Take care of your body

Friday, 14 May 2010

Ravindranath Tagore took great care of his body even at the age of 60.Not only body, but also his looks. He never kept his hair dishevelled. It had to be well combed. Surprised (or rather irritated) by this narcissism, Gandhiji once asked Tagore: Why do you take so much care for your looks even at this age? In reply Tagore said : "I am not doing it for myself. It is for the people who love me that I am taking extra care of my looks. You see, they want to see me as good-looking, happy and well-balanced, mentally and physically. And if I don't look so in front of them, they would feel unhappy. There is no any iota of doubt about that”

Those who are health-conscious in the true sense of the word always follow certain regimen throughout their life. And even at the age of 50 or 60, they look as fresh as a flower (and also smell like it). One such woman was Bengali authoress Maitreyi Devi. People who have met her in her late fifties say that even at that age she looked gorgeous. She could keep intact the feminine charm, grace and softness that nature has endowed women with. Just one glance at her and the observer could witness the glint in her eyes, shining grey hair, balanced face, beautiful well-aligned teeth, mature smile, healthy body, light movements, sociable manners.....One would just wonder: if she is so graceful now, how beautiful she would have looked in the prime of her youth!



During the last two-three months so many of my well-meaning friends and students have remarked about my getting fat or about my bulging stomach (i.e. paunch).One of my friends told me rather philosophically: "A man is a man till he develops the paunch. After having this new limb in the body, man ceases to be a man. "I trembled to imagine myself as one such. And I realized it is high time I started some vigorous physical exercise. If I won't give some pain to body now, it will surely give me that thing after a few years .I have seen many roly-Poly bodies of men and women and I'd wonder: My goodness! what do people make of their body? How cruel/careless they can be towards their own body? Do they really know the value of their body? Slim figure of the pretty youth transforms into the swollen Mikey Mouse!....And even after all this, people are helpless to initiate any action against this attack on their body.

All these ideas, heath-related maxims, discussions with friends, my reading et al started revolving in my mind and I went to the market and bought new track-paints,T-shirts and shoes. I convinced one of my friends to accompany me in this venture. And we started walking and jogging along with other physical exercises. Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. I followed this widely quoted proverb by Benjamin Franklin. Being a night bird, it was difficult initially to cast my body and mind in this new regimen. But after a few days now it is a habit.


Walking may be the best exercise. But if you can jog it is better than walking. if you are not accustomed to jogging, you'd realize very soon how weak your body is. It can't run even 200 metres! First it would come as a shock. Then you would remember that those who run marathon have to run for 42 kms(26 miles)!This fact would turn your shock into a challenge.

On our first day at Race Course ring road, our eyes witnessed hundreds of health-conscious men and women walking and jogging round the ring road which has the girth of 3 kms. We first went to weight machine so that I can know how many kilos I have successfully get rid off after one month or so. I weighed 75 kg! I gave a silent scream looking at that figure on the screen. Last time it was between 62 to 65.

It was not possible for us to jog 3 kms so we preferred to walk like many other. Inside Race Course there is a ground with laps of 400 metres for the runners. After walking being over, we just go there for jogging. On the very first day I suffered dehydration just after 400 metres. Legs started aching that night .After two three days I went for two laps that is 800 metres. And now I go 4 laps without much dehydration. It takes 2 minutes 10 seconds to complete one lap(i.e. 400 metres)and complete 9 minutes to complete four laps (i.e. 1600 metres i.e. a little more than one a half kilometres). 9 minutes is too long period for 16oo metres, because when you go for physical test to be recruited in army, navy etc, you have to complete 1600 metres within 6 minutes or 6 minutes 30 seconds. I am still to far away from that point, but it is good that I can run 1600 metres. The problem of timings can be resolved with practice. The record for the marathon is 2 hours 4 minutes for the men and 2 hours 15 minutes for the women. It simply means they they can cover 338 metres in one minute on an average.

It has been fifteen days now and I haven't weighed myself. But I think I have successfully got rid off at least one extra kilo from the body. Besides once you start such regimen, you feel yourself as light as a leaf through the day.

LOVE YOUR BODY.RESPECT IT.TRY TO HEAR EVERY CRY OF THE BODY.DON'T LET IT BE UNNOTICED.B'COZ DISEASES JUST DONT VISIT OUR BODY WITHOUT KNOCKS