“I was intimidated thinking about doing 12 Surya Namaskars at one point. 6 months later, I completed 108 Surya Namaskars on International Yoga Day. The more Satvic your lifestyle gets, the faster the word ‘limitation’ disappears from your vocabulary.”

Broken promises and new resolutions

It didn’t happen overnight. I had a demoralizing end to 2019 as I sat down to examine my blood reports with my wife Sonal. We joked about how breathless we would get anticipating an above average score in our college exams, and here we are hoping to fit into the ‘average’ range. But with an Hba1C reading of 6.1 and BP reading of 150/100, I was now officially a pre-diabetic and hypertension patient.

Until it happens to you, you think these diseases only catch up to old and unhealthy people. I was only 42 when I found out and it felt like my body was asking me: “Why did you let me down? Why did you break your promise to protect me?” I had no answer, but I made a vow to my body: “I’m not going to wait for these diseases to get more destructive to protect you". Fortunately apart from excess weight and lethargy, I hadn’t experienced any severe symptoms of pre-diabetes and hypertension when I was diagnosed. So it gave me a lot of room to explore a path beyond pills and their endless refills. My wife connected me to Swarna - a kind friend and adviser who inspired me to switch to intermittent fasting and make some dietary changes. Initially, I ignored it even though she was very persistent. She eventually connected me to Satvic Movement’s YouTube channel. I got a chance to binge watch a series of videos and understand our body’s power to heal naturally. 

It was a relief to know how easy the solution was to implement. And it was a bigger relief to know I didn’t have to put the burden of healing on my shoulders, or a lifetime supply of medications whose names I can’t pronounce, or any other complicated procedures. I just had to let my body work the way Mother Nature designed it. I just had to do away with the bad habits that were holding her back from unleashing her full healing power.

How I got my own way

It has been 4 months since I have started following the Satvic Lifestyle and the results have been simply miraculous. After the first few days of understanding the difference between psychological hunger and biological hunger, transitioning to this plan became a lot easier. I signed up for the final juice fast held in March 2020. One of the blessings of the pandemic is that me and my wife now had a lot more time on our hands to commit to this knowledge. So after rediscovering the magic of fasting and losing over 2 kgs in 3 days, I was convinced that I could do a lot more than fulfil my new year’s resolution if I followed Mother Nature’s laws to their core. At first I looked at the whole 5-step plan and wondered if I'd be able to fit them all into my schedule. So I felt a little intimidated, but I decided to take it one step at a time and see how my body responds. 

I started my day physically, mentally, and spiritually grounding through my morning kriya and 21 Surya Namaskars. My tribute to Surya Deva continued with a little bit of sunbathing. It made me feel so refreshed and energized that I felt like I had breakfast and bath at the same time. Then I would have a glass of ash gourd juice at 8 am, followed by a light seasonal fruit breakfast. Initially, my tummy rumbled in protest a little during the gap between my morning juice and fruit breakfast. But I got used to the renewed energy levels that they gave me within a few days. By 12- 12:30 pm, my wife would prepare a variety of soup and salad options inspired from the Satvic Food Book. And she would surprise me with a colourful combo of different Satvic roti and sabzis for my final grain meal at 3-3:30 pm every day. Well, she also surprised me with some delicious brownies or cupcakes occasionally since she's a gifted home baker. But she always gave them a Satvic touch by using jaggery, dates, and natural ingredients. And since the Satvic lifestyle was about conscious moderation over absolute denial, we never felt like we were bound or deprived in our healing journey. 

I learnt that you can make your favourite foods healthier without compromising on taste. And my new test reports couldn't agree more. Within 2 months, I dumped 10 kilos of weight. Within 2 months, I dumped 10 kilos of weight. Within 2 months, I had dumped my hypertension medicines (Losar-50) as well as the Ayurvedic medicine I was taking. And within 4 months, I had dumped my pre-diabetes and hypertension for good. My Hba1C levels went down from 6.1 to 5.5 and my blood pressure levels went from 150/100 to 127/80. 

Abhishek ji starting his day with yoga after following the Satvic lifestyle (October 2020)

Breaking your limitation to become an invitation  

When people ask me how I went from leaning on the wall panting after 12 Surya Namaskars to completing 108 Surya Namaskars on International Yoga Day, I smile and look at it as an opportunity – an opportunity to share the power of this beautiful lifestyle and connect them to the right teachers. 

 Abhishek & Sonal (Abhishek's wife) with Subah & Harsh at Satvic Community meet (January 2021)

I realized that only by breaking your own limitation can your life become an invitation to transform someone else. I’m always so overjoyed when I see how effortlessly the magic catches on when I focus on becoming a living example instead of pressurizing people to follow the lifestyle. I look forward to deepening the roots of our Satvic community in Bangalore because I realized how valuable nurturing a supportive environment was to nurture healthy habits. My wife’s support really helped me on my journey, but not everyone is privileged to find it around them and go off-track.

Now I’m based in Bangalore, but I was born in Vrindavan (Krishna’s childhood home). So I guess a subconscious longing of turning my community into Vrindavan by serving them was always in my heart. My diseases were just a wake-up call to fast-track my true calling.

Par hum duniya ko Vrindavan nahin banaa sakte jab tak humaara shareer Kurukshetra hai. 

(We can’t turn the world into God’s abode until our own body is a battlefield)

If you too suffer from any of these symptoms and wish to live a disease-free and a pain-free life, today is the day to give yourself that gift. Sign up for our Health Transformation Workshop and let joy return to your life. Click here to know more.