Yasmin Karachiwala: “When I started, women feared weight training and men avoided Pilates and aerobics”

Matching sets, Stanley cups and two best friends stretching side by side on reformers; if you’ve been on Instagram lately, you’ve seen the image. But Pilates, developed by Joseph Pilates, is about far more than aesthetics or the pursuit of “lean” and “toned” bodies. Once dismissed as the lazy girl’s workout, it’s now recognised as a discipline built on breath and strength. It begins with core control, using your body to both strengthen and stretch every part of itself. Just ask the gym bros who try Reformer Pilates for the first time, legs trembling, sweat pouring, questioning every life choice that brought them here. Pilates girls aren’t in it for the aesthetics.

Or you could ask Yasmin Karachiwala, celebrity trainer and Pilates pioneer in India. A self-proclaimed lazy girl, her accidental journey into fitness began when she was dragged to an aerobics class by her best friend, who had just started dating someone and wanted to get in better shape. The first few sessions were tough. “I didn’t realise it back then, but I’ve always had an ego. I couldn’t tolerate being told that I was bad at something. I’d immediately set out to prove them wrong,” says Karachiwala.

Karate legend Sensei Pervez Mistry once told her that she was “skinny fat”—someone who looks lean but stores more fat than muscle in their body—and an appalled Karachiwala started weight training with him every day to build muscle. “After training in aerobics and weights, I went to the US to become a certified Pilates trainer, on the encouragement of my aerobics teacher in 1990. I came back and started taking classes while also teaching kindergarten kids, which was my initial goal, and then moved to fitness fulltime soon after. That was 35 years ago.”

Today, Karachiwala is one of the most sought-after fitness trainers in the country with 11 studios across India, each equipped to train and certify fitness instructors, teach Pilates and weight train, with the latest sprawling studio opening in Rajendra Nagar, Delhi.

“Pilates is a holistic approach to fitness but to truly benefit from any workout, I recommend a split between Pilates and strength training,” she advises. “It also depends on your goals, but lifting weights is essential, especially as we get older. Two days of weights and two days of Pilates is the ideal balance for anyone’s body.”

On the topic of weight loss, I wanted to know her take on GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro. “If you have Type 2 diabetes, then sure, go for it. If you’re over 100 kgs in weight and your last resort is bariatric surgery, then the drugs can be helpful. But,” she warns, “if you’re looking to drop just five to 10 kgs, please avoid them. We don’t know the long-term side effects yet, so it may not be worth the risk.”