Fitness

There is nothing like a vigorous massage at the end of a tiring day. All the better if it is done by a perfumed body lotion or massage oil.
❑ For thunder thighs, lie on a piece of mattress with left tilt, and pull your right leg close to face. Repeat this with right tilt and left leg. Just as for push ups, begin this exercise with 5 or 10 tilts, raising their number subsequently.
❑ Similarly to have a flat abdomen, take recourse to abtightener exercise. Lie down supine on back with knees bowed and back and abdomen pressed to each other. Take your hands at the back of neck and try rising with the force of back muscles.
❑ It’s easy to make your chest attractive. Lifting your hands by elbow twice them behind the neck to a point where both palms press together. Do this for 10 times in the beginning. Then gradually increase this number.
❑ To strengthen arms and shoulders hold dumbells in fists, and position hands in front of back. Then raise hand to shoulder level. In the beginning it may be done 20 or so. Viz, with both hands, in sum total, you will take 40 dumbell rounds.
❑ To keep body fit and attractive, last but not the least, is constructive thinking. Whatsoever the odds, let them not colour your perception. Keep worries at bay. That will keep your face and body shining without cosmetics.
In our society sanctity of life is formaly recognised. There are ample evidences to this effect in our culture and religious parlance. There is an old saying—‘If there is life, then only there is the truth of universe.’ But the topic of health in 21st Century is a craze that is simply unparalleled and mind boggling. Actually the fitness mania which hetherto was exclusive preserve of women and struggling filmstars, has now encompassed men and women of all age groups from all walks of life. Since last couple of years good health, nubile looks and a well chiselled body are most sought after assets.
With the result, there is flood of sorts of health clubs in big cities, small towns and even in lanes and bylanes of human habitation. Today’s generation X is frantic for an enviable figure. Now a well made body is no more a benediction of nature, but a carefully crafted blue point in health clubs and fitness certres. Thanks to state of art facilities, health gizmos, cosmetic surgery, chemical dyes, and dietic stratagem available under one roof, all it needs is a wad of currency notes to ward off your old age.
Obviously, fitness and beauty centres are games of consumerist culture being played through aegis of fashion show, beauty pageants and television channels. Business of health centres is growing by the day, what with health services being sold here like over the counter products.
Today jim and health clubs are major attractions of five star hotels. Tourism industry too is according fitness fare a pride of place. Even bicycle manufacturers are churning out exercising gizmos on a large scale.
How to do it is no problem either. VCDs available aplenty in market tell you how to do your exercises. And books aren’t far behind. A string of them like ‘Keep fit’, ‘Stay fit’, ‘The 10 laws of good health’, and the one you are already reading, are there for your perusal and guidance. No less in number are books on balanced diet. Indeed, the consumerist market seems to have comes of age.
As on today Lutyen’s Delhi has some 150 to 200 number of health haunts and fitness frills. They are seen in almost every locality but in South Delhi health club craze is at its peak. And the spirit is catching on in east, west and north of the capital city. Health clubs come in myriad formations offering myriad packages.
A well bedecked AC room for Yogasanas, Vibrator belt, Rowing machine, Jim room equipped with cycle and rollers, a fast jet of hot water arch, massage room, steam room, Sauna chamber, and full size wall mirrors around-these facilities are available in about two dozens of fitness centres. Rest of health joints are run-of-the-mill with an assortment of equipments in one over stocked room, with no fitness or nutrition experts, but just the owner and his one or two workers for attendance. They too, seem busy in collecting money as gullible customers make believe to pay for fitness.
Generally health centres go about executing their fitness plan in two way. One—by reducing excess fat or flab, and two—by various drills and exercises. Since popularity of health gadgets has gone up fast, health centres are flush with instruments like keep fit machine, vibrator belt, tummy and thigh rollers, charming machine, swappers, abdominal board, double burner, standing sitting twister, recumbant bike, spanomatic bed massager, breast developer etc.
Apart from these above, relatively light aerobic exercises are conducted in a musical ambiance. Electronic devices are pressed in service to melt extra body fat. Heat machines do this job well but the rider is worrisome wrinkling of body skin. Obesity, actually, is no cosmetic problem. It is infact an overly biochemical blemish and hence deserves treatment from a medical point of view. Ironically though, most fitness programmes are whimsical and tentative. Ergo, you end up inviting several problems as you proceed to tack just one.
The lure of ‘figure and fitness’ amongst women is at the peak of frenzy. It is thanks to them that so many of slimming centres and clinics boasting of health and beauty package, have sprung up fast. There was a time when women were virtually barred from doing physical exercise and lifting heavy weights. And past-partum, the vulnerable health of mothers was zealously looked after. Not so any longer now. At health centres, women lift weight and pump iron. All the same many fitness centres have taken on them to remake lost figures of women who have just delivered their new borns.
Infact there is more to women health than a charade of skipping ropes, cycling and scouting. Doning aerobic outfits women are dancing attendance in five star health clubs. Those who are keep on a career like air hostess, hotel receptionist, model, announcer etc—are particularly attracted to fitness centres. Yet the old age group is not the one to out done. They too are fond of fitness fun.
No wonder women in their sixties and seventies are frequenting metropolitan jims. And this has nothing to do with professional persuit. All they want is just to look great. Remaining in best of health is also a necessity for them what with most elders leading solitary existence these days.
Health clubs are a rage with youth of today. And the cascading effect has gone on even to middle class segment, thanks to celluloid and television blitz expounding life laced with glitter and action. Ergo, membership of health centres is a haute status symbol today.
And membership of such clubs doesn’t come easy. Albeit what matter is the extent and quality of health they promise against hefty enrolment fee of 20-25 thousands and even a lakh of rupees per year.
Experts aver that even premier health clubs are messing with public health. Their training staff lacks hands on experience. And their promise to give you moon within a week is absolutely unreliable. Yet the craze for fitness is so overwhelming that people flock to health clubs even knowing well that their claims are dubious.
Since ordinary people scarce go into nuances of profit and loss, the general impression is this that there is no alternative to health clubs. And that what the staff instructor there can accomplish for you in a short span of time—can’t be acquired from somewhere else.
Whatever be the case, desire for dashing health is neither a clone of western thought nor a fancied preoccupation. This is a fallout of man’s search for self defence, says Dr. Urvashi Jha of Delhi Appolo Hospital, in present day trend of disintegrating joint-family systems.
Be that as it may, it is clear beyond doubt that people at the centre of health club revolution are rich class. Because the laity neither has money nor inclination for swimming pools, health clubs and slimming centres. “It’s not a question of money,” says owner of a posh South Delhi jim, ‘‘but of looking attractive. And we have a rush of people from all age groups.”
Significantly, the net of health clubs is increasing by the day, and yet no centre has paucity of customers. Urbanites in particular are more health conscious, ergo health clubs are hobby and deemed mandatory for modern life style. But the question is—are the flushing health clubs are minting money under garb of health reform. Hence it is necessary to bring them under the ambit of Consumer Protection Act.
Wait for that magical pill
There is a panacea for obese gentry now, in the pipeline though. Vithal Malay Institute of Scientific Research Foundation may be a ray of hope for them. This institute has compounded a tablet for reducing body fat. This medicine will come in market after a series of scientific trials. The drug is without side-effects and surprisingly sweet in taste.
This medicine is prepared from the skin (peel) of Garsinia or kokoos, a fruit grown on sea shores of Konkan and used commonly in native culinary. However its therapeautic effect was known only in the middle of year 1960. The siren was first blown by a scientist at Central Food Technology Research Institute (CFTRI) who analysed hydroxycitric acid content of fruit’s outer coating. As India is a major kokoos producing nation, this finding created ripples far and wide.
Now the faculty at Vitthal Malaya Institute of Scientific Research Foundation has succeeded in preparing a highly soluble powder substance from pure hydroxy citric acid (HCA) obtained from these fruits.
This weight reducing pill can chewed, swallowed, or taken in solution form. Says Prof. P.V. Subbarao—If you take one tablet of it half an hour before lunch, and half an hour before dinner everyday; you’ll soon loose weight and look good. This medicine acts by consummating—hunger, virtually, even before you eat your food. So the feeling of subdued hunger makes you eat less.
The more you want to slim down, the longer you should take this medicine. However, those who are genetically predisposed obesity, will not benefit from it. Albeit even in this group, the drug can put a stop to alarming weight gain.
Remain constitutionalLy sound
Doesn’t it happen often that you are mesmerised by a damsel’s beauty or her sheer presence? Doubtless, you stare at her, possessed, and thinking—If only I had her kind of graceful personality, and how can I be her?
A well proportioned and well made body rests on two cardinal principals. One—food. Two—exercise. Indeed there can be no radical alteration in physique gifted to you by nature, yet there is ample scope tending it and developing it. So, reach out for a measuring tape right now, and measure your vital statistics. Do so without clothes on as that gives an accurate assessment.

Coming to food, forget how you ate and drank till date, and start on a clean slate, as explained below.
Put breaks on tea and coffee. Only a cup of them in morning, and in evening, should suffice. Your early morning drink should be a lemon squeezed in a glass of water stirred with one spoonful of honey. After your morning ablutions, if you are hard pressed for time, do rope skipping (begin with 10 and increase on number later). If there is time at your disposal, use it for houshold cleaning and laundry washing. Both these activities augur well for your health, and are full fledged exercise in themselves.
Besides this, rope skipping is a popular exercise for women. At any point of time during the day, when you are empty stomach, go for rope hopping.
❑ When you are home alone, how about dancing to the tune of a select music cassette? It’ll amuse you and tune you up all the same.
❑ There are some such exercises which you can do any time in privacy of your home. They will ward off your monotomy and lethargy and firm up your body muscles.
❑ When you stand up from squatting position, don’t press your knees or bend your back. Rather, take your foot forward and stand up smartly in one go.
❑ If you must pick up something lying on floor, no need to sit down for the job. But bend your back on unwavering legs, and take your pick.
❑ Rather than sitting on knees, sit with knees pressed to abdomen while washing clothes or working in your kitchen garden.
❑ Whenever you get up from a chair or sofa, take help of back support wood work, and rise on your toes twisting your body slightly to the right and the left.
❑ When just idling, widen your legs, spread out arms and swing your back to left and right—keeping legs firm on ground.
Fitness—mandatory, or forced
A sound health is key note of modern living, what with fast opening slimming shops spreading the message of holistic health awareness. Today young, old and children, all are alive to their fitness needs.
Pick up any newspaper, you’ll find it stacked with ads about dieting and slimming down without recourse to physical exercises. Men and women desiring to look and feel good, patronise these ads. Their hard work and application even wins them their desired fat loss, but some fail and quite crying foul. Nevertheless these ads serve one purpose well—even a layman now believes that health is wealth.
Now it’s logical to ask—What fitness is all about? Is it looking lean and mean, or looking attractive and being full and proportionately bodied? Is fitness a state of being disease free, or a state of pleasant disposition? Many a times a slim-trim person looks good. But when medically examined, is found unfit. At times tension and worries take their toll on mind and body, and make you unfit. It’s actually a balance of physical and mental health which bodes fitness. A sound mind, in a sound body, so to say, is the defining statement. When we talk of physical health, we mean a disease free body. It’s only when a man is disease free that he can hope to enjoy life and have a good time.
Mental health is paramount
Psychiatric health is an important fitness parameter. Emotional energy working in apt mode and balance impacts our body favourably. If a person is prone to tantrum, he tires easily and needs rest at frequent intervals. But a joyous person seems to have endless energy at his disposal.
Apart from mental and physical health, body posture is an important component of overall fitness. That is, the right way to sit, get up and walk around. Sitting haphazardly, walking with raised or bowed shoulders, leads to deposition of fat at wrong places in body tissues. At the same time mental and physical health is imperiled by intoxicants like wine, tobacco, cigarette, opium, hashis, and brown sugar. These put working of myriad body part in jeopardy. Thus, conditions are created for diseases and ill health, making a man either lethargic or hyper active.
Tension or worry is another fitness snag. A perturbed person can’t work efficiently. In the rat race of present day materialism, people work head over heels to earn extra buck. High career ambitions and rising cost of living leave little time for people to think, exercise, and entertain theirselves. Hence the plethora of ailments and health breaks. People are ill, but aren’t worried about treatment. But now, with passage of time, fitness has become extremely important and indispensable. It is one cardinal prerequisite for jobs and business undertakings. Hence fitness is prime need for present day living.
Past couple of years have seen emergence of niche careers like modelling, acting and anchoring in television—the electronic media, front office jobs in corporate houses, public relations jobs, etc. where a smart turnout is prime requirement.
The world, it seems has now become a pageant of sorts for myriad beauty contests. Indian damsels have made a name for themselves in beauty parlance world wide. Ergo parents are not chany of sending their wards to fitness and beauty parlours. Arrival of many foreign corporations on Indian shores, and opening up of global employment avenues have made fitness a rage and compulsion.
With passage of time we seem to have grown overly dependent on domestic servants for routine chores, all thanks to modern life style flush with luxuries and lacking woefully in physical exercise. On this Sonia has this to say—“As long as we didn’t have car, I used to go scouting for minor errands. But over since the arrival of car, I drive up even for milk and groceries. In such situation, obviously, body weight is bound to go up.”
No doubt, obesity is more visible in women folks today than ever before. Oodles of fat are deposing on abdomen, hips, arms and hand, reason being domestic chores increasingly getting devoid of manual labour. Brooming, sweeping, dusting, cleaning of utensils, are all done by servants, and for clothes there is a washing machine. Such help seem reasonable for working women, but for housewives, these are inadvisable.
Leaving your house to the mercy of domestic help, and wailing about your obesity in near neighbourhood, serves no purpose. Why feel shy of doing your home and kitchen. It’s absolutely inapt to believe that attending to domestinc chores will undermine your social status.
Importance of domestic chores
We often imitate western life style. Their clothes, foods, drinks— we admire them all. But we don’t seem to register that there are no servants there. By and large householders do their menial chores all by themselves.
So, if you are really keen to be fit as fiddle, say bye to your maid servant, do your dues yourself, and forget about going to slimming centre. But what happens in real life is we panic if maid servant doesn’t turn up, that we will have to slog it on our own, utensils are piled up in sink, such thoughts crush our mind. Somehow we bring overselves around to pickup broom and do a clean up. Yet you remain irritable and can’t enjoy your work in kitchen.
So haven’t we grown to be slaves of our servants? Indeed woking a slave of them, we only end up wasting our physical and mental energies.
Today fitness is being confused with fashion. Whether fashion is a state of mind, or a compulsion of for the so called mod men and women of society, is a moot point. But one thing is for certain—fitness is not fashion, it’s prime necessity. Most people go for walk early in the morning. If you don’t have time or inclination for it, do yogasanas, rope jumping, aerobics, or even dance to the tune of music—exercise is a must.
Seema joined a famous fitness centre to cut on her flab. But her face grew pale lack lustre, making her look older than her age. She grew physically weak and temperamental too. Then she decided to stop dieting—all was well within a short span of time.
For fitness you need right kind of eating, living and thinking. To remain healthy, eat a balance food. When vitamin, proteins, fat and carbohydrates etc are being taken in apt amount, and on top of it you do exercise as well, you will look fit and fine in a matter of few months only.
Drinking water in flush amounts is equally important for health. Salad fruits and other fibre rich foods should be taken in routine. White flour, common salt, sugar milk and rice products—an excessive consumption of these is harmful for health.
It is also inadvisable to remain hungry or go on a crash diet. Eat wide ranging food items, albeit in moderation. And exercise regularly. Make happiness a habit, and fitness wont remain far away from you. Young girls these days are mad about their figure. They want to look like models and film heroines. For that they remain hungry for the whole day long little realising that adequate diet is indispensable for a balanced personality and mental acumen. Today’s girls are tomorrow’s mothers. A weak body will breed diseases. Hence a balance has to be struck between ‘fitness’ and figure.
For then only can one enjoy life to the fullest extent. Fitness is no compulsion. It’s a necessity. It’s only this mindset which will give you lasting happiness.
Slim and supple are haute couture
Have a cursory glance at gals and guys out in park early in the morning and public places enjoyed in myriad physical training exercise. This is a common sight these days. If you talk to them you will discover that they draw inspiration from ramp or celluloid beauties and dashing handsome heroes.
Gone are the days when girls swooned around a flabby Sanjeev Kumar, and boys were beholden to raw and fullsome beauty of Vaijyantimala and Hemamalini. As of now they would prefer slim and trim to full flesh body. And hence the popularity of Sonali Bendre, Aishwarya Rai, and Urmila Matondkar. Even girls go for muscular hankos like Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt. And why not? After all fat is passe, and lean is in. This is the defining abstract of what began of fitness revolution about two decades back.
Thanks to this fitness fever that health clubs, jims and fitness centres are mushrooming all over the country. Number of those who stroll every morning has gone up tremendously. Trade Pundits are churning out gizmos galore for any one who cares to reduce his waist line. Low calorie over the counter produts are available aplenty. No wonder Pepsi the popular drink has launched ‘Diet-Pepsi’, its low-calorie, clone. Likewise, Coke has come up with ‘Diet-Coke’.
‘Be hit be fit’ seems to be the mantra of new age. Today what is seen is a prospective bride in not dextrity in needle work or cooking, but whether she has the persona which the boy is looking for. Modern youth prefers a partner with whom he can move in society with elan. Apart from educational qualification what a prospective groom looks for in a girl is a charming figure. Likewise girl too is quick to scale boy’s personality through casual glances.
This fashion of look-good-feel-good has found a good sponsor in print and electronic media.
Statistics reveal that Bollywood heroines and popular models of past couple of years are 5-10% leaner and slimmer as compared to average women. Advertising norms today being what they are, a first time mother appears to weigh between 45-50 kgs.—no more. Models and actors appearing in teleserials are so blitzekriegingly fit, that a normal viewer can’t help but take cognisance of his own lackadaisical health.
Fitness today doesn’t mean narrow waist and broad shoulders. Its meaning and scope has gone far ahead of health club and aerobic centre to include nuances of eating and drinking as well.
In good old days hard manual work was norm in Indian society. People did lot of physical exercise burning calories in abundance. Hence their routine diet was loaded with fried roasted high calorie diet. But that was then. For now, intake of calories is a matter of serious deliberation. Talwarkar Joint of Bombay began as a gym but sensing the pulse of time became a full fledged fitness centre which included advisory services on food and nutrition as well. Today no fitness centre can boast of class sans services of a trained nutritionist.
Not too long ago, people looked for health club when pestered by there physician repeatedly to shed extra weight. At no more of such procastrination now. A few notches up in weight and people scamper to register their names is gym. Apart from that they are keen to knew nutritional and calories status of their food as well.
Successfully running Talwalkar gym in Kanpur since last couple of years, Umesh Kumar says—‘‘Most visitors to my gym intend acquiring one-up fitness and in particular gorgious looks. Fitness now is a symbol of social status.’’ This mindset has bestirred all—young and old.
Another good reason behind fitness fever is disire to jell and vibe with modern life style. Girls with massive waist and heavy hips can’t put on western attire with comfort.
So earlier she was all but forced to wear Salwar Kurta. But now gym and fitness centres have saved her from falling down and out by helping her out with slim and comely frame. When all it needs is a bit of hard work to transform into a Karishma Kapoor—or Salman Khan—no wonder then that business of health clubs is progressing by leaps and bounds.
Machines for moulding human flesh, and building muscles for fitness gadgets, is one equation shared not only by fashion pundits and health club operators alone. Counting on calories the popular soft drink Coke has peddled Diet Coke—the low calories drink in beverage market. The drink indeed has a bright future considering fitness craze reaching to new height. No doubt the present market of low calories foods and drinks is lukewarm, but for that, novelty of idea is to blame. But in times to come, this segment of market will surely pick up momentum.
A survery conducted on and cross section of Indian society says foods habits of Indian youth are changing significantly. Earlier ghee/oil dripping paranthas were favourite breakfast item, but not so now, Taste, it seems is taking back seat, and health front one. Hence replacement of traditional fried food with light weight flakes, lemon, honey, porridge and milk. For upper class people the day begins with fruits and juices.
As craze for low calorie foods picks up, it’s only a matter of time when sugarless cakes, jams and fat free mayonaire will flood Indian market. Some multinationals are even trying to innovate fatless clones of popular Indian snacks like samosa and jalebi.
Is fitness a mere fever which would subside in course of time, or is it a change that’s here to stay put? Chances are it’s here to stay as life style change—and permanent at that. Being guided by calorie chart is indeed health favouring but is has a social relevance too. With the passage of time joint family system is replaced by solo families where both spouses are working—in business or vocations. Daily moving out of home for work and meeting people, can be taxing for sanctity of marital relationship. But that’s only when you aren’t bothered about your figure and health profile. Ergo, spouses take extra care to remain slim trim and lovable to each other.
From college girls to retired bankers, fitness craze is there for all to see. And thanks to its wide ranging social acceptance becuase of television blitz, the health club business has no chance of winding up ever in future.

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