Body transformation specialist Kinita Kadakia Patel shares celebrity secrets, says Jimmy Shergill displays ‘unmatched discipline’

Here are the edited excerpts:

Q. As a body transformation specialist, what are the 5 things you never do?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: A few things are a big no or a big mistake when someone is trying to change an individual’s body composition to transform:

*Sugar
*Inconsistency in sleep
*Taking all supplements together without understanding the role of each
*Only concentrating on sardio OR HIIT workouts and not doing enough resistance training
*Not listening to your body and giving it the desired break to rest and deload

Q. You are a well-known name in nutrition who helps and guides numerous celebrities to look and feel their best. But what is the one wellness mantra you swear by for yourself?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Eat to perform. Performance is not just in sports; it’s also in everyday life: at work, in the gym, while studying, etc. All of this is interlinked with the way one eats. So, eat foods that take you forward and help you perform and don’t eat foods that pull you down and make you underperform.

Q. Your association with the Mumbai Indians as their nutritionist goes back almost 15 years. While each player’s requirements differ, is there a common practice you follow — especially on match days?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Sports nutrition for cricket is more about providing the right food for each player to power through the game and following a specific hydration plan to meet fluid demands. In any sport, match-day nutrition is usually planned based on the food consumed on training days, and we rarely try new food options on match day. The key to success is sticking to tried-and-tested foods the individual’s body is used to.

Q. From Alia Bhatt, Ananya Pandey, Genelia D’Souza, Shweta Tiwari, Soha Ali Khan, and Jimmy Shergill to Ayan Mukherjee, you work with many stars. Who would you call the most sincere, and who struggles to follow the prescribed wellness routines?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: I have been lucky to have sincere and disciplined clients most of the time. Jimmy, obviously, shows unmatched discipline and brings a commendable level of sincerity. But I also had clients who have struggled a lot. We work together on a project, achieve that goal, and then move forward by making more sustainable changes.

Q. You are known to “bring athlete-grade nutrition principles into every day, real-world routines.” But don’t these principles vary for athletes and others?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Absolutely. Sports nutrition for an athlete is not only about achieving peak performance in competitions but also about maintaining discipline during training. This includes a perfect balance of rest, recovery, hydration, and supplementation. In a more general, fit population, the principles allow some flexibility, as the idea is to make it sustainable. So, the 80-20 rule applies to non-competitive athletes: 80 per cent of the time, you follow the plan; 20 per cent of the time, you can take a break from your routine.

Q. Actors often undergo rigorous physical transformations for their movies — sometimes in very short spans. How do you ensure such rapid changes are healthy and do not take a toll on their health?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Physical transformation can be challenging, but a few nutritional elements are needed to balance the process. Such as fibre, vitamins, supplements, all of this complements their work and workout routine, along with adequate sleep and recovery time. This helps ensure that the actor’s overall health is maintained while achieving the desired results before shoot day.

Q. Which actor and cricketer is:

Kinita Kadakia Patel: a) A foodie: almost all are; it’s my job to make sure they make healthy choices

b) extremely particular about weighing their food: undoubtedly Ayan Mukerji; he is a superstar at getting his portions right

c) A stickler for wellness routines: definitely Shweta Tiwari; she loves her routine

d) Needs to be dragged to follow routines: most of my clients are quite dedicated and disciplined; however, if they are non-compliant, I’m always there to pull them up.

Q. No one approach suits all. But if you had to list 5 wellness habits people should follow religiously, what would they be?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Maintain eating windows: not intermittent fasting, but a disciplined eating window schedule

Maintain sleep window: sleep and wake up at a similar time daily

Post-meal walk: mobilise with a slow walk post-meal for about 15 to 20 mins

Quit sugar: in any and every form

Annual blood check: after the age of 30 is a must-do

Q. What has been your most challenging assignment, especially with a celebrity — and why do you call it so?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Most celebrities are challenging as they already eat right and exercise regularly. Decoding each individual’s uniqueness and tailoring meal plans accordingly is key to success. I think Shweta Tiwari was definitely a challenging case. She had come to me after her son Reyansh’s delivery, and her struggles were real. Post achieving desired weight loss, the next goal was to get a fit, transformed body for “Khatron Ke Khiladi”, and she absolutely aced it. I feel the hard work she put in paid off in so many ways, making the entire process super satisfying and successful.

Q. In the rush to lose weight, people often opt for extremes — from diet to workouts. What is the ideal way to plan and go about weight/fat loss — which is also sustainable?

Kinita Kadakia Patel: Listen to your body first. Allow it to respond at a healthy pace. Some people get their results quickly, some take a while. But all in all, sustainability comes from learning what suits your body, not from following an Instagram fad diet and workout routines.