What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the word fat? I’m pretty sure it’s not something pleasant because in this modern day and age the word fat has a negative connotation. So, believe me when I say this, “I was fat”. I don’t wish to support the negativity surrounding the word when I narrate this story of mine, but only a desire to inspire anyone else who might be suffering through the same problem.
I was always healthy for my age, but if I can remember distinctly, it was in 6th grade that my physical education teacher called up my parents to talk to them about the kind of side effects my excess weight would have on my future life. For the 12-year-old me, my teacher was a villain who had made it his life’s mission to see me ruined. I was quite reluctant to do anything that my parents or my teacher told me to do, I would you use any means at my disposal to avoid exercise. And this continued for many years to come, by the time I was done with 10th boards I was 95 kg and by the 12th boards I was 110 kg. There was no stopping me, once I started eating, only ginormous amounts of portions could satiate my hunger.
This continued for a few years to come, but as all good stories have a twist, this has one too. On one fine day, my mother and I went shopping and while returning it started raining heavily and in an attempt to find shelter we started running, but due to my weight I could not keep up with my mother’s fast pace and while trying to reach the shelter I slipped and I fell, my mother rushed to my aid, but no matter how much she tried, she just couldn’t seem to help me get up, she had to ask for help from other bystanders. The level of embarrassment that my mother faced because of my own inabilities to aid myself was unbearable. On that day I decided that I wanted my parents to rely on me and not the other way around.
The rest is just as how all other body transformation stories go. I started controlling the amount I ate, started running and then eventually started hitting the gym. It wasn’t easy, many a times I wished to quit, but just the thought of quitting reminded me of the events of that awful evening, and all the thoughts of quitting would just fade away. Over a period of one and a half year I lost over 40 kg and since then have been advocating fitness to all of my friends and family, many a times going out of my way to help them achieve their goals too. So, if you’re out there and if you are “fat” then it’s never too late to start today!
