Kusha Kapila, a beloved actress and social media personality, has garnered attention not only for her humor and relatability but also for her recent weight loss. This article delves into the details of her journey, revealing the motivations behind her transformation and the lifestyle changes she embraced.
Unveiling the Real Reason: Health and Confidence
Kusha Kapila's weight loss wasn't solely about aesthetics. In a conversation with Soha Ali Khan on her podcast, she revealed that her transformation was rooted in addressing health issues that affected her confidence. She openly discussed her struggle with painful acne caused by PCOD (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome).
Kusha recalled, "My biggest problem was that I have a camera-facing job and my face was full of acne. At 28-29, my entire face was full of acne, and I couldn't understand anything. I was applying topical creams, and it was not helping me in any manner." The severity of her condition impacted her daily life. "When that acne became so painful and it was bleeding, I could not sleep on any side of my face," she shared.
Lifestyle Changes Over Quick Fixes
Kusha emphasized her commitment to sustainable lifestyle changes rather than seeking rapid solutions. She consulted doctors and followed their advice, steering clear of unsubstantiated online trends. "First of all, I went to a doctor, you know, instead of just seeing videos online. He told me I will have to undergo major lifestyle changes because I have PCOD," she explained.
These changes included:
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- Dietary Adjustments: Kusha focused on improving her nutrition by correcting her protein intake, eliminating junk food, and reducing sugar consumption.
- Regular Exercise: Integrating exercise into her routine became crucial, not just for weight management but also for mental well-being.
Exercise for Mental Strength
Kusha shifted her perspective on fitness, linking it to mental health rather than solely focusing on body image. "The advice everyone gave me, whoever I met, the doctors, they said that you will have to exercise. Nothing responds to this better. So, I tied exercise to my life in such a way that I am doing this for my mental health, not for my weight," she added.
She vouches for the benefits of strength training and wishes for “activity and movement” to be taught in schools, emphasizing how exercising regularly helped her cope with her mental health and didn’t allow her to feel down. Continuous movement became a part of her daily life. She refused to sit at home and let her bad mood engulf her day. Hitting the gym helped her mental health more than anything.
Avoiding Strong Medication
Physicians had prescribed isotretinoin, a standard therapy for severe acne. Kusha, however, opted not to take it after hearing about its potential side effects on mental health. "I was on medicine, although the doctors told me to take isotretinoin. I never went on it because apparently, in some cases, your mental health can deteriorate. I am not against people taking medicine… some drugs are actually very good for you. But with ISO, I was not very sure."
Weight Loss as a Byproduct
For Kusha, weight loss was a secondary outcome of her efforts to improve her overall health and well-being. The primary focus was on managing her skin condition and enhancing her mental state. According to Kusha Kapila, the effort to fix her skin ultimately led her to better mental health, while weight loss was just an added effect.
Addressing Speculation and Rumors
Kusha's transformation sparked considerable online discussion, with some attributing her weight loss to methods like Ozempic or cosmetic surgery. She has publicly refuted these claims, emphasizing that her results are due to diet and exercise.
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In a Reddit post containing a screenshot of Kusha’s Instagram story, Kusha shut down rumors of her alleged plastic surgery and shared the truth behind her transformation with utmost honesty. She denied taking the help of Ozempic or any other weight loss medication. According to her, she didn’t opt for any shortcuts. Instead, she vowed to change her lifestyle and sync her life with a routine, and “to cope with it,” she even moved cities.
Key Takeaways from Kusha Kapila's Journey
Kusha's story offers several valuable insights for those embarking on their own health and wellness journeys:
- Consistency is Key: Kusha emphasized the importance of establishing a consistent routine and sticking to it.
- Mindful Eating: She embraced mindful eating, allowing herself to enjoy her favorite meals in moderation while maintaining a balanced diet.
- Balance is Important: Kusha refused to bid farewell to her favorite meals. She embraced mindful eating. This way, she could still enjoy her favorite treats and burn the calories with a workout session the next day.
- Listen to Your Body: She highlighted the significance of paying attention to your body's needs and making informed decisions about your health.
- Mental Health Matters: Kusha underscored the connection between physical and mental well-being, emphasizing the role of exercise in managing stress and improving mood.
Childhood Trauma and Body Image Issues
Kusha Kapila revealed how her childhood trauma around her weight, starving to get fit, and other unhealthy weight loss practices shaped her journey. The Thank You For Coming actor shared that the discussion around her weight loss transformation and people calling her an "average girl" turned into a "goddess of beauty," which affected her. "Someone else was talking about my body more than I was… I started feeling like I wasn't even in my body," she said.
Kusha Kapila cleared that this is not the first time the 35-year-old has lost weight. She started gaining weight when she was 10, and shed the extra kilos when people started calling her "motu" when she just turned 12 or 13 years old. Her mother enrolled her in a gym, and she did a lot of strength training and floor exercises along with running on the treadmill, which helped her lose 20-22 kg. She gained 10 more kg at 22 when she was in college, and a friend noticed her bad mental state and told her to "work on herself". During this time, Kusha Kapila followed an extreme calorie-deficient diet that helped her lose weight. Eventually, she got a fever for 12 days, which was later identified as abdominal tuberculosis - a rare form of TB that affects the organs in your abdomen. This is more common in women over the age of 25 with compromised immunity. "Women over 25-26 are more prone to TB. I was diagnosed because I had dropped my immunity so drastically… I was losing weight, which I liked. This is how body image issues play with your mind. You are sick, you are losing weight, and you are happy that you are nearing your goal weight," Kusha shared. She added that she ignored her body completely when her career took off, but Kusha Kapila decided to lose weight again. "For the first time in my life, I felt like I wanted to lose weight for myself. I told myself: 'You are by yourself now. You're responsible for everything that happens in your life. Take care of yourself, because no one else is coming'."
Strength Training and Mental Health
Crediting strength training for her physical and mental health, Kusha Kapila wrote, "The impact strength training has had on my mental health. I wish they taught about the benefits of just activity and moving and how it can, over a period of time, change how you are feeling (for the better). I wish they taught that in schools.
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