The story I want to tell you is about a 45-year-old woman (myself) who decided she’d had enough of being a busy kindergarten teacher, a busy mom raising two teenagers, and a wife. It’s a tale full of fun, intrigue, struggle, adventure, and, in the end, triumph. It’s a story that has it all, but I suppose a story that covers 10 years of a person’s life can’t help but have it all.
Between the years of 2009 and 2019, I was stuck in a terrible rut. A lot of it was related to my personal circumstances at the time. Of course, the fact that my lifestyle was quite unhealthy and I didn’t move much didn’t help matters. My relationship with food was also a source of worry. I basically self-medicated with food while seeing the number on the scale rise and rise till I reached a weight of 93 kgs. I ate more processed foods and didn’t limit myself to any foods or beverages. I couldn’t walk without cringing because of the excruciating joint pain.
Despite honest efforts to embrace my new size (XXL), I still felt like I was walking around in someone else’s body. I decided that enough was enough. After almost 10 years of emotional, bodily, and dietary turmoil, I put my foot down. I was done accepting the pain and exhaustion. I was done throwing myself into possibly well-meaning but ultimately ineffective diets. I was done with my goals and my priorities. Something needed to change – something deeper than my vanity; deeper than my emotions, and deeper than my belief about what is or isn’t possible.
My turning point came when I realized I’d hit the lowest point of my life – and I wasn’t doing anything to pick myself back up. I knew I needed to lose weight when I realized I was tired, unhappy, and most importantly, out of love with myself. At the end of 2019, I constantly felt lethargic, struggled with my breathing, and had trouble sleeping.
When the pandemic hit, out of impulse, I signed up under a fitness coach on the Fittr platform. The major difference for me this time around was that I started tracking the calories I was consuming rather than cutting out my favorite foods. I swallowed my fear of free weights and took to weight training.
Accepting “the new me” felt like settling. I put healing and happiness before weight loss. In other words, I got to work on my attitude. Fitness is a beautiful thing that changed every aspect of my life positively. I made small, incremental changes that transformed my lifestyle – and my mental health.
I now stand in front of you as a healthy, happy woman who finally feels at ease in her own skin. I’ve been able to keep my outcomes quite consistent. My transition took a full year and a half, and it was slow, deliberate, and healthy. While I did shed a stunning 35 Kg, my new attitude is what I appreciate most.
My life was turned upside down. Things that I previously thought were impossible become possible. I grabbed life by the horns, pursuing goals that used to terrify me, and discovering that I am capable of achieving all of my wildest desires. I stopped settling and began to set an example of someone who works hard, accepts responsibility, has a good time, and believes that anything is possible.
I am living healthily and happily in my skin, I’m well-nourished and active, with abundant energy. So, this is my “enough is enough” moment to a lasting healthy lifestyle that I really love living.
Reetu Verma
Certified Nutrition and Fitness Consultant.
Right now I am working as a kindergarten educator and design teaching aids for the school kids.
