It is only a matter of time until gyms finally reopen and men and women are back to pushing heavy weights above their heads – blood pumping through their veins and faces glistening with sweat. On the flip side, however, many Pakistanis are understandably hesitant to suddenly start sharing equipment in a closed space with potential virus-carriers and may instead opt to exercise at home. Here are 5 local brands that will help you get started on – or continue – your home fitness journey.
1. Living Fit
Founded by two sisters, Sana and Manal Garib, Living Fit aims to guide women on their fitness journey: specializing in minimalist fitness apparel to make working out comfortable. Sana, in particular, has an additional Instagram account under the same brand in which she uses her experience as a weightlifting and gymnastic trainer to coach her followers on workout routines and nutrition advice. https://www.instagram.com/p/CCYpH8bJdxK/
2. Precision Strength
Selling major heavy duty equipment, Precision Strength targets athletes who wish to focus on their core lifts at home and would like to create a home gym. Their products include goods like squat and power racks that are generally more difficult to obtain and require long-term effort to make the investment worthwhile. https://www.instagram.com/p/CCDUAYgpp-F/
3. Apollo Sports
Selling products ranging from dumbbells to medicine balls to foam rollers, Apollo Sports is a brand that offers all the products an average fitness enthusiast needs to do a solid workout at home. Prospective buyers might find themselves a bit overwhelmed by the variety offered and become confused as to what to purchase, but we recommend starting with a couple pairs of dumbbells and then see where it goes from there. https://www.instagram.com/p/CCk80E5Aujm/
4. Nehathefoodie
No home fitness routine is complete without a solid nutrition plan. Enter Nehathefoodie, a student from Karachi running a food blog in which she provides recipes for healthy and tasty foods to consume in between workouts. Nehathefoodie also makes an effort to include cheat foods for those who can’t manage without them, but with a healthy twist. Want Nutella? Why not try Nehathefoodie’s Nutella Fudge Bars which lack any of the sugar and additives which makes normal Nutella so unhealthy? https://www.instagram.com/p/CCBIye-pnmv/
5. Zo the Nutritionist
Armed with an MSc. in Human Nutrition from the prestigious McGill University, Zoha Matin is another nutrition specialist who offers advice to fitness enthusiasts on how to eat and stay healthy. In addition to providing recipes and advice, Matin also makes an effort to clarify misconceptions about nutrition: such as whether or not frozen fruit is healthy. She also tries to tackle common problems faced by people, such as food cravings. https://www.instagram.com/p/CBu3heLJUx4/
Featured picture credit: Charlotte Gomez / BuzzFeed Also read: Female tent pegger says niqab shouldn’t stop women from following their dreams