Ajay Devgn’s influence on his diet and workout

Aaman Devgan says, “He (Ajay) monitors my protein intake and the number of hours I sleep, and he even calls up my mom to check. He is very, very strict when it comes to fitness. I have started working out with him, especially when he is not shooting. We are always working out together, most of the time actually, although we don’t share a fitness trainer. He is very, very involved. He fires me a lot. He says I need to build more muscle and build my body.”

Aaman feels he is lucky that early on in his career, his health-conscious uncle, who is one of the fittest actors, advised him that if he wanted to become a major movie star, he would have to make some major changes to his body.

“He researches a lot about workouts and keeps finding out different variations of workouts for me. I was doing heavier weights with fewer reps, and he made me change that and do lighter weights with more reps. Within a week, I started seeing my body getting tighter, harder and stronger. It has always been small, small things like this,” he says when asked to share the best workout advice he has picked up from Ajay.

Aaman transformed his diet and exercise routine to prepare for his first-ever movie role. His fitness schedule consisted of workouts like ‘two hours of gymnastics in the morning, an hour of dance in the afternoon and two hours of gym in the evening’. He still works out for at least two to three hours a day, seven days a week, and is ‘into sports like football’.

Aaman works out 7-days a week

He says, “I never stopped playing sports; I play a lot of cricket and basketball. I started gymming at around the age of 16 or 17. I have a lean body, so gaining weight and muscle was tough for me. Today, I do two workouts a day. In the morning, I work on my leg strength and knees; in the evening, I work on my upper body. I have to work on my legs daily because of my knee surgery, which was around 7-8 months ago, in September.”

And how does he stay motivated to exercise almost every single day? “Showing up for the workout is half the job done. Once you finish the gym, your thoughts are all clear, and you are happy. I never have any discussions before my workout as my brain works much better after exercising,” Aaman says.

What does Aaman eat daily?

Even though we can’t see on social media what he’s up to fitness-wise, he’s given us a peek into his daily diet – and in the world of Aaman Devgan, discipline is key. “My calorie intake is not exactly calculated, but what is strictly calculated is my protein intake. My body weight is around 70 kg, so I have to consume at least double the amount of protein, which is around 120-130 grams,” he says.

He adds, “For me, the only thing I avoid is sugar, but sometimes, I do give in. That’s the only thing I strictly follow. Apart from that I make sure I get enough protein in, which is very important when you are trying to build muscle. I get in a certain amount of carbs each day and a lot of fibre. I have my pizzas when I can afford to have my cheat meals. If I don’t eat well, I start to lose weight, so I need to eat a lot.”

Sharing more details, he says: “I have banana smoothies with seeds like flaxseeds and sunflower seeds or a protein shake in the morning between 6 am and 9 am. I have an entire bottle of water when I wake up. Then I have my breakfast around 11, which is a simple balance of protein, fibre and carbs – toast or eggs. Apart from that, my lunch, evening snack and dinner are very simple: salads, dal, chicken, sabzi, regular white rice and wheat or millet chapati. The timing of the meals is very important for me as I have to watch my protein intake and space out the meals.”

His quick protein fix? “Sometimes protein can be hard on the stomach, so there is a brand of curd that has protein in it. That really helped me, as protein shakes can be heavy and uncomfortable,” Aaman says.

How he looks after his mental and emotional health

Aaman also discussed mental health and how he manages to stay calm when dealing with an issue. “If I ever feel overwhelmed… the one thing that I have realised is that a lot of people keep their feelings inside, but I always like to just talk about it — whether with my mother, my uncle, my brother or Nysa, my sister (Kajol and Ajay Devgn’s daughter). So, I can shell out my problems and half of my worries go away. Talking about things solves half the problems,” he says.

Aaman’s fitness tip for fans

Aaman says everyone’s body is different, so finding a routine that works for you is important. “I feel lifting weights is very important for everyone, including women; it helps build muscle strength and is good for your overall health. Weight-lifting is a must. I started lifting heavy weights after the age of 17. Please do not fall for the misinformation on the internet; the most important thing is that you need to understand your body type, and based on that, you can follow a specific diet and workout,” he says.