Chapter 7: Large-Scale Physical Health Care

Sheila noticed that the skin exposed on Li Ang's body was slightly reddened in many places, and with her professional experience, she could easily judge that Li Ang's training volume was very large.

When Sheila asked about it, Li Ang had no intention of hiding anything and shared his recent training schedule with her, including his practice of Tongbei Quan.

The reason for doing this was to mentally prepare those familiar with him, as his body was becoming stronger every day.

To his surprise, Sheila was not astonished by his learning traditional martial arts.

What Li Ang did not know was that in America, the group of people studying traditional martial arts was actually quite large.

If you looked at the proportion of the population, it far exceeded that in China.

Sheila merely suggested that he find a professional martial arts coach, which could help him learn more efficiently and build a stronger foundation.

Although Li Ang verbally agreed, he had no intention of looking for a coach.

Having an excellent master by his side would indeed make his learning progress faster, but it wouldn't lead to any qualitative change.

Because he had a skill panel, where each practice session allowed him to judge the standard of his movements based on the increase in proficiency.

When his skill level increased, he would also gain a large amount of related techniques and experience.

Thus, spending a lot of money to find a master did not seem cost-effective to him.

The beef stew with potatoes and tomatoes that Li Ang cooked was so tender and flavorful that, aside from the color, it was impeccable in both aroma and taste.

Because there was no rice at Sheila's home, Li Ang made do with several slices of bread.

"Aren't you going to have some staple food?"

"I usually control my carb intake at dinner, clearly the potatoes here are sufficient."

Li Ang nodded, understanding that everyone's dietary needs are different, which explained why she was able to maintain her figure so well.

Sheila elegantly wiped her mouth with a napkin and then looked at Li Ang with a smile, saying:

"Actually, what I need more of is some protein."

"Yeah, you're right, you can't lack protein when working out."

Without looking up, Li Ang, holding half a slice of bread, finished off the last bit of the meat soup from the pot.

"Alright, after dinner, let's move onto the next step."

Sheila stood up, and her 1.7-meter height combined with her figure and outfit was quite striking.

"Ah? What's next?"

Li Ang seemed bewildered.

"Just follow my lead, I promise it will make your body very relaxed."

Sheila spoke slowly but with an undeniable certainty.

"Now, take off your shirt, and lie down on the yoga mat."

Li Ang: "Ah? Isn't that a bit too fast?"

"After all... I've just finished eating..."

Sheila smiled seductively and replied:

"No problem, you don't need to move."

Li Ang was hesitant, but his body faithfully complied as he took off his shirt, exposing his lean physique, and lay down on the yoga mat.

"Wait for me for a moment."

After saying that, Sheila swayed her hips as she walked into another room.

Li Ang was left speechless by the variety of props she brought out.

He was curious, but too embarrassed to ask aloud.

It wasn't until Sheila's warm palm, mixed with essential oils, massaged his body that Li Ang realized he had ultimately taken advantage of a free service.

"Is this... ice? And a hot towel?"

"Using ice and heat is necessary for different bodily conditions. Generally speaking, applying ice to a recent sports injury can reduce capillary bleeding."

"Older bruises and strains can be treated with heat to dilate capillaries and promote blood circulation."

Sheila's hands were tireless, and she answered as she worked.

She seemed to suddenly remember something, stopped her movements, and stuttered:

"There's a term in Chinese medicine, 'activating blood and dissipating stasis,' that's the idea."

Li Ang, with a look of satisfaction on his face, said:

"I didn't expect you to be knowledgeable about Chinese medicine."

"Of course, in fact, a lot of knowledge in Chinese medicine is tremendously helpful in the field of sports recovery."

Sheila spoke with some pride as she picked up the essential oil she had been using.

"This, I bought it from China."

After hearing this, Li Ang couldn't help but give her a thumbs up.

After a full set of treatments, Li Ang's body felt comfortable, but he was somewhat uneasy in his mind.

He calculated:

"For a massage like this, charging $298 shouldn't be excessive, hmm, for an American, add a hundred more."

Li Ang glanced at Sheila's figure as she turned away and silently raised the price in his mind by another hundred.

Thinking of the meager amount of money left in his pockets, Li Ang couldn't help but shake his head; it was simply too expensive for him, and he couldn't afford to pay by the hour.

All he could do was offer his heartfelt thanks.

After returning home that evening, Li Ang ate a midnight snack consisting of the leftover beef stew and the rice that had been keeping warm in the rice cooker till it was nearly dry.

[Physique +0.05]

In the past, eating something at night, he would have to consider feelings of guilt and the possibility of gaining weight.

Now he ate whenever he had the chance, going with the flow.

The increase in his constitution meant his basal metabolic rate had also significantly increased, and combined with high-intensity exercise, he actually felt unwell if he ate less.

The next morning, Li Ang stretched luxuriously in the early morning sun and limbered up his muscles.

Parts of his body felt sore to varying degrees, but it was all within an acceptable range.

He surmised that one reason was the strengthening of his constitution and his gradual adaptation to the exercise, resulting in fewer after-effects from high-intensity workouts.

Another was the benefit of Sheila's assistance the day before, which had a remarkable effect, although it was currently a bit beyond his budget.

A quick internet search revealed that even a simple plumbing repair could cost over one hundred US dollars, not to mention specialized wellness services.

The cost of labor in America was indeed quite high.

After completing his daily warm-up routine, Li Ang didn't go riding or running as usual, but continued to practice the [Combination Technique] of Tongbei Quan.

After practicing for most of the previous day, he noticed that his [Physique] had increased from 9.88 to 10.03, an increase of 0.15.

In contrast, the physique increase from his own training method over the past two days was around 0.22.

It didn't seem like much, but it's important to note that Li Ang was still a complete beginner with this movement.

At this point, Li Ang could finally remove his glasses.

Both riding and running were skills at which he had already achieved [Proficiency], so in comparison, the gap was entirely within an acceptable range.

Li Ang even estimated that once he reached the [Beginner] level in this training method, its effectiveness wouldn't fall short of those two skills.