12 April,2026 08:38 AM IST | Mumbai | Arpika Bhosale
Kanika Bhatia, Sapna Vyaas, Ashley Johnathan D’cruz and Sonakshi Sharma
At age 35, people begin to notice their breath catching a little more than usual. One day, you wake up with knee pain. Then comes the bloodwork that screams: "Get your health in order before it's too late!" Thus begins your search for a workout plan, leading you to YouTube and Instagram fitness influencers, and then the temptation to follow celebrities doing squats and frog leaps on the treadmill.
The overnight switch from a completely sedentary lifestyle is causing men and women across India to take unnecessary risks - from a wrecked gut unable to adapt to drastic diet fads, to grievous gym injuries that leave one in a worse situation than before.
If this sounds familiar, you're not alone; it's a worldwide phenomenon.
Physical activity peaks at 35, the Swedish Physical Activity and Fitness study, revealed in a report published in December 2025. The study is a culmination of 47 years of observing 427 participants from the age of 16 to 63 years. It observed that when in both men and women, the estimated maximal aerobic capacity (how much oxygen body can use during high intensity training) and muscular endurance (bench press repetitions) peaks at ages 26-36 and then declines gradually. The rate of decline starts at 0.3 to 0.6 per cent per year, and accelerates to 2 to 2.5 per cent per year. Which essentially means that the older you get, the harder it is to see the same results from exercises.
The study also confirms that similar results were seen in tests on elite athletes - a decline in physical capacity before the age of 40, which can later lead to clinically significant physical dysfunction, especially in individuals with a sedentary lifestyle.
So the next time you look at a video of a celebrity running and doing jumping jacks on a treadmill, remember, even science is saying that you need to be realistic about your goals.
Aur thoda listen to your body, yaar!
Non-diet nutritionist Kripa Jalan has been making content to help fix Indians' with food
On her Instagram, Kripa Jalan's (@kripajalan) content is about finding what works for you. The non-diet nutritionist insists that tasty food isn't necessarily bad food. She also tries to bring forward the realities of fad diets, workouts, and toxic weight-loss culture.
"Celebrity routines tend to glamorise extremes - intense workouts, highly restrictive diets, and perfectly optimised days. What we don't see is the infrastructure behind it: full teams managing their training, food, recovery, sleep, and schedules," he says.
"For someone in their 30s or 40s who's working, managing a home, possibly raising children, trying to replicate such routines can quickly trigger an all-or-nothing thinking," he adds, "Either you're waking up at 5 am, drinking a green smoothie, and doing a 5K, or you're hitting snooze. There's no middle ground. But that middle ground is exactly where real progress lives," she says.
Those 35 and above have their own unique challenges towards food. "Several of my Millennial clients didn't discover disordered thinking about food on Instagram. They arrived there already shaped by two decades of messaging that their bodies were problems to be solved. And that maybe, just maybe, they'd be liked a little more if they looked like âthat girl', the one with the tiny waist, chiselled jawline and a noticeable lack of kid throw-up on her t-shirt," she adds.
Jalan has observed consistently across 10 years of clinical practice that "people binge on the foods they restrict". "The person cutting out sugar Monday through Thursday is eating half a cake on Friday, not because they lack willpower, but because restriction creates a physiological and psychological pressure that eventually demands release. The only things genuinely worth avoiding are foods you're allergic to, or ones a doctor has asked you to limit for a specific clinical reason," she says.
Health and life coach Sapna Vyas says fitness in your 30s and 40s cannot look like it did in your 20s
With 1.5 million followers on Instagram, Sapna Vyas (@coachsapna) has been at the forefront of India's fitness journey for over a decade. Right off the bat, she says that for those above 35, it's crucial they "know where they are".
"And by that I mean they should do a blood test, show it to the doctor and find out if they have any deficiencies. Most Indians suffer from B12 deficiency and they are unaware of it," she says.
Celebrities like Kareena may show case their extreme routines, but what we don't see is that they are monitored by entire teams constantly. "Celebrities have trainers and nutritionists, and their workouts are under observation all the time," she says.
There are some who are not genuine on social media, she warns. "There are people who are taking Ozempic or who have done surgeries, but they will show you a few workouts as their âsecret' to fitness. So let's not follow their advice, because we don't need to show dramatic body transformations on screen in two days," she adds.
Vyas believes that happiness should be a gateway to fitness and not the other way around. "The only thing you should keep in mind as a baseline is: âI should be happy where I am'. But you should keep improving. That way, you will eventually reach your best version without any pain," she says, "Otherwise, people either die of the inferiority complex and anxiety, until you just say, âTo hell with it, let's have some chole-kulche tonight."
0.3 to 0.6%
Decline in aerobic capacity and muscular decline in men and women from the age of 36
Content creator Shilpa Chawla, 46, has survived obsessions over size zero and other fads. Now, she doesn't listen to âonline noise'
Back in 2008, Kareena Kapoor's movie Tashan had just been released, and Shilpa Chawla was among thousands who were sucked into the "size zero" craze after seeing bikini shots of the actor. "I fell for it; it was the only trend that had got me good," she recalls, "At the time, there were articles saying âdon't have sugar, don't have carbs, don't have rotis'. This was in the pre-Instagram era, but even traditional media had unsolicited and bizarre health advice such as, âdon't have salt, it makes you bloat'."
Chawla ended up with extremely low blood pressure, and that's when she decided to give up the size-zero dream. "Indian women, I realised, will have a curvy body," she says.
Cut to a few years before the COVID-19 pandemic. Chawla, who had by this time entered her late 30s, decided to join the gym. "I was so tired all the time, at first. I couldn't do the weight training the trainers expected me to," she says.
It was the pandemic that changed Chawla's health journey. "During the lockdown, I would walk around my balcony or the house, just to stay active. Slowly, as the restrictions were lifted, I began to take the stairs. Eventually I began to walk in the lane near my house," she says.
The result was instantaneous. "I lost weight, and I was glowing. Many asked what my workout routine was, and I told them that I was just walking," she recalls, adding, "Now I do at least 7000 steps, or on a busy day, at least 5000. I take the stairs when I can, and I have not changed a single thing in my diet. I eat food made only in ghee, staying true to my Sindhi roots. When I crave something sweet, I have three bites of ice cream rather than the whole cup, or a few bites of gulab jamun. But I eat everything." The only change she made was to add beetroot to her diet after her haemoglobin levels were found to be low (nine) last year.
She did try traditional yoga - as it was always meant to be practised - but says that between her job and other demands of life, it became difficult to continue.
Chawla's favourite routine now is to walk from her home on Bandra's 16th Cross Road all the way to Pali Hill, and back. Chawla has found her own community of walkers and has not looked back for the last five years since she first began "Find what works for you. Do not turn to social media for a health plan," she says.
As a fitness professional, Ashley D'cruz focuses primarily on food as he believes that it is the bigger factor in a fitness journey
Ashley Johnathan D'cruz's social media (@getfitwithjonathan) is full of realistic goals for Indians. "If someone has been doing something for 35 years, and you tell them that it's not right for the body, it's going to take a lot of time for that person to come out of that. Half of my job, at least in coaching, is spent helping them unlearn what has been passed down from their grandparents' generation, like âghee and millets are super foods'. These are big mindset changes," he says.
The health and performance coach warns that anyone 35 years and above must start with basic strength training. "It may not be sexy. It may be a little boring. But you need to go through a process where you understand your body better through gradual exposure. Because at 35, if you make one mistake, that's going to cost you weeks and weeks in recovery. And nothing is more demotivating than just staying in bed because of an injury," he says.
Event management executive Kanika Bhatia has been trying to find time to squeeze in workouts while managing a family with two children
Last year, Kanika Bhatia tried the keto diet and intermittent fasting, but found both too high-maintenance. What worked, instead, was a balanced and consistent diet that she is used to and can commit to every day. "I stick to chilla and oats for breakfast; roti, dal, rice, and sabzi for lunch; salad and sprouts with juice for dinner. I've lost 4 kg in as many months, and am at a stable weight now," she says.
She improved consistency with movement: "I ensure I complete 5000-7000 steps." She also tries to go to dance cardio classes at least twice a week, although scheduling is a challenge with her prepping meals for her school-going children and working husband. "During the week, I usually end up rescheduling classes because there's too much work at home or I am too tired at the end of it all. So I usually go for classes over the weekend," she says.
It's clear that her key is to do as much as she can, rather than be obsesses with a perfect workout routine that clashes with her life.
Bhatia is especially averse to taking advice on social media: "I find that there are so many people giving gyaan on social media," she adds.
Following celebrity workouts we see online is especially problematic, she believes, "because they are not meant for people who have responsibilities and jobs".
5000 -7000
steps that she tries to complete everyday
The fitness world was rocked after nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar that said mothers need not take nutrition advice from kids
Diwekar reel says women should not take protein advice from their children, who have no idea what it's like to cook four to five meals a day. While many criticised her, a few had more nuanced takes, such as Sonakshi Sharma (@fitnaari.india). She has criticised Diwekar for being dismissive of women's protein requirements.
"I do understand where she was coming from - probably from a place of concern to take the load off a woman's shoulder, who's already neck deep in household responsibilities," says Sharma.
"We are already doing our best to help our parents with nutrition because we recognise that they didn't have the time or bandwidth to take care of themselves. Even I have been doing my bit for my parents but statements like this taps onto our parents' strongly held biases. And they feel that if someone of Rujuta's stature is resonating with their struggles more than their children. It solidifies their belief that prioritising protein is tough when in reality it can be done in fairly simple ways. We just need to make them conscious and aware of their options," she adds.
Despite Sunday mid-day's attempts to reach out to her for a comment, there was no response from Diwekar till the time of going to print.
