It is nearly 5:30 a.m. Sunday morning. The air is cool, the park is quiet, and small teams of ladies start to trickle into VMRDA Park (VUDA Park). There are ladies of their 20s warming up alongside ladies of their 50s. Some persons are lacing up their footwear earlier than beginning a run, others are getting ready for a brisk stroll, and a few try their first jog. For the subsequent few hours, the park turns into their shared health area. Every girl units her personal tempo. Each end is well known.
That is Sturdy Sisters Run Membership, a rising women-only health group based by Visakhapatnam-based health coach Monalisa Dayanand. Assembly each Sunday morning, the membership creates what its founders name a “protected area” for girls to start their health journey with out concern of judgement.
“We need to take away the concern of working,” says Monalisa. “The purpose is to step by step allow ladies to take part in 5km and ultimately 10km occasions, whether or not they select to stroll, jog or run. Participation is rather more vital than tempo.”
step-by-step coaching
The membership follows a progressive coaching construction. Contributors begin with a manageable distance of about 1.5km within the first week and step by step improve the space by about 500m every week, ultimately finishing a snug 5k. Ladies are divided into teams based on health degree, with runners, joggers and walkers separated.
For Monalisa, the concept got here from a really private journey. Throughout her secondary training, there was little scope for bodily exercise as a result of demanding schedule of IIT entrance teaching. Attributable to stress, she weighed nearly 100 kg by the point she completed college.
“Once I moved to Bangalore for engineering, I used to be physique shamed many instances,” she recollects. “I attempted the whole lot, together with crash diets and countless cardio, however it simply left me bodily exhausted and mentally exhausted. At one level, I even ended up within the hospital. I spotted I wasn’t getting more healthy, I used to be simply getting weaker.”
That turning level led her to energy coaching.
“My notion of health fully modified. As a substitute of chasing weight reduction, I began constructing energy.” Over the subsequent 4 years, she step by step misplaced 40 kilograms.
She then labored within the IT sector, however her rising ardour for health prompted a profession change. She grew to become a private coach in 2015 after incomes certifications in precision vitamin, ladies’s physiology and health teaching, and neuroscience-based teaching with a concentrate on psychological well being.
However one thing bothered her. “Most gyms have been dominated by males, and only a few ladies got here to coach. Many have been intimidated by the surroundings or believed working and energy coaching weren’t for them.”
Witnessing the optimistic adjustments within the ladies she coached satisfied her that group, not simply teaching, can change lives. 4 years in the past, after transferring to Visakhapatnam, she began cultivating the concept of a women-led health group. Consequently, the Sturdy Sisters Run Membership was born and is presently getting ready for its sixth Sunday assembly.
Sturdy Sisters Run Membership will probably be held in Visakhapatnam on Sunday morning. |Picture courtesy: Particular Association
On a mean Sunday, about 25 ladies collect for a two-hour stroll, jog, or run. In between, we’ve got conversations about quite a lot of matters, from parenting to work to well being and menopause. Friendships kind naturally, similar to health habits.
In accordance with Mona Lisa, the actual purpose is consistency. “Operating is solely about displaying up. Each Sunday, whether or not it is strolling, jogging, or working, it reminds us that we will do issues which can be troublesome for us. When ladies do that collectively, it is extra about connection and belonging than efficiency.”
change the story
The membership can also be making an attempt to deal with myths surrounding ladies’s health. Many contributors are hesitant to take up working because of issues about hormonal well being, knee issues, ageing, and extra. Monalisa believes that combining energy coaching with good working can enhance bone well being, preserve muscle mass, and enhance confidence, particularly for girls approaching menopause. She additionally emphasizes the significance of standard well being monitoring, getting enough vitamin D3 and iron ranges, and gradual coaching somewhat than sudden bursts of high-intensity train.
Power that exceeds pace
Recognizing that health goes past working, the membership is now increasing its providing. Power coaching classes are an integral a part of the programme, whereas yoga, physiotherapy instruction and common ladies’s well being check-ups are additionally deliberate within the coming months.
For a lot of contributors, change is already seen. “Sturdy Sisters Run Membership has modified my way of life,” says member Hindavi Anureka. “It pushes me to get out of my consolation zone and prioritize my well being. It motivates me to stand up early, stroll usually, and even begin jogging. It is develop into extra of a sisterhood than a working membership.”
Sanka Hema, 52, who’s nearing menopause, says the weekly classes have given her new confidence. “Since becoming a member of the membership, I’ve develop into extra disciplined and bodily match. Now I can confidently run marathons, which I by no means imagined.”
Sturdy Sisters Run Membership will probably be held in Visakhapatnam on Sunday morning. |Picture courtesy: Particular Association
The group is now taking the subsequent steps. On June 28, Sturdy Sisters will host its first women-only energy assembly, open to contributors of all ages and health ranges. The occasion, held at Step Up Health in MVP Colony, options pleasant challenges resembling longest plank maintain, most body weight squats, push-ups, and body weight deadlifts. Past competitors, the main target continues to be on constructing connections. Contributors can anticipate interactive video games, wholesome meals, health giveaways, medals and certificates for winners, and the chance to develop into a part of the Sturdy Sisters Power Membership.
To contact the membership please name 77022276360.
issued – June 26, 2026 12:24 PM IST
