‘He used to enjoy all sorts of fatty foods’ – Dinesh Karthik opens up on Virat Kohli’s transformation

Virat Kohli. (Photo Source: BCCI)

Virat Kohli is one of the fittest cricketers India would ever have. The former India skipper’s fitness levels are always evident when he takes the field. He runs for a quick single and sometimes turns the ones into twos or threes. He is also brilliant at saving crucial runs, taking sensational catches, with agile fielding efforts.

However, Kohli’s fellow teammate Dinesh Karthik has revealed that the star batter was not always this particular about his fitness. Karthik said that Kohli loved fatty foods, and added how he restrained himself to become one of the fittest athletes in the world.

“Number one and the first word that I will put is discipline. Second thing, fitness is not about just and only hitting the gym or running. It is a lifestyle. So what you put into your mouth is as important as the amount of workouts and running you do and that is where Virat Kohli is brilliant. He was a foodie, he used to enjoy all sorts of fatty foods, sweets, just like all of us,” Karthik said in a chat with Harsha Bhogle for Cricbuzz.

“But he put a massive cut on all of that so that he can become the cricketer he wants to be and that’s the sacrifice you need to make. Have a look at the bigger picture and say if that is what I want to be in 5-10 years’ time, I need to cut down on certain things in my life that I am doing right now. That’s the decision he’s taken and you can see the results that have followed,” the keeper-batter added.

Kohli never let his guard down as far as his fitness is concerned: Karthik

Dinesh Karthik, 37, also revealed that Virat Kohli never gave up on his fitness. During the toughest times or when he faced criticism, the 34-year-old continued with his training and followed his diet regime very strictly.

“It is a great case of not giving up because when he’s had his bad run, things weren’t going his way, the one thing he consistently kept doing is training and eating well. So there are many moments during that when his mind says it’s okay, do something that you’ve probably liked before, stay happy. But he has given up on that, sacrificed on that, hoping that one day it will come to use and these are the kind of days when he’s batting on 130, 140, needs to take that quick single,” Karthik concluded.

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