Porche Cayenne: No it can't swim. Not just yet

Audi A6: A6 for Type As

Few men allow anyone or anything to come between them and their steeds of steel- not even a price tag of Rs 5.85 crore. That may explain why Mukesh Ambani spent that kind of money for his Maybach MS-62. The Maybach may be mot juste for Mukesh, the head of India's largest private enterprise, but there are others, further down the food chain who can take heart from the fact that more affordable options (read: Rs 30-40 lakh) are just around the corner. Better still, these are two of the best sports car brands in the world, Audi and Porsche. With BMW already here-its cars have been sold in India for the past nine years-the legendary German triumvirate of sports cars is now in India (the Mercedes is here too, but it is more a luxury car).

So, what is it about these high-performance brands that make grown men act like young boys who have just seen a train set? Luxury and the got-it-flaunt-it thingamajig are two reasons. As is, according to Satya Bagla, Director, Exclusive Motors, a Porsche dealer, "safety". Then, there's the thing some men have about being seen as 'sporty', just as other men, noticeably in Delhi satellite Gurgaon want to be seen as 'brawny'. The former obviously prefer sports cars; the latter, utes. Audi-it will sell Audi A8, A6, Allroad Quattro (fine it is a SUV, but a sporty one), and TT in India-will cater to the first segment. Porsche, given the cadence surrounding its name and its reputation for turning out sports cars should, but it will debut with (surprise, surprise), an UTE, Cayenne. And it is unlikely that they have to spend big bucks on promoting their brands. "It is of significance to Porsche customers that their cars wear the Made in Germany label," says Amaury La Fonta, Marketing Manager, Porsche, Middle East and Africa.

Status, admits Hormazd Sorabjee, Editor, Autocar India, auto fanatic, and proud owner of a Beemer 325i, is the main motivator for people to opt for cars such as these. However, like him, there are people who chose a Porsche or a BMW for the ride. "Right from the steering to the way it handles to its near perfect weight distribution, it has been engineered for driving pleasure," he says of his beemer. And for some young (and middle-aged) men- cars, after all, is a men thing-that could be all the reason to buy a Porsche, BMW or Audi. Come to think of it, a Porsche is a great way to overcome a mid-life crisis.

-Priyanka Sangani

TREADMILL
Breaking in your gym

A stranger in a strange land?

Three years ago, on a hot summer afternoon, we hatched Treadmill on a whim. We had no idea it would last-thrive, actually-for so long. This month marked the third anniversary of Treadmill and, although I say it myself, I'm chuffed with the reaction we've got from our readers. When we began adding Muscles Mani's e-mail id at the end of the column, I didn't really expect too many readers to write in. As it happened, there was a deluge of mail. What was especially heartening, at least for me, was to see that so many of our readers are health conscious and want to keep themselves fit. To the right of this column, you'll see a selection of queries with my replies to them. From the next installment of the column, I'll make Q&A a regular feature.

Enough blabber. Let's get down to the serious business of battling blubber. There comes a time when you have to switch gyms. Sometimes it's because you're tired of the old one and want a change of scene; or a snazzy new one named after a three-atom allotrope lures you away; or, as in my case, you've moved home and need to go to a new gym that's closer to your new address.

Whatever the reason, switching gyms can be disorienting. Gyms are like new school shoes; they almost always need to be broken in before they give you a good fit. Take my new gym. It's a bit smaller than the older one. It's cheaper too. And has all the equipment and pieces of iron that I need (okay, it doesn't have a Hammer Strength pec-builder, but that's alright). Yet, for the past week that I've been hitting the gym, I get strange vibes. New instructors, new co-members, a different cadence. All factors that can easily put off even the most hardened gymmer and turn him into a slacker. Now, how do you overcome such dangerous tendencies and re-motivate yourself to work out?

As long as your new gym doesn't lack the basic equipment and hygiene factors that are essential (use your common sense to see whether it does) and has a trainer who's at least half way good, it's alright. Once you ensure that, it's a question of getting familiar with a new place. Here's a quick checklist of things to do that I drew up over the past week (And believe me, it's helped me not miss a single workout at the new place I'm frequenting):

If the crowd at the new gym puts you off (mine has wrestlers of gargantuan proportions vying with you for sets at the Smith machine), try to change the time you go to the gym. Early mornings are the best; large creatures sleep late!

If the coach is not (and he's not going to be) like your old buddy who knew all your needs and limits, be patient with him; explain that you don't do the rear lat pull-downs because an old cervical problem could perk its ugly head up. He'll understand.

If familiar equipment isn't around, try and use existing stuff innovatively. If there's no bench to do declining barbell presses, you can always substitute them with declining dumb-bell presses. Simple.

And, lastly, give your new gym some time. Things are bound to improve and you'll soon settle down.

-MUSCLES MANI
write to musclesmani@intoday.com

Q&A WITH MUSCLES MANI

A few installments back, treadmill tagged Muscles Mani's e-mail address on his columns. The response has been overwhelming. Mani himself is quite chuffed that so many people are conscious about keeping themselves fit and exercising regularly. While many of those who write in to Mani get personal replies by return e-mail, for the benefit of other readers, here are a few queries along with replies.

Q. I am a 45-year-old with persistent pain in my knee joints. I have been suffering from this for the last two years and I would like to seek your advice on what physical exercises I should undertake that could reduce this pain long-term.

Bharat Thaker

First, I think you should get your knees checked by an orthopaedist to see whether you have a serious injury. Second, you could do a couple of low-intensity exercises that could strengthen your knees. Leg Raises 1. Sit on a chair and straighten one leg. Hold for a minute. Now, bend your knee and lower that leg about halfway to the floor and hold for 30 seconds. Return to starting position and rest. Repeat. Do it four times for each leg. You could add ankle weights to make it more effective. Leg Raises 2. Sit in a chair with one leg straight and extended and its foot resting on a bench. Lift the foot six inches while keeping your leg straight. Hold for 10 seconds and return to starting position for 10 seconds. Repeat. Do six repetitions for each leg and keep increasing the time for lifting.

I am 1.85 metres tall, 26 years old and weigh around 67 kg. I feel I need to increase my weight by at least five to seven kg by putting on some muscle mass. To this end, I have been exercising regularly for the last four to five months (four to five times a week for around one hour) but there hasn't been any tangible difference. Since most of your tips are on how to cut excess fat from the body, I would appreciate it if you can give a few tips on how to go about putting on some muscle mass.

Rajendra Nayak

If you're exercising regularly and yet aren't building muscle mass, you may not be adhering to a proper diet. I would suggest you break up your meals into five small meals instead of three or two meals. Also, remember to eat a small meal before working out. You should have a balanced diet of protein and carbohydrates, in the ratio 70:30. If you are non-vegetarian, get your protein from chicken and fish. If you are a vegetarian, source your protein from lentils, paneer, etc. Your workout schedule should emphasise exercising your big muscles-namely the back muscles, legs and shoulder muscles.

I'm 29 years old, and I do some push-ups a couple of times a week and play squash once a week. Can you help me come up with a weekly work out plan? I would like to concentrate mainly on my back, abdomen and shoulders, since they seem to be on the weaker side.

Anup Sivadas

I'm sorry but just plain old push-ups a couple of times a week and a weekly game of squash isn't enough to get a ripped look or even a hard, muscled body. You should opt for a regular gym session: a combination of cardiovascular training and resistance training using weights. I'd suggest begin with a three-day-per-week regime and concentrate on exercises for the back, shoulders, legs and abs. For abs, do crunches and leg raises. For the back, shoulders and legs, opt of the basic exercises like squats (for legs), barbell lifts (for shoulders) and chin-ups or pull-ups for the back.