For many, elite weightlifting conjures images of structured routines, strict diets, and singular focus. But for Hillary Tran—better known online as @babyhills—the road to the platform has been anything but linear.
Hilary recently joined the Happy Healthy Human Podcast to unpack her journey through injury, controversy, and global travel, while still managing to compete at a national level. Her story is unfiltered, refreshingly honest, and full of insights that transcend sport.
From Daly City to China
Raised in the Bay Area and shaped by immigrant expectations, Hilary’s journey into weightlifting didn’t start with barbells. It began in parks, doing calisthenics and “prison workouts” post-high school, driven by a fierce desire to do things she wasn’t supposed to be good at.
Eventually, CrossFit opened the door to Olympic lifting. She chased it hard—despite being told she had to “pick one sport.” What began as a reluctant focus soon revealed itself to be the right match. As she puts it: “Weightlifting was loyal to me when nothing else was.”
Determined to master the craft, Hilary manifested her dream of training in China, eventually embedding herself into the youth systems, learning directly from coaches who had developed world-record holders.
Hilary lives an unconventional life by design. She splits her time between the U.S. and China—often spending six months abroad—and works full-time in tech recruiting, balancing late-night meetings across time zones with double training sessions.
Sleep is inconsistent. Routines are often sacrificed. But she adapts, knowing how to prep her mindset for low-recovery days and how to protect her non-negotiables (like morning training and journaling) when she’s stateside.
The lifestyle is chaotic, but Hilary leans into it with purpose. “There’s no pretty way of doing it,” she says, “but you figure it out.”
Injury and Perspective
In 2023 and 2024, Hilary suffered two elbow dislocations—a devastating setback for any lifter. But instead of quitting, she returned to China to rehab, recalibrate, and restore her confidence in an environment that encouraged joy and intensity.
Her biggest realization? “Happiness is the secret to recovery.”
It’s a phrase that has become central to her philosophy. Whether it’s training, nutrition, or personal growth—Hilary believes that sustainable progress only comes when you find ways to actually enjoy the work.
Nutrition, Not Perfection
Despite the stereotype of elite athletes living with food scales and macros, Hilary’s approach is more intuitive. While she once tracked obsessively—deconstructing sushi rolls to weigh each piece—she now eats based on experience, bloodwork, and how her body feels.
Time in China shifted her mindset. Cafeteria food isn’t optimized; it’s practical. Meals are communal. Athletes eat what’s provided—often fried foods or yogurt desserts—and still perform at world-class levels. The key difference? Volume of training and lower stress.
She’s proof that being high-performing doesn’t require perfection—just alignment.
Lessons for All of Us
- Building your life around what makes you come alive—even when it looks chaotic.
- Learning to manage stress instead of avoiding it.
- Creating consistency through awareness, not rigidity.
- And most of all, choosing joy—especially when things get hard.
As Hilary puts it: “When life is hitting the fan, the only goal is to keep moving the bar in a straight line.”
Transcript – HHH Podcast Episode with Hilary Tran (@babyhills)
[00:00:09 – 00:01:13]
Welcome to the Triple H podcast. Today, we have Hilary Tran. She’s an unfiltered and unapologetically real voice in American weightlifting. She’s competed in weightlifting for over 10 years and went viral for her China Youth Camp series. She’s also rehabbed not one, but two elbow dislocations. Hilary has juggled life as a corporate professional, a world traveler, and even controversially failed a drug test in 2021. And through it all, she’s still standing—and she’s here to talk about it.
[00:01:13 – 00:02:33]
Host: Who is Hilary Tran?
Hilary: Oh my god, you have to start with that? I need a more clarifying question… Who am I in this phase of life? I’m Year of the Monkey—I’ll be 33 this year. Born and raised in the Bay Area. Being raised in the Bay exposed me to a spectrum of people and opportunities. You see what life looks like when people chase their dreams—and when they don’t. I go back often because there’s a unique blend of ambition, creativity, and diversity there.
[00:02:33 – 00:04:51]
Hilary: I’m Singaporean, so I grew up seeing Crazy Rich Asians-type lives, but the Bay Area kept me grounded. You see “subway creatures” and CEOs in the same city. I tried basketball first—typical Bay Area Asian sport. Didn’t work out (I’m 5’0″). Then I tried CrossFit, jiu-jitsu, and stumbled into Olympic lifting. I remember being at Wodapalooza doing all three at once, and my coach disowned me for not choosing one. I almost quit. Then a coach called and said, “When you go to Worlds, what do those girls look like?” I said, “I look like them.” That was the moment I decided to really pursue weightlifting.
[00:04:51 – 00:06:38]
Hilary: I told myself—just try for a couple years. Even if I suck, it’ll transfer to everything else. And it did. I found out I’m genetically built for it. The mindset, the leverages, the stage presence—it all clicked. Olympic lifting required a kind of personal growth nothing else forced me to do.
[00:06:38 – 00:11:51]
Hilary: I got into fitness doing park workouts—prison-style calisthenics. I didn’t want to pay for a gym. Eventually moved to Daly City (too cold to train outside), joined Crunch, and hired a bodybuilding coach. I was still struggling with bulimia but didn’t tell anyone. I got into calisthenics competitions, then CrossFit in 2014. I hired an Olympic lifting coach and started doing jiu-jitsu at the same time. Fitness saved me—I was studying chemical engineering, working 72 hours a week, and felt miserable. Becoming a trainer gave me purpose. Someone once said, “You’d be a great trainer,” and I felt more fulfilled from helping others than from chasing money.
[00:11:51 – 00:15:52]
Hilary: Weightlifting became central because it was loyal—it was always there. I could train solo. It transferred to CrossFit and jiu-jitsu. It pushed me to improve my stage presence and performance under pressure. CrossFit is chaos; weightlifting is silence and precision. It taught me emotional regulation, presence, and focus.
[00:15:52 – 00:20:43]
Hilary: I manifested training in China for years. Eventually got in through a coach whose son went to Berkeley and knew my coach. I kept showing up, stayed in contact, and doors opened. I’ve been to four+ camps, traveled there alone, and helped with youth recruiting. I train there because I need external eyes and a high-performance environment.
[00:20:43 – 00:23:25]
Hilary: Weightlifting taught me stress management. It’s a nervous system sport—you need strength, speed, mobility, and mindset. I don’t sleep much, but I know how to prepare myself on low-sleep days. Every day is different. You can feel like you’ve figured it out, then get humbled. It’s taught me how to manage chaos and stay goal-oriented.
[00:23:25 – 00:31:40]
Hilary: I split time between the U.S. and China. Life there is chaotic but flexible—accommodations are easy, and the schools are built around performance. Professionally, I work in recruiting, often pulling all-nighters due to the time difference. My morning routine in the U.S. is sacred (reading, training, journaling). In China, I sacrifice that routine and adapt. Having a strong support team lets me do this.
[00:31:40 – 00:36:14]
Hilary: My nutrition isn’t perfect. At school in China, food is served—I don’t think about it. Outside, I eat based on bloodwork and intuition. I don’t eat fried foods. I used to macro track obsessively—now I eat more intuitively. Chinese lifters eat pretty normally—soups, rice, meat, and even pizza sometimes. They train hard, often 4+ hours/day, so they don’t stress food the same way Americans do.
[00:36:14 – 00:44:35]
Hilary: Chinese coaches emphasize fun and hype. Happiness is the secret to recovery. Joyful training boosts recovery, mood, and longevity. Their system demands excellence but creates an environment that makes that sustainable. Coaches read the room—if morale is low, they adjust. They even purposely fry your nervous system so your recovery rate improves over time. The culture is designed to foster success and resilience.
[00:44:35 – 00:53:45]
Hilary: Coaches prioritize personality over gender. Mentality matters more than physical traits. They look for fearlessness and presence. They train competition mindset by constantly putting kids on the platform. For Americans, weightlifting is a hobby. For Chinese athletes, it’s their life and community. That’s why happiness matters—it’s how they stay in it long-term. It’s not just sport—it’s survival, family, and future all wrapped in one.
[00:53:45 – 00:56:52]
Rapid Fire:
- Underrated part of elite lifting? Stress management.
- If not weightlifting? Maybe music, dance, or Chinese harp.
- Message to 22-year-old self: “You’re doing the right things. Keep going.”
- What helps you live a happy, healthy life? “Knowing who I am. I’m positive. I want good for the world. That centers me.”
Final Takeaway:
Happiness is the secret to recovery. Impulse is the enemy of progress.
Find Hilary on Instagram: @babyhills