Racing Through The Day

For Ayesha Billimoria, fitness training is a full-time job, so is keeping the dream of competing at the Olympics alive for fifteen years and working constantly to realise it

- Asmita Bakshi

What no one tells you about the city that never sleeps, is that Mumbai is actually in a state of suspended slumber early in the morning. The roads are relatively empty, the loud orchestra of horns and sirens from the night before now function at decibel levels that permit the easing of frowns and getting to Arts in Motion dance studio in Bandra at 6.30 am isn’t quite as difficult as it would be at any other time of the day. That’s where athlete, fitness trainer and Adidas ambassador Ayesha Billimoria, 30, begins her Wednesday mornings. As the rest of the city rubs the sleep out of its eyes, she trains a group of 20 women to thumping music, making them do everything from planks on another’s downward dog to interesting variations of table top crunches. The exhilaration in the air is palpable, as are Billimoria’s instructive words of advice on form and motivation. And not only does she motivate those 20 or so women in the studio, she also simultaneously motivates close to 20,000 followers on Instagram to get up and work out, by posting updates, stories, live videos and pictures on her handle Fitgirl.India.