Siblings, father-daughter and BFFs bond over #PartnerYoga in Noida

They balance and stretch together and have cultivated trust and respect for each other. For these Noida-based fitness enthusiasts, be it a father-dad duo, sisters, or husband-wife, #partneryoga is the latest buzzword. They tell us how practising yoga as a duo not only helps them build a stronger and more flexible body and breaks the monotony of a gym but also helps in building a deeper connection with your partner, and is a whole lot of fun.
DAD-DAUGHTER SET FITNESS GOALS: Vidushi, 27, and Ajay Kharbanda, 62

Synergy in sisterhood
Sisters Shivani and Komal Rathore, residents of Shahdara in Sector 141, wake up as early as 6am and come together to attend yoga classes at a studio in Sector 50. They say, “The best part about doing yoga with your sister is that even the hardest of yoga 'asanas' seem simple as nobody understands you better than your own sister. While practising 'asanas' with your sister, there develops an unspoken agreement between the two to hold a safe space for each other.”

Noida residents Poonam Singh (left) and Shivani Rathore practising partner yoga

#CoupleFitnessGoals for a healthy relationship
Shruti and her husband Sachin Maheshwari, residents of sector 92, have been practising yoga from past eight years. For the couple, partner yoga has helped them build bond and trust over the years. “Doing yoga with your partner brings harmony in your relationship and builds trust in your partner. From cobra 'asana' and 'trikon asana' to 'padmasana' and 'vajrasana', it is so much fun trying out different 'asanas' with your partner and pushing your own boundaries. As both of us are working professionals and have hectic schedules, we look forward to starting our day on a healthy and happy note. For us, yoga acts as a great stress buster. We wake up early and spend an hour doing yoga together and in fact, even our eight and 13-year-old sons have started doing partner yoga.”

Noidawallahs say that practising yoga with a partner helps them stay on track as they push them even on days they don’t feel motivated

Hit the mat with dad
Father-daughter duo – Vidushi Kharbanda, 27, and Ajay Kharbanda, 62, – who live in sector 40, have been practising yoga together for several years now. Vidushi says, “I have been doing yoga with my father ever since my childhood. His flexibility even at this age motivates me to do better. For us, yoga is a great family bonding exercise. On weekends, we take out time together from work and do 'asanas' together, and even meditate together. We believe, a family that exercises together, stays together.” She adds, “The fun part about doing yoga with my dad is that even if I get lazy at times, he ensures that I get up by 5-5.30am and do yoga with him. Another interesting part is that sometimes we share our cheat days. Although dad is very strict about his diet, he loves homemade cakes. So, I bake him a cake and we enjoy it together and nobody judges us on our cheat days.”

#CoupleYogaGoals: Shailendra and Meenakshi Singh, yoga instructors

Yoga with my BFF
BFFs Deepti Sehgal, a resident of sector 77 and dietician, and Gayatri Bhaskar Gupta, a resident of Indirapuram, who works for an online portal, joined yoga classes eight months ago. Sharing their experience of working out together, they say, “Yoga increases flexibility and is a great stress buster, but while flexing those hamstrings is awesome, doing it with your friend helps you take your moves to a higher level and improve upon them. The best part about doing it together is that we keep motivating each other to do better every day.”



When yoga instructors became friends while doing yoga asanas
Satnam Singh and Roobi Chaudhary, residents of Ghaziabad and sector 75, respectively, are yoga instructors. They take yoga classes together at a studio in sector 50 and yoga has helped them bond together. “The best part about doing yoga with a partner unlike doing it with the aid of a prop is that the latter doesn’t understand your pain, or stretches, or your flexibility levels. However, the beauty of doing yoga with a partner is that you can even do 'asanas' that are advanced and difficult such as headstand, 'mayur asana' and scorpion 'asana'.”