The fittest couple of B’town, Bipasha Basu and Karan Singh Grover, tells us why every couple should take up at least one physical activity together to keep their romance alive
Deebashree Mohanty (BOMBAY TIMES; January 28, 2018)

Define wellness...
Bipasha: It’s a state of being. It’s about the choices we make in our lives every day. It could be about the food we eat, the activities we indulge in, the mental happiness we seek... so on and so forth. Every step we take through the day should be a choice towards wellness. Choosing the right thing for your mind and body should be everyone’s priority.
Karan: Wellness begins by understanding our own selves, and not mindlessly falling for fad diets. Instead, try to get to know your own body. Be aware of what your body wants, how you feel about your body.

Does working out together help keep the romance alive?
Bips: It’s not as if we train on the same schedule at the same time. We do our own routines but we often cross each other’s path. He sometimes winks at me, and I smile. We give each other a peck, and sometimes, I also kick him a little bit on the butt.
Karan: A workout is the highest level of quality time that you can spend with yourself and if you are sharing that with your partner, the romance doubles.

This sounds exciting. Tell us more...
Bips: I love spending time with my husband. To find a partner in sync with me when it comes to our outlook towards fitness is Godsend. And we both do it effortlessly, not because it is something we have to do.
Karan: Well, I can check out my hot wife all the time while working out. That’s a good thing!

Give us a peek into your workout schedule...
Bips: There is nothing fixed about what we do every day; what is certain is that we have to sweat it out. Sometimes, we push ourselves so much that we end up with ice packs on our knees and back. But in the end, we laugh aloud, and we’re good.
Karan: We get so carried away while training at times that you’d wonder if we are athletes training for the next world championships. I tell Bipasha that it’s like we are training for the end of the world – where it is my responsibility to save each and every person on Earth! But jokes apart, this is what we love doing and we love doing it together. As for training, we mix it up... Cardio, weights, intense training and yoga!

So a healthy body makes a fit mind?
Bips: It’s simple. If you are healthy, there’s no battle between your mind and body. It’s like you are actually in a happy state. That’s why I firmly believe investing in your body and mind is a necessity. But some people don’t get this. They constantly crib that they don’t have time to de-stress or work out. They don’t understand that if they manage to be healthy, they are going to happily handle the rest of their lives.
Karan: It’s a misnomer that happiness is somewhere outside of you. It’s within you. Only when you are truly healthy, can you spread cheer around you.

Any specific fitness goal for 2018? Anything new that you’d like to try?
Bips: Both of us have very strong fitness goals for 2018. Mine started from January 8, post my birthday. The last six months, we have been enjoying our cheat meals. A lot of it thanks to my mother who keeps feeding us all the time. I dabble in all kinds of training but this year, I want to be more serious about yoga. Somehow, I have always let go somewhere in the middle. Karan, on the other hand, is a total ashtangi. I want to reach maybe 40% of Karan’s fitness levels. I am a strong girl. But in terms of flexibility, I wish I could be more like him.

What other activities do you both enjoy? Do you both cook or do you like doing up the house?
Bips: I cannot paint or sing like him. Karan is the dreamer and I am practical. I love organising things while he can just sit and look around. The other thing we love doing together is spending quality time with family and doing pedicures together. Karan roams around barefoot so his feet are as dirty as they can get. Pedicure is an absolute must. Although he complains. He keeps saying... ‘Am I your girlfriend?’
Karan: I know it will sound like a cliché but we really do complete each other. We are an interesting mix! I make eggs for her and she makes me custard on Sundays. But our chef at home is so good that we don’t really want to try any other ‘haath ka khana’.

Individually, what have you learnt from each other after marriage? What have you learnt about yourself since they say living with someone under the same roof teaches us more about ourselves.
Bips: I need to be inspired by my partner and I am lucky that Karan inspires me. He is very spiritual and has a very pure heart. If you spend time with him, you will feel his positive energy. In today’s time it’s very difficult to find a man like him. I call him Mowgli because he has no materialistic attachments. He is totally non fussy; you give him anything to eat, he will eat. He’s very easy to live with. I try to be as spiritual as him. What I have learnt about myself after marriage is that I can be quite determined if I set my eyes on something.
Karan: What I have learned about myself is that I am really very sensitive and that it is not a bad thing. I used to think it is not manly to be so sensitive about little things but now I care a damn about what people may think about my nature. What I have learnt from Bipasha is to value time and do everything at the soonest. Every delay causes another delay. And what I have learnt about women in general is that it is impossible to do the stuff they can. And men should stop trying to compete.

What’s your wellness playlist like?
Bips: I listen to the UK Billboards top 50.
Karan: Believe it or not, I listen to a lot of Krishna Das’s devotional music. It acts as a stress buster. I also listen to loud thumping music when my workout is at its peak.

Q. Workout outfits...How essential is it to get comfy while exercising?
Bips: When I train, I am all over the place. I feel very cold in the gym, so I prefer full tights and a vest. The brand is very important.
Karan: If I have to go to a gym outside my home, I wear a jacket and loose pyjamas. At home, I work out in my under pants!