Bhumi Pednekar reveals overexertion led to ‘underlying conditions’: ‘Today, I workout 20% of what I used to…’

Images: @bhumipednekar/Instagram

Bhumi Pednekar has always been body confident, even when she put on weight for her debut film, Dum Laga Ke Haisha. Today, while she has shed the extra kilos, she has also had some learnings from her fitness journey: not to train too hard and to be gentle with the body.

In an interview to Hindustan Times, she said, "When I started my workout journey, I thought the only way to be fit is when you over-exert, and you burn many hundreds of calories in the gym. I used to feel very proud of it. But what was actually happening was I was damaging my body because I never gave my body the chance to heal.”

This led the actress to shift gears and choose more balanced ways to look after her body. She revealed that she has cut down on rigorous training and, surprisingly, feels fitter than before.

"Due to this, I got a lot of underlying conditions. I don't want to talk about them yet… But one of the biggest things that I changed is that I prioritised not overdoing it. Today I workout 20 percent of what I used to 4 years ago, and I think I'm my fittest,” added Bhumi.

Now her routine includes a mix of Pilates and strength training, which she has been consistent with for several years.

It is not just Bhumi who went through the experience of overexertion. Earlier this month, Vasudha Rai, an author and wellness expert, revealed how pushing herself too hard at the gym resulted in a ‘cortisol belly & inflamed skin’.

Her post detailed how lifting heavy weights 5 days a week at the gym resulted in a swollen and inflamed belly. It stole her ‘gut,’ ‘glow,’ and ‘calm’. She has since swapped her intense workouts for gentler ones and chosen compassion over discipline. Bhumi, too, reacted to her post and shared, “I went through exactly this!”

According to UCLA, overexercising is a state where the body is put through excessive physical stress without enough time for recovery. This creates hormonal imbalances in the body that affect metabolism and muscle growth. It makes the immune system vulnerable to infections and illnesses, along with causing fatigue, anxiety, reduced strength, and endurance.