Weight loss story: “I divided my food plate into portions and worked out regularly to lose 40 kilos in a year!"

Manjeeri Shirish Thakare was someone who was always comfortable in her skin. However, with time, being overweight introduced her to several challenges. From not being able to fit into ready-made clothes to being bullied at school, she went through a difficult phase due to her weight. But it was during the COVID-19 pandemic that she decided to make amends and start her fitness journey. With the help of her couch, friend and her fitness community, she achieved her desired goals:

Also read: YouTuber loses 31 kilos in 2 years only by walking daily!

Name: Manjeeri Shirish Thakare

Occupation: Engineering student

Age: 21

Height: 162cms

Highest weight recorded: 95kgs

Weight lost: 40 Kgs

Current weight: 55 Kgs

Duration it took me to lose weight: 1 year

I was always comfortable in my skin but when I was in high school I could not get a ready-made school uniform. I got bullied at school for being overweight. In 2019, when the COVID-19 lockdown was at its peak, that’s exactly when I decided to lose weight and have a complete makeover.

My breakfast: I started my day with an apple, a bowl of masala vermicelli and Americano.

My lunch: I divided my plate into 5 portions, i.e. salad, green vegetables, whole wheat chapati, rice, small bowl of curd/lentils.

My Dinner: I usually had daliya /moong dal with carrots and brown bread.

Pre-workout meal: Dry scoop of coffee

Post-workout meal: 7-8 egg whites

Low-calorie recipe I swear by: Oats, paper dosa

No one will do it for you or no one can even help you as long as you're not ready to put in the work. Apart from that, having a great coach can create a hell of a difference in how you transform your physique & lifestyle.

How do I stay motivated?: Well… most of the days I am motivated, but there are days where I am at my lowest, there are days when I just feel like giving up. However, I remember why I started it all and how far I have come. I never took it as a responsibility, but a way of self-love.

How do you ensure you don’t lose focus?: With the support of my coach Mr.Shashank Singh & the lovely & wholesome community of TransformNation.In, which is a bangalore-based health & wellness startup founded by Mr.Shashank Singh & one of my senior from my school Mr.Mrigank Singh, both of whom have themselves gone through tremendous transformations by losing 66kg's & 52 kg respectively. With role models like these, it's extremely hard to not stay motivated & I'm extremely glad I chose to train with them.

I'm sure anyone & everyone who has entered a trial room with a bunch of clothes only to realise they don’t fit you, will understand how it feels to be overweight. You can't buy the kind of brands that you generally wish for or want to go for and you have to either get your clothes stitched or you have to go to these plus size stores. I can remember my time as a child, when there were only limited options available, so it was pretty demotivating & kind of heartbreaking. The joy of buying new clothes or getting ready is never there. We often say that everything is fine and that we don't care about how we look or what we wear, but somewhere inside the darkest corners of our hearts, atleast for me, it made me conscious and restricted me from a lot of other things.

What shape do you see yourself 10 years down the line?: There's no stopping now, I'm 100% sure I'll keep on improving each & every day as I've surrounded myself with the right kind of crowd, who are always pushing me to go that extra mile or that extra rep. So for me, from this point onwards, the journey will only be upwards & onwards.

I got my schedule right as my coach guided me through the initial tough phase. He used to say that fitness, even though you might think it is physical, you automatically become mentally healthy. It was exactly like he told me, once I started following the schedule he customized for me, I was amazed by the results I was getting & then it became addictive with time. So today, if I don't workout properly for a few days or my diet gets messed up, I start feeling stressed and anxious. Doing workout, clean eating, sustainable results & healthy lifestyle is equivalent to good mental health.

As stated above, a healthy lifestyle is mental health for me. It has changed everything for me from my inner confidence to my entire outlook towards life. The other thing is to always trust the coach's knowledge, trust the ones who are able to answer all your health & fitness related queries with proper logical explanation. I'll always be grateful to Mrigank, my senior from school, who's fat loss story of losing 44 kgs in 6 months inspired me. I was able to connect with his Co-Founder & My coach Mr. Shashank Singh, who has also lost 66kgs, and the entire TransformNation.In team who've grown into more of a family by now!

If you have a weight loss story to share, send it to us at toi.health1@gmail.com

These views are not generic in nature. Weight loss results vary for individuals and the views shared in this article offer no guarantee of specific results. The content is not intended in any way as a substitute for professional advice.