Being an athlete is no mean feat, it requires a high degree of physical fitness and health. Taking cognizance of the need for athletes to train and workout, a gymnasium spread over about 700 square feet has been set up in the training area of the Commonwealth Games Village. There is also a recovery centre adjacent to the gym where athletes can refresh themselves after a gruelling workout.
According to Village Mayor Dalbir Singh, the gym receives on an average 700 visitors per day. “On September 23 when the gym was set up, 24 athletes came to the gym. The maximum number of athletes who visited the gym on a particular day was 1,400. A number of services are available at the gym which can be availed of free of cost by athletes. In addition to fluid replacement drinks, water, energy bars and carbohydrate replenishing drinks, athletes can also unwind in the recovery zone where there is are steam baths, saunas, Jacuzzis and hydro-therapy tanks. There are also chilled baths for those suffering from heat exhaustion,” Mr. Singh added.
The gym remains open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. while the peak hours are 6 a.m. to 9-30 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8-30 p.m. There are support personnel in the gym as well. These support personnel are not trainers since the athletes have their own trainers and team to help them. The four support personnel drawn from the Air Force and the Sports Authority of India remain available to help exercisers with equipment.
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Roughly 120-130 athletes can work out at one sitting in the gym which is serviced by Body-Solid equipment. Gym in-charge Dr. Tej Kaul said: “The fitness centre is divided in two portions. One portion is called the cardio zone. However, athletes already have a high level of fitness hence for them it is more like a warm-up zone. The other portion is the strength building zone. Our gym philosophy is to take care of the upper part, mid-section and lower region of the body.”
The cardio zone has six each of ergo-cycles, cross-trainers and treadmills. The maximum number of athletes per team is about 18. Thus if a coach so desires he or she can get the entire team to warm up in one sitting.
The strength section has muscle-building stations, free weights and medicine balls. According to Dr. Kaul, the muscle-building stations are specifically designed to take care of and strengthen each muscle.
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