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?

A Chat With Zambia's Most Profound Woman; Norena Mutoya Chiteba, Founder of KUPES Young Womens Network.

Zambia is in need of role models, women who will mentor our girls, women who will create an impact in behavioural change in our communities. Women who will make them realise how worthy they are. I feel, we have lost it a bit in the way our girls are being brought up. We see the chaos in the news, on the Internet everyday in the lives of our young women. We thank God that not all hope is lost. We have women like Norena Mutoya Chiteba, a Zambian woman, with a real heart for our young women, a woman who is so passionate about girls and the women. Norena is a rare gem. She decided to step up and make a difference in our society by founding a network called "KUPES YOUNG WOMENS NETWORK".

African Super Woman met up with her for a chat about the Network. And I should say that, Norena is one of a kind. One of the women I admire in Africa. Lets meet her, know her and learn. about the Network.

ASW: I am so honoured to seat here and talk to you. Thank you so much for creating time to meet me. So, Who is Norena Mutoya Chiteba?

Norena: I am a wife and a mother of four, three biological kids and my nephew. A founder of KUPES Young Womens Network. I am the President of the Zambia's Squash Association, first female ever (with a smile on her face), I seat on a Council for Harvest Institute of Missionaries Bible Collage and I also seat on the gender committee of the Zambia National Sports Council Board.

ASW: Wow! You are one of a kind, Norena. When did you start the KUPES Young Womens Network?

Norena: I started the Network back in 2009, I was working for Finance Bank at a time as the assistant director for marketing and business development. I am so passionate about girls and women and I really wanted to do something for them. I started off with twenty women in Kabanana compound, doing some workshops with them. But being in the Corporate world at that time, I had loads of work on my hands and I decided to take a break from the Network. I stopped working for Finance bank and I joined Standard Chartered Bank as head of corporate affairs and that was my last assignment in the corporate world and that was in 2011.

Early 2012, a friend of mine and I bought a franchise called Bella Dona Finishing classes were we taught women how to behave and our focus was in schools. It was going very well but I still had my network at the back of my head. Then in 2013-2014, I decided to formalise my Network. And that was the reborn of KUPES Young Womens Network.

ASW: Tell me more about the network, what is it all about?

Norena: KUPES Young Womens Network is a network that looks at empowering, motivating and inspiring young women from all walks of life. I say from all walks of life because at the beginning, my focus was on the under-privileged communities, but then I realised that even the privileged ones don't have  people speaking for them. They would have everything but they have no mentorship, no guidance and no information.

ASW: What is your vision for the young women?

Norena: I envision a society where young women have a clear understanding of their self-worthy and capabilities, they have a clear understanding of their purpose, because if you understand who you are, nothing can touch you. If you understand who you are, frankly speaking, you wont be swerved left, right and centre. We need to get it right with our young women in our society. I believe if we can create an impact on you, you should be able to create an impact on your family and your community.

ASW: I like that Norena, that's a very powerful vision and I believe we can make it and we will get there. Change starts from within and its one person at a time.

What about the KUPES Chat, what is it about?

Norena: The KUPES Chat is one of the activities we do at the Network. The idea of the KUPES Chat came about sometime in 2014 when I had attended the CNBC Africa event at the Southern Sun hotel here in Lusaka. At the event, they were interviewing Dr Kankasa, Brenda Muntemba, Monica Musonda to mention but a few. We were about a hundred women in attendance and I released that we were all above the age of 35 years. And I thought to myself that the people who should be listening to this are the young ones, because they are the ones who can make an impact in our society. And that's how I decided to start the KUPES Chat.

The first KUPES Chat we featured Yuyo Nachali Kambikambi, she is the head of corporate communications and government affairs at Airtel Zambia. She came and spoke to the young women and it was lovely. And in March this year, we had another Chat were we were able to seat fifty young women at the Hotel Intercontinental and it was fully paid for by the Hotel. In April again, we were able to seat  seventy young women at Intercontinental Hotel and we were privileged to have Miyanda Mayimbo, the founder of PROSOFT. She came and spoke to the girls and it was awesome. We are actually looking at a longer term partnership with Intercontinental Hotel. And the Vision for the KUPES Chat is to go nationwide.

Meet Faith M Kabende, One of Africa's Top Fashion Designers.

In the last two decades, African has taken up center stage in the fashion industry and Zambia hasn't been left behind. We have Amaka Osakwe, of Maki Oh, the Nigerian fashion designer who recently dressed Michelle Obama. We have the likes of  Adama Paris from Senegal, Thula Sindi from South Africa, Taibo Bacar from Mozambique, Pooja Jeshang from Tanzania just to mention but a few. I like the way Fashion is changing the face of Africa. We now have Hollywood embracing African Fashion which is very exciting. I would simply say..,well DONE African Designers!!

Lets meet Faith M Kabende of Fay Designs, Zambia's own Pride and Joy!

I recently met up with Faith and I had a chat with her. What an amazing woman! Very collective, down to earth, humble..,my kind of woman! I honestly didn't expect she was gonna agree to meet with me deal to her busy life....and honestly, her fame. But I was amazed when she said yes and created sometime to have a chat with me. She is truly an amazing, my true African Super Woman. I wanted to know how her story, we sat down and she started telling me her story..,she calls it "My Super Story."

"My super Story," Faith..

Faith Mulenga Kabende, like many stories of designers we have heard before, has never studied fashion and design in her life! She discovered her passion for fashion when she was about 12 years old she tells me. By the time she was 15 years, she had already started making her own clothes that she would were at school on civilian day, she recalls with a laughter. She goes on to say, "I remember how my friends used to look forward to see what kind of an outfit I was going to pull off on civilian day at school. I would normally wear maybe a tie and a waistcoat, just something crazy. And back then, it wasn't something very common to wear clothes like that. With the help of my mother, I would sketch and she would hand-sew the clothes for me." She recalls with a warm smile on her face.

The Birth Of Fay Designs

The name Fay was derived from her name "Faith". Before going into fashion and designing full time, Faith used to work for Zambia Telecommunication (Zamtel). She used to design part time while working but she got so over whelmed with her clients mostly friends and friends of friends who liked her outfits. At the age of 27, she decided to quite her job and went into fashion full time. People thought it was a crazy idea to stop work and follow her passion. She says, it was the best thing to do and she has no regrates.

She showcased her work at the Zambian Fashion week for the first time about seven years ago. But her international recognition came about when she was invited to showcase her collection in South Africa at the launch of a Modeling Agency. Since then, she has showcased her designs in Malaysia when she went to attend a training in Entrepreneurship.