Name: Suyan Souen
Age: 38
Hometown or current residence: Born in São Paulo, Brazil. Living currently in Campinas (60 miles from São Paulo city)
Q: When d
id you get started on your fitness career/journey? What made you want to become more than just the average person living a healthy and fit lifestyle?
A: Well, I was born into a family of people who love sports, fitness and body building programs. I grew up listening to my father telling us that our body needed exercise and a healthy diet. One of my brothers – Roberto Souen – began to pursue a career as a bodybuilder late in his teens. I was influenced by them to pursue a degree as a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education. Prior to that, I had been dancing Classical ballet since I was five years old. At the age of 15, I had already been asked to teach ballet to young children.
After 10 years as a classical ballet dancer, however, I was forced to stop dancing due to lesions and injuries associated to exhaustive activity without the necessary muscle strengthening.
At that time, unfortunately, muscle strengthening was not applied to Classical Ballet training as it is nowadays. It was then that I began to do weightlifting and strength training exercises. I was fascinated by the incredible results I obtained, both physically as well as aesthetically.
As I began my studies at University, my goal was precisely to study in depth the Biomechanics associated to the strength training and how to apply this to the exercises programs I used to prepare for my clients as a Personal Trainer. As I did that, the results were fantastic!
Q: Being that you have a loyal social media following, what is some advice that you would offer someone wanting to increase their popularity in the Fitness industry? What tip can you give someone to help them build their following as well?
A: Well, everything that I post or mention in different social media is actually - truthfully - part of my lifestyle and professional life. There are no facades – just the plain simple me, working hard as a Personal Trainer who is really interested in the physical and emotional wellbeing of my clients. Some clients have stopped me in the streets to comment on the high spirits atmosphere of our training sessions. This plus the physical benefits of our training are the distinctive marks of a committed professional in the fitness industry. As an advice, I would say
1. Just work hard on building credibility and professionalism;
2. Focus and remain focused on discussing topics SOLELY related to your area of expertise – “less is more”;
3. Learn how to produce and make use of good quality media material - avoid posting low quality videos (in content and image) at all cost.
Q: Do you consider this as your part/full time job or a hobby?
A: Definitively, this is a fulltime job.
Q: There are many people that motivate and are inspired by you. How does that make you feel knowing that there are people who take the time to see what you are doing day to day?
A: Being able to inspire and motivate people is such a great responsibility. Because people look up to you, they try to emulate you. And if you are a bit like me, this means a lot. I feel the pressure, which is a good one as it is the propelling force behind what I do every day. And I what I do is beyond the aesthetical pursuit of beauty only: it is a journey into learning how to face life’s vicissitudes.
Q: How does it feel knowing that somewhere, you are actually helpin
g someone by motivating them to achieve their personal goals, just by posting your personal life and achievements on social media?
A: As I said, being able to inspire and motivate people is such a great responsibility. Because people look up to you, indeed. And if you are a bit like me, you will feel the pressure, which is a good one as it is the propelling force behind what I do every day. All my posts are intentional in nature: I have a particular goal towards the viewers – to encourage, motivate, to make people feel better about their own image as they seek to take care of themselves… or to encourage them to start doing that.
Q: Is there anyone who has motivated or inspired you to become the person you are today?
A: I believe in vocation. I believe I was born to do this: to teach, to encourage, helping people to find a way to be healthy. Also, I must say that I owe a lot to my other brother – Samyr Souen, now in US – who works in advertisement and taught me the importance of a well-built consistent image.
Q: How does your family feel about your lifestyle? What would you say to someone whose family does not support their lifestyle?
A: I am married and a mother of twins. The boys think the world about my job and its impact, as well as they love to exercise – these are the ones I want to impact the most. They are also part of the propelling force behind what I do. My husband lovingly supports me, though many times he wished I had more hours in my day for him.
If by lifestyle you mean having a profession and impacting people and your community, I find difficult to do it without your family supporting you. Ultimately, you need to be well to be able to serve others. However, if this person feels this is his or her dream, this will require a lot of negotiation and discussion at home, to balance things at home and at work. No different than the struggles of many families around world.
Q: Of all the social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.), what do you think is the most effective to use in order to market yourself in this industry?
A: Undoubtedly, Instagram.
Q: What is your diet like? Do you eat clean all year round?
A: Yes, I eat clean all year around, including major holidays.
My diet depends on the phase I find myself in my training – if I seek hypertrophy, I will eat in certain way; if I want definition, I will follow an even more strict diet.
Below I offer my average diet pattern:
Meal 1: Breakfast at 8:00 am – omelet of egg white only, with cassava or sweet-potato; plus a low glycemic index fruit; coffee (no sugar).
Meal 2: 10:30 am – mix of Brazil nuts (20 grams) plus macadamia (30 grams).
Meal 3: Pre-workout training session (1 hour before starting): cooked cassava; white meat (cooked or roasted chicken or fish).
Meal 4: Lunch around 1:30 pm – salad (green leaves, tomatoes, bean roots, alfalfa, cucumbers) plus a variety of (boiled) vegetables, plus lean meat (red meat only twice a week when training legs)
Meal 5: Light Snack at 4:30 pm – one protein pancake with oat meal
Meal 6: Supper at 8:00 pm – white meat only (preferably fish, cooked or roasted); cassava or a mix of steamed vegetables.
Q: What is your favorite cheat meal? How do you control yourself from going overboard when you decide to treat yourself?
A: I don’t have a cheat meal per se. I love fruits in general. Though healthy, mangos, kakis and bananas contain a lot of (natural) sugar. These could be my cheat meal.
I control myself by thinking about the damage that going overboard can cause on a long dieting process for definition, for example. You lose all the effort employed over a long period of time.
Q: Do you take any supplements? What do you think is one of the most important supplements someone should take who is training constantly?
A: Yes, I do. I take supplements such Isolated and Hydrolyzed Weight Protein; BCAA; Waxy Mazy and Glutamine.
Q: What’s your social media/contact information?
A: Instagram @susouen
Email for contact: [email protected]
Facebook: We are on FB but I’
d rather be contacted via Instagram or email.
Q: Special thanks to:
A: To my brothers, Roberto, my coach and Samir Souen, my media advisor. Special thanks to my language coach, Ms. Ana Mello.
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