⭐️Member Spotlight: Khanh Nguyen⭐️

❓What’s your name and how old are you?  

Khanh Nguyen and I’m 53.

❓Married?  Kids?  

I’m married to Tom and we have three kids, Josiah, Sarah-Joy, and Elijah.  24, 21, and 17.

❓Where did you grow up and what’s your opinion of the place?  

I grew up in Camas, Vancouver, and I liked growing up there.  It was a small town and I didn’t grow up with a lot of Asians, so I felt like, you know, a little bit of an outcast, trying to be white.  But I liked growing up there.  

❓Would you live there now?  

Camas is a lot different from how it was 40 years ago, but yeah, I would.

❓What’s your all-time favorite movie?  

Oh, goodness.  Probably Pretty Woman.  Annie is always up there.  I love the rags to riches story.  And the Color Purple.  I love gritty, strong women.  Stories of strong women.

❓What do you do for a living?  

I’m an optometrist.  

❓Any cool jobs in your past?  

I was a fragrance model for years through college.  You see them at the door there at Nordstrom or Meier & Frank, and you spray people with new perfumes that you’re trying to launch.  I did that for probably five or six years through college.  It was a lot of fun.  

❓What’s your favorite fragrance?  

Probably Chanel No. 5.  It’s a classic.

❓How long have you been a member at the gym?  

This August it will be five years.  I joined because I was fat and sedentary.  (laughs)  And I wanted to turn 50 stronger than I was the last 20 years.

❓Tell us about your all-time favorite pet.  

I’m not really a pet person, per se.  I mean, we had our dog Whit, and he was okay, but it was so heart-wrenching when we had to re-home him.

❓What class or classes do you usually attend?  

I usually attend 5:30 on Monday or Wednesday, and 1:30 on Thursday.  Plus, the Sunday class if we’re not at church.

❓Pancakes, waffles, or french toast?  

I’m torn between pancakes and waffles.  Definitely not french toast.

❓Were you an athlete growing up, and if so, what sports did you play and were you any good?  Yes, I played every sport imaginable.  I was okay.  My best sport was tennis or volleyball.  Tom played tennis, too, but we never played during the six years we dated.  I had my nose in my books that whole time.  All I did was study.

❓Where in Portland has the best burger?  

I would say Killer Burger.  The one with green chiles in it.

❓What’s your favorite workout/movement?  

I like cleans. Not the jerk, just the cleans.

❓What’s your least favorite workout/movement?  

Thrusters.  100%.  

❓What are some things you do in your free time?  

I like to read.  I like to cook.  I like to keep a clean house.  I’m not the napper Tom is.  I used to be, but can’t nap like I used to.

❓If you could have any superpower, what would it be?  

I think it would be the ability to take pain away from people.  I would be able to tell how they were hurting and then relieve it.

❓What’s the longest you’ve ever stayed in the sauna?  

Oh, probably 40 minutes with Risky.  It wasn’t even hard.  We were talking.  She was telling me about her life and I was so enthralled.  We both were. 

❓The cold plunge?  

3:30, I think.  It took about two weeks buildup to get that long.

❓Where was the hottest weather you’ve ever been in?  

Palm Springs, 114.  

❓The coldest?  

Probably somewhere in New York, which I hated.  I don’t know… in the teens?  I like New York City, it’s just that trip, it was so cold that my skin hurt.

❓What’s the weirdest food you’ve ever eaten?  

I eat cow tongue, but I think that’s good.  Have you ever had it in tacos?  It’s good.  

❓What’s your current gym goal?  

One perfect pull-up.  I’m going to start today.

❓What’s your advice for new members of the gym?  

Just jump in.  Start where you’re at.  And be proud of yourself that you showed up.