You only know yourself when you go beyond your limits— Paulo Coelho
The Transformation
Well… Let’s get into the story (this is going to be a long one). I was always a fat kid, a big-time foodie since the beginning. I had been involved in yoga (thanks to my dad ❤) and some sort of physical activities on and off in school days. I was born fat. Yes, I weighed around 4.5 kgs when I was born, and I never remember looking like ordinary or thin people around me. I often used to get bullied. Body shaming had become a regular thing for me. You don’t like to get your pictures clicked when you are fat, and this usually has been the case with me. I always tried to avoid photographs, gatherings, etc.
Meet the Bhavesh from 1st year of college :p
Me in 2019
I had hit my peak of being overweight in the covid lockdown November 2020; I weighed 118 Kgs. BOOM!
This article describes how I went from 118 kgs to 79 kgs in almost a year.As they say, physical health is the key parameter for mental health which I feel is totally right. I was in extremely bad shape, my mental health had hit the rock bottom, was feeling bad for myself for not being productive in my work. Then I decided to start focusing on my health a bit. This was the time, the decision was taken. I started doing some home workouts, started going for walk. But I was struggling a lot with eating right. Yes, it’s not easy to change your eating habits all of a sudden.
A friend of mine in December 2020, suggested that I should take up a gym membership. It was almost a month since I was doing low-intensity home exercises this time around. A fact to be noted is, I was not able to perform a single push-up! Somehow I convinced my parents for the gym membership, and the next day I showed up in a gym. I weighed around 112 Kgs.
One of my goals for 2021 was to reach 75 Kgs (yes, a bit too much xD)
This is me after hitting gym for some time…
Initial days of gym (Feb 2021)
I continued gymming for around three months. Later in March 2021, I got back to campus! By this time, I was able to perform a proper push-up. But I could no longer go to the gym, thanks to the covid norms in IIT Bombay.
I tried running at the beginning of the year but used to get out of breath very quickly, and therefore I hated running. But now I met my friend Pawan Kale who inspired me to run; we used to go for morning runs. I made improvements but could not exceed more than 2 Kilometers. I also started becoming regular at doing push-ups and other bodyweight exercises. By April, I could perform 10 push-ups in one go! It indeed felt not less than an achievement for me :) At the same time, I kept an eye on my calorie intake. I had utterly cut down the oily and junk food. Now I was under 100 Kgs. But I had hit a plateau for a month.
By the mid of April 2021, a covid situation in India became worse and the IITB admin had announced a closure of gymkhana ground following the norms of the Maharashtra government. Also, this was the time of end-semester exams and I stopped devoting time to fitness.
Starting from mid of April till August There was a dry spell. I did no exercise. Ate a lot of junk food. Had No control over eating habits and no physical activity. I became busy with my internship and other work. As a result, I again gained weight but fortunately, I was under 100 Kgs.
There was an external motivation this time around August-September. Something had happened that got me into running. I again became regular at running and exercise.
I took up 100 push-ups a day challenge!I was able to do 25 push-ups in a row and hold planks for longer, and all of this happened within a month. My stamina and strength had increased by a considerable margin because of running and push-ups. I focused more on eating clean and healthy. Also, by this time, I could complete 5 km runs easily.
Sept 2021: I, with my friend Mahesh, ran for 5 km
But something worst happened in the 1st week of October 2021. I got an MCL ligament injury in my right knee. It was a grade-2 tear, and the result was I could neither bend my knee nor walk for 3 to 4 weeks. I was on complete bed rest. But I didn’t want to stop my journey. The desire was so intense I couldn’t stop even if I wanted. So what a person with an injured knee could do? I did push-ups, planks, and upper-body mobility exercises, but I didn’t take a break! I was able to walk around the end of October 2021, and the best thing happened… that is IITB admin decided to open up the gym in indoor sports. I love our gym here ❤
Finally, I started going to the gym again from the 1st week of November! I continued doing gymming and running on alternate days. I fell in love with running over a period of time. Running has become meditative for me.
Fast forward to December 2021… I reached 79 Kgs.
Meet the new (read transformed) Bhavesh xD
A photogenic me (yes, a flex xD)
I recently completed a Himalayan (Kedarkantha: 12500 feet) trek. The best thing was that I was one of the first 10 trekkers to reach the top from our entire batch consisting of around 100 people. I couldn’t have even thought of going on a trek a year back with the fitness level I was at!
A picture of me from kedarkantha trek
Few things that worked for me and helped me throughout my weightloss journey
Consistency: I can’t stress this enough, it’s a building block towards achieving anything in life. There were hardly 4 to 5 days since august till December when I missed my workouts.
Intermittent Fasting: Aah I love fasting. I tried to do IF in18:6 window. I also did a variation of IF which is OMAD (One Meal A Day) on many days (Not recommended). Here is the video by dr. Berg explaining Intermittent Fasting in detail.
Eating Clean: This is super important. You keep eating junk and do a shit ton of exercises, still, you won’t lose weight. I left eating sugar. Although I didn’t put harsh restrictions on myself in terms of eating. I used to have one or two cheat days in a week when I used to eat whatever I liked :) Here is the best article on the internet about diet and eating for fat loss.
Weight Training: I will prefer lifting over cardio any day. I feel my fitness levels skyrocketed since the last two months of lifting weights. You start losing muscle mass if you do excessive cardio.
High-Intensity Interval Training(HIIT): HIIT >>> Steady State Cardio. Period. HIIT increases your stamina like nothing else. 15 to 20 minutes of HIIT routine is all you need for consistent weight loss.
Self-love and confidence: There were many ups and downs throughout this journey but I didn’t give in to any of the hardships. I kept going. At the end of the day, it’s you who has to cheer yourself up and get back on track even after falling into the abyss. I kept on pushing my limits. Every day felt like a journey.
I had no guidance about nutrition or had little to no idea how I should achieve this goal. But I did thorough research, read hundreds of blogs, answers from quora, youtube videos, Reddit, etc. helped me understand health and fitness. I used to get inspired by reading other people’s fitness journeys and seeing their before-after pictures.
Below are the benefits I have observed as a result of the fitness journey.
Happiness : Being fit improves your happiness and gives a sense of general well-being. I have transitioned from the worst mental state to the best mental state.
Confidence: I used to avoid meeting new people, going out, gatherings. I used to feel bad about myself. My self-esteem was down. After reaching this point, I feel confident about myself and my body. I am no longer afraid of gatherings, going out, or meeting people. My belief in myself has grown by many folds.
Good Skin: Yes… Clear skin is one of the benefits of healthy fat loss. I used to have frequent breakouts and acne thanks to the unhealthy lifestyle and junk I used to put in my body. I noticed my skin has become brighter and shiny. Post-workout glows are amazing :)
Strength and Stamina : I have gone from not being able to run 200 meters to complete 10 Km easily, from not being able to do a single push-up to doing 50 push-ups in a row, from failing to hold a plank for 20 seconds to keeping 3.5 minutes of plank, from not being able to complete the small trek to completing one of most difficult(Himalayan) treks. My energy levels have improved.
Running for 10km
There are many more personal as well as social benefits of being fit. I incorporated other positive habits along with the exercise, such as Meditation, Reading more frequently, Writing a journal, and practicing general gratitude in my daily routine.
To summarise this article…
It was a wonderful journey. Was it easy? Hell No! This journey has taught me to push my limits every single day, not giving in to excuses, stay hungry for achieving what I want, become a perpetual learner, and be the best version of myself.
Thanks for reading! I hope this was helpful :)