Celebrity fitness trainer Yasmin Karachiwala is showing followers what actress Preity Zinta’s Pilates workout looks like. Karachiwala posted a video of herself wearing blue workout gear and a back hoodie, overseeing Zinta, 49, on a reformer machine. “So nice to be back in the bay ❤️ I know you missed me Yas🤩,” Zinta captioned the post. Karachiwala’s client list includes Alia Bhatt, Ananya Panday, Katrina Kaif, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Deepika Padukone, and many others—here are her top fitness, diet, and wellness tips.
Karachiwala starts every day by looking outside for five minutes. “Looking at natural light as soon as you wake up keeps your brain active and is good for your eyes,” she told Vogue India. “It’s very refreshing. Then I listen to a prayer. I do intermittent fasting so I don’t eat in the morning—when I have to train a client, I’ll have a cup of black coffee. I need to ‘jump’ out of bed rather than drag myself out. The moment I am dragging, I know I am not rested enough.”
Karachiwala says staying active all day is important, especially when so many people have sedentary jobs. “I think movement is really important even if it means taking the stairs, walking short distances rather than relying on your car, if you’re on a call use headphones and walk while you talk,” she told Vogue India. “These are very simple things that you can do. The misbelief people have is that exercise only means using a treadmill, going to the gym or going for a walk. We need to inculcate these small movements into our daily life rather than sitting in one place.”
Karachiwala recommends plant-based ingredients for daily protein shakes. “When it comes to your body’s daily function, it doesn’t matter where you get your protein from,” senior dietitian Dana Hunnes, PhD, MPH, RD, tells UCLA Health. “But data show that eating fewer animal products and more plant-based proteins is associated with increased longevity and decreased morbidity.”
For Karachiwala, wellness is the root of all health and fitness. “When you are fit, your stress levels are low, your appetite is better, you make conscious food choices and all that leads to wellness,” she told Filmfare. You sleep better. That’s how wellness and fitness go hand in hand. Because when you are aiming to be fit, thinking of being fit, or already being fit, you want to go on a wellness program. Fitness is definitely going to be a part of it, right? And the benefits of fitness are so many: you release endorphins. When you exercise, you release feel-good hormones, which are your stressbusters and help you sleep better.”
Karachiwala is adamant about not allowing any ultra-processed foods into her diet. “It’s not about calories—I don’t believe in counting my food, I believe in eating to nourish the body,” she told Vogue India. “For me, it’s really important that we eat food that works for us, that nourishes us from the inside out. Your body requires good fat, fiber, carbohydrates, protein, minerals, and vitamins. I don’t eat anything that’s from a packet or consume sugar, because it is poison to the body.”