by Dr. Iain
Corness
The
director of the Pattaya Marriott Resort Fitness Club is a lithe young Thai
lady, Saowarat Phadungkan (Jane). She smiled brightly when we met, despite
the braces which she says will come off in six months, and my “I’m
Tarzan. You Jane?” greeting which I am sure she has heard many times
before!
Jane was born in Nakhon Si Tammarat in the South of
Thailand. Her father a fisherman, and mother stayed at home to look after
the seven children (Jane is number six).
A good student at the local government school, she made
a name for herself as being very proficient in art. She liked all sorts of
sport, but denied being a tom-boy. By the time she left school at 18 years
of age, she did not have a career path mapped out at all. “There were so
many students and no career guidance,” she said. However, since she
liked sport she went to the Physical Education College, graduating after
two years with a diploma in Physical Education.
Not only did she graduate, but she gained the highest
marks in the college which won her a scholarship to Mahidol University in
Bangkok and the opportunity of a Bachelor’s degree. This was another two
years of study for her, but resulted in the Bachelor’s degree with a
Sports Science major. However, there was more to it than just that. A
pre-requisite for her scholarship was maintenance of the high grades from
college. This she did so well that she received the gold medal from
Mahidol as well. During this time she also acknowledged the debt to her
family who had supported her through all the years of training.
After university it was time to meet the cold hard
world outside and for her first job she was accepted into a medically run
health center where she worked with the medical staff to design remedial
and special exercises for patients with specific problems. She enjoyed
this clinical time, since she was a young woman who was already dedicated
to her sports science profession, not just a lithe lady in lycra!
From there she was snared into the new Fitness Centre
in the Grand Erawan Hotel where she spent the next three years, gaining
skills in the one-on-one exercise and fitness requirements of the
individual clients.
Like any young professional she had to keep moving to
find the ladder of advancement. The most famous fitness center in Thailand
was the Capitol Club and she spent the next four years there as the
assistant fitness manager. Now her duties included managerial
responsibilities as well as leading the lazy in health-giving exercise
routines.
She began to see that she needed to gain experience of
the entire gamut of work in a fitness center and when the chance came of
getting in at the start of a new one, she took it. As the new fitness
manager at the Atrium Athletic Club, this meant everything from ordering
the equipment, making a business plan, public relations and staff
training. All this was quite some way from taking classes of middle-aged
ladies in aerobics!
Jane knew herself that she was deficient in these
business areas, despite her Bachelor’s degree in the science side of it
all, and when she saw a flyer for a fitness conference in America,
offering training in that area, she took her self to America. “There was
no programme like this in Thailand,” she said. She also had no problems
with a visa for America. “I was registered for the three month course,
and it was easy.” This was also a self-funded exercise. “I wanted to
educate myself!”
There were some side benefits to the trip to America.
The first was that she always had wanted to travel. The second came from
the fact that the course was held at Anaheim, where the Disneyland
attraction is situated, and Jane visited the entertainment center every
day! “I just loved it!” she said, eyes sparkling with the memory of it
all.
She returned to Thailand and worked as a personal
trainer in many fitness centers in the capital, but the lure of travel and
the opportunity for her own personal advancement was too strong and she
returned to the US to complete a course in fitness management. “It was
then when I knew what I really wanted.” This course was in San Francisco
and took 18 months. “It was serious study and I looked at a lot of
fitness centers.” However, it was a little while longer before she
returned to Thailand. “I spent four months in Las Vegas having some fun
with my friends!”
Now happy with her training and knowledge she returned
to Bangkok and threw herself into the fitness business in centers there.
“I love to be busy. I used to work from eight in the morning to eleven
or twelve at night.” I suggested that must have severely curtailed her
ability to go out at night and meet people, but was told that she met so
many members every day, she did not need to go out after work, just for
social contacts. “Anyway, I don’t like shopping,” she said to finish
that topic!
Now she is here in Pattaya, where her enthusiasm for
her work just bubbles through. “I have to let people know just what the
good life really is.” She explained further saying, “If you are not
happy with your exercise, it is my job to make you happy. I want all
members to get the results and what they want.”
After making sure that her fitness clients are getting
their results, she enjoys extreme sports, though has now given up downhill
mountain bike racing! However, for relaxation she draws Thai fine art or
reads business magazines. She is a young woman with an eye to her
financial future.
She finished the interview saying, “I want to be a
fitness professional, and right now I’m very close.” I would say that
she is there already!
