Fitness experts on how journaling, breathing and expressing gratitude helps people be fit

At the Tribe fitness centre in Juhu Robin Behl swirls his arms around like a newage Jedi In response his disciple Parth Vora bends and dodges The hypnotising movements make them seem more like a snakecharmer and a serpent interwoven in a dance rather than a trainer and client warming up The routine no doubt is a combination born out of Behlrsquos time spent training with the Shaolin monks in the Himalayas and more recently at a movement retreat in Mexico It is one that many of Behlrsquos trainees including Taapsee Pannu are equally adept atFitness trainer Robin Behl incorporates practices like visualisation and gratitude in workouts with his client Parth Vora PicsSatej ShindeldquoItrsquos not just fitnessrdquo says Behl ldquoItrsquos a way of life It changes your mentality completelyrdquo Twentyeightyearold Parth Vora is a testament to this What Behl and Vora have achieved together is quite remarkable In January Parth Vora weighed 138 kg Today he stands at an admirable 98 kg He has not missed a day of training nor had a cheat meal since last November Everything he eats even in a restaurant is approved by either a nutritionist or Behl himself Vorarsquos day starts at five when he travels from Malad to Juhu for training at 630 The first thing they do is practice stillness To centre the mind and body Later comes motion thatrsquos where the serpentine movements come in Then comes the workout most of which is bodyweight training and uses minimal machines Lastly they finish off each session with Vora writing on a sheet of paper all the things hersquos grateful for He says ldquoEver since I started training with Robin I feel more energetic I sleep better than I ever have and I can do more workrdquo An integral part of each session is visualisation Either at the start or at the end Behl paints a picture for Voramdash to take him to where he wants to be As Behl talks Vora smiles as though to say look I am exactly where I wanted to be The practice he says even helped him catch his first wave on a surfboard earlier this yearA bit further north in Goregaon yoursquoll find fitness trainers Praveen and Maahek Nair After realising that expressing gratitude for the bodyrsquos abilities positively impacts their mindset during workouts they introduced the practice to their clients as well ldquoA typical routine starts with a brief mindfulness exercise expressing gratitude for the bodyrsquos capabilitiesrdquo says Praveen ldquoVisualisation techniques are applied focusing on achieving specific fitness goals and every workout ends with a soothing meditation session that connects the mind and bodyrdquo Maahek adds that visualisation has helped clients push themselves further They often find the mental strength to overcome physical challenges whether itrsquos lifting heavier weights or pushing through their cardio sessionsTrainers Praveen and Maahek Nair say that gratitude and mindfulness gives people the mental strength to overcome physical challenges PicsAnurag AhireAlthough the terms visualisation and gratitude may sound to you like a GenZ product the practice can be traced back hundreds of years Founder of the Atmantan Wellness Centre Sharmilee Agrawal Kapur uses ancient pranic and spiritual healing techniques which encompass these practices She says ldquoIn pranic healing we say lsquoaction follows thoughtrsquo and thus our thoughts need to be aligned with what we wish and aspire for in our livesrdquo Along with this there is the ldquoThe Silva MindControl Methodrdquo which uses a highly effective mediation and visualisation technique Even the practice of giving and gratitude itself changes the energy and chakras within the body as it releases toxins and has us vibrating and attracting positivity She adds that the success of books such as The Secret is proof that these methods work However how soon they yield results depends on the time and energy put into these techniquesYoga instructor Jenil Dholakia echoes this sentiment She says that often people who start meditating or yoga expect instantaneous results She advises you to start small and have faith in the process ldquoYoga has always focused on holistic fitness because we believe once you take care of mental health the physical will follow Simple mantras like lsquoOmrsquo are our way of affirmations kirtans teach us gratitude pranayama and meditation teach us mindfulnessrdquo Further she adds that concepts like NSDR No Sleep Deep Rest is nothing but restorative yoga and somatic healing which helps you control your emotions is actually the essence of yoga The vital intention being to calm your ldquomonkey mindrdquo and get it to a place where you can focus The moment you do that the stress you feel decreasesSharmilee Kapur Jenil Dholakia Srinath Aswathiah and Tulip RodriguesThere is science too which backs up the claims ldquoWhen you do pranayama the entire focus of the brain is on breathing This means that your other hormones are not engaged so the stress hormone cortisol comes downrdquo says endocrinologist Srinath Aswathiah He adds that gratitude too helps in controlling your stress levels In fact he says that simply using terms such as ldquothank yourdquo and ldquosorryrdquo can bring your moods back to normal and have a huge impact in reducing cortisol levelsNutritionist Tulip Rodrigues attests that stress does indeed have an impact on your weight ldquoThe cortisol levels impact everything from your BP to hormonal imbalances to blood glucose levelsrdquo she says Essentially if the latter is out of control you will feel hungry and eat needlessly To avoid doing so she suggests having a balanced diet that reflects in all three meals If you are looking for another destressor Rodrigues advises a little cube of dark chocolate or hot milk with turmeric You could even go for chamomile or lavender tea However to see results she says you must be patient None of these have magical properties that will cure your stress instantly