Meet Shivani Sharma, a mom and a fitness enthusiast who is challenging the notions and stereotypes associated with the female body, thanks to a well-sculpted body through years of hard work put into weightlifting
BeforeShivani Sharma’s journey in fitness began right from the time she was a little girl. She credits her father with supplying her with ample motivation to be strong, “My main source of inspiration was my father. He imbibed in me the practice of yoga and always told me how to eat healthy and right.”
Though Shivani was always healthy and strong, things changed for her after she became pregnant after marriage. Putting on extra kilos took a toll on her body and mind, “It made me lazy and I became less active.” However, she got back on track within two years by incorporating morning walk into her routine. She reminsices, “I still remember how my father used to help me train at the stadium. I also developed an interest in weightlifting, bodybuilding, and HIIT (High-intensity Interval Training) workout/muscle buildup with the help of my younger sister.”
“It is an accepted fact that your body gets best results with 70% diet control and 30% exercise. In my very first step towards fitness in those two years, I did not cut out my diet alone, but also cut out on the food quantity I was eating. Instead of two chapattis, I would eat one, which was complimented by lots of salad, yogurt and mix veg and lentils. At the same time, I ignored tea made from milk. I stuck only to taking 2-3 cups of green tea during the day but the most important thing was water. I consumed 4 to 6 litres of the ‘elixir of life’ per day.” Her diet plan has gone a total makeover, which befits her well toned, athletic body, “The diet plan suits my bodybuilding, weightlifting. Because I am vegetarian, I take protein shake, all sort of seeds (pumpkin, chia, sunflower, flax) tofu, broccoli, beans, mushrooms, etc. and all the dry fruits, except cashew.”
In the two years which are a milestone of sorts in Shivani’s journey, her confidence levels also shot up, as did the strength of her body, “Yes, of course, it greatly helped increase my confidence and now I can boldly do my work with tons of enthusiasm.” Coming back to the body, it was responding very well to Shivani’s fitness regime, “First of all, I lost inches initially, but did not reduce weight too much. During that time, I learnt that you should have patience and never quit being loyal to your diet. With the help of exercise, I reduced 15 kg in one and a half years.” Next thing she knew, she was working on the muscle buildup.
After“Somehow, people are not aware of the fact that masculine body is made up of the hormone called testosterone. Women’s bodies have testosterone too but in much smaller amount as compared to men. We can’t be masculine until and unless we develop testosterone and that’s not possible. Women, these days, always complain when it comes to pursuing fitness, we can’t make it, we have household chores to do, we don’t have the time for making us fit’. And then there are those, who blame their pregnancy, ‘We have had c-section delivery’”. She advises against coming up with such excuses for not taking up fitness seriously. “Indian women have such fears but it’s just a myth. I am a homemaker and I love to do the work I do with perfection in my house, that’s why I totally want to do that with my body too. For me, nothing is impossible, this is the only thing which helps me achieve what I am today. Fitness is totally your choice because it needs a lot of hard work to make a masculine body or shape a body part. Yes, it takes too much time and efforts so some Indian women ignore investing time into their fitness and health”. She goes on to elaborate on the fear that a woman experiences when she starts to fear they might end up looking like “Bipasha Basu, Bani J, Saina Nehwal or Sakshi Malik, etc., but women who are against weightlifting should try it once because it has more benefits. They will get much better results once they start lifting weights, as they will lose 40% more fat, clothes will fit better, they will burn more calories, will handle stress better, will build stronger bones, will get into shape better, will live longer, will look smarter, will be way more productive.”
As for her own sculpted body, there are all kind of reactions to it from people, “Some people are appreciators,, some criticise, some get inspired, but I am happy with my body”.
"You should give time to your body if you want to have a fit or healthy body. When my daughter goes to school and my husband goes to office, that is when I make good use of my time"
Breakfast: Oats with apple, cinnamon and jaggery powder Lunch: Brown rice meal with veggies and beans/tofu.
The recipe for brown rice is as follows:
Ingredients: 1 cup boiled brown rice, broccoli, mushroom, beans, onion, coriander leaves, chili flakes, oregano, fat-free sweet onion sauce, mustard sauce and Thousand Island sauce.
How to prepare: Mix well all the ingredients and enjoy!
“You should give time to your body if you want to have a fit or healthy body. When my daughter goes to school and my husband goes to office, that is when I make good use of my time. I give two hours to gymming. My husband has been very supportive of my fitness journey. In fact, he also lost approx. 20 kg and he is working on muscle development these days.” Shivani, by the way, has a good fan following on her Instagram and Facebook accounts. You can find her spreading the word actively about health on her Facebook page, fitmom_shivani and on Instagram, Fit Mom - Shivani.
By Namrata Gulati Sapra
