Renuka Satianathan: “I was in the TAF Club and I still have the certificate to prove it”

With Renuka Satianathan (right) at the Nike training run on Saturday, October 6, 2012, at the Marina Bay Promenade. (Photo courtesy of Nike Singapore)

Marina Bay Promenade, Saturday, October 6, 2012 — “I was in the TAF Club and I still have the certificate to prove it,” a very slim Renuka Satianathan said with a smile as we walloped some pizza after a Nike training run for the upcoming We Run SG 10K.

Now, this is not just any ordinary weight loss story. This lady, who turns 25 in November, not only ran the weight off, she went on to don national colours in the 10,000m at the 2011 South-east Asian (SEA) Games in Palembang, Indonesia.

Renuka, who is in the National Institute of Education on a Ministry of Education scholarship, has a personal best (PB) of 37 minutes 15 seconds in the 10,000m which she set in 2011. In the same year, she also set a 10km road race PB of 38:05, a 3000m PB of 10:36, and a half-marathon PB of 1:23:24 at the Gold Coast Marathon. Her 1500m PB, set in 2009, is 5:02.

I caught up with her to find out more about life in TAF Club and the journey to the SEA Games.

Les Tan: So what was it like being in the TAF (Trim and Fit) Club? Please describe the good, the bad and the ugly.
Renuka: The TAF club in MGS (Methodist Girls’ School) was euphemistically re-named “Outdoor Pursuits”. I wasn’t thrilled with the idea, I guess mainly because it was a compulsory activity imposed on me. And you know what teenagers are like with being told what to do! Also, I was more into music at that point, so doing sit-ups and running around wasn’t my choice of a way to spend an afternoon.

To be fair, MGS did make a big effort to try and engage us in physical activity in a fun way. I remember they tried to put on a session every afternoon and some mornings, and we had to go to three of them. Some were games but others weren’t so fun when there were only a handful of us turning up. The one thing I remember that I really liked was rollerblading! The school hired instructors and they came in a couple of times.

I think on the whole, the TAF club was a good idea. Of course the stigma was an issue and I think that was what led to it being scrapped. The other thing was of course that being physically active is important for all youths, not just overweight ones. However, it wouldn’t have done me any favours to pretend that I wasn’t overweight and that being so big was negatively affecting my quality of life. I’m glad I was put in the program because it made aware that my weight was holding me back from being active and the enjoyment that comes with that.

LT: Were you the only one among your siblings to be in the Club? How many siblings do you have, by the way?
Renuka: My only other sibling was much better metabolically or genetically blessed (or maybe I just ate all his food) so he was never overweight and was always quite skinny actually. I believe he prefers the term ‘petite’. But yes, Devathas is a year younger than I am and is quite the keen marathoner, logging many more kilometres than I do.

LT: When was the ‘aha!’ moment that you realised, “I can run faster than most people!”?
Renuka: I think the thing with running is that there are always people a lot quicker than you. And I’m not a competitive person so running was always about trying to be quicker than I had been before. I think the ‘aha’ moment was so much about running faster than others, but more along the lines of “Hey, maybe I can actually run the whole 2.4!”.

I remember getting through one of our 2.4km practice runs and making it the whole way without stopping which was a minor miracle because I could never do the 1.6km in primary school without significant walk breaks. And for some bizarre reason, that spurred me on to run it again before school another morning. And again, on another morning…and it became a habit. I was thrilled when I finished in 12min-something during the NAPFA test and got an A!

LT: How did you get into long distance running?
Renkua: I don’t really think it was by choice as much as by chance. I was lucky that when I was in MGS, they were short on cross-country runners. And the very welcoming, encouraging teacher-in-charge, Mr Elias Loo asked me if I would run for them in what I think might have been the SAA cross-country that year. It was at Macritchie and I remember being terrified of having to run so far.

The concept of a warm-up baffled me; I was afraid the extra running would tired me out. I got through that race with the encouragement of a few of the other runners and was asked to join if I would like to. So I graduated from the TAF club and went into Cross-country! I soon learnt over the next few years that I had no speed at all to speak of, so the notion of running 800m/1500m was quickly dismissed.

I think distance running is good in that way. Anyone can do it with enough time and mileage. I was lapped in my first 3000m heats at nationals. And I think just the fact that I was too scared to stop running during exams and O levels (for fear of getting fat again!) meant I could bridge the gap with the other girls, so I could eventually keep up in JC.

LT: Any running heroes you took inspiration from locally?
Renuka: I’m not big on heroes, mainly because I think it can sometimes result in a somewhat narrow, idealistic view of that person. But I have taken a lot from my relationships with my coaches and teammates over the years that keep me going when things get hard! I think all my coaches and CCA teachers-in-charge, through their support and advice have helped significantly in developing my interest in the sport.

LT: As you know, slimming centres are quite popular in Singapore. If you had to give friendly advice to a friend between choosing a slimming centre and a pair of running shoes, what would you recommend?
Renuka: Slimming centres!! You’ve got me going now. I guess slapping the silliness out of my hypothetical friend is not appropriate since you’ve asked me for “friendly” advice.

Seriously though, I think running (or any sport) is about health, and not just physical health. I think many people who take up a sport can relate to the contentment and sense of well-being caused by the cocktail of happy, exercise-induced hormones. And physically, exercise results in a host of aerobic, vascular and muscular adaptations that the “let-me-dehydrate-and- almost-kill-you-so-you-lose-a-kilo” tactic of slimming centres cannot match.