By Jubika Khanna
Delhi has a funny way of bringing people together in bizarre places when they least expect it. When you talk about love, some meet through common friends, a bunch of them at work and at school and these days, most meet through dating apps. I, on the other hand found my partner at a workout session I went to, through a fitness app. Who would’ve known that our dishevelled hair, warm sweaty face glow and Nike track pants would kick-off a romance? Not me!
The steadily creeping pounds here and there and my not-so-athletic body, was screaming to get fit. Whilst searching for gyms, I came across an even better fix – fitpass. One pass for Rs.999 per month that gave me the freedom to work out how I want, when I want and where I want across any of their 1250+ partner gyms and studios. Amazing, right? As a working professional that is exactly what I needed. The power this pass held amazed me. I started my quest to get fit with Fitpass in October last year. Fully committed to my goals, I promised myself to not be distracted by anything. That was my plan. Just go work out. . No talking. No gazing. No feeling self-conscious over how my butt looked in those tight yoga pants. Work out, then get out. I didn’t want to deviate from what I had set out to accomplish: a fitter me.
I paced my gym workout and ensure that I didn’t miss my workouts. I used Fitpass to work out at fitness centres close to office on most weekdays and close to home on other days. My stamina was getting better and I started experimenting with different kinds of workouts – I was loving it! I began to form my own routine with Fitpass, combining workouts that I enjoyed most. Fast forward to December, when I took my first Battle Rope Training session. The intense cardio workout was something I had been waiting to try for a long time, but I was too intimidated. I buckled up, mentally and physically and reserved my first Battle Rope session. Walking over from my home to the workout, a part of me was still shivering with the thought of craziness involved in the workout.
Cue to-be-boyfriend’s entry. Maybe he saw the baffled look on my face when my trainer handed me the hefty ropes and asked me to follow his lead. Or maybe he read on my face how mortified I was, because I hadn’t ever exercised that hard before that he came around and offered help. Our eyes met for a brief moment, we held each other’s gaze and before I knew it he looked away only to give me pointers for my workout. I nearly fainted because of the exhaustion but he encouraged me to keep at it. And I did. I was proud of myself for not giving up.. My workout left me dead, but I still wanted to thank him for helping me out. As I walked over to his weight training section, dripping with sweat and out of breath a little voice in my head screamed, “Do you really want to do this?”. Yes!! My head instantly screamed back! With courage in both hands, I made my way to him; introduced myself and thanked him for his help. After speaking to him for just a little while, I realised that he was not only confident, but mature as well. Realising that he was in the middle of his workout, I didn’t take much of his time and said goodbye. As I walked out of the gym that day, I could feel my stomach churn and roll over. I was overwhelmed! I didn’t if I wanted to do rope training again or if I just wanted to see him again.
For the next few days I watched him workout in his Puma basketball shorts and noticed how handsome he looked in it. But there was more to him than just his looks that reeled me in. Smiling and nodding at each other every time we crossed paths during our workout breaks became a common practice for us. Something unbelievable happened 2 weeks later. Whilst taking a breather at a climbing session near my office, I heard my name being called; so I removed my earphones, turned around and there he was. I was in a frenzy. I was also panicking, since I was sweaty from my workout and definitely not looking my best and he was smartly dressed in his office wear with a blazer on top. But, I still walked over to meet him. We talked about many things and out of selfishness or maybe because I just wanted to see him more often, I asked him to get a fitpass too. I told him about how incredible fitpass was making my workout journey. It didn’t really take me much time to convince him.
We decided to take a Crossfit workout together over the weekend. That workout was the most fun I’d had in a while. We soon started planning our workouts together, first over the weekends and later even on regular weekdays after work..He slowly started making his way to my heart with his kind ways. I laughed at his jokes. He laughed at mine. And before I knew it, I had fallen for him. From our first workout together, we were inseparable. We had our ups and downs like every couple does, but all in all, it seemed too perfect to be something that stemmed from a workout session.
For those of you who are still wondering, four months later, we are going strong and I mean both, fitness strong and love strong. If you’re reading this, I wish that you don’t lose hope for finding love in unexpected places. It’s pretty rare when love just shows up on your doorstep, rings the bell, and introduces itself. But when it does, make sure you embrace it wholeheartedly.
