but the pandemic added an extra layer of complexity as they were unable to visit hospitals.
To relieve their pandemic stress, the couple indulged in meals of hotpot and barbecue skewers, and binge-drank late into the night. In less than eight months, Jenny gained more than 23kg – she weighed only 56kg before Covid – and Han 18kg.
“At first you don’t really notice. You just feel very happy that you get all this great food inside of you, but suddenly you wake up one day and look at the mirror like, ‘Oh my gosh. How did I gain so much?’” Jenny says.
The couple resolved to shed some weight by eating healthier. They started having a breakfast of oats mixed with hot water, protein powder and frozen berries to kick-start their days.

In early 2021, Jenny started working out with her friend, a personal trainer, three to four times a week. She lifted weights, did Pilates twice a week and completed cardio workouts such as cycling and walking on the treadmill.
“I lost 15kg in six months and also built muscle, which helped accelerate my weight loss,” she says. “After eight months, I lost the weight I had gained and looked better.”
Han also shed some weight, but did not exercise as much as he had been looking after their toddler.
Having a balanced diet was an important factor in Jenny’s weight loss, which included having enough protein, good fats and carbohydrates. She ate mainly chicken breast, rice and noodles.
“You do need carbs to recover from weight training. I tried to avoid sweets, and the only sugar intake I got was from the fruits I ate,” she says.
“I would say 70 per cent of the whole weight-loss journey is watching your diet, and the remaining 30 per cent is weight training, which accelerates that journey.”

Even after losing the weight, she was determined to stay fit and kept up her workout routine. In January 2023, when her trainer suggested she start training to compete as a bodybuilder, she was up for the challenge. She had four months to prepare.
“She encouraged me, and I felt if she thought I could do it, then I would try,” she says.
The build-up was intense. It involved seriously cutting calories in the first month, then in the second month she increased her cardio workouts to up to two hours a day through more incline walking and dancing to workout videos.
By the third month, she was eating a strict calorie-restricted diet of rice, chicken breast, lettuce, broccoli, nut butters, egg whites and yogurt for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
“I wasn’t very happy during those four months. I remember Han would sing in the kitchen while cooking his food,” she says with a laugh.
“He was very proud that I was able to do that [bodybuilding competition]. He never complained about me [being] fat or skinny … He loves me the way I am. So losing weight was really for myself to feel better.”

In April 2023, when Yue arrived for the Canadian Physique Alliance’s Vancouver Island Showdown bodybuilding competition in Victoria, British Columbia, she was inspired by competitors in their 50s and 60s who had worked for years on their strong, defined bodies.
Dressed in a bikini and heels and sporting a spray-on tan, Jenny confidently showed off her new muscles, posing on stage in front of the judges. Taking part in two bikini competition categories, she placed fourth in both.
“I’m really proud of myself for taking on a big challenge,” she says.
After the competition, she slowly increased her food intake to avoid regaining weight too quickly, and did less exercise. It took about six weeks to return to her previous weight of 56kg, from her “cut” weight of 54kg.
“I now work out two to three times a week, and pretty much eat the same diet, but eat more dessert,” she says.
From bodybuilding to business
After the competition, the couple launched a freeze-dried fruit business. The idea gelled when they resolved to lose weight, but got tired of eating frozen berries mixed with oatmeal and hot water, which had a mushy texture.
They looked into freeze-dried fruits to add crunch to their breakfasts.
“Freeze-dried fruit in Asia is actually pretty common,” Jenny says, but they did not find many options locally.
In 2022, the couple had bought a small freeze dryer that preserved food by removing 98 per cent of water content. They started making their own freeze-dried fruit – local berries, apples, mangoes, figs and bananas – and shared it with friends and family.
“Freeze-drying fruits … preserves up to 90 per cent of the nutritional value of the original ingredients, which you don’t get from dried or dehydrated fruits,” Jenny says, adding the result is crunchy and tasty – with no added sugar or preservatives. In high-heat dehydration, heat-sensitive nutrients and antioxidants are often lost.
They began to sell the fruit, under the brand Oatme, at a bicycle shop, then advanced to producing it in a commissary kitchen to get approvals to sell it at farmers’ markets. When it proved popular there, cafes began reaching out, and the Yues quickly learned about the wholesale market – while still working in their full-time jobs.
Oatme was not a good name, they discovered: at farmers’ markets, many prospective customers said they did not eat oats or did not like them. They changed it to Ohme! in 2024.

Three months ago, the couple quit their day jobs to focus on expansion. Ohme! is now stocked in more than 500 locations in Canada, including supermarkets, health food stores and Vancouver International Airport, and in some small stores and Urban Outfitters locations in the United States.
Freeze-dried strawberries are the most popular, along with blueberries and mangoes. Their latest offering combines Greek yogurt with fruit and apple juice, freeze-dried into cubes that don’t need to be refrigerated – something that had not been done before, Jenny says.
“After a year, a company popped up and started copying our product, but it makes me feel proud, because people are looking up to us.”
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Health & Wellness

Health

Chinese-Canadian Jenny Yue rapidly gained weight during the pandemic, but lost it all just as quickly through diet and exercise


Chinese-Canadian Jenny Yue rapidly gained weight during the pandemic, but lost it all just as quickly through diet and exercise.


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How to Lose Weight

How a mother lost 22kg in 8 months, took up bodybuilding and started a food business

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Chinese-Canadian Jenny Yue rapidly gained weight during the pandemic, but lost it all just as quickly through diet and exercise

Chinese-Canadian Jenny Yue rapidly gained weight during the pandemic, but lost it all just as quickly through diet and exercise