Meet Chileshe Katongo; A Zambian Health And Fitness "Guru". A Look Into Her World As She Shares Tips On Fitness And Wellbeing

Today on African Super Woman, we have Chileshe Katongo, who is a fitness and health "guru", I like to call her. Today, she shares a few tips on health and fitness. Also a look into her world. I believe being a super woman also means being healthy and in good shape.

ASW: Welcome on African Super Woman, its an honour to finally have you.

Chileshe: Thank you for having me here.

ASW: I see you have a number of post followers on the famous social media network, facebook. And I am pretty sure people have been wondering who you are. Tell us about yourself, who is Chileshe?

Chileshe: Chileshe Katongo is a Zambian currently residing in Thailand. A Social Worker by profession, a business-lady and a beautician.

ASW: We have been friends for seven years now and ever since I have known you, your life has been in the gym. I have tried to follow your footsteps over the years but it hasn't been an easy one for me :-) . How important is exercising and fitness to you?

Chilesh Katongo

Chileshe: Yes African Super Woman, that is correct! The gym has become part of my daily routine and working out is a lifestyle to me. Exercising and fitness is important to my life and I love to take care of myself. The other thing about exercising is that it has truly helped sculpt my body, I am more energetic than ever. The feeling after working out is just amazing, so refreshing.

ASW: You would agree with me that growing up in Africa, women...and men believed that being big or a +size was believed to be a sign of wealth. 

Chileshe: I agree with you and actually there are some people who believe in this myth but which is not the case . Despite saying that, it doesn't matter whatever size and shape someone is in. What matters is health, if someone is a +size and in good health, well and good, same applies to the skinny and slender.

ASW: As modern African women in Africa, exercising is slowly becoming a part of our daily lives. Growing up, we didn't see so many African women work-out, go to the gym as much as they have been doing in the past decade. Women have become so "obsessed" for lack of a better term, with trying to lose some extra pounds. I have seen the length women are willing to go just to lose weight. Sadly, there have been a number of deaths caused by starvation by choice in the name of losing weight. Why do you think women are so much in desperation to lose weight and are willing to go to the extreme?

Zambia's Chuma Chilando Wins The African Queen/DK 2015

Chuma Chilando

Last weekend, Denmark held a beauty contest; The African Queen/Dk aimed at bringing young African women together from different backgrounds representing their country of origin. They all came together as one to interact and share cultures.

The African Queen/DK is a great way to ensure that our roots are not forgotten even as we are living in the diaspora. This event was also done in good faith, for the profits were taken to orphans in Africa.

Chuma Chilando

The 2015 African Queen/DK crown went to one of our own; the beautiful Chuma Chilando from Zambia. ASW is proud of you Chuma, so is Zambia. May you continue representing our country and don't put that flag down. Proud of you and God bless you. Know that this is just the beginning, more great things are coming your way.

Chuma Chilando

The contestants of The African Queen/DK 2015

Chuma Chilando being crowned

Chuma Chilando

PROUDLY ZAMBIAN!

MAN OF THE MONTH: Mutende Musonda; A man with an Innovation that may help women in rural areas.

African women have been known to be the strongest both spiritually and physically over the years. Evidently, this truth has been seen in the way African women live in rural areas. They face hardships fearlessly and they don't complain because to them, its the lifestyle, that's the way they live. Its amazing how a woman would be pounding some cassava with a baby on her back. Or carrying firewood on her head, baby on her back and a container of water in one hand.

Mr Mutende Musonda

Well, we have one Zambian man who has seen how hard these women work and he has decided to come up with a brilliant idea that would make it easy for women to process cassava. ASW had an online interview with Mr Mutende Musonda, who is currently in the Netherlands for studies.

ASW: Mr Mutende Musonda, glad to have you on African Super Woman. Its indeed an honor to have a chat with you. Tell me about yourself briefly.

Mutende: Thank you. I am a Zambian and I am currently studying my MBA at Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands, specialising in Corporate Strategy and Economic Police. Back home, I studied Agricultural Engineering (BEng) at the University of Zambia. Over the years, I have had a couple of professional training conducted by Japanese International Corporation Agency (JICA). These include; The Extension Management Training Course, "Monitoring and Evaluation" at the Farmers Training Institute (FTI), Northern Zambia and this was done by JICA's Rural Extension Services Capacity Advancement Program (RESCAP). I also did "Introduction and Evaluation" under the same program conducted by JICA. Trained and successfully completed the Monitoring Founding Training Course (including basic operations of GIS software for digitalised mapping) by RESCAP at FTI Northern Zambia. Trained in Participatory Village Development in Isolated Areas (PaViDIA) by JICA.

Mr Musonda with the Mayor of Maastricht City

I have done several other trainings conducted by JICA, the Zambian government under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. Barcleys Bank, Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia, People's Act Fund, Children's Aids Funds (CAF) to mention but a few.

I am working for the government of Zambia at the moment under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives as District Agricultural Coordinator (DACO). I have also worked with Barcleys Bank Zambia (Plc), Children's AIDS Fund USA. I have worked with many other institutions and organisations, the list is long.