6 Months Body Transformation

 






Background:

Life happens to all of us. Some major events in our lives can often change our everyday routine. Career changes, relocation, part-time college; the list goes on. I started my part-time MBA back in August of 2017 and my day's routine went on a turmoil. With a toddler at home and a full time job, most of the day's hours that were available for myself apart from home and work were either spent attending Business School or studying at the library. Studying late night at a 24-hour coffee place, I often ate a donut or two and had few rounds of coffee. Before I could realize, I had wrapped up my MBA and had found a new job for myself. With that, I had to prepare for an out-of-state relocation which meant I had to pack everything, sell my home and move to an entirely new destination! With so many events happening around me, I hardly paid any attention to my body. I had always been a fit person mostly because I have been a competitive Tennis player since I was a fourth grader. I was never used to seeing myself like this. By September 2020, I had gained more than 20 pounds with a body fat percentage of more than 30%.

New Chapter of Life:

I moved to North Carolina in September 2020 and slowly indulged into the new chapter of my life. Wrapping up my MBA and relocating out-of-state had kept me super busy. After I relocated to NC, I had gotten myself on cruise control. Take it easy as they say! I lacked any motivation to hit the gym or get into any serious exercise routine. Fast-forward about 1.5 years; I had gained some more pounds on top of what I had gained already. I started looking at my pictures and I realized how bad of a shape I had gotten into. At that point, I decided that this chain of bad habits needs to be broken and I need to get back to a "Fit" me one more time.

The Journey Begins:

A friend of mine had just enrolled into an online diet and exercise plan. I reached out to her to get the details. This was a 28-day plan, which focused on eating healthy along with simple floor based exercises at home. I thought to myself that this would be a good head start. With a coach who is monitoring my progress on a weekly basis, I would get into a discipline of following the diet and exercises (Sometimes having someone watch you closely helps tremendously in terms of pushing yourself towards the goal). In the middle of February 2022, I started my 28-day plan towards weight loss!
The next 28 days were a test in terms of discipline and consistency! I ate healthy and exercised on an everyday basis. My diet routine mostly involved eating very little carbs. Most of my diet comprised of Grilled Chicken and Veggies, Nuts, small portions of Oat Bread and Millet/Quinoa etc. Sugar and Dairy products were a total ban for me. Along with this, I exercised 6 days a week. My entire workout was at home that required very little equipment (A pair of Dumbbells at the most). I did about 8 to 10 different kind of exercises. Every exercise comprised of 3 to 4 sets of 15 reps each. Some of the exercises I did on an everyday basis were Pushups, Planks, Glute Bridges, Burpees, Lunges and Squats. After following a rigorous diet and exercise plan, I was able to lose 10 pounds in 28 days.

The Journey Continues:

By now, I had realized that there was no turning back for me. I had to carry this discipline forward. I was 100 percent committed towards this because I had seen the changes that happened to my body. I knew I had to take things to the next level now. I enrolled myself in a Gym, which gave me access to a wide variety of exercise equipment. The Gym's mobile app had several exercise routines for Strength Training. I picked the "6-Week Shred" program. This program consisted an exercise routine for 5 days in a week (Monday: Chest, Tuesday: Back, Thursday: Shoulders, Friday: Legs, Sunday: Arms, Wednesday and Saturday: Rest days). Each day had about 6 to 8 weight-based exercises. Every week was a different challenge in terms of exercises and weights. I finished two rounds of the 6-Week Shred program (12 weeks total). A point to note here is that apart from this exercise routine, I absolutely made sure that I ate no powdered sugar, no fried or fast food, very little carbs and consumed as much protein as I could on a daily basis (I did have 1 to 2 cheat meals a week).

Here is a summary of a typical everyday diet for me:

Breakfast: Kodiak Protein Pancakes mixed in Almond Milk (Pecans, Raisins, Dates, Almonds and Walnuts added to the mixture) OR 2 whole eggs on a slice of Oat Bread
Lunch: Millet, Quinoa or Brown Rice with Indian Chicken, Goat or Vegetable Curry (Cooked in very little Coconut Oil)
Snack: A low sugar Protein Yogurt OR Protein Bar.
Dinner: Millet, Quinoa or Brown Rice with Indian Chicken, Goat or Vegetable Curry (Cooked in very little Coconut Oil)
Beverages: Tea or Coffee (2 times a day) with very little milk. Stevia added for sweetness.

Apart from this, I also consumed Organic Plant based Protein Powder (3 scoops) in Almond Milk after my workout. I did have one or two cheat meals every week (Like Fried Rice, 1 or 2 slices of pizza or a bowl of ice cream). Trust me; life will be boring if you keep eating the same thing everyday. Having 1 or 2 cheat meals helps you fulfill your cravings and gets you ready mentally to diet and exercise well for the next week.

After 12 weeks, I had dropped an additional 17 pounds, which meant I had lost a total of 27 pounds since I started my diet plan in February! My body fat percentage dropped to 17.3%. I had a toned body now compared to where I was after finishing the 28 day plan back in Feb-March.

No Turning Back Now:

I tell myself that I have entered a maze so deep that when I look back, I do not see the entry point. I cannot dream about going back to that old me! The amount of hard work, discipline, self-motivation and consistency that I have put into my health and body over the past 6 months has molded me into someone very different. It feels amazing after waking up everyday. A feeling that makes you pat yourself on the back for eating healthy and working out rigorously in order to be in your best shape. Looking into the mirror, you feel good about yourself. It provides a huge amount of boost in terms of self-confidence. Suddenly everything you wear starts looking good on you! The feeling is simply priceless! I decided to write this article in hope that my journey would help many people to start eating healthy and getting into an exercise routine on a daily basis. Once you do that, it would not be long until you realize that someone surely has very wisely said, "Health is Wealth"! On an ending note, here is a picture of happy "me" after stepping out of the gym:

Thanks for taking time and reading through this article. I am hoping this inspires many to indulge into a healthy lifestyle. Until next time!