From Battling PCOD To Losing 30 Kilos, Sara Ali Khan Sets Example To The Youngsters

Sara Ali Khan is already a sensation on social media not just because of her incredible acting skills but the way she has emerged post her dramatic weight loss. Before joining to the Bollywood industry, Sara had a hard time suffered from PCOD.

Polycystic Ovary Disorder (PCOD) is one of the most common diseases we see affecting women today. It is simply more than experiencing irregular periods. Almost 1 in 10 women are diagnosed with PCOD and PCOS globally, and it affects almost 10 million women on a global scale.

Recently, on a chat show, Sara talked about her rapid weight gain. Working hard to achieve the perfect body she has today, Sara’s makeover from her student days to her Bollywood days is nothing short of a transformation.

However, weight gain is not the only symptom we see in women suffering from PCOD but Sara also suffered from excessive hair growth on her body, pelvic pain, weight gain, and anxiety issues.

Sara Ali Khan opened up about her struggle with PCOS on Koffee with Karan. PCOS or Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is a hormonal disorder that affects women of reproductive age. The main symptoms of PCOS are excessive weight gain, irregular periods or no periods at all, body and facial hair growth, and male-pattern baldness.

If you look at Sara’s old pictures, you can see that she has come a long way. In Koffee with Karan, Karan Johar showed a few old videos and asked about her weight.

She said, “I was 96 kg. ‘It will be almost rude to call you fat,’ is what you (indicating her father, Saif Ali Khan) said. I had PCOD. I still do. And, because of that, I think I put on the amount of weight that I did. Because of that, there was also a hormone problem.”

At this point, she was interrupted by her father, Saif, who asked, “It had nothing to do with the pizzas you used to have?”.

She said, “Of course, I used to eat a lot. I did have a good time. I was a regular kid. It made it very hard for me to a. lose weight and b. the hormone level was very high. So, as you can see, there is a level of delusion that was in me… I was confident, I was delusional.”

In a recent interview with BBC, Sara Ali Khan revealed that she realized that she wanted to be an actor. And to fit the role in a mainstream Bollywood movie, she had to drop a few pounds.

She said, “I went to Columbia for four years and at the end of the second year, I decided that I want to act like I said I have always known, but that realization coincided with the weigh scale saying that I’m 96 kilos. So, it was a bit difficult. Then it was the senior year of college in America itself that I lost the weight.”

But how did she manage to lose 30 kg? When asked, she had this to say.

“You know, I lived on 110 on Broadway and there used to be a pizza place called Tom’s Pizza. And for the first two years of my college, I have eaten so much of that pizza. I didn’t even realize that there is this vitamin shop, right next to Tom’s Pizza, where you get these protein bars, salads. I think that was it, the movement from Tom’s Pizza to vitamin shop. And somewhere in the middle of that, I lost weight”, Sara said in a statement.

Sara Ali Khan used to have a healthy diet during her workout sessions. White eggs for breakfast and idlis. For lunch, daal, chapati, vegetables, salads, and fruits.

Sara had light dinner with green veggies and chapati. Sara also used to eat salads and fruits for her pre-workout and post-workout sessions.

Sara Ali Khan revealed that she worked out regularly. She said, “Everyday, running to Bollywood music on the treadmill as fast as I could.”

She also trains with Namrata Purohit, who is Kareena Kapoor Khan’s (her stepmother) pilates instructor. Pilates was invented initially to rehabilitate soldiers and help them recover from injuries. It includes body strengthening, conditioning, and flexibility movements.

She also went for a boot camp training which is full-body strength and conditioning workout. It increases your metabolism, thereby burning a hundred calories. It is a combination of quick jumping jacks, windmills, high knees, butt kicks, squats, lunges, push-ups, and spider steps.

She indulges in sports as well with her brother and her father regularly. Playing sports is a good body sculpting exercise wherein an individual is required to stress their body weight to make muscles. If you are not someone who would go to a tennis court and play, then you can opt for cycling, swimming or running

Sara puts weight-loss in the right perspective when she mentions that weight-loss is not important for seeking acceptance from others. 

“Of course, in many ways, we [Bollywood] as an industry are progressing and accepting. But having said that, it’s not just about being accepted, it’s also a personal thing. It’s not like I aspire to have a size zero figure, it’s not gonna happen and I’m okay with that. But you don’t have to be 96 kgs either. Apart from just acting, it’s not a healthier way to live. I was really large and for no reason. It messes up your hormones, your health - mentally, physically emotionally. It’s just a bad place to be.”, Sara concluded.

Sara Ali Khan doesn’t believe that everyone has to lose weight to look good. In general, PCOS symptoms are said to improve when your diet and lifestyle change. Looking or feeling good is just the byproduct.

When asked why she felt the need to lose weight, she said, “Of course, in many ways we as an industry are progressing and accepting. But having said that, it’s not just about being accepted, it’s also a personal thing. It’s not like I aspire to have a size zero figure, it’s not gonna happen and I’m okay with that. But you don’t have to be 96 kgs either. Apart from just acting, it’s not a healthier way to live. I was really large and for no reason. It messes up your hormones, your health - mentally, physically emotionally. It’s just a bad place to be.”

She also added, “I have never really derived confidence with the way I look but I think that people, more than me, find it important to people rather than me.”

Today, Sara Ali Khan has made her place in the hearts of millions for showing such grace in talking about a health complication that not many women dare to discuss on national television. Take inspiration from her and don’t give up on your fitness goals.

Eat well and exercise regularly. You will surely see an improvement. Take care!