Recently I had another bout of fitness consciousness (for those who’ve seen me you’re allowed the snide laugh). Anyway, this post is about what I discovered from my survey which lasted about a month. You see, fitness is a very important issue and needs a lot of consideration before one decides on what should one do for one’s wellbeing. The options are endless:
1. Regular Walking- Tried it for a month, what happens is this: I Sleep anywhere between 12 to 5 and then getting up in morning at 6 (if I slept at all) and putting on the shoes is a headache. So out of the whole month, guess I managed the walk for 12 days max.
a. Pros:
i. It’s a great stress buster and mind reliever.
ii. The morning air does wonders to your thought process.
iii. The only thing you need is your favorite set of songs and a bit of imagination and then you’re separated from the world, into your own dreamland. So it’s like walking on the ground and having the ability to picture yourself in live-karaoke singing ‘Watch me Shine’ or better still imagining the love of your life singing the best romantic song for you. Sweet. Point is the morning walk is totally entertaining.
iv. Pretty cheap. Actually free. No hidden cost, no plus service tax. Just you and your shoes.
b. Cons:
i. As I said, the waking up in the morning without any initiative, I don’t get to measure my performance, no hot guys jog in my joggers park, so it’s about 12 out of 30 days which is pretty undisciplined if one is looking at perfect fitness.
ii. The weather. I tried walking in the rain, but people give you weird looks!! Plus always a fear of coming down with flu. So yeah it’s totally dependent on the monsoon which in turn is totally unpredictable.
iii. The greatest limitation is my self consciousness. I have this ground near my home used by everyone for the morning fitness ritual. So it has a center ground where kids and college kids (Gosh! I am old) play football/cricket. The ground is surrounded by a walking track where uncles, aunties and grannies grandpas walk around. Amidst them, is me walking with my songs- So I complete one circle, then I think next circle I will run but my feet just refuse to obey me, next I think at least I will jog-This command is also rejected by my legs. In turn, my inner voice (the one that always came clad in whites in a mirror in old bollywood movies) shows me the reality. Here’s our conversation:
Me: Guess I will run for the next round.
Inner Voice: You must be kidding!
Me: What’s the harm? I am sure I can jog at least.
Inner Voice: See the kids in the ground? They are going to stop playing and start staring. See the Uncle at 5 o clock angle, yeah yeah! The one who lives opposite you, he is already stealing glances at you, Bet he is going to burst out laughing when u start running. And then slowly the world will come to a standstill and then everyone will be laughing!
Me: Rubbish! No one is even noticing me. No one even knows me here.
Inner Voice: That’s what you think! Go ahead, make a fool of yourself. As if I care!
Me: (Now a bit concerned) yeah, Maybe. Anyways, it’s rained yesterday so the ground is bit slippery. Guess will try the running tomorrow.
2. Swimming: This is something I thoroughly enjoyed. It’s fun + hectic + soothing. I was on cloud nine when I could swim 10 laps without a break in a 25 m pool. Why did I stop? Yes, the rains played havoc. Plus "the cannot measure the performance" thing. I mean I know I was getting good on my stamina but could not see the difference in me also it leaves the hair dry and frizzy throughout the day. (Being a girl, vanity always wins). Another side effect I ate like a pig when I used to swim, which further put me in depression psychologically. Still, given a chance I enjoy swimming now and then.
3. Gymming: Now comes the big market of gyms. Recently, I took a auto from Kalyaninagar to Kothrud and on the route started counting the number of gyms, by the time I reached my destination I had given up after counting close to 40 (including the slimming centers ). Point is this business is flourishing, so now Let’s move on to what I found in my survey:
a. The number of gyms I called for direct enquiry- 4
i. One of the operators of one of the leading gyms (which compared their discounts with the rains in Pune) told me point blank that she cannot give me any details unless I go there. Apparently, their procedure was to scan a candidate and then jot a fitness plan based on the candidate’s extent of obesity and then they decide upon how much to charge. My point was, just because I am calling a gym to enquire doesn’t mean that I am obese, Rgt? (Before anyone says," But you’re" please read the definition of obesity, it’s for people with BMI> 30. I am in the safe range of 25 )
ii. The internationally acclaimed (rich metal) gym: It had a very rude and so-called self acclaimed ‘high society socialite’ at the reception. And I used a two-wheeler to commute. So she asks me to fill up the details and then proceeds to tell me the exorbitant prices. Naturally, by now she had judged me as will-not-be-able-to-afford category. Anyway I walked out before I could throw a fit at their charges.
iii. My old gym well I contemplated joining that. It was pretty good managed by doctors and they helped me a lot during my previous bout of fitness consciousness last year. But then why had I left? I moved and now its too far.
iv. Another international chain of gyms. So I call them and they tell me that anytime has a time limit. Point taken the person on phone was concentrating more on his fake accent then the info he was giving me out. I mean I get it that you belong to an international chain, but why fake the accent? I really get put off by this, but anyway I went there in my desperation only to be told that I have to pay a membership fees valid for 9 years + monthly usage fee. My point is, I don’t even know where I will be next year, why would I invest for nine? Plus who guarantees there presence for 9 years? Weird logic!
That’s it about my various options. There were some minor ones which I tried out
1. Badminton: Totally dependent on my sis for that.
2. Sauna: Always in thoughts, never called the telebrand Guess I still have my brains in the right place.
3. VLCC Gels: Seriously, people who do business just know the pulse of the frustrated over-eating Indian.
4. Ree-Tone: 5600 bucks? Are you kidding me? I can join a gym in half the price!
5. GM Diet: Done it when I was younger and stupider I eat like a pig after the stipulated 7 days and gain all the water lost pretty soon.
6. Weekend trekking trips: Fun actually. Climbed Sinhagad for a month, every Sunday. And barged on bhaji and dahi upon reaching the top. End result: sore feet, eating more than I burned, Flexon MR Addiction.
7. Eating less- Actually trying to eat less. Never works being a true bred Punjabi I can’t do without my weekly dose of chicken.
Final Decision: Sheepishly, I confess that I ended up joining a gym, where the rates matched the facilities. The people were good enough. No fake accents.Near my home so accessible. My logic is plain- I have paid them, so unlike the free walk which I ditched most of the time, I will at least be regular, i.e. get up and go because I invested my hard-earned money this btw proves why the health market is flourishing. More so why the gyms are flourishing.
1. Regular Walking- Tried it for a month, what happens is this: I Sleep anywhere between 12 to 5 and then getting up in morning at 6 (if I slept at all) and putting on the shoes is a headache. So out of the whole month, guess I managed the walk for 12 days max.
a. Pros:
i. It’s a great stress buster and mind reliever.
ii. The morning air does wonders to your thought process.
iii. The only thing you need is your favorite set of songs and a bit of imagination and then you’re separated from the world, into your own dreamland. So it’s like walking on the ground and having the ability to picture yourself in live-karaoke singing ‘Watch me Shine’ or better still imagining the love of your life singing the best romantic song for you. Sweet. Point is the morning walk is totally entertaining.
iv. Pretty cheap. Actually free. No hidden cost, no plus service tax. Just you and your shoes.
b. Cons:
i. As I said, the waking up in the morning without any initiative, I don’t get to measure my performance, no hot guys jog in my joggers park, so it’s about 12 out of 30 days which is pretty undisciplined if one is looking at perfect fitness.
ii. The weather. I tried walking in the rain, but people give you weird looks!! Plus always a fear of coming down with flu. So yeah it’s totally dependent on the monsoon which in turn is totally unpredictable.
iii. The greatest limitation is my self consciousness. I have this ground near my home used by everyone for the morning fitness ritual. So it has a center ground where kids and college kids (Gosh! I am old) play football/cricket. The ground is surrounded by a walking track where uncles, aunties and grannies grandpas walk around. Amidst them, is me walking with my songs- So I complete one circle, then I think next circle I will run but my feet just refuse to obey me, next I think at least I will jog-This command is also rejected by my legs. In turn, my inner voice (the one that always came clad in whites in a mirror in old bollywood movies) shows me the reality. Here’s our conversation:
Me: Guess I will run for the next round.
Inner Voice: You must be kidding!
Me: What’s the harm? I am sure I can jog at least.
Inner Voice: See the kids in the ground? They are going to stop playing and start staring. See the Uncle at 5 o clock angle, yeah yeah! The one who lives opposite you, he is already stealing glances at you, Bet he is going to burst out laughing when u start running. And then slowly the world will come to a standstill and then everyone will be laughing!
Me: Rubbish! No one is even noticing me. No one even knows me here.
Inner Voice: That’s what you think! Go ahead, make a fool of yourself. As if I care!
Me: (Now a bit concerned) yeah, Maybe. Anyways, it’s rained yesterday so the ground is bit slippery. Guess will try the running tomorrow.
2. Swimming: This is something I thoroughly enjoyed. It’s fun + hectic + soothing. I was on cloud nine when I could swim 10 laps without a break in a 25 m pool. Why did I stop? Yes, the rains played havoc. Plus "the cannot measure the performance" thing. I mean I know I was getting good on my stamina but could not see the difference in me also it leaves the hair dry and frizzy throughout the day. (Being a girl, vanity always wins). Another side effect I ate like a pig when I used to swim, which further put me in depression psychologically. Still, given a chance I enjoy swimming now and then.
3. Gymming: Now comes the big market of gyms. Recently, I took a auto from Kalyaninagar to Kothrud and on the route started counting the number of gyms, by the time I reached my destination I had given up after counting close to 40 (including the slimming centers ). Point is this business is flourishing, so now Let’s move on to what I found in my survey:
a. The number of gyms I called for direct enquiry- 4
i. One of the operators of one of the leading gyms (which compared their discounts with the rains in Pune) told me point blank that she cannot give me any details unless I go there. Apparently, their procedure was to scan a candidate and then jot a fitness plan based on the candidate’s extent of obesity and then they decide upon how much to charge. My point was, just because I am calling a gym to enquire doesn’t mean that I am obese, Rgt? (Before anyone says," But you’re" please read the definition of obesity, it’s for people with BMI> 30. I am in the safe range of 25 )
ii. The internationally acclaimed (rich metal) gym: It had a very rude and so-called self acclaimed ‘high society socialite’ at the reception. And I used a two-wheeler to commute. So she asks me to fill up the details and then proceeds to tell me the exorbitant prices. Naturally, by now she had judged me as will-not-be-able-to-afford category. Anyway I walked out before I could throw a fit at their charges.
iii. My old gym well I contemplated joining that. It was pretty good managed by doctors and they helped me a lot during my previous bout of fitness consciousness last year. But then why had I left? I moved and now its too far.
iv. Another international chain of gyms. So I call them and they tell me that anytime has a time limit. Point taken the person on phone was concentrating more on his fake accent then the info he was giving me out. I mean I get it that you belong to an international chain, but why fake the accent? I really get put off by this, but anyway I went there in my desperation only to be told that I have to pay a membership fees valid for 9 years + monthly usage fee. My point is, I don’t even know where I will be next year, why would I invest for nine? Plus who guarantees there presence for 9 years? Weird logic!
That’s it about my various options. There were some minor ones which I tried out
1. Badminton: Totally dependent on my sis for that.
2. Sauna: Always in thoughts, never called the telebrand Guess I still have my brains in the right place.
3. VLCC Gels: Seriously, people who do business just know the pulse of the frustrated over-eating Indian.
4. Ree-Tone: 5600 bucks? Are you kidding me? I can join a gym in half the price!
5. GM Diet: Done it when I was younger and stupider I eat like a pig after the stipulated 7 days and gain all the water lost pretty soon.
6. Weekend trekking trips: Fun actually. Climbed Sinhagad for a month, every Sunday. And barged on bhaji and dahi upon reaching the top. End result: sore feet, eating more than I burned, Flexon MR Addiction.
7. Eating less- Actually trying to eat less. Never works being a true bred Punjabi I can’t do without my weekly dose of chicken.
Final Decision: Sheepishly, I confess that I ended up joining a gym, where the rates matched the facilities. The people were good enough. No fake accents.Near my home so accessible. My logic is plain- I have paid them, so unlike the free walk which I ditched most of the time, I will at least be regular, i.e. get up and go because I invested my hard-earned money this btw proves why the health market is flourishing. More so why the gyms are flourishing.
4 comments:
"GM Diet: Done it when I was younger and stupider I eat like a pig after the stipulated 7 days and gain all the water lost pretty soon ".
When u were younger n stupider..!!!..I think this was not long back..;)
Well..gym,swimming,diet,..hehe..i know nothing help me too..:(..n u know better..
rather after leaving all this..m gaining more fat compare to prior njoying all these stress busters..
now wat i feel is...
money is directly proportional to becoming a fitness freak..
as we earn more n more we somehow start valuing everything in terms of money..
you see our prior generation,rarely few go to gym,swimming,n blah blah options..but they are more fit compare to us..
So have you ever tried to evaluate whats there Mantra of being FIT.
P.S:Well you missed out on yoga...
Agreed :-)
Money Money...
I missed Yoga? How Can i?
Well tried tht too... thx to Ramdev baba... But wahi hai... have to do at home.. and as soon as I put the newly bought Yoga mat on floor.. Sleeping somehow seems a better option than trying to be a gymnast :-) That covers Yoga :-)
nice...
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