Surachada Bowra. Thiti Wannamontha
Not in her wildest dreams did Surachada Bowra, 43, envisage having a Facebook following of 35,000 and counting. The low-key architect-turned-sports specific trainer set up the Be fit and Eat Well Facebook page in December last year with the intention of sharing well researched information, plus her own experiences as a long-distance runner, with like-minded individuals.
A platform where people interested in nutrition and exercise can exchange their thoughts and ideas, Be Fit and Eat Well has followers that have become more than just fans of the founder.
“I am genuinely interested to see them do well as runners,” she said. “I can tell a lot about an athlete by their training record. From the outside they might be calm but when they train they can be very aggressive. In such situations, I coach them so they can calm down.
“I also connect with my students and Facebook followers on a personal level so much that when they are competing, the night before I get anxious for them. Running is a learning experience for not just them, but also me. We get inspired by each other.”
Despite her huge fan base, Surachada comes across as humble and genuinely keen to assist runners, of all levels, reach their goals. She never set out to become a popular Facebook icon. It was windows of opportunities that presented themselves along the way and a personal desire to run better that paved the way for her to become what she has today.
Muse met up with the cool, calm and collected Surachada, a mother of two, on a rainy Monday afternoon at the Anantara Siam Bangkok. Coming across as nonchalant and amiable, the Thai talent has come a long way since her interest in running lead her to embark on a journey that has helped her to make a difference in the lives of people who desire to become better runners.
Based in the UK, the half-Thai, half-British had been an architect for most of her life. Coming from a sporty family and being a trained swimmer, she however admitted that she was never passionate about any particular sports.
For a span of eight years, she chose to give up her job to become a full time housewife because her husband’s job called for them to move quite a bit. When her son started nursery, she decided it was time for her to get some quality time for herself, so she took up long-distance running — a sport Surachada admitted she had no interest in the past.
Running for Surachada Bowra has become more than just a hobby. Marathonfoto
“In retrospect, I started running out of desperation,” she said. “It was like running helped me to let go of pent-up frustration. We had a park near our home, which was a 3k run. I remember how I once told myself that I would complete the entire run or die. I managed to complete the run without stopping, which was quite an achievement for a person new to the sport.
“I knew that I had to complete the run, otherwise I would find an excuse to stop the next day. Even without the basics in the sport, I realised in the initial stages of my running that I had to learn how to save my energy to reach the finish line.
“Not knowing better, back then, I ran 10k daily, which took a physical toll on me. I eventually hired a running coach who taught me the importance of strength training to accomplish my goals.”
Surachada also immersed herself in researching the mechanics that went behind the making of a perfect runner. When she found that there was a limit to what a book could teach her, she was encouraged by a close friend to take up a short course. Soon after, she was hired as a fitness instructor at a gym for staff of the Daily Mail media group, whom she prepared for running events.
In her late 30s, she again weighed the pros and cons before deciding to register for an intensive six-month certification course. “I did this course for myself, so I could run properly,” remembered Surachada. “I knew there would be proactive ways I could use the knowledge, one of which was to train my sons.”
Sport-specific training, according to her, simply put is fitness and performance training designed specifically for athletic performance enhancement. Training programmes could include strength, speed, power, endurance, flexibility and more. In a nutshell, all these elements are pivotal to running long distances.
The gutsy runner told us that some of the best knowledge came not just from experts and courses, but also through trial and error.
“Soon afterwards I started a blog in English, sharing everything I had learned and was picking up along the way. On a random run with my son, I found that when you breathe in rhythm your body tends to respond better and you don’t get tired easily, enabling runners to complete their run, not when they are tired but when they reach the finish line.”
“I don’t profess to be an expert,” she said, recalling when she started Be Fit and Eat Well in the hope that she could share her running experiences. “The posts on my Facebook page are from the common man’s perspective, the only difference being that I do extensive research to back up anything that I post.”
“I think people began to appreciate my Facebook page because it had scientific references backing my claims. It also has answers to some very basic questions people might have such as why they experience extreme fatigue during a run or feel like throwing up and more.”
Saying that it seems quite surreal how things have panned out for her thus far, Surachada continues to keep Be Fit and Eat Well spiced up by peppering it regularly with titbits of fresh information and personal anecdotes because, as she put it, “there are a number of questions on my mind that require answers”.
Currently training a handful of professional marathoners in Thailand, Surachada is one of the five coaches on the 90 Days Challenge programme on Thai PBS, where she guides people with obesity issues to lose weight. For herself, she aims to compete in the six major marathon events in Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. While passion is what keeps her connected to the work she does, thanks to her mother, she has learned how to be happy in her skin.
Since taking on the role of a trainer, she has had girls as young as 12 send her scantily clad photos of themselves, asking her whether they are fat. They go on to tell her that they would save all their money for her to train them to have a six pack.
“I refuse their offer and tell them to go outside to play,” she remarked. “I also tell them to never send such photos to anyone. I reassure them they don’t look fat. Many people have the wrong impression that they are muscular, while all they have is skeletal muscle.
“My advice to teenagers and young women today is to go outside and play sports. I often tell them that beauty is skin deep and that everyone is unique.”
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.