Bipasha Basu Balances a Fitness Routine of Yoga and Cardio
Beautifully Balanced Bips
SHE has strong views, knows her plus points and is quite clear where she wants to be. In the time we spent on an outdoor shoot in Bangkok, I couldn’t help but notice Bipasha Basu’s change in attitude. Having known her from her modelling days in 1997, where she was laidback about fitness, it’s great to see she actually had a personal trainer accompany her on an outdoor of 25 days! This sudden change happened as late as 2004, and I strongly suspect her super-fit boyfriend must have something to do with it. She has no vices like drinking or smoking.
Obsessed with the Suryanamaskar (she does a 108 of these a day!), the exotic face and voluptuous body of the ‘90s has given way to a more sculpted face and a fit body to die for. A trim exterior is backed by a strong core (thanks to some disciplined yoga with BharatThakur’s team). She spends two hours, six days a week in the gym. For someone who used to dread dance sequences, she’s become the Bidi Jalailay girl, who also happens to be the only nonsporting person to endorse Reebok!
She trains in the morning. Her routine is Day 1 — upper body, Day 2 — abdomen workout, Day 3 — legs and lower body, Day 4 — gluteus maximus, Day 5 — upper body, Day 6 — abdomen and gluteus maximus, accompanied by 108 Suryanamaskars daily with 50 minutes of cardio, and a 10-minute warm-up, which includes stretching, and holding dance postures with emphasis on breathing. Weekly four times, the 50 minutes of cardio is split up into 20 minutes on the treadmill, 10 minutes on the elliptical machine and 20 minutes on the rowing machine, twice a week. She also does a spinning class a week. She believes in weak-point training, works especially hard on her triceps and does the Bhujangasana really well.
A victim of an injured left knee, she does physio for it. Being flat-footed, she grips paper with her feet to overcome the problem. Post a trip to Rio, she started working on the gluteus maximus, as a ‘good butt’ is a sign of a great body! She is a strong believer in circuit training, which keeps the heart rate up. To break monotony, she adopts a new routine every four months. She uses yoga to strengthen her lower back, core muscles and redevelop her left knee muscles.
Equipped with little knowledge three-and-a-half years ago (which included running with bad shoes), she caught on by reading and with help from her trainer Paul. She doesn’t train when very tired and averages six-and-a-half hours of sleep.
Stress Can Throw Menstrual Cycle Off Track, a Holistic Lifestyle Can Help
Stress cramping your style? Dr Kiran Coelho talks about how stress throws the menstrual cycle off track and how a holistic lifestyle can help
Recently, Dr Kiran Coelho, senior gynaecologist, met a patient who had a severe problem with her menstrual cycle. She went into amenorrhea, which essentially means that she had no periods for six to eight months. She was going through a stressful time with her boyfriend. Desperately wanting to lose weight, the girl developed an aversion to food and suffered from anorexia nervosa. Having prescribed basic yoga exercises, a planned diet and meditation, she gained 10 kilos without any medication. She regained her self-esteem and came to terms with the end of her relationship.
Whether it’s exams, job or relationship related, there is an established link between stress and the menstrual cycle. If your periods are irregular or you’ve started skipping them, there is a cause for alarm.
Stress affects the thyroid gland, which is the conductor of the orchestra of the human body. When the thyroid gland is affected, it results in either frequent or irregular periods or heavy bleeding or amenorrhea. In fact, the first sign of thyroid imbalance is irregular periods.
THE CAUSE
To understand where things go wrong, you should know how it works first:
» There is a finely tuned balance between a higher centre in the brain, the pituitary gland and the ovaries
» The higher centre has a releasing factor that acts on the pituitary gland, which produces a hormone
» The hormone orders an egg in the ovary to ripen
» Once the egg reaches 2 cm, it sends a smoke signal to the brain
» The brain sends marching orders for the egg to release.
If all this doesn’t work with military precision, then there is an imbalance in the body. The thyroid gland is also connected to the pituitary gland. The periods become irregular or stop showing up. If the egg doesn’t rupture, it accumulates in the ovary and ovulation doesn’t occur. Bad news.
This pile up of eggs that refuse to leave home leads to polycystic syndrome. One in five girls in the reproductive age group suffers from this. That isn’t the end of the problems though. The unripe egg is yet to unleash its fury. It produces male hormones which cause acne, weight gain and loss of hair on the scalp. And you can happily, and correctly, blame all this on stress. While it’s easy to moan about a busy schedule, ignoring the alarm signals can lead to severe repercussions. Take a firm decision to step back, smell the roses and calm down.
HEAL YOURSELF NATURALLY
The first thing that a doctor prescribes to her patients is a holistic lifestyle change. With discipline and commitment, it is possible to be problem-free within three to six months, depending on the severity. This includes a change in diet, a pumped up exercise plan and setting a regular sleep pattern. In fact, for adolescent girls, a lifestyle change is more important than giving hormones. The only time a girl is given hormones is if she suffers from severe bleeding or gross hirsutism and acne.
Here are the few steps you can take:
» Orchestrate a lifestyle change before resorting to medication
» Avoid self-medication, only painkillers for spasms are safe
» Avoid excessive salt and sugar
» Follow a Satvik diet (or Yogic diet) — it includes food that is basic and cooked using minimal heat. Without extensive processing, the food retains its natural form. Cow’s milk is the most complete and nourishing Satvik food, onion, garlic, red chillies and black pepper and other pungent and astringent spices are prohibited. Eat sprouts and green vegetables
» Exercise releases serotonin, a feel good hormone. A brisk walk for 30 minutes, five days a week will do the trick.
» Equip your mind to fight stress with meditation, pranayams and Vipassana. Follow this and your periods will become regular.
Dr Coelho, who deals with infertility, says 30 per cent of her patients suffer from sub-fertility or difficulty in conceiving. Of these, 80 per cent have polycystic syndrome and are stress related. They respond very well to the lifestyle change. They shed weight, have planned intercourse and conceive within a few months.
Recently, Dr Kiran Coelho, senior gynaecologist, met a patient who had a severe problem with her menstrual cycle. She went into amenorrhea, which essentially means that she had no periods for six to eight months. She was going through a stressful time with her boyfriend. Desperately wanting to lose weight, the girl developed an aversion to food and suffered from anorexia nervosa. Having prescribed basic yoga exercises, a planned diet and meditation, she gained 10 kilos without any medication. She regained her self-esteem and came to terms with the end of her relationship.
Whether it’s exams, job or relationship related, there is an established link between stress and the menstrual cycle. If your periods are irregular or you’ve started skipping them, there is a cause for alarm.
Stress affects the thyroid gland, which is the conductor of the orchestra of the human body. When the thyroid gland is affected, it results in either frequent or irregular periods or heavy bleeding or amenorrhea. In fact, the first sign of thyroid imbalance is irregular periods.
THE CAUSE
To understand where things go wrong, you should know how it works first:
» There is a finely tuned balance between a higher centre in the brain, the pituitary gland and the ovaries
» The higher centre has a releasing factor that acts on the pituitary gland, which produces a hormone
» The hormone orders an egg in the ovary to ripen
» Once the egg reaches 2 cm, it sends a smoke signal to the brain
» The brain sends marching orders for the egg to release.
If all this doesn’t work with military precision, then there is an imbalance in the body. The thyroid gland is also connected to the pituitary gland. The periods become irregular or stop showing up. If the egg doesn’t rupture, it accumulates in the ovary and ovulation doesn’t occur. Bad news.
This pile up of eggs that refuse to leave home leads to polycystic syndrome. One in five girls in the reproductive age group suffers from this. That isn’t the end of the problems though. The unripe egg is yet to unleash its fury. It produces male hormones which cause acne, weight gain and loss of hair on the scalp. And you can happily, and correctly, blame all this on stress. While it’s easy to moan about a busy schedule, ignoring the alarm signals can lead to severe repercussions. Take a firm decision to step back, smell the roses and calm down.
HEAL YOURSELF NATURALLY
The first thing that a doctor prescribes to her patients is a holistic lifestyle change. With discipline and commitment, it is possible to be problem-free within three to six months, depending on the severity. This includes a change in diet, a pumped up exercise plan and setting a regular sleep pattern. In fact, for adolescent girls, a lifestyle change is more important than giving hormones. The only time a girl is given hormones is if she suffers from severe bleeding or gross hirsutism and acne.
Here are the few steps you can take:
» Orchestrate a lifestyle change before resorting to medication
» Avoid self-medication, only painkillers for spasms are safe
» Avoid excessive salt and sugar
» Follow a Satvik diet (or Yogic diet) — it includes food that is basic and cooked using minimal heat. Without extensive processing, the food retains its natural form. Cow’s milk is the most complete and nourishing Satvik food, onion, garlic, red chillies and black pepper and other pungent and astringent spices are prohibited. Eat sprouts and green vegetables
» Exercise releases serotonin, a feel good hormone. A brisk walk for 30 minutes, five days a week will do the trick.
» Equip your mind to fight stress with meditation, pranayams and Vipassana. Follow this and your periods will become regular.
Dr Coelho, who deals with infertility, says 30 per cent of her patients suffer from sub-fertility or difficulty in conceiving. Of these, 80 per cent have polycystic syndrome and are stress related. They respond very well to the lifestyle change. They shed weight, have planned intercourse and conceive within a few months.
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