Zumba trainer Shwetambari Shetty’s Instagram feed is proof of that dedication for and commitment to fitness and healthy living. The new mom – who welcomed a baby girl last year – shared updates regularly during her time pregnancy Journey and continues to address various issues new mothers may have, including post-pregnancy weight.
In an exclusive interaction, Shwetambari, a master trainer on Cult.fit’s four-week Belly Burn fat loss program, shares more about her journey, tips on burning belly fat, and why fitness is there for everyone.
Excerpts:
Tell us about your trip.
It was a happy coincidence. I asked myself what I should do after working for a bank for many years. I came up with it by accident Zumba, took up the course and began teaching. This one student who attended my first grade said so many wonderful things after class that I thought I was born for them. I was here to change lives, make people fitter, healthier and happier. Then there was no turning back.
What role has Zumba played on your fitness journey?
Zumba is great Dance fitness Format. For me it’s so much more – it changed my life. Zumba introduced me to the fitness world and taught me how to do fitness for fun.
What is your daily routine like?
I had a baby a year ago so it’s different now than it used to be. I gave birth to a baby in July 2020, at the height of the first wave of Covid, and started exercising a month later. I’ve lost more than 10 kg, of which I’ve gained weight pregnancy exercise at home. I got my dance fitness for cardio and then got dumbbells for my strength training and did yoga twice a week.
I wake up to feed, play, bathe, feed again, and get her to bed by 10am for her first nap. Then I either go to the gym or make a phone call. I have lunch at 1:30 p.m., feed them and call again.
After I finish work at 7 p.m., my time after that belongs to my daughter Yona. We are usually in bed at 10.30 p.m. So right now my life revolves around her work out, and work (in that order).
What inspires you about fitness?
Just so much:
* It boosts mine trust
* I look good with that
* It gives me the energy to do my daily activities well
*It makes me happy
* That makes me healthy
* It helps me change lives for the better
* Most of all, it helps me to age gracefully.
How do you see fitness and immunity awareness amid a pandemic?
To me it looks like India is finally ready to make movement a necessity. So far it has been a luxury. The Indians are starting to understand that regular exercise and exercise help you get fit and healthy and can have long-lasting benefits. Maintaining good health also means having good immunity and overall making us stronger to fight certain diseases and conditions. So people are now more aware of why exercise and fitness are so important in everyday life. It is no longer “I have a special occasion and need to lose a few pounds”. It’s about making fitness a habit.
What was the idea behind the relaunch of the Belly Burn program in the Cult.fit app?
Everyone wants a flat stomach, washboard abs, six pack abs. While it is perfectly possible, it takes a lot of effort and hard work. The Belly Burn program does not promote stain reduction as it cannot. It helps in building a strong core and when we train for a strong core a lot of belly fat will go away. The program also promotes HIIT – these are workouts that alternate between high and low intensity. The powerful bursts of energy use more fat than fuel and the rest periods in between help flush waste products from the muscles.
It focuses on burning all of body fat and strengthening the core. And people who saw it on the first run did just that. We had over 30,000 people attending and actively engaging with us to get fitter with the workouts, meal plans, and group discussions.
How do you see weight loss?
Weight loss is fat loss. We need to lose this unnecessary fat in the body. Fat is the cause of many health conditions. Higher belly fat carries several health risks: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, etc. To protect ourselves from these diseases, we need to burn off the visceral fat that is around the organs.
The other type of fat is subcutaneous fat, or fat that is located under the skin. It’s the kind that we can pinch and hold with our fingers. Its accumulation in the body often depends on genetics and lifestyle. And small amounts of subcutaneous fat are usually harmless.
Not just belly fat, but all fat loss means good health. You can get workouts, tips, and nutrition plans straight from some of the best in the field, but nothing will help if you’re not consistent. If you exercise regularly, eat right, exercise, sleep well, the by-product is weight loss / fat loss.
Fitness myths you’d like to break open?
Fat makes you fat.
No, good fat is needed for fat loss (like coconut, nuts, avocado, olive oil, etc.)
You need high intensity exercise to lose fat.
This is wrong because you can even walk briskly and take 15,000 steps every day to burn fat.
Weight training makes women fatter.
No – women don’t have the testosterone to gain mass like men do. Only with strength training can you protect your joints and muscles and age more gracefully.
Any tips for beginners?
On-line fitness or fitness-at-home is really a good starting point for beginners. All of these people intimidated into going to the gym – that’s what you need! Train at home, in your comfort zone, in your “non-assessment area” and achieve your fitness goals. There is no risk of injury if a beginner starts slowly and steadily, follows all instructions from the trainer, and trains with a qualified fitness trainer.
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