Training with the master

Date: 12-07-2011 Posted by: Anabolic Info TeamUnited States

Kumar Mannava considers himself lucky to have got the opportunity to work with none other than popular Hollywood fitness trainer, Stan McQuay who has trained celebrities like Gerald Butler and Dr Dre. It happened just by chance — Kumar found him on Facebook and asked the legend if he could learn from him. “I never expected him to say yes — but after begging and pleading, he did. He invited me over to stay with him for a month and, it was an exhilarating experience.”

Though qualified as a software engineer, Kumar decided to follow his heart and took up bodybuilding as a full time profession. “I was always interested in bodybuilding and after completing my studies, I decided to make my passion my occupation.” Fifteen years into the business of bodybuilding and, after training celebrities like Allu Arjun and Sonia from Tollywood, did he learn anything new from his stint with Stan McQuay?

“He has more experience in this field than I have. I learnt the importance of nutrition from him. I noticed that everyone there is well qualified, but this is not the case in India. Here, it is all about learning on the job and not everyone has a degree in the field. But, I got a degree from the American Council of Exercise.”

While others diet and almost starve to reduce weight, what is his regime to stay fit? “Starving is like committing suicide and the body does not benefit from this. I follow a holistic approach — that is, staying fit internally and externally. One should never give up on carbohydrates and fat just to lose weight. This can lead to other problems in the body.”