A fitter student body

There is a growing awareness of fitness across the nation's college campuses

While Chinese universities are better known for their rigorous academic standards than their sporting excellence, the rising popularity of keep-fit programs is seeing increasing numbers of students take up recreational exercise.

One such training camp took place recently at North China's Tianjin University.

Called Burning My Calories, the program sought to help overweight students shed their excess pounds.

Twenty students were selected from over 100 applicants with those who meet the course requirements receiving two extracurricular credits.

The weight-loss classes on offer included kickboxing and yoga, and the program aimed to improve several aspects of the students' fitness levels.

"I look good and hope to look much thinner," says participant Guo Kai, adding that he had lost more than 6 kilograms after enrolling on the program.

"This is the first time our university has offered such a course," says Zhang Jianbin, one of the Tianjin University program leaders.