PERSONAL GROWTH STRATEGIES & STORIES
Overweight? I Lost 22 Pounds Using This Proven Method
I keep gaining weight & then push myself to get back in shape
A mentor once told me-
Your body will change every 5 years. What worked for you in the past will not be as effective.
He could not be more right.
I gained weight multiple times in life- sometimes due to negligence, but often because I didn’t adjust diet & exercise according to lifestyle.
It was easier first time to lose the extra weight. But it became more difficult with time. Let me share today about the first time.
Losing 10 kg the first time
I was fresh from University and joined a job. I was earning a good salary. With that extra cash in hand, I went for all types of junk food. And that led to a sharp increase in weight.
A couple of months later, I went to an outdoor activity with friends and felt out of breath within a very short time. When my friends continued that activity, I was sitting in a corner. It dawned on me that I needed to be fitter.
Coming back home, I weighed myself and felt sad & shocked. I was feeling breathless because my body was not used to carrying such weight.
It was time for me to take control
I changed 2 things in life: 1) Diet & Water intake and 3) Physical activities.
Diet
- I stopped eating carbs during lunch & dinner. Initially, it was quite difficult as I was having lunch with peers. They were pushing me to eat more. But after a couple of weeks, they started admiring my resolve as well.
- I stopped drinking water immediately after a meal. But I took a glass 15 minutes before any meal. This step took some doing as I have been drinking water with meals all my life. It also meant that I would have to drink extra water throughout the day to make up for that lost quantity.
- I cut off all junk foods. This was a step that showed immediate results. Although, as I was doing this program to get back in shape, I eventually resorted back to them. I am hopeful that if I continue in moderation, they shouldn’t be a problem.
Physical Activities
I got myself an online training program titled Power 90. You need to exercise 6 days a week for 90 days under this program. There are three types of exercises — 1) Cardio 2) Abs and 3) Sculpt.
You’d need to do Cardio and Abs one day and Sculpt the next. After 45 days, the exercise levels up to a tougher regime.
I couldn’t complete the whole course. I only did it for 45–50 days and saw tremendous results. Here’s a link to the DVD:
For this program, I needed a pair of dumbells. I only used 5 kg ones and got good results. You can go above that as well. I continued this program later on and then I started using 10 kg (20–22 pounds) dumbells.
Some people use Resistance Bands. So that is also another option.
That was it.
I kept on repeating these for 2 months and saw incredible results.
Looking back, I think it was because I was young and had a faster metabolism. Also, junk foods were adding a lot of extra weight. So once I made these minor changes, I saw fast results.
Unfortunately, I saw weight loss as a project but not a process. I couldn’t continue on that path. I eventually gained some extra pounds in the following 4 years.
I had to be more disciplined during my second time.
The third time has been the trickiest. I will share about that soon.
My guess is weight loss is going to get tougher with age. I have to be careful about maintaining rather than gaining & losing.
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