Exclusive – Kushal Tandon on fitness: I go to Thailand every year for a month to do martial arts and train with MMA fighters

For Kushal Tandon, fitness goes beyond building strength or maintaining a physique. Over the years, boxing and martial arts have become important part of his lifestyle, helping him develop discipline, focus and a sense of calm.Talking about the impact of combat sports on his daily routine, Kushal shared, “Boxing and martial arts have given me a lot of discipline. I get up at 6:30 am without an alarm, and I sleep around 10-10:15. Martial arts has given me calmness, focus and the ability to lock in. Ever since I started boxing and martial arts, I’ve learnt how to stay focused.”His commitment to the discipline, also take him beyond his regular training routine. Kushal makes it a point to travel to Thailand every year for a month where he trains alongside MMA fighters and athletes experiencing their demanding Lifestyle firsthand. “I go to Thailand every year for a month to do martial arts and train with MMA fighters and real athletes. Living with them and training with them has given me strength and roux and has channelised my energy in the right direction,” he added.For the actor the Appel of boxing and martial arts lies as much in the mental transformation as the physical one. The rigorous training has helped him embrace structure, sharpen his focus and become more disciplined in his everyday life. His annual training stints in Thailand further reflects his dedication to learning and pushing him outside comfort zone.Rather than viewing fitness, simply as a routine Kushal’s approach highlights how combat sports can influence one’s mindset as much as the body for him, boxing and martial art. Arts have become a way to stay grounded, focus, and consistent.Kushal, who was recently part of Alliance spoke about his journey on the show, he said, “My journey had a complete arc of emotions. It was like a full hero’s story in a fiction show, but this was a non-fiction show, and I think that story came out beautifully. In the first three weeks, I was playing with an alliance of seven to eight people. At that time, people were saying that Kushal was running the game, everyone was playing under Kushal, and that I was a bully. Then I became completely alone because people had filled others’ ears against me. I started playing solo. Even though I had initially been part of an alliance, I played alone for almost six weeks and continued to play my own game till the end.”He added, “Whoever came along with me, we moved forward together. But I never depended on anyone, thinking that someone should come to me or that I should go to someone. My journey was very beautiful because it showed every emotion. It showed my fearless nature and also my emotional side, which nobody had seen before. And everything was very natural. After that, I started walking towards people with my head held high and without being afraid of anyone. Then I became an ace and went against all odds. Sohail bhai was in my team, and nobody wanted to be in a team with him. I chose to stay with him for three weeks, and together we became the number one team. I became an ace, became a traitor, became a winner, took out my enemies and reached the semi-finals. So, my journey was really beautiful, and I don’t want to change anything about it. It was a beautiful journey.”On the professional front, Kushal Tandon was last seen in Alliance and he was one of the most talked about contestants of the show. He returned to reality space after a gap of 15 years.