IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Walking and moderation: Mindy Kaling talks about her new approach to weight loss

The "Office" alum has changed the way she thinks about diet and exercise.
/ Source: TODAY

An estimated 45 million Americans go on a diet every year. And until recently, Mindy Kaling was one of them. 

“If there was an awards show or I was shooting something, I used to be the person that was like, I have to stop eating these foods, or six weeks beforehand, I’m only going to juice,” Kaling, 42, told TODAY.

But a few months ago, Kaling, 42, decided to try something new: moderation. It's an approach that has yielded impressive results.

“I'm never going stop being a foodie. I’m never going be someone who can just have spinach and salmon every day,” the actor explained. “I just am really for the first time in my life, trying moderation, and I love it."

Kaling added that she's also changed the way she thinks about her fitness routine.

“In my 20s, I thought a workout had to be something that was punishing, like 45 minutes of running and you had to hate it the whole time,” she revealed. “I don’t have that relationship with exercise anymore.” 

Walking has become one of Kaling’s favorite forms of cardio. Kaling doesn't focus on how many steps she's getting in, but said she aims to move her body seven days a week.

“Sometimes I’ll be like, ‘Well, I have four different times today where I have 10 minutes so let’s just walk instead of sitting down and checking Instagram,'" she said. “So instead of it being like one chunk of exercise in the beginning of the day or none at all, I’m now just deciding that I’m going to be a more active person all the time.”

Just how much weight has Kaling lost? She’s not sure exactly.  

“I don’t weigh myself,” Kaling said. But the mom of daughter Katherine, 4, and son Spencer, 20 months, noted that it’s much easier to get dressed these days.

“To me, the most amazing thing is that all my clothes kind of fit,” she said. “It’s so easy to get ready and that's great. I feel happy about that.”

Kaling opened up to TODAY while promoting her partnership with Propel Water and its JOWO — the joy of working out — campaign. The multi-city tour, which kicks off in Los Angeles on May 7, will provide free fitness classes, $100,00 in grants to inspiring trainers, and giveaways. 

“(This) campaign is about recognizing that everyone can be at completely different levels of fitness, but we can still say that we are athletes and come together and find joy in movement,” Kaling said.

Related: