Singapore #Fitspo of the Week: Cerigwen Ng

Life goes beyond the digits on the scale and your body is capable of so much more. Yahoo’s #Fitspo of the Week series is dedicated to inspirational men and women in Singapore leading healthy and active lifestyles. Have someone to recommend? Hit Cheryl up on Instagram or Facebook.

Name: Cerigwen Ng (@doofuscheetah)

Age: 28

Height: 1.68m

Weight: 60kg

Occupation: Working in the automotive industry

Status: Single

Diet: I do not have a specific diet that I follow; I eat in moderation, three meals a day.

Training: I train six times a week – two gym sessions and four field sessions.

Q: How did you get started in softball?

I was selected during the CCA trials in secondary school. Being an active kid, I jumped at the opportunity and I have loved it ever since. My teammates and I would seize any chance we get to play the sport, be it during recess or in between lessons during breaks, even though we had training sessions almost every day.

When did you start competing in softball at a higher level?

I always had a dream to represent Singapore in a sport. I was fortunate enough to be talent-spotted for the softball national team trials, and I was then selected to represent Singapore in the 2009 Asian Junior Women’s Softball Championships. That was when my journey with the national softball team started.

What are some of your best achievements?

My best achievement was winning the bronze medal at the 2015 Southeast Asia Games in Singapore. The feeling was very surreal, playing on your home ground with your family and friends cheering you on. No doubt there was a certain amount of pressure, but winning a medal in front of your home crowd is definitely a moment in my life that I’m extremely grateful for and will cherish forever.

What is about softball that you like so much?

The challenge of the game. There are many elements in softball (i.e. batting, fielding, throwing, base running) and all require different skill sets. Also, it doesn’t matter how good a softball player is, if she doesn’t have a solid team around her. Softball is a team sport, yet it has many individual elements at the same time.

What have you learnt in this sport?

As cliché as it may sound, I believe that softball has made me who I am today. Having to juggle my studies and playing softball, to eventually working full-time and still playing the game, I believe that it has improved my time-management skills.

I have often been labelled as a scaredy cat since young, but through the countless scoldings from my coach, I have grown to be a tougher and more resilient person today.

Softball has taught me many things and one of the more important life skills is team work. You achieve your final goal only by working with the other eight teammates on the field and this applies to work and life as well.

What are some of the challenges you face as an athlete in Singapore?

One of the challenges that I face as an athlete is juggling work and training schedules. As we are not full-time athletes, the only time that we can train is after work and on weekends. (i.e. if you are not working, you are training and vice versa).

The next challenge is funding for our overseas training trips as well as competitions. As we have limited funding, we almost always have to end up co-paying for our trips. I believe this applies to most athletes in Singapore, not only to my sport. Softball being a team sport, means at least nine players have to travel in order for us to play a game, which multiplies the overheads substantially.

Last but not the least, we struggle to find training grounds that enable us to train properly.

What are some of the challenges and rewards as a captain leading the team?

The challenge is guiding my younger and more inexperienced teammates while also managing my own expectations and growth as a player. Ultimately, the best reward would definitely be seeing them improve their skills and become better persons off the field as well.

When did you feel the least confident about yourself?

I believe that confidence is a state of mind; it increases and decreases with different situations. There are times when I drag myself to training, but knowing that my teammates will be there definitely lifts my mood up.

How do you keep yourself motivated?

By breaking down my goal into bite-size targets. Knowing that I have made that little progress will boost my self-confidence. Constant positive affirmation is also a key factor that keeps me going.