Exercise some caution

It seems like the fitness mantra has gotten to some faster than others! We often spot a few people at the gym who seem to spend most of their days there, working out for hours on end. With newer terms like exercise bulimia coming to the fore, where one seemingly purges on physical activities, there is a large enough reason to be concerned about an overworked body.

We decided to ask fervent fitness enthusiasts about their routines, goals and striking a balance as the body needs rest and recuperation too.

Akash Das, a tax analyst hits the gym at least two hours a day, “I head to the gym post work. I concentrate on a specific body part every day, and during the weekends I like to play either badminton or football. It’s hard to build a routine, and you need strong will power and dedication. Nothing stops me until I know I’m perfectly fit. Your diet goes hand in hand with your gymming routine.”  

To top of their ambitious expeditions at the gym, they add a list of extracurricular activities like cycling and trekking, which is enough to leave you panting for breath. For Manasa Sridhar, a hotel management student, her gym activities revolve around college and other activities. Etching out a time for a good workout is always on the mind of this marathoner and adventure junkie. She says, “Fitness is like an addiction of its own. I spend about an hour-and-a-half everyday in the gym, usually between 8.30 pm and 10 pm, which depends on college. My main goal is to keep fit and I do an alternate of both CrossFit and weights, my trainer helps me do the right kind of exercises. I start with 15 to 20 minutes of intense cardio, followed by weights, focusing on a different body part every day. During the weekend, I hit the trail with my cycle, heading out for a pedalling trek!”

Their daily dose seems like a full week’s worth to an average human. Ravi Pai, a manager at a corporate adds, “I used to be a national swimmer with two sessions of workouts every day which I continue even now. Not many people do such a rigorous regime but my body clock allows me to. In the morning, I play badminton for an hour as cardio. In the evening, I do weight training for an hour in the gym. To unwind, I do yoga, Bollywood dance or TRX.” Deepa George, a city-based fitness trainer adds, “There are people who go jogging or do weights in the morning followed by cardio in the evening. There are also opportunities for MMA fitness that a lot of people prefer. Besides doing combat sports or CrossFit workouts, they go to the gym or for a run.”

An individual’s psychological make-up defines how they perceive fitness goals. Nutritionist Ryan Fernando explains, “The downfall to intensive exercise is that it results in the production of large amounts of cortisol and adrenaline, and therefore a loss of muscle too. Exercise Bulimia exists because people believe that they need to burn off excess body fat or remain lean. Whatever their psychological goals demand, it causes more harm than good. I normally see that people with extreme behaviours have obsessive compulsive disorders, charting out fitness goals to the last gram and calorie. They come to a non-professional-driven conclusion that when they do more, they can reach their goals diligently.”