Prateek helped transform city’s fitness culture, recall gym enthusiasts

LUCKNOW: Luxury fitness chains and high-end workout studios became common in Uttar Pradesh only after Prateek Yadav established the first such facility in Lucknow, recalled fitness trainers, bodybuilding experts and long-time associates.

Prateek Yadav, son of late Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav and husband of BJP leader Aparna Yadav, was widely recognised in Lucknow’s fitness circles for his disciplined lifestyle, passion for bodybuilding and efforts to professionalise gym training in the city.

Several members of the city’s fitness community said Prateek played a pioneering role in making structured workout culture aspirational among youngsters at a time when modern gym infrastructure was still limited outside metros like Mumbai and Delhi.

“He invested a great deal of time in fitness. He was among the first people to popularise professional gym culture in Lucknow and, for that matter, in Uttar Pradesh,” said fitness enthusiast Pushpendra Yadav.

Vimal Kishore, another member of the city’s gym fraternity, said Prateek helped introduce a more professional approach to health and strength training.

“At a time when organised fitness facilities were still evolving in Uttar Pradesh, he inspired many young people to take fitness seriously,” he said.

His father-in-law, Arvind Singh Bisht, said Prateek viewed fitness not merely as a hobby but as a disciplined way of life.

“He treated fitness as a lifestyle. He was among the pioneers who brought advanced, state-of-the-art gym culture to Lucknow and Uttar Pradesh at a time when even many bigger cities like Delhi were yet to fully adopt it,” Bisht said.

President of the Uttar Pradesh Bodybuilding and Fitness Association, Sajid Ahmed Qureshi, remembered Prateek not only for his dedication to health and physical training but also for his generosity and support towards athletes and fitness professionals.

General secretary of the Lucknow Vyapar Mandal, Pawan Manocha, said Prateek helped normalise bodybuilding and disciplined gym routines among youth from influential and business families.

“At a time when very few people from political or business backgrounds openly promoted bodybuilding, Prateek made fitness socially fashionable among young people,” he said.

Members of Lucknow’s fitness circuit recalled that Prateek frequently interacted with trainers, gym owners, athletes and nutrition experts, and remained actively involved in discussions around exercise science, diet and strength training. Many younger gym-goers reportedly considered him a role model because of his disciplined physique and commitment to health.

In Sept 2012, Prateek featured on an internationally acclaimed bodybuilding website as the “International Transformation of the Month.” At the time, he had credited his physical transformation to a motivational conversation with his father, Mulayam Singh Yadav, years earlier.

Apart from fitness, Prateek was also associated with animal welfare initiatives. He ran an organisation named “Jeev Ashray,” which worked for the rescue, feeding, treatment, and care of stray dogs and abandoned animals in Lucknow.