Kareena Kapoor Khan kept a billion people obsessed with her pregnancy, with fans making copious notes on her maternity style and, of course, feeling indignant when they weren’t consulted on the name of the resulting baby.
Kareena, who is as unapologetic as they come, has often said that while she doesn’t mind the adoration, she doesn’t pay heed to the unsolicited advice and does what she wants to do. It’s the mantra she’s sticking to for her post-partum fitness regimen too. The actress, who is preparing to get in shape for her role in Veere Di Wedding, consulted with dietician Rujuta Diwekar who laid out a comprehensive fitness plan for the young mother.
Rujuta, who had helped the star achieve the much-hyped size zero for Tashan, divulged some of the secrets behind Kareena’s steady weight loss after her pregnancy in a Facebook Live chat. The nutritionist advised Kareena to avoid rushing into a high-octane fitness regimen, “Because we don’t want to go one step forward and two steps back, which is what happens when you do an extreme diet.”
The actress, who was also present at the session, added, “My aim is not just to lose the weight I had put on. I don’t want to do it overnight. It may take long, but I want to feel light, happy and energetic throughout the process. And that is important.”
Pay attention to what you’re eating
During her pregnancy, Kareena chose the traditional Indian ‘New Mother Diet’, which basically consists of calories, calories and more calories. “I wanted to do it the conventional way, the right way. So I ate it all, but in the right quantities,” she said, mentioning how her diet of ghee-laden parathas consequently led to a weight gain of 18 kilos.
Aside from keeping a strict calorie count, she also paid attention to her calcium levels. “In one pregnancy, you lose five years of calcium in the body,” said Kareena, explaining why she has been religiously drinking a tall glass of milk every night since she gave birth. Aside from having large quantities of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), dairy also has short chain fatty acids, “These help in the mobilisation of fat from stubborn areas, such as the tummy,” explained Rujuta.
Get your glowing skin and hair back post-pregnancy
The celebrity nutrionist also addressed the dark circles most women find themselves plagued with post-partum. The best way to deal with them, according to her, is to increase the intake of foods with high content of Vitamin B12 and iron, such as dahi (yoghurt), chaach (buttermilk) and pickle. “Even the til ka laddoos (sesame seed) that Kareena loves has a lot of B12 and iron that help get rid of dark circles. But no binging—everything should be had in controlled amounts.”
Another beauty problem most new mothers go through post-pregnancy is hair loss, which Rujuta attributed to a lack of sufficient minerals. “Rice and coconut are both great, but mostly, a handful of cashews help in improving hair texture,” she said.
It’s important to continue exercising while you’re pregnant
Rujuta insisted on a holistic approach towards getting fit post-pregnancy. It’s not advisable to just tweak your diet or only focus on rigorous exercise to get back in shape. There‘s no reason why you should give up exercising while you’re pregnant or even after delivery, she said. The important thing to keep in mind is to pay attention to what your body is saying, when planning your fitness regimen. For Kareena, she had prescribed walking. “Rujuta always says that walking is the best exercise in the world. Post pregnancy, when even getting on a treadmill can be tough, 20-30 minutes of walking can really help,” said Kareena, “It has helped me beautifully. I can already feel my core strength increasing.” She had stated in an interview back in February how walking with Taimur in her arms for 20 minutes each day was her primary exercise routine right after giving birth.
According to Rujuta, if you’ve been following a regular workout routine pre-pregnancy, and you continued following it throughout the pregnancy (she insists that there is no reason you should stop), then getting back to it becomes easier post-pregnancy as your body is more attuned to it.
Patel agrees that getting back to your routine, especially a workout, is helpful in dealing with post-partum depression too. Kareena, a long-term advocate of yoga, was also seen attending her usual session post-delivery. According to a report in HT Cafe, the actress is now getting back to slightly more strenuous exercises like pilates.
