How I Reduced 16 Kgs in 2 Months

Being a software engineer in Bangalore, I am highly experienced and skillful in sitting on a chair from morning to evening. In the beginning of 2014 I weighed 98.6 Kilograms. Until then, I was never worried about my weight or general health. But, admittedly, the thought of hitting century in the near future disturbed me a little. Remember, even Sachin Tendulkar famously got tensed when he crossed 90 runs. 

In May 2014, I took a u-turn. Honorable mention to Nazi kunjimma (Mother’s younger sister) for guiding me at the right time. By July 2014 I reduced my weight to 82 kgs. That’s a reduction of 16 kgs in 2 months. For a food loving, inherently lazy person like me, that’s pretty impressive. So, how did I do that? Dieting? Excercise? Medication?. Yes, Yes and No.

I did get some sort of professional help to achieve this. I spent ten days in a naturopathy centre at Kozhikode. The centre name is Nature Life International. It’s not a hospital in the strict sense, rather a humble holiday home. 

If you are really serious about weight reduction or suffering from any lifestyle diseases (High Blood Pressure, Diabetes, High Cholesterol Levels, vitamin deficiencies etc), I strongly recommend spending a few days in one of their six centres. Remember the best way to cure lifestyle diseases is by changing the lifestyle itself. Medicines are known to cause more harm.

You will be able to find other naturopathy hospitals as well. I guarantee that it’s worth your time and money. You will learn a few good lessons, in practice and theory, about food and healthy living.

2 Major components of the weight reduction plan was the Diet and the Exercise. See the details below.

The Diet

Food Items I Avoided (The Dont’s)

1. Sugar
2. Chocolates
3. Biscuits, Sweets & Cakes
4. Bakery Items (Murukku, Mixture etc etc...)
5. Porotta & Any Maida based food
6. Pickles
7. Chips
8. Milk and Milk Products
9. Tea and Coffee
10. Meat, Fish and Egg (Avoid for at least a month)
11. Smoking and Alcohol (I never used this anyways. Added here for completeness)

General Rules about Eating

1. Strictly 3 times meals only.
2. There should be a gap of at least 4 to 5 hours between meals.
3. Fruits and Vegetables are main components of the food.
4. Eat Slowly. Chew your food well.
5. Eat only when you feel hungry
6. No snacking in-between meals
7. No Fruits in between. No fruit juice in between. In fact fruits and fruits juice are considered as proper food.
8. Dinner is at 6 PM. Or before sunset. Absolutely no food afterwards.
9. No water intake while eating. No water in take half an hour before and after meals.
10. Drink water any other time. Drink when you feel thirsty.

Meals Timings and Menu

Breakfast

8.30 AM

Menu is mainly Fruits. Listing few of them here:

Papaya

Watermelon

Mango

JackFruit

Chikko

Dates

Plantain

Tender Coconut

Another Fruits Combo

Pomegranate

Musambi

Pineapple

Add this too:

Dry Fruits (moderately)

Any Fresh Juice (without Sugar)

Lunch

12.30 PM

Menu is Salads and Vegetables

Cucumber

Carrot

Tomato

Cooked Vegetables (Thoran or Upperi). A list of usual vegetables given below:

Kovakka

Kaaya + Payar

Beans

Cabbage

Beetroot

Ladies Finger

Spinach

Cherupayar etc. etc.

Dinner

6.00 PM

Dinner is again Fruits. See the Breakfast Menu.

Fluids

• I used to drink lot of water, but not excessively. A rule of thumb is : drink when you feel thirsty.
• 6.00 AM   : 1 Glass Kumbalanga Neer (not juice, but very diluted)
• 10.30 AM : 1 Glass Nellikka Neer (not juice, but very diluted)

Note: Whenever I felt too tired or dizzy, I used to take a glass of Salted Lemon Juice  or Tender Coconut

Exercises

I exercised for 60 to 90 minutes everyday morning between 6.30 AM to 8 AM. Mainly I did Yoga, which was taught from “Nature Life”. I followed this strictly for 2 months. Nowadays when  I miss Yoga, I make sure I do lot of walking, or climbing stairs on that day. Daily exercises keep your metabolism rate high and is a must for weight reduction. One advantage of Yoga is that it can be done indoors, so I could do it, no matter what the weather condition is. Lot of info on the other benefits of yoga is available on the internet.

Mind you, it’s better to learn yoga from an instructor. Proper breathing is also as important as  the movements and positions. Here is the video of our instructor at ‘natural life’ doing yoga.

The video is cut short to 20 minutes to show only the steps. In reality, each step is repeated 3 or 5 times and total time taken is 90 minutes. Video courtesy : Ameer Kodengadan

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is this Diet possible at all? No Rice? No chapatis? It seems impossible.

This was my diet at the hospital for 10 days. First 4 days were tough and tiring. Then I got used to it. So if you are trying this diet, make sure you stay at home for first few days. It Is going to be tiring - so it’s not advisable to drive or generally be at work for first few days. You are warned.

   But after 5 days I realised that it’s possible to live without Rice and Chapatis, that too in perfect health condition. Fruits and Vegetables provide all the nutrients your body needs.

2. For how long did you follow this diet?

I followed this diet strictly for 10 days. Lost 5 kgs in those 10 days. After that when I had to go back to work, this diet was not sufficient. So I made small changes. I added 1 cup rice OR 2 chapatis for lunch - after the salad & Vegetables (that’s important). Breakfast and Dinner was strictly Fruits only. I followed this changed diet until I reduced 16 Kgs.

After 2 months, once I lost 16 kgs, I made some more changes. For breakfast I take 2 rice dosas or appam or 1 piece of puttu (after my main meal of fruits).

3. How much fruits and vegetables did you eat?

The simple answer to that question is : I ate as much as I wanted. The fact is that it’s tough to overeat fruits. The theory is when you eat good food you feel “full” quicker.

4. Are you sure this will work for everybody?

It worked for me. It worked for my Nature life mate Ameer (Lost 10 Kgs). It worked for my wife too (Lost 10+ Kgs). Frankly, it may or may not work for you. For me the weight reduction was fast. But for some people it may not be that easy. It will depend on your body type and other health factors.

Keep in mind that, this is a healthy diet. So I was sure I am not going to lose anything here. Firstly, this diet is going to fix your digestive system. Look at the ‘Don'ts’ list for clues. And fruits and vegetables are great for digestion. Secondly, all the health benefits from fruits and vegetables. I do not have to explain this. A cursory read of any health magazine or even newspaper articles will tell you why.

5. Is it safe?

I started the diet at the naturopathy hospital. I couldn’t have gone with the diet beyond 2 days, if I was not a captive of the hospital. I am sure that it’s important to stay at home (and not work or drive) for first 10 days. Minor changes in the diet were made depending on one’s health condition. For example, they would provide a cup of rice for lunch on request, occasionally.

6. This diet is impossible for me. Is there any other way?

If you have to reduce weight, in a healthy manner, I would say this is the ideal method. If you cannot follow this diet, but still want make some positive diet changes, this is what I recommend. Avoid all the food items in the “Donts” list. Make sure you have 3 times meals only, and no snacking in between. Start your breakfast and Dinner with lots of fruits. Start your lunch with Salads and Vegetables. If there is only one thing you can do, let it be eating your dinner before sunset. That itself will you give lot of benefits, good digestion and weight reduction.

7. So is this sustainable? I can’t think of living without chocolates and chicken.

Neither can I. Now that I have reduced significant weight, I do enjoy chocolates once in a while (say once in a month or so). But remember, I still dont eat anything in between meals. I eat Meat and Fish (twice a week) too in moderate quantities. I do attend marriages and eat Biriyani too. But to compensate, I make sure, that day, dinner is either 2 glasses of Musambi Juice (Without Sugar), or 2 tender coconuts.

8. Apart from the diet and exercise, what else did you do?

• I bought a digital weighing scale. And checked weight every day morning. Kept track of my daily weight.
• I decided on a target weight. Having a goal is important for the motivation. I selected my target based on Body Mass Index. You can use this BMI calculator. Based on this, my ideal weight is 75kgs. You can see that I still haven’t achieved it.
• I informed close friends and relatives about my weight reduction plan and my target. I used to update them with my progress through whatsapp messages. That must have given me a positive pressure.
• I deliberately became physically active and mobile as much as possible. I created opportunities to walk. Took stairs instead of the elevators and escalators. Climbing up beyond 3 floors is always difficult, but I made sure I always climb down the stairs.