Padma Lakshmi reveals she eats up to 8000 calories a day during filming of Top Chef

Former model and TV host Padma Lakshmi has revealed her extreme calorie intake while filming her reality cooking show.

Model and TV host Padma Lakshmi has revealed just how extreme your calorie intake can be when you front a cooking show.

The presenter on the long-running series Top Chef, which streams on Binge, said she eats anywhere from 7000 to 8000 calories a day while filming the show.

Lakshmi, 49, also said she could be sampling more than 30 dishes each episode, she revealed in a new interview with Women’s Health.

“Those chefs are cooking to win, so they’re putting in as much lard and butter and salt as they can,” Lakshmi said.

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Padma Lakshmi has revealed just how much she eats while filming Top Chef. Picture: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images/AFP

The former model also revealed she started taking preventive diabetic medication to regulate her blood sugar levels during filming because diabetes runs in her family.

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Padma Lakshmi with Heidi Klum at the Emmys. Picture: Instagram

“My parents are diabetic,” she said.

In addition to a healthy eating routine, Lakshmi has a robust fitness schedule. The Top Chef star was diagnosed with scoliosis at age 13.

“I started going to pilates a few years ago, because my chiropractor recommended it for my back,” she said.

“Pilates changed my body. It made me strong in places I didn’t know I needed to be.”

Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio. Picture: Smallz & Raskind/Bravo

Lakshmi added: “I have a butt now that I didn’t have during my modelling career!”

This story originally appeared on Fox News and was reproduced with permission