The rise of the gym girlies

Jhanvi More all of five feet and three inches deadlifts 80 kg with absurd ease hardly breaking a sweat or grunt Around her a group of girls bursts into cheers as she steps off the platform and helps another girl from the gang whorsquos next in line to liftWe think back to our own shortlived attempts at hitting the gym a couple of years back and wonder if wersquod have kept at it longer if we too had a girlsrsquo squad cheering us onMore seems tickled by our amazement 80 is not even close to her best ldquoMy PR personal record is 150 kgrdquo says the 21yearold her eyes twinkling with amusement We look around the gym mostly filled with men to see if anyone else is stunned The regulars at the gym seem to be familiar with Morersquos feats with the barbell What does give the men pause though is when each of the girls steps up to the platform and takes a turn mdash no fuss no hesitation just executing clean lifts Thatrsquos when we can sense curiosity slowly building on the training floorOne of the universal gripes among women who lift is that while men are always happy to spot or help each other on the weights floor they donrsquot always help women with the best intentionsldquoThis is exactly why we started Gym Girls Clubrdquo says Anusha Mendonsa who cofounded the online community for women who lift with More exactly a year ago ldquoWhen a guy lifts there are usually 10 more there hyping him up We wanted the same sense of community for women toordquo she addsHoping to uplift other women the Gym Girls Club is hosting the countryrsquos first ever deadlift party today in Malad West A deadlift party is a fun informal meet where people can learn technique discuss tips and attempt to improve their personal best while being cheered on by the community The clubrsquos formation comes bang in the middle of a new wave of women taking to the gym in droves not just to hit the cardio and pilates equipment or the yoga and zumba classes but claiming space on the strength training floor right next to the gym bros The ldquogym girliesrdquo or ldquomuscle mommiesrdquo are no passing fad mdash theyrsquore part of a movement thatrsquos slowly been building pace since the COVID19 pandemic years which prompted more awareness around healthThe fact that 140 registrations for the deadlift party mdash being held on a rooftop mdash were full within a day just goes to show how big the gym girliesrsquo scene now is in the cityldquoThe best investment a woman can make in her longterm health is lifting weights Strength training isnrsquot just for athletes itrsquos essential for building your bone bank protecting against osteoporosis improving hormonal balance and supporting metabolic health Whether yoursquore navigating menopause PCOS or simply want to age well resistance training helps prevent insulin resistance supports healthy body composition and enhances confidence Women have been told cardio is enough but weights build the muscle bank that supports your cardio and everything elserdquo Dr Sukhpreet Patel MD Obstetrics and gynaecology from India and Masters in Public Health from the UK tells us over the phoneWhy then have women traditionally been pushed towards ldquomore womanlyrdquo exercises such as yoga and aerobics Ajay Bohini coach at Strength First gym in Thane laughs ldquoWomen have been told for ages that if they lift weights they will bulk up and look manly Unlike men though women do not have as much testosterone and so they will only look toned not bulkyrdquoldquoThere are so many hesitations and misconceptions that hold women back in the gym I just want them to be able to work out and not give a damnrdquo adds Mendonsa 22 ldquoWhen I started going to the gym in 2022 I was overweight and just wanted to get fitter Irsquod worry that people were looking at me and judging me Irsquod stand in a corner and try to figure out how to do things on my own Things changed when I met Jhanvi and she helped merdquoBy that time More was already ahead in her own training regimen having started as young as 17 Now a coach certified by the USbased National Academy of Sports Medicine More not only coaches Mendonsa and other Mumbai ldquomuscle mommiesrdquo like her but also has international clients There were a few other women who resonated with the idea of working out together and hyping each other up ldquoWe thought letrsquos just start lifting together and make content around it The first day we shot a reel there were about 10 girls lifting and we all cheered for each other And I could see everybody in the gym looking at us mdash they had never seen anything like itrdquo recalls the social media consultant That very first Reel got 125 lakh lsquolikesrsquo on Instagram ldquoWe had so many girls message us from all over India saying that they had always wanted a community like thisrdquo she recallsWomen in the club donrsquot just cheer for each other they also spot each other helping everyone meet their goals One of the universal gripes among women who lift is that while men are always happy to spot or help each other on the weights floor they donrsquot always help women with the best intentions ldquoThere are times when men step up to us to correct our form or help us but then end up asking for our name or trying to chat us up Thatrsquos not what wersquore in the gym forrdquo says MendonsaMendonsa whose PR is 110 kg says this sisterhood is all the more important because not everyone understands the kind of grit that strength training takes nor do they understand the why of it ldquoA lot of girls worry lsquoAm I thin enoughrsquo Itrsquos never lsquoAm I strong enoughrsquo People point out that even though I work out my arms are not thin That doesnrsquot matter my arms are strongrdquo she saysMore who is also a fitness influencer has received DMs from men alleging she must be on testosterone if she is able to lift so much ldquoI just laugh it offrdquo she tells us ldquoIt intimidates some men when they see me lift more than they can Sometimes after Irsquom done with my sets I will see men at the gym line up to try and improve their PR toordquoThat said More cautions women not to blindly chase the numbers and risk injury Fitness education is still at a nascent stage in the country and misguided trainers might push gymgoers without taking factors such as a womanrsquos smaller physique nutrition sleep schedule or hormonal health into view ldquoI learnt the hard way after suffering an injury Thatrsquos why I decided to get certified so I could train safely and help other womenrdquo says More adding ldquoDonrsquot just chase bigger numbers know your limits and build up slowlyrdquolsquoIt makes you feel like you can handle anything the day bringsrsquoShradha Kurup 47Retail executivePR 150 kgDeadliftShradha Kurup trains under the watchful eye of her coach Ajay Bohini in Thane PicAtul KambleAfter the COVID pandemic like so many of us Shradha Kurup felt like the months of restricted movement had left her with reduced stamina unable to do even basic tasks without panting or breaking into a sweat So in 2022 she decided to join a gymldquoFor a woman of my age strength training was a great way to battle bone density issues I kept showing up every day and got better and better until I decided to compete at powerlifting championshipsrdquo she recallsToday Kurup is an amateur powerlifter who has won three gold medals at her most recent competition the Asian Raw Powerlifting Champion that took place in Surat in FebruaryTherersquos another very personal motivation for Kurup She lost her mother last year after she was unable to recover from a severe hip injury The tragedy drove home the importance of focusing on bone health a major concern for women post 30s ldquoLifting has not only helped me turn my health around but has also given me the confidence and mental strength to deal with anything else that life may throw at me Every day I push myself to go beyond yesterdayrsquos best and when I come out on the other side I feel like I can handle anything else that comes up the rest of the dayrdquo That viral 70yearold weightlifterRoshni Devi Sangwan 70HomemakerPR 103 kgAt 70 Roshni Devi Sangwan can lift more than most 20yearolds she quips right Ajay SangwanYoursquove probably come across Roshini Devi Sangwanrsquos weightlifting feats on social media She went viral earlier this year after people were amazed to see videos of her lifting 103 kg at the ripe age of 70Her son and coach Ajay Sangwan recalls how she would barely be able to move a couple of years ago because of a lower back injury and arthritis in her knees ldquoAt the time doctors had told her she would not be able to move around like before anymore and told her she should rest more Instead I suggested she come to the gym with merdquoRoshni chuckles quietly as she chimes in over the phone ldquoNow I can lift more than 20yearolds and have no problems moving around or carrying thingsrdquoWith her viral fame and inspiring videos many of her friends and relatives have started going to the gym too she says But there are still some who question the point of it ldquoSometimes my friend will say you work out so much but why havenrsquot you lost weight But they also agree that I can move around so much more easily now and am at the best health I have been in yearsrdquo she sayslsquoEven models lift nowrsquoViyaa Doshi 18Undergraduate studentPR 5 kgDumbells starting deadlifts next weekViyaa DoshiAt six feet Viyaa Doshi has always been told she has the height for modelling and itrsquos a career she aspires to as well Along with those aspirations though came the misconception that being a model meant being thin ldquoThings really changed when I saw models like Adriana Lima posting about their strength training routinesrdquo she recallsWatching Lima as well as her own mother pump weights Doshi was inspired to hit the gym a couple of months back ldquoWhen I was a kid girls just wanted to be skinny People would tell women not lift weights because it would make them look manly But now there are so many influencers and even mainstream media telling us about the advantages to working out I think thatrsquos why so many women are hitting the gym nowrdquo she says ldquoThis also came at a really dark time in my life and I feel like gymming has given me that space to take my mind off things and just dedicate a couple of hours to myself every dayrdquoAt the very beginning of her gym journey Doshi currently exercises with 5kg dumbells but is looking forward to stepping up to the barbell to try out deadlifts for the first timelsquoThe chest press makes me feel the strongestrsquoBianca Creado 18Undergraduate studentPR 100 kgDeadliftThe chest press which once intimidated Bianca Creado now makes her feel the strongest PicNimesh DaveBianca Creado started lifting three years ago when she was just 15 At the time she admits sheepishly her motivation was mostly validation ldquoMy brother worked out and got a lot of appreciation for it and I wanted to do it too I realise now of course that I donrsquot need validation from othersrdquo she saysLike so many other women she struggled to find a footing in a space that was so heavily dominated by menldquoI would just be in a corner trying to figure out what to do The trainers wouldnrsquot pay attention to me maybe because I was so young maybe because I was a girl or perhaps both I would just stay on the treadmill But every time I looked at others lifting weights I wanted to get that strength toordquoPiciStockEventually she switched gyms and met better trainers Now working out is a safe space for the 18yearold to let out her rage and frustration or just spend a quiet moment working on herselfShe shows us the correct form to follow on the chest press an equipment that intimidated her when she first began her journey ldquoIt is one of the most difficult exercises according to me Many women donrsquot train their chest because they think it will make them bulkier or make their bbs smaller But thatrsquos not true Now doing the chest press makes me feel the strongest even more than deadliftsrdquo