Of late, there have been so many articles on being overweight, along the lines of “I am what I am and if you don’t like it, it’s not my problem.” Well, here’s a thought, from someone who has been a chubby bear, a fatso, a “moti” all her life; You wouldn’t feel the need to announce to the world that you don’t give a shit unless it actually bugged you enough to write an article about it. I am 10 kilos overweight, and at 27, that’s not something I am proud of. I don’t have any sad story, I was never made fun of, I have always been popular, I have many friends, I am successful, smart and confident and I am pretty content with the way life has turned out.
But I will not lie… every time I see a weighing scale, I am petrified. Every time I go shopping, it irks me a little. Why not M instead of L and XL? Why not size 28, instead of 32/34? All of us go through this. Being fat is not a crime, people. Some of us are made that way. But at the same time, it is not an asset. One fine day I weighed myself and the scale showed 76 kgs. I am 5ft 3in tall. You do the math. That day was a wake-up call, a reckoning, that enough is enough.
My weight has never affected my social life, which is contrary to what most women face, I suppose. But that day got me thinking about how it is affecting the other aspects of my life; my health, my stamina, a small portion of my happiness, the things I cannot do physically that others can. I took a conscious decision that day to set this right. I have been hitting the gym regularly for the last one year and although I am still 10 kgs overweight, I can proudly say that today, I can touch my toes effortlessly without bending my knee, I can run 4.5 kms in 33 minutes. Laugh all you want, marathon freaks, but it’s an achievement for me. I will get to 5 kms under 30 minutes soon, and I can do 120 crunches without breaking a sweat. I AM FIT!
People may say a 100 things about losing weight, but trust me, that feeling of elation after a workout, the joy of weighing right, feeling healthy, looking better, wearing the dress you always wanted to wear and looking good in it, is priceless.
There are so many things that we cannot change about ourselves. Some of us can’t sing, some can’t dance, some can’t play sports, but weighing right is in our hands. Anybody can do it. There’s no miracle secret to it. Just hard work and sweat, quite literally. Before you slam me for “promoting thinness”, let me tell you this: I decided to lose weight for myself, not to impress anybody else. I did it to be fit and healthy. Of course life is not about the numbers that size up your waist, but if it does bother you, do something about it and do it right. Power to you!
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