The ‘Fitness’ Roads Less Travelled By

Fitness enthusiasts, today, are inclined towards getting into shape with novel and innovative fitness regimes. People are intrigued to try regimes that are distant from the monotonous traditional fitness routines, and therefore, are constantly seeking for new and exciting fitness regimes. Dance inspired fitness programs have been around for while, but new fitness regimes inspired by culture, such as Indian folk dance, is a new direction attracting fitness enthusiasts.

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Aarti Pandey, Co-Founder, Folk Fitness

Setting fitness goals and achieving them can be hard, if it only includes the traditional treadmill and lifting weights. People seek to experience something exciting, where their mind, soul as well as their body gets a thorough workout. With a constant look after to ones’ upper body & lower body endurance, exercises for cardiovascular, dance fitness regimes with a folk touch are breaking the monotony.

Constantly, learning new steps and shaking to the beat is a great way to sweat it out. It ensures that not one-day is the same as the other and gets people motivated to workout every day. These regimes are well researched and steps involved in it are extracted from different roots of India.

Great Mind-Body Workout

Fitness is not only about toning your body or looking good, it is also about having enormous flexibility in the body with a sense of happiness and accomplishment when you work out. Over the past few years, there has been a significant trend seen with the incorporation of fitness with dancing, the reason is because people like to continue to do what they love. Now is the time for us to know the secrets of those fit fishermen and farmers!

Fitness For All Ages

Talking about the emerging fitness regimes which not only focusses the younger demographic but also are curated by keeping in mind all age groups i.e. our parents, grandparents, and other senior citizens. This age-no-bar approach is something that is enabling the functional fitness dance regimes to set new trends under the fitness fraternity. As they say, ‘No one is too old or too young to learn a new dance move’.

The Relatable Music Demand

Music plays a very integral role in all our lives. From writing down your thoughts to reading your favorite novels, from going on long drives to even walking/jogging in a park or even from cooking the best from your treasure to cleaning the house, music is enjoyed at everything we do. It helps in soothing our body, mind and soul. Similarly, the emerging fitness formats are infusing music that suits and connects the patrons in the dance regimes. The beauty of collating Indian music with fitness is turning out to be the new ‘cool’. An authentic blend of music infused in the fitness regimes could help us a chance to explore Indian culture and churn out the essence from every Indian state.

Going Back to Basics

Breaking free from traditional gym instruments and breaking the monotony through functional fitness is a definite smart move by the patrons. As kids, all of us were into the forcible folk dance activities, but as we grow up we start realizing the value of those moments where we started. For example, we never knew that movements used in Koli dance form are great for strengthening upper/middle back and arms. It is performed by fishermen tribe of Koknan region who row heavy boats and fishing nets. Or, Bihu movements are great for core areas such as Abdominals and around. Also, some of the certain movements of Garba are great for lower back extension.

These unconventional routes of fitness regimes are different yet very known and it helps us in finding our way through a comprehensive approach with Indian folk dance styles. This is why this road, often less travelled, makes all the difference in combining the mind, soul and body to create a fitter and engaged community.

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