Neha Dhupia hops on a call with us at the end of a rather busy day. It began with a flight that took her to Delhi for a professional commitment and concluded with an interaction with a friend later that evening. She tells us that she heads on a road trip the next morning and will be “driving to Chandigarh for work”.

“I’m going to get up at 7 am, check on my kids, and hit the gym. If the gym’s not good enough, I’ll do a quick five-kilometre run, and then go about my day. It’s not about ‘getting the workout out of the way’. It’s about knowing that you’ve started your day by looking after yourself. That’s a really big thing,” says the actor.

Dhupia has advocated for physical well-being for several years, but the last one has been particularly instrumental in enabling her to shed 23 kilos. Unlike her contemporaries, who’ve sprinted to shed their post-partum weight, her return to her pre-delivery athletic levels has been synonymous with a slow and steady marathon.

“Forget comparing myself with others, I’ve stopped comparing myself with how I was a few years ago,” she says when we ask her the recipe for success.

“Since I’ve been training with intention, my fitness levels have improved by a notch or two. The more I push, the more I can push.” She speaks elatedly about achieving fitness milestones, including “clocking my personal best on 100-metre sprints after giving birth to two children”.

“[This has been possible] because I have been [appreciative] of how my body feels. There are days when you feel powerful and able enough to conquer the world. And then there may be days when you feel exhausted. You must have a conversation with your body each day because a fitness routine has to be part of your life.”

It’s perhaps apt to caution that Dhupia’s tendency to alter her training based on how she feels is in no way lackadaisical. “If I say that I perform 10 bouts of 100-metre sprints, which amounts to one kilometre, people may [find that to be insufficient]. But, to complete that kilometre, I will do a 30-minute warm-up session, a 40-minute session of core-strengthening exercises, and a stretching leg that goes on for 20 minutes. Also, when my trainer asks me to sprint, I give it my all, and that makes the process worth it. For the next two days, I will rest, and may spend the following two weeks simply running seven kilometres each day. People ask me how I manage to run in the rain. The truth is, I wait for the downpour so that I can put on my hoodie and run. You have to be mindful of how your own body reacts to weather conditions. I practice running, strength training, and yoga, and clock in three sessions of each format in a week, thereby executing nine exercise bouts. And as a mother of two, if I can make time to train this much, I give myself a pat on the back.”

And while her social life has taken a back seat (“I don’t fear leaving a party at 10 pm because I need to go back to my kids,” she says), she enjoys indulging in fitness sessions with her friends. “Perhaps that’s why I get along well with Soha [Ali Khan]. We like to hang out over a yoga session. I can [brew] a cup of tea and have a long conversation with friends while consuming it, so that I don’t add extra calories to my diet while [meeting social obligations]. There are compromises to be made. I tell my friends I love them very much, but I love myself more.”

Having transitioned from “marking her attendance” at the gym, where her regimen would be interrupted with social conversations, Dhupia now exercises in isolation. “I set goals daily and push myself more. If my yoga teacher says, ‘Let’s do 15 suryanamaskars’, I’ll say, no, sir, let’s do 25. And I want to do each one with intention. If I am to head for a run, and my trainer doesn’t show up, I would previously simply finish running six kilometres and say, I’m done. But, now I want to do better even if my trainer is not around. I have a stronger connection with my body now than ever before.”

It’s been a journey that she has navigated after being left “heartbroken” when she first stepped on the track after a delivery. “I have previously done six to eight half marathons. But, post-delivery, I had gained a lot of weight. I had never lived in a body of that size. While attempting a run, my legs wouldn’t move [as freely] as they did, and my knees would crumble. I have worked on myself a lot since then, and can see the change in my form. The hardest part isn’t running fast or deciding what time you must train. The hardest part is to simply show up. I want to tell those who are struggling that things get better over time, and when the kids grow up. As soon as my children started having a routine, I started having one too. Before my kids wake up, I finish my first yoga session. I head to bed at the same time as they do. I need to emphasise that [mothers] need eight hours of sleep. If you are well rested, you can train better.”

Having a partner who shares her goals serves as an advantage. “When we are on vacation, Angad [Bedi, husband] and I wake up early and hit the gym before our kids can even reach the breakfast table. It’s great to have somebody who is as enthusiastic as you are. Like me, he also doesn’t consume gluten or sugar. So, we don’t need to sit with a drink to have conversations in the evenings. We simply have different kinds of tea instead.” 

She encourages mothers to give themselves the time that they need to return to routine. “For some, it may be two years after delivery, for others, it may be four. But once you think you are ready, get up and show up each day. You won’t see results every day; there will be days when you will indulge in emotional eating or skip a session, but don’t let that dictate your actions thereafter. If you’ve only lost one kilo, and feel like that is a drop in the ocean, remember that you are still one kilo closer to your desired goal. Don’t give up. I was a beauty pageant winner; and I know the pressure [I had to live with]. Don’t let opinions weigh you down.”  

In an industry where semaglutides are speculatively widely consumed, she says she would “never put it in my body”. She may be “open to having a conversation” around the risks and benefits associated with its use, but “for me, it’s a big no-no”. “I know that it’s been medically [tested] for people who suffer from diabetes, and hope that it is consumed by those who have sought appropriate guidance in the right proportions. It is going to become something that everyone is going to talk about. But, it’s not for me.”