At 54, Nitty Kutchie is busting tyres, showing off his strength and balancing steadily during his fitness routines, as the veteran musician is now more fixated on his new-found love as a 'fitness guru'. However, he told THE WEEKEND STAR that it was a shocking health scare that got him closer to doing exercises. "A pimple come up pon mi foot and jus' burst, and from it burst is like it cya get better.
Mi guh a five doctor and just a spend money suh, until one day [a friend] carry mi go a waah doctor over Portmore and him seh, 'Wah yuh eat?' and [when mi tell him] him seh mi fi stop eat di whole a dem ting deh, stop drink soda and energy drinks, and just start drink water. And a since mi start drink water and soak mi foot inna warm salt water, a suh mi foot start better," he said. "Mi always love exercise from morning, but now is like mi love it more when mi see how much people a sick and deh [hospital]; and whole heap a people weh have money in deh and realise seh dem money cya help dem.
Suh mi seh dis [exercising] addi real doctor," he added Though his rigorous workout routines recently surfaced on the Internet, he said he has been conducting the trainings for the past 20 years. He said persons advised him to start using social media platforms like TikTok. "Mi a seh mi nuh really love dem ting deh, enuh.
Mi nuh fancy it, because mi a seh mi naah dweet fi people, mi a do dis fi miself. Den mi seh no, dat selfish. Suh now wi dweet fi everybody, and [dem] start interact wid mi and mi feel good 'bout it," he said.
He is hoping to expand his workout area, dubbed 'Hilltop', in the Queen Hill area of St Andrew. Three professional trainers (Maxine Norton, Kemar Graham and inspector Carlene Wallace) monitor the members, with Norton being the overall coordinator of the 'camp'. Nitty Kutchie wants to transform it into a "full-fledged outdoor gym space".
The team also plans to bring the training to other communities to "elevate and make Jamaica a better place" through fitness. They are, however, appealing for assistance from corporate Jamaica. The exercises focus on core and strength building because "man fi strong".
With several of the trainees being music professionals, Nitty Kutchie said there are benefits of these exercises for this specific group of people. "It (exercising) is a doctor fi yuh body and if [so], dat mean it's a doctor fi yuh vocals. Suh if you can run up a hill and sing pon one level, pon one key, addi same thing [you're gonna achieve] when singing yuh song dem," he said.
"Mi wudda advise everybody to put in at least a 15 minutes [exercise] a morning time. It mek yuh sleep betta, it mek yuh have sex better, think better and transform yuh mind inna a better place." Producer Skatta Burrell, one of Nitty Kutchie's regulars, said he has seen the benefits.
"I don't get a cold or a flu from mi start work out and mi did sicky-sicky bad. Mi even throw weh mi [pressure] pill dem. A long time mi doctor nuh see me, because mi pressure a go down and mi steady at 208 pounds now, and I was 229.
I've been watching them on the Internet for a while and mi finally brave up and come up here; and from mi start, mi nuh stop," he said. Nitty Kutchie admitted that while he is not performing as he used to or would like to, he is still working on his craft and stays in tune with today's music. He said he has never given up on music and will balance both it and exercise, because they complement each other.
His latest single, Lord I Thank You, with Buju Banton, has amassed more than 70,000 views and nearly 1,500 likes on YouTube. Professional trainer Maxine Norton said, "I've been here for more dan 10 years; when I came I was about 198 pounds, I'm in my 50's - alot of people don't believe that [but] this is what exercise does to you, it give you that renewed look, energy. It has also helped me mentally because last year I went through a very tragic time.
Health is wealth; it doesnt matter the age, start at whatever age you are because none of us know how long we have on this earth and once you're healthy you can deal with anything". Professional trainer Kemar Graham testified how being a part of the camp has provided him with great anger management lessons, "Health is wealth and mi want everybody fi know dat. Nitty Kutchie is like a father to me, a whole heap a things mi learn from him, likewises [elderly workout colleages 'Bongo' and 'Uncle Uroy'].
Wi learn from each other and wi help and motivate each other; ano all addi mawnin wi come here wi always feel 100 per cent but wi always have dah person deh inna wi corner when wi come here fi help push wi fi mek sure wi finish whatever wi come here fi do. One time me did dark and ignorant and up yahso help change me and it change whole heap a wi," shared Graham as he encouraged everyone to sacrifice atleast five or ten minutes daily to "put in the work in doing some form of exercise [while] eating healthy"..
