More and more teenagers are  hitting the gym with a  vengeance . There is sciousness of an acceptable image in the society. The boom of reality TV shows and the desire to make it big also boots the gym-going tendency. Therefore, it becomes necessary to make the teen aware of the pitfallsand the options available to them.India’s leading holistic health guru, Mickey Mehta says, “Teens and their obsession for unrealistic fitness goals, size zero figures, quick weight loss and six-pack abs have reached an all-time high with scant regard for health and well being. On the other hand, there are those teens that are inactive and spend 25 to 30 haurs a week in front of  TV or their  laptops indulging in high fats snacks. There fore all gym activities of the teenagers should be done under supervision and proper guidance.”It makes perfect sense for the teenagers who are obese or overweight to hit the gym and lose those extra pounds.       Teens have a high metabolism rate and their weight loss metabolism rate and their weight loss is quicker. Even those who don’t need losing the flab require knowing facts about health and wellbeing before they jump headlong into building their bodies and images.

Mickey  elaborates , “Fitness, like everything else in life, is about achieving the right balance.  Strenght, stamina, endurance, better immunity and enhanced physical and emotional wellness must be prime motivators while looking at fitness.”

Any exercise performed incorrectly can affect one’s body negatively-be it lunges, squats, push ups. To avoid damaging teens growth plates, one should have a certified coach who can reach them the techniques   top train in the gym. Till one reaches the age of 16 one should avoid doing heavy-duty or lifting heavyweights. To avoid the trip to the gym becoming routine or mundane, one must experiment and vary the exercise, each day to keep the motivation up. Team this up with a heavy eating habit, a combination of exercise and a great attitude and, of course, a discipline life, to fetch longer lasting health benefits, and not only a size zero or six-pack abs.

Tips for teens-

YOGA-Yoga helps correct and regular all systems of the body and has many curative and well preventive benefits. Regular yoga practice improves respiratory, cardiovascular and endocrine functions, improves flexibility and sleep and reduces stress. Emotional benefits include better concentration, focus and an overall sense of wellbeing.

POWER YOGA-It is dynamic form of yoga that helps your body achieve stability, balance, posture and tone. Improves flexibility and  immune. It is also an excellent cardio workout and helps in controlling obesity.

PILATES-It is an innovative and targeting the core muscles and provides better strength and stability. It has tremendous rehabilitative value, improves posture, coordination, mobility, flexibility and balance.

KICK-BOXING-It combines boxing, martial arts and aerobics. A great way to get a total body workout and learn simple self defence moves. Helps to improve flexibility, coordination, endurance and burns calories.

CALISTHENICS-It has exercises for better muscular strength, grace and flexibility, coordination, endurance and mental wellbeing.

BOOT CAMP-Boot camp training is a combined of exercise using your own bodyweight and cardio drills like jumping jacks. This workout involves the heart and the muscles and increases metabolism and burns calories. It has great recreational value, enhance muscular strength and cardio-vascular fitness.

AEROBICS-It promotes oxygenation of the entire system and improves the body metabolic process. It strengthens and enlarge the heart muscles, improves pumping efficiency of the heart muscles thus enhancing oxygenation, boosts metabolism and alleviation emotional stress. Aerobics also includes activities like cycling, swimming, dancing, walking,  kick-boxing. Swimming and aqua aerobics are very popular nowadays and are very effective for toning the body and increases stamina and flexibility.

GTM WORKOUT-If you like working out in gym, you can include a good cardio workout for 20 to 30 minutes. You can do stretches and exercises like squats, lungs, push ups, abdomen crunches.