If you envy the slim, toned, absolutely fit look of celebrities, be sure that the well-defined look is a result of great
discipline, a punishing regimen, a sensible diet and loads of will-power.
New Woman unearths celeb secrets for weight loss and optimum fitnessShedding the excessive fat around her middle to get a slender, taut body has taken
Neha Sareen, Model & TV Host, loads of determination, perseverance and complete focus on her
fitness goals.
GET INTO THE STATE OF MIND
"I was an extremely fat child in my school days. Over the years, I followed a lot of weight loss programmes through varied fitness instructors. The journey from fat to fit was long but it taught me the importance of perseverance. According to me, physical fitness is a state of the mind.
If you adopt a healthy lifestyle, you’ll automatically look good. And looking good is strongly related to feeling good. One has to be much more systematic in life and its approach. There’s no point in going on crash diets, working out rigorously and following extreme diet restrictions to lose weight. This is because the moment you stop this, you gain all your lost weight back. Besides that, with rigorous dieting, one tends to get weaker and drained out too."
MAKE DIET CHANGES
"When you're under a weight loss-programme, you become aware and conscious of what and how much you eat. Though the changes you need to make in your daily life are small and nothing too drastic. When it comes to my personal regime, I'm very systematic and rigid about what I eat. Fortunately, I don’t have a sweet tooth so I’m not tempted to have a lot of sweets.
Since I was in the US for some years, I have cultivated a taste for bland and light food too. Certain foods like aerated drinks, junk and deep-fried foods, pizzas, etc. are not on my diet chart. I prefer to have smaller meals throughout the day rather than having two big heavy meals. For breakfast, I have cornflakes as they have a lot of fibre. For lunch, I have salad or a sandwich or a piece of chicken with oriental sauce on it. My last meal (dinner) is never beyond 8.00 p.m. and consists of two rotis, dal, subzi, and at times, chicken.
In between I keep munching on fruits or sip fruit juices as they make me feel light. I put salt in my chapattis instead of the subzi. This is because if there's more salt in body, it can cause water retention which leads to bloating. Almost an hour before my workout, I have egg whites as the body needs excessive protein when you
exercise. So instead of taking supplements, I believe, it's good to have the natural, organic variety. Of course, once a week, I allow myself to really indulge."
ADOPT A PROACTIVE REGIME
“Exercise is like meditation where you are with yourself but in a different sort of way. I have always been fortunate to have great trainers. Currently I’m training under Vishal who has taught to be a lot more disciplined and motivated. That’s the best part of working with a trainer. Even if you feel tired, you know you cannot get away without working out.
My exercise regime is all of five rigorous hours consisting of different programmes spread throughout the week. I do weight-lifting (leg-weights and arm-weights) three times a week to tone my muscles, and twice a week, I do cardiovascular exercises as they help me burn my calories and look leaner. Personally, I like doing weights as it’s more proactive. I have a DVD which shows Taebo by fitness instructor Billy Blanks (one who has trained Sharon Stone and other international celebs). Once every week, I just switch it on for an hour and follow the steps shown therein. Besides this, I do run and skip as well.
STRENGTHEN YOUR WILL-POWER
“For me, weight loss was a must-do; something which came from within. I’m in the entertainment industry and cannot choose to look haggard. The right kind of diet and exercise helps me glow. A weight loss programme is not about chang your life drastically. I may still eat out five times a week, but I know what to eat and how much to eat.
Over the last few years, especially after I’ve begun anchoring, I have learnt to practise discipline and exercise my will-power. Fitness has become an important part of my lifestyle today. And once you start thinking fit, everything falls into place.”