Sri Chinmoy: Age no barrier to fitness
Fitness enthusiast and peace leader Sri Chinmoy, at age 64, performed an astonishing feat of physical strength on May 29 before a number of onlookers in Queens, N.Y.
Using his abdominal muscles he raised a weight of 203 lbs 103 times in 61.95 seconds. The concentrated weight, which was 1 and 1/3 times his body weight, was placed directly over his abdomen and he lifted the weight 2 to 3 inches each time.
Nishtha Baum of the Sri Chinmoy Centres International in Jamaica, N.Y. said Sri Chinmoy embarked on this new venture in late May with a 100-pound weight. In what he calls the “crunch abdomen-up” he then raised the 100-pound weight 100 times consecutively in 48.60 seconds. He then proceeded to perform 4,000 crunch sit-ups without stopping in 47 minutes, 28.53 seconds. A rate, she noted, of over 85 stomach crunches per minute.
Fitness expert and five-time “Mr. Universe,” Bill Pearl said “4,000 crunches is impressive but 100 crunches with 100 pounds is even more impressive. I am sure I can’t do that and I’ve been doing this for years and outweigh Sri Chinmoy by 80 or 90 pounds.
“Age is no barrier,” says Sri Chinmoy. “When the inflexibility of the mind surrenders to the enthusiasm of the heart, then we can accomplish many unimaginable things!” Dr. A. Rodriguez, medical director of the New York Road Runners Club said “Sri Chinmoy has an inner strength and an inner power. The astonishing feats of fitness which Sri Chinmoy displays have encouraged countless people to do what they never even dreamed they could do.”
Published in The Journal of Alternatives Therapies, Volume 2, Number 9, June 1996