There was a time in Spring Chang’s life when she could lift more than twice her body weight. A powerlifter with a background in competitive gymnastics, she could stand over a bar weighing 450 pounds and lift it off the floor. And she could bench-press 205 pounds, too.

But today the 45-year-old Chang only needs the weight of her body to gain strength and fitness.

Chang, director of spa and recreation at The Kahala Hotel & Resort, prefers yoga, stand-up paddleboard yoga and moonlight meditation. She teaches classes in the hotel’s new health and wellness series, which started Saturday with family SUP yoga and continues with partner yoga Feb. 14.

Yoga became an important part of Chang’s fitness routine at about the same time she started lifting weights during her first year at Seattle Pacific University, where she majored in physical education. Weights took center stage in her life, though: Chang earned six world championship titles. And at 5-foot-1 she defied stereotypes of a petite, Asian woman.

“I was one of the few Asian women competing,” she said. “I didn’t use any strength-enhancing drugs or artificial stimulants.”

She lifted weights three hours a day Monday through Friday. Yoga was a good complement for that since she needed to stretch her muscles after working them so intensely, and there are similarities in the role that breathing plays in both yoga and weightlifting.

“Yoga became a part of that just as a natural progression,” Chang said. “Breathing is part of anything we do in life. In powerlifting there are certain ways of breathing that make your lift more efficient.”

A natural athlete from a young age, Chang started competitive gymnastics in first grade in Seattle and went on to become a high school gymnastics team coach.

One of her earliest mentors, physical education teacher and gymnastics coach Sue Turner, inspired confidence in Chang, who in turn has shared that with the people she has coached. Chang still vividly recalls a nightmare about being unable to do consecutive backflips. Turner told her, “Don’t worry. I’m always going to be here for you. My arms are strong enough to catch you if you fall.”

Chang also counts the late Willie Austin, also a champion weightlifter, as one of her inspirations. Austin was the founder of a Seattle nonprofit in 1994 called the Austin Foundation, which encourages disadvantaged youth and their families to live an active lifestyle. Austin died unexpectedly in 2013.

“He was the one who inspired me to give back to the community, to cultivate seeds of inspiration for other people,” Chang said.

After powerlifting, Chang briefly competed as a bodybuilder before pursuing a career in hotel spa management that would eventually take her to Bangkok, Beijing and Shanghai, where yoga became her dominant passion, so much so that she got certified as a 250-hour yoga teacher. She worked at luxury resorts in Asia for about seven years before taking up her current position at The Kahala Hotel & Resort in 2013.

When Chang talks about yoga, she gets excited about its physical, spiritual and mental benefits. It’s a way for people to gain a greater awareness of the present moment, she said.

“Yoga’s something I think anyone can do,” she said. “Anything that we do is all about breath. You’re doing yoga now by breathing. Through any form of exercise, it’s to help make what you do more efficient.”

Chang, a Kakaako resident, starts her mornings with a brief meditation, which she defines as a time and space to not think about anything and set the tone for the day. That meditation can take place while walking her dog, a terrier mix. She does core conditioning and yoga at least three times a week — but no more weightlifting. After 15 years of competing, lifting is a “been there, done that” part of Chang’s past.

In powerlifting the challenge was 70 percent mental, 30 percent physical, Chang said. Yoga appeals to her because it involves that same mind-body connection.

At the most basic level, yoga is about breath, which anyone can do, she said. Someone can do yoga from a chair rather than a stand-up paddleboard, which requires more core strength and balance, and still get the same benefits of a calm mind.

The classes at The Kahala Hotel & Resort are held in an outdoor hale or on the grass. The SUP yoga class is held in the ocean just off the shore. She encourages everyone to try yoga.

“It’s just breathing and moving,” she said. “It’s about getting inspired through breathing.”

“Good Fit” spotlights inspiring fitness stories of change, self-discovery and challenge, and other fitnessrelated topics. Tell us what motivates you and how you stay fit and healthy. Email features@staradvertiser.com.