Jinder Mahal, WWE Champion

The fitness regime that makes him the Modern Day Maharaja of wrestling.

 - FOR A MAN OF HIS STRENGTH and stature, Jinder Mahal greeted me with a very soft handshake and a gentle smile. Dressed in a black suit, he had an extremely shiny WWE Championship belt accompanying him. After a couple of questions about how he was preparing for WWE’s tour of India (he had just announced that Kevin Owens would be his opponent), I asked the 108 kg, 6 foot 5 inch man about how he manages to stay in shape.

How many times do you train in a week, and for how long?

I work out six days a week. The first thing I do when I wake up, whether I am at home or at a hotel when I am travelling, is to do some cardio on an elliptical trainer, just to keep my metabolism running. Then, after breakfast, I go to the gym and lift weights for about an hour and 15 minutes. After that, I stretch for about 20-25 minutes. So in total, I train for a little over two hours.

Do you keep changing your routine, in order to shock your body?

Yes, absolutely, it is one of the things that you have to do. The body is great at adapting, and once it does, it hits a plateau. So if you do the same workout, week after week, your body is not being challenged. So sometimes I train heavier, and take longer breaks. Sometimes I start doing supersets, where I do two or three exercises in a row without taking a break. Then, I’ll lift lighter weights and do more reps. I also enjoy outdoor activities. Exercising doesn’t necessarily mean going to the gym. For instance, I’ll go hiking, or biking or paddle boarding.

You’ve spoken about how you’re into functional training. Can you tell us more about that?