Gone are the days when a teenager would get excited about a game of tennis or going to the club for a swim.
With the teenage generation growing crazy over body-building, fitness regimes and size zero, one has to ask — is gym the new swim?
For a lot of teenagers, hitting the gym is a quick and effective way to develop muscles and look like their favourite stars. For others, it's the best alternative when they know they're no good on the field or court.
"Teens, who aren't particularly great at sports, can join a gym. With proper instructions and training, they can develop good physiques and feel better about their image," says
18-year-old Vikky Sasidharan of MVJ College of Engineering.
"Sports require a lot of dedication and it's a much slower process. Hitting the gym just gives faster results."
Despite there being enough takers for the gym, even the officials running them aren't too happy with this current trend.
"We don't encourage teenagers to work out because we believe that whatever
physical activity one does should hone a particular skill.
Football, for example, helps in eye-leg coordination. We would rather them go play a sport, which is a more strenuous workout than an aerobics class!" says Prarthana Prabhu, fitness trainer and manager of Gold's Gym, Richmond Road branch.
"Schools these days are too academic-oriented and there's hardly any time
allotted to fitness and sports.
A gym close to home is the only option for them to maintain health. Besides, we maintain health protocols for our 20-25 regulars of that age group to give a technically sound session based on the level of intensity each one can handle" she adds.
Another factor that adds to this trend is that a lot of parents in Bangalore are working couples.
If no sports coaching centre is nearby, it gets quite impractical for them to send their kids for training on a regular basis.
Of course, there are also those who don't see the shift from sports to gym as a reality at all.
"I started going to the gym with my 18-year-old son but he soon stopped and I
have continued. I don't see a lot of teenagers in the gym on a regular basis.
Most of them start during their holidays and stop as soon as school or college starts," says Vijay Mysore, a parent.
"When it comes to sports, the biggest issue kids today face is the lack of open spaces near their homes. Travel time, school work, television and Facebook also play
spoilsport to the good old days of playing sports for fun," he adds.
Despite what anyone says, one thing is certain — the kids who are passionate about specific sports will never leave it for anything else.
"We run after school football training centers in Vasanthnagar and Koramangala and train around 200 kids in various batches.
The teens that join our programme definitely prefer an active and team-based sport like football over the gym," says Amit Chacko Thomas of Game On Sports.
"But we have noticed an increased fascination towards six-pack abs at the cost of all-round body fitness, which is more crucial at this age," he adds, with a sense of
concern.
With the teenage generation growing crazy over body-building, fitness regimes and size zero, one has to ask — is gym the new swim?
For a lot of teenagers, hitting the gym is a quick and effective way to develop muscles and look like their favourite stars. For others, it's the best alternative when they know they're no good on the field or court.
"Teens, who aren't particularly great at sports, can join a gym. With proper instructions and training, they can develop good physiques and feel better about their image," says
18-year-old Vikky Sasidharan of MVJ College of Engineering.
"Sports require a lot of dedication and it's a much slower process. Hitting the gym just gives faster results."
Despite there being enough takers for the gym, even the officials running them aren't too happy with this current trend.
"We don't encourage teenagers to work out because we believe that whatever
physical activity one does should hone a particular skill.
Football, for example, helps in eye-leg coordination. We would rather them go play a sport, which is a more strenuous workout than an aerobics class!" says Prarthana Prabhu, fitness trainer and manager of Gold's Gym, Richmond Road branch.
"Schools these days are too academic-oriented and there's hardly any time
allotted to fitness and sports.
A gym close to home is the only option for them to maintain health. Besides, we maintain health protocols for our 20-25 regulars of that age group to give a technically sound session based on the level of intensity each one can handle" she adds.
Another factor that adds to this trend is that a lot of parents in Bangalore are working couples.
If no sports coaching centre is nearby, it gets quite impractical for them to send their kids for training on a regular basis.
Of course, there are also those who don't see the shift from sports to gym as a reality at all.
"I started going to the gym with my 18-year-old son but he soon stopped and I
have continued. I don't see a lot of teenagers in the gym on a regular basis.
Most of them start during their holidays and stop as soon as school or college starts," says Vijay Mysore, a parent.
"When it comes to sports, the biggest issue kids today face is the lack of open spaces near their homes. Travel time, school work, television and Facebook also play
spoilsport to the good old days of playing sports for fun," he adds.
Despite what anyone says, one thing is certain — the kids who are passionate about specific sports will never leave it for anything else.
"We run after school football training centers in Vasanthnagar and Koramangala and train around 200 kids in various batches.
The teens that join our programme definitely prefer an active and team-based sport like football over the gym," says Amit Chacko Thomas of Game On Sports.
"But we have noticed an increased fascination towards six-pack abs at the cost of all-round body fitness, which is more crucial at this age," he adds, with a sense of
concern.