Salman Bukhari, a North Kashmir-based gym trainer is inspiring young fitness freaks across Valley by his distinctive methodology.
Hailing from Kreeri Baramulla, Salman is an engineer by profession and runs ‘Shape-Up Fitness’, a state-of-the-art gymnasium, at Budshah Nagar, a township barely few kilometres away from the city-centre in Srinagar.
Salman’s aura and the level of professionalism he carries, has brought hoards of fitness seekers to his gym he established just two-and-a-half years ago.
His tailor-made diet charts and exercise schedules coupled with consistent monitoring of his trainees is what makes Salman the stand-out fitness trainer in the city.
Toned structure, vascular body and humble nature are what motivates many of his followers to track his way of living a healthy life.
He dedicatedly spends at least eight hours daily in his gym with his clients.
“Before leaving for my office which is some 30 kilometres away from Srinagar, I train my boys for nearly three hours in the morning. Later, in the evening, I spend another four hours in the gym,” he said.
An engineer by heart, Salman became inclined towards gymnastics by his elder brother Imran Bukhari.
Salman took to fitness and body-building like a duck to water. It soon became his passion and within a few years, he was selected as a head-trainer at world’s leading gym chain Gold’s Gym, in Jammu.
“As I began to feel more and fit, I became passionate about it. I have been training people for nearly 10 years now and I will continue to do it,” he said.
Salman as a teenager was very active in sports.
“I relied on my athleticism to keep me lean and ripped but in comparison to other teenagers in my age group I was always one of the smallest. My lack of size and strength is what made it hard for me to make any of the teams and this was a wakeup call for me,” he said.
Fast making his name as one of the best trainers in the valley, Salman has recently completed a training course at India’s leading gym institute.
“Mere training is not enough. A trainer should know all the techniques and nutritional aspects to help people live a fit life. That all was taught to me by professionals in Gold’s Gym Fitness Institute,” he said.
Salman believes that the sedentary lifestyle of people – who sit in the office for 9-10 hours – is the reason behind life-style diseases that most Kashmiris complain about these days.
“A couple of decades ago blood pressure and diabetes were stapled with old age. But with increasing mechanical lifestyle, people even in the early 30s suffer from these. But if one trains himself in a proper manner and follows the diet as suggested by the trainer, one can change his life forever,” Salman said.
He believes that proper diet and nutrition is equally important for a person to stay disease-free.
“Nutrition is the key. You cannot have a shredded aesthetic physique at this level without proper nutrition. For me “nature is nutrition” so I try to eat a lot of organic foods. I’m big on micro-nutrients, natural herbs and supplements. I stay lean year-round,” he says.
Salman, who is one of the finest fitness trainers in the valley, was last year awarded the best athlete in Kashmir. He said that the most satisfying feeling for him is to change someone’s life by inspiring them to live a healthy lifestyle.
“To see the happiness on my clients’ face when they achieve progress following my diet and training regime is priceless. I am always available on Facebook and Instagram to help people with queries and suggestions on their health,” he said.
Salman’s love for sports is unmatchable. “I just love sports, I love to work out and most of all I love to compete. When you are at the gym you compete against yourself and that strengthens your will, I really like that,” he said.
Story reproduced from Kashmir Monitor with some minor editing.