Wellness Revamped And Re-Packaged

Wellness revamped and re-packaged for new-age gym goers is a far cry from traditional equipment-based workouts.

- Sohani Dogra & Regi Jenarius

How many new-age fitness enthusiasts remember what gyms looked like back in the ’90s? Claustrophobic, basement-converted spaces, with low ceilings and bulky equipment, frequented by men pumping iron. Sweat-slathered floors were testimony to the frenzied pace set by the trainers, hardcore boy scouts intent on pushing their clients to build muscles. The usual suspects at these gyms were image-conscious men and women working away on that half inch of imaginary flab, piling on layer upon layer of muscle. Zoom now in to 2016 and its drastically altered picture. Natural light, swathes of floor space in pop colours, yoga mats and exercise balls have nudged their way into the sacred zone of barbells and multi-purpose bench-press machines. Evident from the redesigning of modern gyms, conventional strength training is just one part of the fitness picture that has burgeoning pockets of power yoga, Zumba, Pilates and dynamic training such as Zuu. The demography of gym goers has expanded to reflect this variety of training options—there are now elderly couples, hipsters, middle-aged corporates and power mommies hitting the gym with equal gusto.