“If you’re reading this right now and you possess even the slightest intention of following this lifestyle. My only suggestion for you will be, “Just DIVE IN! Don’t wait for that perfect day.”

 

Dreams over likings  

All through my childhood, I was a very active person. Yes, I was obese at the same time. But that, in no ways restricted my spirit. I loved staying outdoors, playing, running & exercising all the time.
Dreams and aspirations overtook my likings, and in 2016 I started preparing for UPSC. I isolated myself from all my friends & relatives and dedicated myself fully to pursue my dream.

UPSC preparation needs no introduction. It requires a sitting of 10-12 hours each day. Added with stress, it has its own impact on health. This was the time when I missed my periods for the first time. There was a gap of two months straight. And when I got them, they were extremely painful. Soon after, I was diagnosed with PCOD.

 

The battle within 

From the so-called ‘outdoor’ person, I dropped down to the most sedentary phase of my life. I started gaining weight, a lot of weight! 

Overweight is no less than a curse for girls. A person is always at war with both the worlds. Inside as well as the outside. In my case, it was rather a fierce battle with the latter. 

Sharma aunty doesn’t care WHY are you gaining weight. Is it because of some disease? Are you sitting too long for studies? Nah! All that matters to her is, “Who will marry you in such a state?”, “You have gained so much weight! Do something about it!” and the worst part, Sharma aunty is not the only person who bombards you with such questions day in & day out. The same set of questions are repeatedly asked by Gupta aunty, by Verma Aunty, by Mehta aunty, and countless other aunties. For them, they said it just once. But I, being on the receiving end, heard these words an innumerable number of times. 

These words started penetrating deep in my mind. I believed in what they said. It shattered my self-confidence, to an extent that I used to actually stammer while speaking.

(Gunjan shares in her interview, “If you had asked me for this interview 3 years back, I would have straight away denied. I didn’t have enough confidence to face it.” )*

But this was not the Gunjan I wanted to be. I wanted to take control of my life and rise again.

 

The phase of experimentation  

I started watching youtube videos & kept my eyes on every emerging fad diet in the market. I even consulted a Dietitian. After giving fees of 3000 rupees, he prescribed me 3 main meals for the day, all measured and controlled with specific portion sizes. The quantity used to be really less. In addition to this, I was asked to incorporate all fancy foods to my diet, quinoa, tofu, oats, soya milk & God knows whatnot. And even after all of this, he still believed that this diet doesn’t fulfil all the nutritional requirements and I was handed over a list of supplements to take, vitamin-D, Multi-vitamins, calcium.

I did lose some kilos but I could not sustain this big-ticket diet for a long time.

Back to square one, I started my research again. There was this one channel that appealed to my logic. Whatever they said about food/disease/health, was supported by a reason. It intuitively felt right. This channel was none other than ‘Satvic Movement’. I watched all their videos back to back and registered for the upcoming Immunity Workshop, that was to be held on 9th August 2020.

 

The journey of Satvic lifestyle 

I was excited to follow the lifestyle. What was my motivation? Simply to scale down my weight.

From the 10th of August, I started tracking my weight journey. I opened my phone and created a note: ‘Weight check, 10th August- 108.1 kg’ 

My days used to start playing badminton. By the end of it, I was drenched in sweat! This was the time for sunbathing as well. After coming back home, I took a glass full of ash gourd juice or coconut water, whichever was available. Earlier at the same time, I used to proudly hold a cup of green tea and drink it sip by sip. Thinking that it is highly detoxifying. Workshop broke a lot of misconceptions!

 A picture taken in September 2020. Gunjan is out for her morning run.

After 2 hours of taking ash gourd juice, I ate fruits for breakfast. I strictly followed 1-grain meal per day. Salads/soups, the last meal of the day was wrapped up, sharp at 6:00 PM. 

Along with this, I did regular enemas. I remember, when I heard about it for the first time, my instant reaction was, “This is so weird and gross! How can someone even think of doing it?” 

But when I used it for myself, there was nothing more ‘normal’ than it. 

One aspect I was not able to follow was that of wet pack. I tried doing it a few times, but every time I used it, I felt a little cold. It made my clothes all wet, and changing clothes twice every day was a task in itself.

All in all, I religiously followed the 10 to 06 fasting window. This remained constant even in the times when I was not able to follow everything. 

It was not as easy as it sounds. There were intense hunger pangs & unstoppable cravings. In the initial days, I used to track every passing hour, Oh! When will the clock strike 10 and when will I have a bowl full of fruits! The wait was a real struggle. Coconut water was my best friend in these trying times. Those initial two weeks were the most crucial if you can sustain them, the rest of the path becomes a cakewalk. 

 

My hard work finally paid off!

My efforts reflected on the weighing scale. From 108.1kg to 106.1 to 100kg and then to 96 kgs.

A screenshot from Gunjan’s phone, where she used to track her weight while following the lifestyle.

There was a steady downfall in my weight. Within a month of following this lifestyle, I got my periods regularly. There was no more pain, no more cramps. 

Earlier even a little bit of physical activity used to exhaust me like anything. Now, even my trainer asks, “What are you doing exactly, you're not eating anything, even then you are so energetic!” 

The same aunties who broke me down with their harsh comments now started coming for weight loss suggestions. 

It was a journey in itself and it is through this journey that I gained my confidence back. I felt in control of my life. As if I could do ANYTHING! I felt at peace with myself. I was not fighting wars anymore. 

If you’re reading this right now and you possess even the slightest intention of following this lifestyle. My only suggestion for you will be, JUST DIVE IN! Don’t wait for that perfect day. Don’t take up a month’s or 3 month’s target. Start with just 1 week and give your heart and soul to that one week. If you’re unable to do even this much, pick up one aspect of the lifestyle, just one aspect, 16-hour fasting, one-grain meal a day, fruits for breakfast, and stick to it no matter what! Even these small changes are immensely powerful. Start walking on the path & you’ll be amazed to see, how far you’ve reached.

Don’t wait, just DIVE IN!

 

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.