Akshay’s secret to staying fit

Akshay Kumar was always a fitness freak, even before he entered Bollywood. A martial arts expert and the ‘Khiladi’ of Bollywood, he has been professionally trained in Taekwondo and Muay Thai. He is a black belt in Taekwondo and learnt Muay Thai in Thailand where he worked as a chef before beginning his successful acting career in India. 

There’s nothing that your body loves more than a goodnight’s rest and an early start. Despite his packed schedule, the action hero manages to wake up with the sun and eat before it sets. A regular day in the life of Akshay Kumar starts as early as 5.30 in the morning. His day ends early too. 

Yes, no partying for this superstar. After an early dinner at around 7.30 pm, he’s in bed by 9 pm. 

Akshay’s fitness rules are quite simple yet disciplined. He doesn’t hit the gym. He is heavily into kick-boxing and shadow-boxing. He also practices parkour, yoga for a strong mind and other sports like basketball and enjoys trekking. “Take out at least one hour every day to exercise, in any form. If you can’t exercise, just go for a walk for an hour,” is his favourite advice. 

His routine is fun, keeps the body and mind stable and is not bound to building muscles in the gym. In fact, he doesn’t pick up weights at all. Instead, he feels it’s best to pick up your own body weight by engaging in rocking climbing, hiking, skipping or swinging. He swims for an hour every morning and then practices martial arts for an hour, followed by yoga and stretching exercises and finally ends his workout by meditating for an hour for peace and mental strength. 

He works out 5 to 6 times in a week. He keeps mixing his workout routine and trying new things to make it fun and break the monotony. 

He starts his day with a heavy meal of parathas and a glass of milk followed by fresh fruits and nuts for snacks. Lunch is a balanced meal of lentils, brown rice, wholesome veggies or lean meat and yogurt. The one thing that he has followed throughout his life and has really made a difference is eating before sunset. 

The last meal of the day is a light combination of soup and sautéed vegetables. If he feels hungry after 7 pm, he’d probably have an egg white omelette or soup.