When I started somewhere around mid-July, I was around 76 kg, and by the end of October, I had hit 67 kg. Here are some insights into my journey that helped me achieve my goal, primarily using weight training, cardio, and a healthy diet.

• Maintaining a calorie deficit: Not the new or unheard one, the fundamental law for weight loss is to maintain a calorie deficit. Monitoring your calories daily keeps you motivated and vigilant about your consumption & burning habits (Measure it to manage it). You can start at a calorie deficit of 400 and increase it as you get acclimated to the diet.

  
  

• Manipulate your diet with protein: As a food lover( By the way, most humans are foodies), it’s almost impossible to maintain a healthy diet and it becomes challenging when you are famished. So one of the ways to maintain a healthy diet is to replace your existing carbohydrates with a protein-rich diet. Most people misunderstand that you need protein only when you are building muscles, however, proteins are amino acids, required not only for muscle but also for bone, joints, tendons, ligaments, hair, antibodies, hormones, enzymes, and LDL and HDL cholesterol. You can calculate your daily protein requirement by using the following formula, the total protein required (grams)= .8*body weight (kg). It is also important to know about various taboos (like sources of protein) associated with whey protein. It is absolutely safe to consume (incrementally) it along with your workout (After workout). I mostly rely on eggs, protein powder (Myprotein), lentils, tofu (tried Tempeh too), paneer, beans, chickpeas & sometimes fish primarily for my protein requirements. Tip: I initially used Healthkart’s free diet consultation plan to plan my diet.

  
  

• Cardio & Strength Training: To maintain a good calorie deficit is difficult just with diet hence you have to burn calories with cardio and weight training to expedite the progress. Try maintaining 30–45 mins of cardio 5–6 times a week initially and gradually move to a balanced workout that consists of cardio and strength training.

  
  

• Carry your own food: As a social animal, It’s almost impossible to avoid social gatherings and travelling sometimes, hence try carrying your own food like protein bars, protein drinks, fruits, and search for boiled eggs (whenever possible), etc. which you can consume before heading to a party so that you do not eat mindlessly or eat outside too much.

  
  

• Start small and keep improving: Feeling the full pressure of dieting from day one could be overwhelming hence start small by making small changes in your eating habits like replacing sugar with honey/jaggery, replacing packaged items with healthy snacks initially, white bread with multigrain bread, normal flour with ragi flour (Mixed), etc. Similarly, you have to start small to go for the workout as well. Do not think about going to the gym, just think about wearing shoes or packing your gym bag and then just stepping out of the house and someday just think about going and coming back without exercise 😛 that helps in tricking your brain into break bigger tasks into smaller ones with less resistance

  
  

• Fall in love with the regime, not the outcome: This is the important one, and it will help in other aspects of life as well. Do not fall in love with the final outcomes like six packs or muscles, money, intelligence, etc but learn to fall in love with the process or regime that helped people to achieve it. The outcome sometimes depends on an individual’s metabolism, diet, genetics, and body type, so be patient with yourself.

  
  

• Knowledge is power: Knowing about nutrition and basic human anatomy helped me break a lot of myths about fitness. You can read, the same book I was suggested, The Hungry Brain: Outsmarting the Instincts That Make Us Overeat to understand our behaviour patterns associated with overeating. I also read Eating in the Age of dieting by Rujuta Diwekar (Famous Indian Nutritionist) to understand Indian ways of eating and the myths associated. (Order only if you feel like reading)

  
  

• Bonus: Below is a sample snapshot of my routine & diet.

  
  

  

In the end, I’ll say that do not believe everything you see on social media or the internet. Use your own discretion to chart a journey for yourself that takes you out of your comfort zone in the beginning and eventually helps you achieve your fitness goals. Fitness is not an endpoint, but a lifestyle that inspires almost all other aspects of our lives. It impacts you not just physically but also helps in building determination, discipline, and consistency in your life.

I hope this answers some of the fundamental questions about your fitness aspirations and provides enough of a trigger to kickstart your transformation.

Good luck with your journey. :)

Feel free to DM me for any clarification