Less is more

Less is more

For Amit Panjwani (41), fitness has been his passion since childhood. His father taught him boxing, who himself used to practise it. So Panjwani was taught pull-ups at the age of 13. Calling it his first step towards fitness, it led him to pursue it as a career. “There are different branches of fitness like dancing, basketball, strength training and conditioning. As you grow, you get exposed to more things. You read, learn and acquire more knowledge and skill. The initiative taken by my father helped me a lot,” says the mixed martial arts strength and conditioning coach.
 
Fitness is a crucial part of your life. It helps you get physically, emotionally and psychologically strong. Physical strength and training helps one to face any kind of challenge. People should consider fitness as a long-term goal. 

Speaking about the benefits of mixed martial arts, he says, “If you have studied martial arts, you will know that it started in South-East Asian countries like China or Japan. They have martial arts as part of the school curriculum. They practise it and live for more than 100 years. Martial arts gives you strength, power and speed. You do not have to go to the gym, basic movements can help you to be fit.”

The movements in martial arts are complex, making it a little challenging, but it is fun when you see the strength and power growing. The aim should be to empower yourself and not hit or fight people. The best part of this branch is that you can practise it anywhere, anytime; it just takes 24 minutes at max.

“Diet is also an important part, but make sure to keep it light. Having a balanced diet is more crucial. Everyone is focused on proteins, forgetting other essential nutrients. You need to have fruits, vegetables, protein-rich ingredients and everything natural. Also, do not neglect the right amount of water intake,” he says. 

Panjwani’s mantra is: ‘less is more’, be it in terms of exercise or food. Dismissing the notion of veganism, he says that we should not include the Western culture in our diet. “We have a very rich and healthy diet. It fulfills the requirement of every nutrient that our body needs,” he says.

Discussing about the criteria on which people are considered fit, he says that people with an ideal figure can’t be considered healthy. “When we talk about fitness, we can’t look at someone and assess if the individual is fit or not. A person is deemed fit based on their strength, endurance and mobility as a combination,” points out Panjwani.
  
Giving an example, he says, “If three different people — one who practises yoga, another who goes to the gym and the third who is a marathoner — perform some exercises that involve the entire body, they can be called fit. There are people who have good strength but lose their breath. There are people who have endurance but can’t do strength-oriented exercises. Certain people have flexibility but not endurance, so strength, endurance, and mobility are the most important factors to be fit.” 

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