Mansi Parikh

Why is fitness important to you?

Fitness is resilience. In my early 30s, I developed low back pain that made it uncomfortable to do simple things like walk normally or drive over 15 minutes. It really scared me and was a major wake up call.  After physical therapy that mostly focused on strengthening my core, I knew I needed to maintain a fitness routine to stay healthy.  Not many people in my family work out regularly and recently I’ve seen them get easily injured as they have aged.  I want to be able to stay active as I get older and I know what I do now will determine what I will be able to do later!

How has e3 or the e3 Community helped you in that regard?

E3 has completely transformed my fitness.  When I first started working out on my own, I mostly focused on cardio.  I always wanted to add strength training but I was intimidated by all the machines and heavy weights at the gym – it was way simpler to go for a run.  Luckily we happened to rent an apartment across the street and I decided to check out e3.  I was definitely nervous during my trial weeks but ended up having so much fun.  The e3 community is so welcoming and most importantly, the space is encouraging and not at all competitive.  Even though I could barely get through most of the exercises, I never felt judged by anyone.  I was really inspired by the strength of everyone around me, especially all the bass ass ladies!  The coaches have helped me so much with form that now I feel comfortable pushing myself without worrying about getting hurt. I’m in the best shape of my life and I know I can do so much more.

What is your biggest “health hurdle” and how do you overcome it?

Definitely self-confidence. Nothing athletic has ever come easily to me—my first week at e3 I didn’t think I could jump on a box and self-fulfilling, I landed awkwardly and fell backward on my tailbone.  The first thing that went through my head was “I don’t belong here”.  But at the end of class as I sat with ice, several people came to check on me and tell me how they had tripped or fallen off boxes too.  That really made a huge difference and I decided not to let that box get the best of me.  Over the months, anytime I said “I can’t” a coach would say “you can” without a thought.  They have pushed me to do things I never would have on my own and of course, they were right, with some work I have been able to do them.  Just staying consistent and seeing the progress has helped me start to change the way I think about myself.

How have you maintained persistence when you felt like things weren’t progressing as fast as you hoped?

My husband has helped a lot.  In the beginning, it was hard to make drastic changes to my diet and work out routine and see very little fat loss or muscle gain.  But Nick would remind me of the things I had improved on which helped me focus on how I was changing even though the numbers didn’t reflect it.  Continuing to surround myself with people who are in great shape has inspired me to stay consistent. I’d ask how long people had been working out and it was obvious just how short my journey fitness has been.  Now working out has become part of my daily routine which makes it easier to maintain even when I’m away from the gym.