It's all about raising the bar

Fitness is not a one-off thing. Taking the stairs always instead of the elevator, cycling to work, and walking to the neighbourhood market may sound trivial but they go a long way in inculcating lifestyle-changing habits,” he says.

It was passion that drove Gaurav to trade a 9-to-5 job for round-the-clock fitness training. As chief instructor at Figurine Fitness, Gaurav has translated his love for exercise and dance into a paying profession. “This job allows me to meet different people who literally dance to my tunes,” he says.

The most satisfying aspect of his job is the fact that he helps many people go from fat to fit. “My personal triumph was to motivate my brother, who weighed 150 kg, to lose weight the right way.”

Every day, Gaurav leads 6-7 classes of one hour duration each. “A trainer tends to lose muscle with so many intense workouts. I do weight training to maintain my fitness,” he says. Any regrets at having given up an IT job for a routine such as this? “Only in winters! I wish I was in bed rather than hauling myself to the gym so early in the morning,” he replies, mock seriously.