When I drive to office in the morning I see all these fine men and women through the big glass doors of the fitness gym on the 4th floor of the building on road side. Running on treadmills, lifting weights and other exercises that I do not know the English word of. And then there are these marathon runners running 5km, 10km faster than Bangalore's traffic on odd Sundays. It's a good sign, it's good to be fitness conscious especially in today’s world. I sincerely hope that the jam-packed gym is not a result of a bunch of new year’s resolution most of us make to break!

    But then something struck my mind. I saw the basement of the building, it was filled with cars and bikes. At 7-30 in the morning the only business that was open in that building is the gym, so I am damn sure all those vehicles belonged to these gym goers. And I am equally sure all these fitness freak people are from the three nearby skyscraper apartment complexes. It’s hardly even a kilo meter away. So, all these men and women use their vehicles to drive to gym which is at a walking distance and then walk on machine that is driving them. How ironic?

    I do not see many people walking in some parts of Bangalore these days. Of course, there is too much traffic on road to cross the roads and no place to walk, true! But if you stop walking to your neighborhood gym or a kirana shop or a barber shop and instead take out your two-wheeler or a four-wheeler, there will be traffic! There will be traffic jam! There will be no place to walk! In my neighborhood I can swear I have not seen certain people of my acquaintance walk on the road at all for 4 years now!

    Before you hit the gym next time, let me tell you that there is plenty of exercise if you do your own chores. Try washing your socks by hand, wash your car yourself, dust the window panes, sweep the floors, clean up the ceiling fans, prepare a full course meal at home, walk to all places that are less than 2 kilo meters away, deep clean your house. If you have the will, you have the time to do all these yourself and not depend on a help to do this for you. That way, you have a natural way of exercising while getting your house hold chores done. And if that’s not enough, then let’s hit the gym!