Hard vs Soft Workouts: Shilpa Shetty’s fitness regime consists of Yoga, pilates and planks

Shilpa Shetty’s Instagram posts serve as a reminder for us to join a gym soon. The diva keeps reminding us that she’s the fitness queen. The diva’s antithesis to the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach is a careful curation of posts which invite viewers to try different kinds of exercises and workouts ranging from pilates, yoga and cardio depending on your body’s needs and abilities. 

Planks

The fitness guru’s guide to ‘washboard abs’ consists entirely of planks targeting the different zones of the body such as arms, hips, the core ab muscles and back. Planks are a form of ‘hard workouts’ which suggest an increased difficulty and ability to maintain an elevated upper body stance for long periods. Doing so tightens the core muscles and over time leads to defined abs. Planks vary in their difficulty levels, accessible for people of all kinds of fitness categories from beginner to advanced. For Shetty’s plank workout, she reminds her audience that it is not for a beginner, targeting the entire body within a 20-minute gruelling commitment that is both physical and mental. She begins with an extended arm plank targeting the hips, advancing to the side elbow plank and finally, the elbow plank. By the end of those 20 minutes, you are going to feel the burn all over your body.

Yoga and Pilates

The star’s fitness routine does not end there. For those who cannot jump into such tough workouts, Shetty also promotes yoga and pilates which are considered to be ‘soft workouts’. India’s love for yoga does not exclude the fitness legend who endorses the benefits of the exercise for both the body and the mind. She begins her morning with Surya Namaskar, stretching her body effectively and ends with a meditation to exercise the mind. Pilates is a low-impact exercise which emphasises powerful, controlled movement. It balances the strength in your body and helps build muscle over a long period, compared to hard workouts such as cardio. Shetty mentioned that the exercises have benefits for blood flow, hair fall and the nervous system in her previous Instagram post.

It’s no wonder why she has an incredibly healthy and strong body as she continues to inspire millions of followers to adopt healthy fitness routines and habits. 

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