My Story : How Did I Put On 35 Kgs And Then Lost 25

I am an average 31 something Engineer with an MBA running an IT startup. This is me on my last birthday, 30 November 2017. With 85 kgs under those clothes, high Blood Pressure, cholesterol levels on the higher side, chronic acidity and a slew of other issues which doctors and their tests could not revel. According to my BMI I was suffering from type I Obesity.

This is me on March 31, 2018. That is me 20 kgs down in roughly 12 weeks. With no blood pressure issues and no acidity issues. I came down from size 37 to size 32. I have probably never been fitter. As I write this, I am at 60 kgs, with a waist at size 30. Roughly 25 kg’s down in 5 months.

What did I change in these 12 weeks? Well a lot of things. Did I do any crash diets? Or did I do any miracle medicines or shakes? Hello no. I did not visit a doctor, or a clinic or a gym. I made a lot of well-informed decisions and a change to my lifestyle. I believe this is something that all of us could do and is sustainable.

Here is my small story

So was I always obese? Well no I was not. In fact, I was a super active and skinny kid. I was never athletic but I used to play cricket for the school team and was an amateur freestyle dancer performing on stage and various college competitions.

I met with a motor vehicle accident in January 2006 and tore my ACL on my left knee. Underwent a bit of physio and went back to dancing. Fell down on stage performing and damaged my knee even more and eventually underwent an ACL reconstruction surgery in January 2008. Not being able to walk and almost bedridden for a month I saw my tummy bulge out for the first time in my life. I lost the extra kilos pretty quickly with the workout during the rehab. I had to join a gym and was cruising through when I started experiencing pain in my lower back. A couple of tests later I was diagnosed with fused vertebrates or scalarization of the spine. Which effectively meant that my spine had 31 vertebrae instead of the 32 because two had fused. I was almost bedridden with pain for 2 months. I hit the gym with a vengeance and lost 4 kgs and stood at 52 kgs and a waist size of 30. Mind you no muscle mass to show off as I was weight training sans and good nutrition. I used to gym for 2 hours a day, 6 hours a day with almost 90 minutes of cardio in each session.

In 2009 I joined MBA and thus started another journey. I started having irregular meals, was in a hostel so skipping meals and replacing with tea and Wada pav (Maharashtrian quick snack of a fried potato cutlet and a piece of bread) was super easy and economical. I started my first startup during this time and balanced studies, a full-time love relationship and an office. When I completed my MBA in March 2011 I was already 65 Kgs, waist 32.

In 2011 I started my cat and mouse journey with weight loss and gain. My IT startup posed many challenges and the stressful environment ensured that I slept very less, 3-4 hours on an average day or quick power naps in office for 3-4 days at a stretch. I went hungry for hours as I was too busy to eat. I was always addicted to tea and some days ended up having 30-40 cups of tea or coffee, all sugar laden.

I got myself enrolled in gyms and I do not remember being able to go there for more than 3 days. Switched to cycle for my work and small commutes and ended up losing 10 kgs in 2015. The weight came back with a vengeance and I was again at 85 kgs at the start of 2017.

During this time I started suffering from chronic acidity, Blood pressure issues and cholesterol issues.

Kids from the neighbourhood used to address me as “Uncle” and my wife as “Didi” (sister).

In late March 2017, I adopted cycling for my commute to work which was 9 kms one way. So I was doing 18-20 kms per day. I enjoyed the rides but saw no changes to my weight. Come June and rains, the cycle decided to sit pretty in the rains for almost 6 months.

During this time I experienced a failed startup and the financial losses did put me on the back foot and mild clinical depression. Being the super motivated and crazy guy I am, I decided to take control of my life and made weight loss a goal. I did not have the money to go to a dietician to get a diet plan nor the funds to join a gym. All I had access to was an old cycle which was rusted after 6 months of being in the elements. I decided to start making a few small progressive lifestyle changes and start making some dietary changes.

Read about my 12 weeks plan on how I lost 22 kgs weight

This website is dedicated to help anyone and everyone looking to either lose or gain weight or someone looking to live a healthier life.

If you are looking at weight loss here are some of my secret tips.

1. crash diets might help temporarily but not on long term.
2. Do not look at skipping meals as a weight loss tool. Starving is not the answer.
3. Eat Clean and Eat correct.

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