Alethea Borman: Woman of steel

Juggling a family, career and an a hobby relatively uncommon with women, let alone men, in Namibia, would be an overwhelming undertaking for most, but not for Alethea Diana Borman.

The Rehoboth-native is a mother of three and a full-time employee at a leading diamond corporation who still finds the time to be a competitive bodybuilder.

Her habits are arguably out of the ordinary in the Namibian context, and possibly further afield, especially when you consider that a responsibility such as child-rearing is perceived to take its toll on women in general.

But despite her dedication to the sport, Alethea has always put family first and they have in turn been supportive of her ambition of becoming a professional bodybuilder.

“Women tend to be so focused on other things, like their children and husbands, and tend to forget about themselves,” Alethea responded to The Namibian Sport when quizzed about how she balances her eventful life.

“My family are my biggest fans. They are constantly pushing me and believe I have the potential to make it big.

“As for my colleagues, they think I’m a little bit crazy but have always been supportive and a lot of them have contributed financially to assist me with my travelling,” she said.

Alethea has a passion for fitness. She is a qualified personal trainer, certified by the American Council of Exercise, and runs the Get Fit Boot Camp Oranjemund.

“I am a full-time legal adviser, but this is my escape. I think if I stayed in a country where these competitions are frequent and popular, it would have been my profession. But at this stage, it’s my hobby,” she said.

Her love affair with bodybuilding was ignited by her father and older brother, who were avid amateur body builders during her pre-teen years.

With their support, Alethea gradually integrated into weight training and has not looked back since.

“I grew up in a bodybuilding house. Both my father and brother competed when they were young. My brother used to buy bodybuilding books and I loved the muscle definition on the women I saw,” said the 34-year-old, who prides herself on being the “only woman of colour in Namibia to have competed in the Figure Championships”.

“My inspiration came when I saw pictures of Cory Everson [an American female bodybuilding champion and actress] and that is when I was hooked. I think I started to gym at the age of 12. I did my first bodybuilding show at age 14, competing in both the women’s division and doing the couples’ division with my brother,” she said.

THE ART OF PERFECTION

After years of fine-tuning her figure to make the grade in the body fitness division, which requires competitors to have good muscle definition but not to be overly muscular, and in the absence of a platform to compete locally, the ambitious athlete took on her first international challenge in neighbouring South Africa in August 2008, finishing fourth in the Miss Fitness South Africa tournament.

The following year, she was second in the International Federation of Bodybuilders South Africa (IFBBSA) competition, which was followed by a fifth-place finish at the IFBBSA Body Fitness Championships, where she represented Western Province.

In June 2010, Alethea reached the podium again with another runner-up finish at the IFBB Evox Muscle Evolution, but only managed a disappointing 7th position at the SA Mr & Ms Fitness Championships three months later.

She was part of a trio of Namibians at that competition, with Elzke de Goede and Christine Visser, also working mothers, being the others.

After that, she decided to take time off between 2011 and 2012 when she had her third child. The time spent away from the competitive arena has made Alethea hungrier and more focused for success.

Upon her return to action in June 2013, she placed second at the IFBB Western Province Clash of the Titans and two months later, was runner-up at the IFBB WP Championships, a competition where she slipped to third this year.

However, she is determined to better that result at the IFBB Amateur Olympia Championship, also known as the inaugural Amateur Olympia Africa which will be hosted in Johannesburg on 25 and 26 October.

“My dream is to become a professional athlete. This show is the first step towards that. I want to achieve a pro card by placing first. That’s been my life-long dream to stand on stage with the best in the industry,” she said.

“I think my second objective is to show women that you can look great even though you have three kids and have a full-time job. It just takes a hell of a lot of discipline, but it can be done. I have had many obstacles but I pushed through,” added the highly motivated fitness fanatic.

Alethea wants to see more ‘women of colour’ getting involved in fitness sport, saying it is not only fulfilling aesthetically but leads to an all-round better lifestyle.

“Most athletes I compete against are white, so I want to encourage each and every woman, no matter the colour, to start looking after themselves.

“Apart from that, I just love the sport. I love seeing how different I can look after weeks of hard training.

“I also want to teach women that the myth that ‘women become huge and bulky when they train with weights’ is the biggest lie, and a convenient excuse not to lift weights. I lift heavier weights than a lot of the men in our gym, and I am very small (dress size 6-8),” she said of her willingness to make the most of her “God-given talent”.

The cost of bodybuilding, is however just as challenging financially.

“The diet, competition and travel can become very expensive because I have no sponsors, so I have to buy everything for myself.