‘Dance is my main way of keeping fit’

Dancer-actor Shantanu Maheshwari prefers to make his passion his main form of working out. While dancing boosts his energy, confidence and mood, he makes it a point to take time out for breathing exercises every day as it goes a long way in keeping him mentally fit.

DANCE AS A LIFESTYLE

The 26-year-old vouches for the fact that dance is what helped to maintain his fitness levels and also gives him a “happy high”. “Dance is my main way of keeping fit, as I am dancing daily. It brings some amazing flexibility due to the variety of moves in its different forms. Besides the flexibility, it boosts up energy levels, which increases the blood flow in the body. It tends to improve your mood as well, and somehow is always a good confidence booster, too. Personally, dance helped in building my confidence and showcasing a different side of me,” he says.

FITNESS REGIMEN

Shantanu is mainly striving to maintain a balance between dancing and shooting, and his exercise is pretty much built in his dance routine. “Rehearsals with our Desi Hoppers crew, which includes pre-dancing warm-up sessions of a good one-and-a -half hours are quite extensive. It is combined with Cross Fit training, skipping and yoga. This is all to build our stamina. My regular dancing is inclusive of my exercise regimen itself. Also, being physically fit is one thing, but being mentally fit, to remain calm and composed for a long day of shoot and rehearsals is much needed for me. Hence breathing exercises and a bit of yoga is what I do first thing in the morning. They prepare me for a long day,” he says.

He further says, “The basic breathing exercises help clear my head, and give a fresh start to my day. I make it a point to eat a heavy breakfast, which is the key to keep me going strong through the day. Omelettes with bread, milk, fruits, mainly bananas which are the best source of energy and calcium. In the mornings, I also make it a point to do some basic stretching of my hands and legs which are good to keep the body flexible.”

DIET VS EXERCISE

Shantanu wholeheartedly agrees that “diet and exercise are related”. He says, “As they say, its always 30% exercise and 70% diet. You can work out all you want, but what you eat is most important. To build up stamina you ideally need to work out. It also depends on each person’s metabolism. So if you have a higher rate, whatever you eat burns faster. But whatever your body type, the more calories you eat the more time it will take to burn.”