We have all been through the rigours of pursuing CA and we know how tough it is to handle various situations which needs us to push our limits beyond our capabilities.
We can put forward several such examples to prove it like studying late night hours(burning the midnight oil),being dedicated to our task and putting all our efforts all throughout to clear the exams in the very next attempt, not getting time to have fun with friends and having a monotonous approach in life to achieve one goal to become a CA one day, sacrificing the best phase of our life and missing out on several family functions and festivals etc. The list is endless
But, with all these we also start to develop certain traits over a period of time which always helps us when we are up against the odds which are not in our favour. Such traits can be determination to succeed, having a strong willpower to achieve the impossible, toiling hard to turn the tides in our favour, being passionate in life to achieve something etc. Even this list would be endless.
I have written this piece to put forward one such experience of my life pursuing CA which has helped me succeed in my goal when the situation was not in my favour.
It was back in January this year, when I found that I weighed way more than the optimum weight for my height and was in the 90's mark on the weighing scale. I was absolutely shocked to see such drastic changes that had come in me in the past few months. The memories of those days when I weighed in the 70’s merely a few years back flashed back. But, those days were like a distant memory and I needed to think seriously of what could be possibly be done to get back to previous shape.
Due to my regular classes from morning to evening for the CA exams, it was a very busy schedule for me for the past few years and I found it very difficult to get time to maintain proper fitness. Though I always wanted to lose weight but, had never thought I would be in such a situation where it would become a tedious task. I am 5”10’, so I weighed way beyond the normal level and I needed to act soon. It was then I became a bit serious for my health and was more concerned for it. I was desperate to go for all sorts of alternatives to lose weight as fast as possible. But, as the saying goes, “NO PAIN,NO GAIN”. But, having seen many tough circumstances in my life before, being in CA had filled me up with the self-confidence to achieve my goal of losing weight and coming back to the shape.
It was the first time when I decided to go for running on every evening. Initially it was very tiring as every day’s running would leave me drained out completely and it was very difficult to get back the strength needed to put same effort the very next day. But, somehow I managed to stick to it and made it a point to run each time the same distance that I had run the previous day in order to stay on track.
It was in January when I had started and gradually I found out that I was doing really well and was slowly attaining stamina as well. Slowly I increased my running distance to nearly 3 kms from 2 kms where I had begun. It was a regularly a half an hour effort and it made the day for me. Any single day missed would make me feel guilty and I would try not to miss any more day.
The major changes I found out were I felt less hungry, i.e. my appetite was on the mark, my stamina was improving, the desire to work out for more time was increasing slowly, I was consuming more water everyday which was not the case before. But, more importantly I felt more alive after every run and it felt as if I was reborn.
One more thing adopted meanwhile was the way how I ate. I tried to chew each bite of food as much as possible to digest it properly. Doing so, it filled my stomach with way little food (nearly 1/3rd) compared to the way we normally eat. At first it was completely awkward but, with regular practice it became a habit and it surely has worked wonders for me.
The next time I was on the weighing machine, it was a loss of 2 kgs in just 2 weeks time. It was a pretty good start but, I knew I had a long way to go and needed to put more effort to be in the groove.
Gradually I tried to increase my running distance and a simultaneous increase in the speed as well and tried to cover up as much distance as possible within the half an hour time slot. With every run I felt what I had missed in the past and its necessity. The best part of running is that it burns more calories perhaps than any other outdoor exercise at par with swimming and it also has its after effects even after the run. I did my best not to miss any single day possible and tried to maintain my consistency and slowly it turned to quite an addiction. I was ready to run a day rather than miss any other occasion in place of it.
There were people who had pointed out at me when I was not serious about my weight and there was a time when people gave my example to others of how to maintain fitness.
Slowly I managed to increase the distance to 5 kms everyday and it was a gradual increase in my efforts and were showing incredible results as well. I managed to lose about 5-6 kgs in a month and half effort. I was strict in my diet as well. Junk food was a serious ‘NO’, and I tried to consume which was low in calories and basically homemade but occasionally I munched onto something else J
I had decided to hit the 70 mark one day and as the margin dropped steadily, I stepped up my efforts. Slowly 8 kms everyday turned to be easy and I wasn’t fitting to my old jeans anymore. It was those moments which I had waited for so long. By that time it had been nearly 2.5 months when I had started it all and I was quite satisfied by how the things had panned out. I felt more energetic with every run and was relaxed a lot more than before. Finally the day arrived when I was no more in the 80’s but made it to the 79 mark and it felt incredible. By that time nearly everyone in the locality knew someone was running everyday and was dropping weight real fast.
The desire to run more and more has kept me on the hunt and I weighed 72 a few days back. I will make it to the desired 70 mark one day and I still hit the road quite often. It has been a wonderful journey in the past 3-4 months and I have have lost nearly 18kgs of weight just by maintaining a proper diet and by running everyday. My waist size has also dropped from 36’ to 32’. The funny moments are when people fail to recognize the new changes that have come in me. It has made me more confident than before and most importantly I am contended that I did the right thing and did what was needed.
All this has been partly possible somewhat because of CA and today I find myself way more confident and strong when I was not a part of CA.
P.S.: I am a CA finalist and you can reach me at sanat.witty@gmail.com for your comments, feedbacks and suggestions, if any. Hope to hear from you very soon.
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