Lean And Mean

Shivoham, Owner & Head Coach Of The First Crossfit Box In India, Has Trained Aamir Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Ranveer Singh.

- Mukul Kashyap

When did you develop an interest in fitness?

Basically, I was into fitness ever since I was a kid. I was a national level swimmer and started competing at the age of five. And once I got to the 8th or 9th standard, I wanted to go to the gym. However, I was not allowed in the gym till I was 18. I started doing freehand training at home and watched movies like Rocky. I got myself a punching bag along with small dumbbells. In college, I took working out seriously and started going to the gym. Due to my genetics, my body started transforming rapidly. People would ask me about the kind of workout regimen I was following, and what kind of exercises I did for my biceps, chest and back. So in a way I was becoming an amateur trainer of sorts, back then.

How did you establish yourselves in the world of fitness?

I moved to Australia for studies and that’s where fitness grew into a profession. I was in college and quit my studies to join the sales team of Fitness First. After 11 months, I decided to pursue a career as general manager for which I needed to learn general training aspects as well. I started training and knew within a week that it was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

What do you think is wrong with fitness industry in India?

Nothing is majorly wrong as there are a lot of gyms with good equipment. Training regimens are quite good but one major difference is that in our times we did not have supplements like creatine and protein. We had the patience to build our bodies slowly. Today, people lack patience. On their first day of training, most people want to try creatine, protein and other supplements. There is no shortcut to patiently training for a long time for results.

What are some fitness myths that people widely believed in India?