Why join a Claustrophobic gym when you can have fun while working out in the open? A new fitness regime plans to turn mumbaikars into labourers, upping their mind and body fitness by getting them to break bricks and shovel mud
Why join a Claustrophobic gym when you can have fun while working out in the open?u00a0A new fitness regime plans to turn mumbaikars into labourers, upping their mind and body fitness by getting them to break bricks and shovel mud
Mumbai's traffic jams leave you more conscious of your surroundings than Buddhist monks. Labourers working at construction sites or on civic projects, their lean, glistening bodies wearing little else than bermudas and a racer-back ganji, leave you wondering why the studs who amble to hi-tech gyms each morning, wouldn't make the half-way fitness mark these guys conquer every day.
There's a guy in town who seems to have pondered over the irony long enough to decide he's going to build the health consciousu00a0 Mumbaikar's stamina by turning him into a mazdoor. Personal trainer, massage therapist, yoga instructor and proprietor of RAPTfx (Remedial Approach Personal Training-Enhancing performance through fitness), an Australian-based firm, Prameet Kotak, is set to mimic the everyday life of a manual labourer so that you can acquire the to-die-for muscles these guys sport matter-of-factly.
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Labour Intensive workouts involve the most used movements by labourers (pulling hand carts, using the digging bar to dig the ground, shovel to move dirt and sand, wheel barrow to move load, picking up rocks and throwing them into place). Armed with an axe, sledgehammer and a digging bar, Prameet sets into his Malabar Hill residence backyard to demonstrate how a simple action like digging the ground can help tone your biceps and triceps, build muscles and strengthen your abdomen. "It's about learning the right technique and using your physical strength to complete various labour-intensive chores. The aim is to have fun while you work out in the fresh air. This workout benefits not just the body but mind too, putting you at ease and upping your flexibility," he says.
3 levels to the workout
He plans to introduce what he calls Labour Intensive Workouts, a 3-level programme that focuses on improving your overall fitness. With each successive level, the intensity of the workout increases. Level one will involve using various tools including an axe, sledgehammer and a digging bar to dig the ground, or pushing a cart full of bricks. Level two will test your stamina by making you push a car, while Level 3 will involve using heavier tools that need to be handled accurately to avoid injuries. The sessions are expected to start in the next few months in Mumbai, before moving to other metros. The first level 12-session programme will be held three times a week and will cost Rs 2,999.
Canu00a0this form of trainingu00a0work? We ask Mumbai's fitness experts
Deanne Pandey
Fitness trainer
If you are strong and physically fit, you can opt for this sort of fitness programme after consulting a reputed fitness trainer and receiving a clean chit from your physician. I don't believe everyone can pull this off.
Dr Rishi Sherekar
Sports medicine specialist
This form of functional training is best done slowly and gradually. Too many intensive workouts at one go are likely to leave you with injuries.
What is functional training?
The origins of functional training can be traced to the process of rehabilitation. Physical therapists developed exercises that mimicked what patients did at home or work in order to help them return to their lives or jobs after an injury or surgery. Functional training includes weight bearing activities targeted at core muscles of the abdomen and lower back.
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