What does fitness mean to you?
Fitness is a way of life for me, and it gives me immense happiness. I love the idea of being fit and not having a paunch. Its been a lifestyle change for me for almost about 10 years now. Earlier, I would never bother about anything and would generally hog on to junk food. I would never stop at just one samosa and had to have at least 4. Now, fitness has become essential for me as it gives me a sense of peace, happiness, and wellbeing.
How do you keep a healthy balance between your mind and your body?
I am a person who never overthinks. I believe whatever has to happen will happen eventually. That’s how I keep my mind fit. For the body, I eat everything but in moderation and at equal intervals of 2-3 hours.
Following your demanding and hectic routine, how do you manage to stay fit and maintain a healthy lifestyle?
I carry all my food from home, including breakfast, lunch, coffee, fruits. Earlier when I had a driver, I would always get down at the domestic airport and walk my way back home while returning home. That way, I wouldn’t waste time and would be able to spend more time with my family while having done my workout as well.
What is your ideal workout regime?
I am not a gym guy. I can’t look in the mirror and workout as I find it extremely boring. I have always been a runner. That’s my happy time and I am incredibly joyful when I am running. After my shoots, at least 3-4 times a week, I go for running after coming home. I return in my running gear so that once I park my car, I directly go for my run before going back home.
I also do a lot of workout with my son. I take him for walks and sometimes we even go on our terrace and work out. This way, I also get to spend that extra hour with him.
Do your roles require you to maintain a fit body?
At times they do. Before Tera Yaar Hoon Main, I was playing Lord Krishna in a show. That role demanded a flat stomach and a rightly proportioned body to look godly but not muscular. Hence, it took a different kind of workout routine for me, which was a mix of weightlifting and running. However, for the role of Rajeev in Sony SAB’s Tera Yaar Hoon Main, I can eat whatever I want as I don’t need to be ripped for the role. I am also wearing a prosthetic stomach for this character. So, while I can be lenient, I still make sure I am eating in the right proportions and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
Any quick healthy snack that you rely on during your busy days?
I love eating makhana. I carry a box full of dry fruits including cashew nuts, walnuts and almonds. I have a box of cranberries for my sweet tooth that I eat everyday after my lunch. I am the kind of person who can have the same thing continuously for 6 months. So, for example, I will have Besan ka Cheela for 6 months until one day I will be like I can’t have it and won’t have it again for a year.
One food item that you simply cannot resist.
It has to be mangoes. I know that they are fattening and sweet, but I can’t resist eating them.
What kind of music do you like listening to while you work out?
Any kind of music makes me happy at that time- it could be bhangra, an English song or anything else. If it’s a track I like, I’ll listen to it.
What motivates you towards fitness?
Just the idea of being fit and having a flat stomach (laughs). The clothes fit well, you feel good and all that motivates me to be fitter.
Any Fitness tip for your admirers?
No matter what, take time out to go for a walk or a run- even 30-40 minutes are enough. Another important thing that I have done is I have replaced sugar in my coffee with jaggery and have reduced it from 4 cups of coffee to 2 cups a day.
I love eating sweets, so I have made it a point to resist anything sweet for the whole week and only have it on Saturdays. This has helped me reduce weight and my cravings for sweets have also gone down. So, I control myself the entire week, have sweets on Saturdays and then am all set for another entire week of controlling.