If you follow the fitness routines of celebrities like Kareena Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan, Janhvi Kapoor and more, Namrata Purohit’s name immediately comes to mind! They are all regulars in her Pilates training, which is changing the lives of many. Body-strengthening exercises actually changed Namrata Purohit’s own life as a teenager.
Now a conscious movement practitioner, sports nutritionist, author and founder of Pilates studios, Namrata enjoys changing the lives of others with the power of Pilates. In a Health Shots She Sledge interview, Namrata talks about how modesty changed her life, unrealistic expectations from celebrity fitness experts and why people should be careful when taking fitness tips from social media.
Injury at 15
“I had a bad fall from my horse. I was 15 at the time and had injured my knee,’ she recalls. Because of the injury, she was told she could never dance or play squash again – all things she was very passionate about.
“It was a scary situation. I tried everything for a whole year. I tried different fitness forms, rehabilitation and physiotherapy,” says Purohit.
When Pilates humility entered the life of the priest
One day, his father took up the duties of hosting a Pilates course in Mumbai. “That’s when I asked to be on the course. It was so exciting. Four days into it and for the first time in a whole year, I was pain free. That’s when I saw the magic of Pilates,” she says. He thought that if it could help him so much, it could do the same for many people out there. “So, Pilates was life changing for me. I never thought it would be my career or my life path, but seeing how magical it was…getting my hope back that I could live a pain-free life…Pilates for me What did you do,” says the coach.
As a sports teacher
She calls herself an athlete, having been exposed to sports at a young age. The biggest lesson for him was that “You never really fail. You just learn. That’s what life taught me and sports taught me. Even if you struggle or have a hard day or lose a game, get up and do it again. Hard. Try and do the best you can,” she says.
Sports and life are both journeys for him. “As long as I’m enjoying the journey, the process, that’s what’s important. I’m sure we all have our own struggles or not had good results, but I think what the game has taught me is to always look in a positive way. What I’ve learned from it is I try to look and try harder next time or try not to make the same mistakes,” she says. He does not see his life as a failure because of his fall. It taught him at a young age that there is no such thing as failure, and you just learn from it and keep going.
The pressure of being a celebrity fitness trainer
A part of him wants to say that he doesn’t take any pressure or he doesn’t feel any pressure because he is enjoying the journey. That’s a good thing, but she understands that we all have expectations. So, whether you are a celebrity or a fitness trainer, people expect to see them for sure, that too 365 days a year. “It’s almost forgotten that we also enjoy Christmas and New Year’s parties. I think it’s important to humanize it all. I understand that celebrities are role models and you expect them to look up to certain things, even fitness experts… I don’t see anything wrong.
“But there should be a little bit of leeway for each person because everyone is going through a lot and everyone enjoys the holidays and goes on a binge from time to time. That’s healthy and absolutely fine. Because mental health is also important,” she added.
She feels that the more pressure we try to put on ourselves, like “I can’t eat this even though it’s festive because I have to look a certain way,” we do more harm than good. So, whether she feels that celebrity or not, it’s important to realize that it’s okay to let go sometimes. In fact, she gets really funny at parties when she eats a chip, and people say, “Oh my God, she eats that.” And she says “Yes, it’s normal.”
It’s all about maintaining balance in life. “So, a month or two … not all at once, we can have fun, binge and quit,” she says.
Watch She Slays interview with Namrata Purohit here!
Fitness experts on social media
There is a lot of information or misinformation out there when it comes to social media. Myths about Pilates are also popular. Namrata Purohit noted that there are no rules and anyone can take to social media and post whatever they feel like. She says that this may be true for herself and may have worked for them, but it’s not necessarily that one size is going to fit all. “Now, anyone and everyone can suggest or advise what to do on social media. It’s scary because that’s where it’s being proven.
“And how do we know if it works for the person viewing the post?” she asks. So when she posts something, she is very conscious about it. He tries his best not to post anything there that could hurt or cause any harm to anyone. “If I think someone with a back injury shouldn’t be doing it (a particular exercise), I always mention it,” says the fitness expert, who has 430,000 followers on Instagram.
For a top fitness tip, she says, “Just keep it safe, simple and smart”!
(Namrata Purohit has been nominated for a Health Shots Shay Sledge Award in the Wellness Coach (Fitness) category. To vote for her or review our other nominees, please see Shay Sledge Award Nominations.)