Who decides that you are attractive,intelligent, or on the other hand, that you are unattractive, stupid?You will be surprised at the answer - you! Yes, you are thedecision-maker of your identity.

Over the years, we've metseveral people who have joined gyms. Their reasons for enrolling intoan exercising programme are pretty limited. Most want to lose weight,while some want to have a beautiful body - like Schwarzenegger's orRacquel Welch's. Very few give a simple answer such as, "I want to befit and healthy." Yet, it's this goal that should be the foundation forany fitness course.

The body beautiful notion is an insult to usbecause it sets a rigid pattern of conformity over varied individualswho, in every single case, is a beautiful person. If you delve into thehistory of callisthenic exercises, for example, you would realise thatthey originated in Sweden in the nineteenth century. The powerfullandlords found the sight of drooping­shouldered peasants offensive. Toimprove their workers' posture they made them go through callisthenicdrills to make them stand upright like soldiers. Later, in the earlytwentieth century, a Dr. Dudley Sargent of Harvard Universityexperimented on these drills and modified them in the hope of creatingthe perfect American male or female. He devised exercising regimes sothat every person would be able to have girth of arms, waists, chestsand legs. And that is how the body-beautiful theory came into being,propagating an entirely false image, not to mention the Hitlerianattitude underlying it.

Similarly, if you have joined a gympurely to shed those extra kilos and look as much a clone as your idealman or woman, think again. Of course, looking attractive is appealing.But, you should consider it only as a by­product and not the primaryreason for exercising. Your main concern should be to develop yourbody-mechanism that has a high quality of vigour, energy, and theability to rise above stress or strain of any kind. And believe us whenwe say it, a fairly reasonable level of fitness will notch up yourattractiveness, your confidence in your own eyes to a considerabledegree.

It may interest you to know that decades of research havegiven experts themselves a realistic and, for that reason, a healthieroutlook on fitness. For example, they have discovered. that big musclesare not stronger, neither more efficient nor healthier. In fact, havingoversized muscles can be as unhealthy as having excessive fat becauseyou have to carry all that extra baggage around impairing movement andefficiency.

Unfortunately, fitness coaches who still believe inthe old theory of bigger is stronger could be harming their students.In a sense, they are like the over-anxious host or hostess who feelhappy only if their guests have overeaten, never mind if they feel likestuffed brinjals.

So, if you are planning to join a gym oralready have done so, our advice would be to clear your mind as to whyyou have enrolled. If it is purely to achieve the build of an Apollo oran hourglass figure, chances are you will stop exercising. Why? Becauseyour build - though it would show improvement - may never look likewhat you perceive as the ideal. You'll ask yourself, "After spending somuch money, sweating my guts out, is that all i get?"

Instead, ifyou wish to exercise to become fit - energetic, enthusiastic, confident- and healthy, you will treasure every positive difference that youwill see. Your slimmer body, that vigorous feeling, the fact that youdon't suffer from colds anymore or contract 'flu at the slightest winkof a virus will make you want to continue exercising.

Simultaneously,you must realise that fitness is meant to make your life a comfortableand enjoyable experience. You are already running by the clock -catching that 9.02 a.m. train, reaching office by 10.30 a.m. meetingyour deadlines, targets. You have to earn a certain amount of money tolead a good life. So, you see, you already have a lot of stress on you.To that, if you add the unrealistic goal that you want to look ascurvaceous or as muscle-bound as your favourite pin-up, you are addingone more needless goal. Besides, to exercise mindlessly and go on astrict diet to chase that goal is not only inhuman and taxing, but alsodegrading to you.

So, don't delude yourself with these falseimages. Fitness is all about building up your own image. You areattractive in yourself -an interesting, wonderful individual. You areyour own role-model if you allow yourself to be. If you exerciseregularly and eat sensibly, you will feel more complete, lithe, strong,and be able to feel the power within you. And your body will be a thingof beauty - perfect in itself. In the democratic world of fitness, youcan make your choice - to be a beautiful you.