Gurgaon’s new fitness mantra - aqua yoga!

Fitness conscious Gurugrammers are known to innovate when it comes to their workout regime. And what has caught the fancy of the residents of Millennium City this summer is aqua yoga. As the name suggests, this concept involves participants doing yoga poses partially underwater, usually in a swimming pool. While the odd aqua yoga session was held in Gurgaon in 2015, regular classes and sessions began only late last year. Since then, Gurugrammers have taken to aqua yoga, literally like fish to water! With the summer heat in full swing now, this form of exercise is gaining popularity in the city with trainers reporting a consistent jump in the number of requests and enrolments.
Gurugrammers say that the best part about aqua yoga is that it’s not only fun, but is good for the body too

A consistent rise in the number of enrolments: Trainers
Mostly, yoga trainers in the city organise private sessions during summers. Clubs and venues in the city also organise sessions for their members on a regular basis. Trainers say they are seeing a consistent rise in the number of enrolments with 15-20% more people in each class. Sujata Singh, a Gurgaon-based yoga trainer, says, “We had three aqua yoga sessions last year and the response was very promising. So this year, we began in April and since then, we’ve had more people join in the subsequent sessions.” Trainers say that in NCR, Gurgaon is the only city that has actively seen aqua yoga sessions being organised in the last year as both Delhi and Noida prefer traditional yoga. Deepika, a Delhi-based trainer who has held a few aqua yoga sessions in Gurgaon, says, “The demand and acceptance for aqua yoga is more in Gurgaon as compared to Delhi or Noida. In Delhi, people want simple yoga but Gurgaon is the place that adopts the innovations like beer yoga and aqua yoga.”


‘Aqua yoga is much better than regular yoga’
Most participants are attracted to it because of the novelty. Vipul Kumar, who has participated in aqua yoga sessions at Taj City Centre this year, says, “It looks fun, much better than regular yoga, which feels a bit plain. It combines the best parts of yoga with some fun in the pool. I went there just hoping to try something new and wasn’t disappointed.” For some, it’s just an excuse to just jump into the pool in this heat. Manish Arora, an HR manager, says, “In summers, any excuse to get inside the water is good, be it just a pool party or aqua yoga. But I particularly like aqua yoga because it’s not just a leisure activity. It is also good for health. You beat the heat while doing something that’s good for your body.”

BEATING THE HEAT WITH AQUA YOGA

‘Aqua yoga makes it easy to do difficult asanas’
Several participants say they were exposed to aqua yoga in other cities or even abroad and were thrilled to have found classes in Gurgaon. For Sector 15 resident Parul Chauhan, it wasn’t her first exposure to the fad. “I had attended a few classes of aqua yoga in Bangalore three years ago,” she tells us, adding, “Which is why, when I got the opportunity to enrol in a session here, I grabbed it.” Parul says that she likes how the concept makes it easier for her to do more challenging asanas. “It helps you push the boundaries of what you are capable of,” she said. Similarly, Simi Singh of Golf Course Road first came across aqua yoga in Europe two years ago. “It’s funny that even though yoga is Indian, I saw the Westerners first experiment with this concept when I was there in 2016,” she tells us, “But I am glad that India is catching up now and Gurgaon seems to have taken the lead there.”
Trainers say that aqua yoga is more than just a fad and it has its benefits. Sujata tells us, “It is particularly beneficial for those who are not very flexible. In water, you can kick higher, push harder, and bend more, using the water’s resistance. So, it is a good way to introduce beginners to tougher asanas.”

ACING THOSE ASANAS!