Actress, yogi, and new mom, Carishma Basday shares the post-pregnancy routine that helps her live life fully.
After having what she describes as the most incredible pregnancy, Carishma recalls feeling so weak and gaining an extra 5kg postpartum. As an actress, dancer, yoga instructor and a new mom, she was determined to up her fitness level without neglecting her career and motherhood.
No stranger to strength training, Carishma began her 20-minute full-body sessions with us in 2015. “A friend who was in great shape and had been going to BODYTEC for years, encouraged me to go. I didn’t have any preconceived ideas about it and I went in with as open mind.” And shortly after giving birth in 2020, she was back in studio, working on her fitness. “The results have been slow but steady. It’s not easy postpartum especially when you are breastfeeding as you can’t push too hard or cut calories. But I am already feeling so much stronger in just a few weeks of training and that’s incredible.”
One of greatest benefits of Electro Muscle Stimulation (EMS) training is that it is intense enough to provide fast results whilst being safe enough to use as recovery treatment after an injury, illness or pregnancy.
Sharne Botha, Head of the BODYTEC training academy says that EMS training has the ability to activate and strengthen deep muscles such as the pelvic floor which plays a major role in supporting the bladder, bowel and uterus. “Many women suffer from a weakened pelvic floor following pregnancy and thus suffer from urinary incontinence. Although simply strengthening these muscles will help reduce the incidence of urinary incontinence, these muscles are often difficult to isolate, activate and strengthen, and require tiresome and often ‘boring’ exercises,” Botha says.
The most obvious upside of Carishma’s BODYTEC training is that it only requires 20 minutes of her time per week. “It’s really not that difficult to find just 20 minutes a week, if I can do it with my ridiculous shooting schedule and being a new mom, anyone can. And I know that as long as I can fit 20-minute session in, everything else is a bonus. BODYTEC takes the pressure off trying to fit any other training into my schedule although I still try to do some yoga and running, but if I absolutely can’t, I know that BODYTEC has me covered.”
Strength training plays a big part in fuelling her post-pregnancy energy but it’s certainly not the sum of it. “I am constantly on the go, running from one shoot or audition or meeting to the next, so I always have snacks in the car. Healthy options like nuts or Nanuki boom bars, which are loaded with superfood and have no refined sugar or gluten in them, are my favourite. I hate constantly feeling like I am denying myself anything so I need substitutes to make me feel just as satisfied. Salty flavoured nuts taste even better than having a packet of chips and the boom bar is an excellent and far superior substitution for a bar of chocolate.”
She also credits her level of energy to staying hydrated and eating a variety of foods. “I know that everyone says to drink loads of water but it really helps your body function at its optimum level and stops you from reaching for unhealthy food. I try to keep my diet varied and interesting. I don’t eat meat and stay away from refined sugar and processed carbs. I don’t place permeant restrictions on my diet so I follow the 80/20 rule, where I eat well and make good choices 80% of the time and then indulge with guilt-free snacks 20% of the time. Life is too short to always pass up the cake, pasta, and wine!”
When she’s not shooting, writing her own film script or enjoying her new life as a mom, you’ll find Carishma hiking with her dogs, working in her organic veggie garden, burying her nose in a book or spending time with family and friends. As a nature and animal lover, she also works closely with charity organisations WWF and DARG.
Follow her on Instagram to learn more about the film she is currently working on or even just to see more adorable mom and baby pics: @carishmabasday
