Gym in China promises Porsche for losing 50 kg in three months, registration fee Rs 1.2 lakh

Medical professionals expressed serious concern about the extreme nature of the contest.

A gym in Binzhou, located in China’s Shandong province, came under sharp criticism after announcing a weight-loss competition that promised a Porsche as the grand prize to anyone able to shed 50 kilograms within three months. The event, first publicised online in October, was reported by the South China Morning Post.

The offer claimed that a participant meeting the target would be awarded a Porsche Panamera valued at around 1.1 million yuan (approximately Rs 1.3 crore). However, entrants were required to pay a 10,000 yuan (Rs 1.2 lakh) registration fee, which covered shared accommodation and meals at a closed fitness training facility.

A coach at the gym, identified only by his surname Wang, told the publication that the contest was limited to 30 participants, with seven or eight people having already enrolled. He clarified that the Porsche on offer was a used 2020 model personally owned by the gym’s proprietor, not a new vehicle.

Medical professionals expressed serious concern about the extreme nature of the contest. They warned that attempting to lose such a large amount of weight in a short time frame could endanger participants’ health, potentially leading to complications such as loss of muscle mass, nutrient deficiency, heart strain, electrolyte imbalances, and gallstones.

A well-known medical influencer who goes by “Dr Zeng” on Weibo, where he has roughly 3.5 million followers, criticised the unsafe goal. Speaking to SCMP, he said: “Losing 0.5 kilograms per day is far too rapid. Unless someone is severely obese, that rate leads to muscle depletion rather than fat reduction, resulting in hormonal disruption, hair loss, and in women, even amenorrhoea. A realistic and healthy pace would be closer to 0.5 kilograms per week.”

Pu Yansong, a gastrointestinal surgeon at Shaanxi Provincial People’s Hospital, echoed similar concerns. “Weight loss at that speed puts considerable pressure on internal organs and can be life-threatening,” he cautioned. “Sustainable fat reduction must be gradual so that the body, including the brain, muscles, and organs, can adjust safely.”

The competition ignited heated discussion on Chinese social media platforms. Many users questioned the feasibility of the challenge and mocked its promotional nature. One commenter quipped, “If I lose 50 kilograms, I’ll only have 5 left—will I still be alive?” Another observed, “It’s impossible to achieve this safely. Losing 50 kilograms in three months? You’ll lose the person, not just the weight. With a 10,000 yuan entry fee, the organiser could easily buy a new car and keep the used one—it’s smart marketing disguised as a fitness programme.”