Where working out spells fun

As you move into the aerobics hall, you see young and old sweating it out to the rhythm of music, improvising steps, sneaking a look at themselves in the mirrors all around, checking if they’re doing fine as they get down to the floor to exercise the abs (abdominals, for the uninitiated) and the thighs.

Says Anoop Debnath, the aerobics instructor, “I enjoy these sessions as much as dancing. I keep creating new steps and I’ve divided the session into fixed slots for working out different parts of the body. The basic aim is to shed off the calories minus the pain. I try to liven up the entire session.”

But there are others who prefer the gymnasium, the feel of working on the machines. So you have the ab-crunchers, the leg curls, steppers, treadmills and stationary cycles, all with in-bulit programming facilities to monitor your pulse rate, your speed, the number of calories you’ve burnt and the distance you have `travelled’. Says Rohit Khanna, who holds the Mr. Punjab University title in the 65 kg category and is also an instructor at the gym, “The best part is that the machines are designed in such a way that you do not strain or harm your body while working out. For example, during sit-ups for the abdominals, people usually hurt their back and may have major problems later, but in our machines we have support for the back, the arms and the thighs. So, exercising is neither painful, not harmful.”

The gym members also have free access to the spa area where they can shower and spend some leisurely moments in the jacuzzi or getting themselves massaged by trained hands. “The spa area has separate blocks for men and women and is open all the time. It is the members’ preference whether they want to use it before or after the workout,” informs Darshan, the PR executive.

The gym which is open from 6 am to 10 am and 5 pm to 9 pm six days a week has a membership of about 80 people for the aerobics and 105 for the gym. Ladies have separate timings also from 10 am to 1 pm in the fore noons and 3 pm to 5 pm in the evenings. The membership fee, which definitely is on the higher side, with annual membership costing Rs 12,000 and Rs. 19,200 for singles and couples respectively, doesn’t seem to be a deterrent though. And there are concessions too. One can join the aerobics sessions on a monthly basis for which you shell out Rs 600.

In spite of the high charges, what is it that keeps the members glued to this place? Says Sukhmani, who’s in her first year of college and has been a member for eight months, “I feel very comfortable in this atmosphere. Plus, I actually look forward to coming here and working out for there is nothing grinding about it. And I have also made good friends out here, so we all enjoy doing the sessions. Sometimes, we just hang around the place doing a bit of reading, or sipping something or playing on the pool table, it’s a nice end to a hard day.”

That explains the factors that have turned this gym into something more – a comfy place to relax and unwind the stresses of the day, meet friends and nice acquaintances, and look forward to the experience the next day too.

Like I said in the beginning, it’s not just about exercising!