Hunk Sidharth who was last seen in ‘Brothers’, throwing powerful punches in the boxing ring worked really hard to get in shape for the movie. The actor, who became a fitness icon right from his debut film ,revealed his fitness secrets during the launch of nutritionist Marika Johansson’s new book ‘Healthy Kitchen’. Excerpts from the press interview.
I think the first place where anyone is likely to fall short in their fitness goals is his or her diet. I too get bored easily of eating the same things every day but if it is cooked in a way that is tasty then you don’t give up. I had to put on 10 to 12 kilos for ‘Brothers’. That’s when I had to eat a lot but only nutritious food. Marika makes diet food tasty, which is amazing.
I think you are what you eat and you need to be careful of what you consume. If you feel lethargic easily, it means there is something wrong with your diet. I truly believe that your body is your temple, it’s the only place you have to live so keep it clean, respect it and worship it.
I was a chubby kid but I soon got into sports like basketball, rugby. I did my first push-up at the age of 14 and later got into modelling, where I had to ensure my body looks good. So I had a fit body since my mid-teens.
You don’t have to go to the gym every day to stay fit but make sure you do some physical activity every day. Recently I put up a monkey bar in my house. I just do a few pull-ups every day. Take out 30 to 45 minutes for your fitness – it could be cycling, running or just go out and play sports. It is all about being creative with your workout.
Six-pack abs doesn’t really mean you are fit! Especially if you go to extremes to get it like losing a lot of weight all of a sudden which means you lose many nutrients in the process too. I think you need to be healthy first and a fit body will follow.
I think it should be mandatory in every school to teach kids some sort of physical fitness form such as yoga or other forms of exercise. I don’t think it is stressed enough. Kids should be taught the importance of staying fit from a young age so that they don’t have to take extreme steps later in life.
I am yet to see a bad physique in Bollywood, I think all of us work too hard to get a good body. In women, Katrina has a super-fit body. Deepika and Jacqueline are also very fit. I think Akshay Kumar is really fit for his age and he doesn’t believe in looking fit but being fit from within, which is a great lesson. Hrithik, Salman and Sanjay are also trendsetters when it comes to bodybuilding.