I have a usable gym at home, with basic machines, equipment and weights. But most importantly, I have Jay Rathi, a good trainer who is able to differentiate between required exercises and unwanted excess exercises.
Getting that balance trained is essential, especially as glittering gymnasiums rise across the skyline of India’s big cities — and increasingly in smaller towns as well — where once there were modest gardens, akharas, or open courtyards. Fitness studios advertise “body transformation” in 45 days. Young people measure their protein intake with scientific precision. Young women follow complex regimens of calorie deficits, intermittent fasting, and “clean eating.” The watches monitor sleep cycles, heart rate, oxygen levels, and the number of steps taken per day. Social media platforms are overflowing with sculpted torsos, disciplined diets, and motivational slogans that celebrate relentless self-improvement.
This phenomenon is not limited to India. It’s global. From New York to New Delhi, and from Seoul to São Paulo, the younger generation seems to be gripped by an unprecedented obsession with health, fitness, and physical perfection. At first glance, this may seem quite impressive. In a world long plagued by sedentary habits, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and stress disorders, being healthy is certainly desirable.
But while gyms are mushrooming everywhere, how many gyms are equipped with qualified trainers who possess scientific knowledge of anatomy, physiology and safe exercise practices? In countless organizations, poorly trained coaches impose punitive regimes on sensitive clients who crave rapid transformation. The body is treated as a machine that can be pushed to infinity without consequences.
The results are increasingly alarming. Reports of sudden cardiac arrests during intense exercise have emerged, especially among young people who engage in excessive or unsupervised exercise. Orthopedic specialists talk about a rise in injuries to the spine, knees, ankles and shoulders due to improper technique or overtraining. Many young people suffer long-term damage because they err in extremism and discipline.
Equally concerning is the booming market for over-the-counter nutritional supplements. Protein powders, fat burners, testosterone boosters, muscle enhancers, and questionable “performance” products are consumed with frightening casualness. Few users have sufficient understanding of its composition or side effects. Some products are poorly regulated; Others may contain harmful substances hidden behind flashy packaging and aggressive marketing. The irony is bitter, because there is a profound difference between living in good health and burning out in the pursuit of health. The first seeks balance. The latter often degenerates into restlessness, vanity and extravagance.
In India, this transformation has coincided with economic liberalization, urban ambition, and the explosion of digital culture. The film industry, advertising campaigns, and social media influencers are relentlessly spreading inaccessible body images. Young people seeking to emulate movie stars have access to personal trainers, nutritionists, cosmetic procedures, and carefully managed lifestyles. What is presented as natural fitness is often the result of massive professional intervention. The result is predictable. Young people push themselves mercilessly in pursuit of the perfect physique. The message that is constantly conveyed to young people is that the body is never enough as it is. He should be slimmer, leaner, more muscular, more youthful. Fitness is no longer just about strength or vitality; It has become a visual commodity intended for public display.
I’m also a long-time avid yoga practitioner. I started at the age of sixteen under the tutelage of the late – and iconic – Dhirendra Brahmachari. The practice of yoga has grown exponentially since then, with social media platforms saturated with “experts,” and millions following gurus like Baba Ramdev. But here too, a competent coach, like my coach Mithilesh Roy, is needed and essential.
Recently, a woman tried to do the ultimate asana, headstand, without a proper instructor, and ended up breaking her spine. She, and countless others, do not realize that the ancient yoga tradition does not advocate narcissistic self-display. Its purpose is balance, flexibility, breathing control, inner calm, and harmony between physical and mental states. Walking, stretching, simple diets, adequate sleep and disciplined habits form part of his daily wisdom.
In the past, older villages and communities often promoted naturally active lifestyles without the need for expensive machines or commercial fitness programs. Physical well-being is naturally woven into life. People were walking more, eating simpler food, working their bodies, and exercising without announcing it to the world. Health was not a performance. Youth have not been raised to a level of permanent moral commitment. One accepts the rhythms of life with more poise.
Unfortunately, it sometimes seems to me that what we are witnessing today is not a true culture of health, but rather a culture of oscillation between excess and correction. Even as gyms proliferate, so do unhealthy fast food chains and ultra-processed diets. The same young man who spends two hours lifting weights may be eating meals laden with sodium, sugar, preservatives, and chemical additives. Consumer culture thrives on this paradox: it sells indulgence and then profits from the guilt that follows.
Perhaps the challenge facing modern society is to rediscover an older truth: that true well-being does not arise from excess, but from balance. Not from punishing the body, but from respecting it; Not from an obsession with self-medication, but from living in moderation, dignity, and inner balance.
(Pavan K Varma is an author, diplomat and former Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha). Views expressed are personal)
