Nawaz Modi Singhania is the founder of Body Art Fitness Centres, a chain of gyms in South Mumbai. Since 1992, Body Art is dominating the gyms in South Mumbai with its sea-facing centre at Marine Drive. Besides the basic gym offering, Body Art has a wide variety of fitness services available.

Nawaz Singhania, in her capacity as a Fitness and Wellness Coach, suggests some indispensable tips during Covid-19, which has been announced as a pandemic by the United Nations.

She suggests that now that PM Modi has declared a total lockdown up until the 15th of April 2020, it should be in everyone’s best interest to stay in their homes and contribute towards our nation’s fight against the novel coronavirus. These tips are not to distract from the dire need for following personal hygiene, considering recommended social distancing protocols or the need for staying indoors,

Body Art’s founder Nawaz Modi Singhania touches upon a few pointers to help us along this difficult path over the next few days.

1]   Stay Fit – Finding a good gym in Mumbai does not have to be tough. Body Art, which is one of the best gyms in South Mumbai, has currently closed its doors temporarily due to the government regulations and lockdown imposed as a gym can now be a source of infection as long as the virus thrives.

However, Nawaz does not miss the chance to inspire and connect with her large fan-following on Instagram of over 50,000 followers on an everyday basis. She says that exercising every day for a while in the confines of our homes would help us keep ourselves physically, mentally and emotionally fit and healthy. Even without any exercise equipment, some great options could be:

• Body Weight Exercises – such as Planks, Push-ups, Squats and Lunges which work a large variety of muscle groups simultaneously while using one’s own body weight for resistance
• Power Yoga – so that in addition to taxing the muscles, you also get a good Cardiovascular component in
• Calisthenics (floor exercises)
• Callanetics (toning, lifting & reshaping muscles)
• Common household furniture like a chair, table, bed can all be new pieces of exercise equipment that one can get innovative with, especially now since all of the Body Art gyms in South Mumbai (SoBo) are temporarily closed
• Small accessories and household items such as a towel or a small ball can be great to target virtually all the muscle groups
• Mat Pilates
• Yoga
• Stretch and limber
• Gyrokinesis
• Kettlebell or Dumbbell training, in case you have an old pair lying around somewhere, as most households tend to

Exercise daily like your life depends upon it – which now, in many real ways, it actually does.

2] Boost your Immune System –   It’s so important to work on keeping your immunity up so you don’t fall unwell. The added high levels of stress and extreme uncertainty of this time will tax your immune system. But Nawaz, as the founder of a chain of the best gyms in South Mumbai, Body Art, sure does has a few tricks up her sleeve which she reveals to us.

She says you can do the following:

• Exercise! It keeps the immunity high
• Get a good round of seasonal fruits and vegetables in your diet on a regular basis in order to keep your immune system high. Not even the best gym will help if you don’t maintain your nutrition
• Increase certain immune building spices and herbs in your daily cooking such as garlic, ginger, turmeric, black pepper, chillies, cinnamon, cardamom and onions
• Increase your intake of Vitamin C. The effervescent form is better than the tablet form as the bio-availability is increased. Increase consumption of natural sources of Vitamin C such as oranges, lemon, sweet lime and grapefruit
• Certain simple Acupressure points that boost the immune system can be easily looked up and self- activated
• Homoeopathy also helps in boosting the immune system

3] Mental Health – It’s so important to be mindful of the thoughts you entertain. This is a very difficult and uncertain time, where we are faced with major challenges and negative news. It’s easy to feel low and depressed. Being hopeful and upbeat is so very important, though. After all, winning or losing never happened on battlefields – that happens first in the mind. Whether you think you’ll win or you’ll lose, you’re probably right. Exercise, of course, is also a very powerful anti-depressant. The “happy hormones” like endorphin and serotonin are released.

4] Find a new, doable routine – Life has changed and whilst we all need in our collective best interest to be firmly indoors, everyone at Body Art, including Nawaz Modi Singhania, strongly suggests you make the most of a bad situation in the best possible way. Find new hobbies and pass-times! Some ideas are painting, reading, writing, watching movies, sewing, embroidery, knitting, cooking, pottery, learning a language or how to play a new game.

Stay safe, stay clean, stay indoors!

Working out at Body Art or any other fitness centre recognised as the best gym in Mumbai can be thought of only after a few weeks, once we’re all fit and fine. For now, just know that this too shall pass. It always does.