Jinder Mahal Says Leaving WWE "Best Thing To Happen To Him"

Jinder Mahal is about to find himself somewhere few thought he would ever be; challenging for the WWE Championship at a WWE pay per view. The former lower mid-carder recently discussed his surprising ascent with SportsKeeda and revealed that it wouldn't have been possible had he not left the WWE in 2014.

"It feels great to be back, especially after the position I was at. I was just floating near the mid-card and the bottom of the card so it was good that I got to go away to find myself as a performer and improve upon myself, improve my body, improve my promo skills and in-ring skills.

Obviously, I've been back less than a year and now I'm the #1 contender so, in a lot of ways, going away was one of the best things to happen to me. Even outside the ring, I invested in real estate. It was an overall time of growth for me – both professionally inside the ring and outside.

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It feels great to be back in the WWE. The locker room is different. There are a lot of guys from NXT now on the main roster, which is great. It's great backstage and it's kind of like a youth movement with young and new wrestlers in the spotlight.

Hopefully, I can take advantage of that because I've never been a champion in the WWE. So hopefully, Backlash will be the first of many times that I become champion."

As for the new physique he brought back to the WWE, Jinder revealed the secret to his new look.

"The secret is consistency. I literally haven't had a cheat meal in 3-4 months. I haven't eaten anything I shouldn't have. Even now, on the tour, I have my cooling bag with me and I carry 5 meals with me so that I eat every 2 hours. I eat 30/40 grams of carbohydrates, 30/40 grams of proteins with every meal.

Then there's cardio 6 days a week and weight training 6 days a week. I also became straight-edge. I also do a lot of Olympic compound movements.

Then there are lots of basic squats, lots of push-ups and other exercises. Overall, from diet to exercise, I'm seeing good results. I'm going to keep getting in better shape because not only do I look better but I feel better.

I feel better inside the ring in terms of stamina and endurance, which is important if I want to become WWE Champion and have long matches every night."

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Good to see a guy put in the work and get rewarded on the big stage. Jinder will challenge Randy Orton for the WWE Championship on May 22nd at WWE BackLash.