Zen alert! ...
MasterChef SA winner Kamini Pather's a total yogi and attributes much of her MasterChef success to it.
A couple of months ago I saw a promo for an episode of
Doctor's Orders on SABC3 and I was sure I spotted Kamini on it. MasterChef had just started and she was looking very "Om" in a yoga pose but I wasn't sure ... was it definitely her?
Yes-yes, it was. I've just had a chinwag with her in the wake of her win on MasterChef last Wednesday and she confirmed that it was her. Turns out she's a qualified yoga instructor and very dedicated - she does classes four to five times a week.
Why was she on Doctors Orders? The show did an insert on hot yoga at the yoga studio she goes to and fitness guru
Lisa Raleigh asked her to be in the class that was filmed for the show. Lisa then chatted to Kamini afterwards, about her lifestyle, cooking, blogging etc.
Kamini told me that she did yoga throughout the filming of the MasterChef - she'd wake up a bit early in the morning to do breathing and stretches before going out into the world.
Kamini: I think yoga is a way of life and I believe in how your body helps to focus your mind.
Tashi: How critical was it in helping you win? What made you win?
Kamini: I think cooking ability definitely but the whole thing with MasterChef is that it really is a test of your personal strength and your ability to cut down the clutter. That kitchen is always stressful, it's always high pressure and you've got to block all that out and just focus on what the brief is.
One of the things I'm taking with me is that I have an ability to focus and that I really can perform under pressure and kind of be sensitive. I battle to meditate because I battle to focus my mind like that but I use yoga as a moving meditation.