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Actor Aayush Sharma surprised fans last month when he revealed via Instagram that he had undergone two back surgeries in a row. Now on the path to recovery, Aayush is opening up about the experience, what led to the surgeries, and how it changed his perspective on fitness, health, and life in an interview with Hindustan Times.

Aayush Sharma Talks About His Surgeries

Sharing what led to the surgeries, Aayush said, “I was taking my body’s messages lightly for a long time. I was constantly under training and I was misunderstanding it as muscle soreness. That was just the body saying that, ‘stop, give it a break’. I was in the middle of a shoot when it got aggravated. That's when I saw the doctor and suddenly I was told that there is an issue in the back and my L4 and L5 is giving me trouble.”

Turning Recovery Into Family Time

Despite the physical toll of the surgery, Aayush found a positive side to the unexpected break.

“In a very positive hindsight, it gave me a great amount of time with my kids and wife at home. We called it a bonding exercise. My son started cooking for me and made nice avocado toasts. Arpita (Khan, wife) and I caught up on a lot of movies. So, it turned out to be quite a different summer for me.”

Rethinking Fitness: Beyond Six-Pack Abs

Having gone through a physically demanding ordeal, Aayush admits that his views on fitness have shifted significantly.

“I am a firm believer that six-pack body is not a fit body. But there's been this trend of everybody trying to emulate it, which I don't think is fitness. It is aesthetic and there is a difference between fitness and aesthetic. I always say that the days we are doing those six pack body shots, I actually feel the weakest in my life,” he explains.

Balancing Training with Recovery

Now, Aayush prioritizes recovery as much as physical training. “I've come down to five days a week of training and added two days of recovery. I've been majorly into strength training and I am also focusing on stretching. Now, a priority is just relaxing my body, and I've felt the difference."

"The other thing I am doing now is stepping out of the gym and finding other sources of fitness, like going for an outdoor jog, and I've been enjoying it,” he says.

He further adds: “What I would like to propagate is not how sharp my abs are, but how good my heart, my lungs and my internals are. That's the major change that I've done to myself– taking a break. Whenever your body says, ‘I'm tired’; listen to it and go to sleep.”