Now think about your own life. Were your parents physically active? Was that the image you had while growing up? Were they not really into fitness? How did their fitness affect you? Do you think you are as active as them, given the modern lifestyle differences? What kind of a role model do you want to be for your children? Movement comes naturally to each one of us and exercising can be an excellent way of spending time with your kids. By exercising, you can not only set a good example for your children but also work on your own fitness.

Stress

Many people undervalue the stress that comes while running a household and taking care of children. Honestly, most of us take it for granted. We think that women, who stay at home and take care of the household, don’t really do anything important or substantial. Actually a person who is in that situation feels stuck with never ending tasks. Cleaning, shopping, cooking, taking care of family, managing children’s schedules, coordinating and dealing with kids and their little fights, and handling staff isn’t as easy as it sounds.

In spite of being completely devoted and committed to your family, managing the household can be quite chaotic and tiresome. There are no breaks, no set working hours, and your life seems to revolve around everybody else’s. The key is to take time out from your daily routine and set time for yourself. This can be like your very own oasis, where you retreat to recharge yourself. This ‘me time’ can be utilised by doing anything that you find appealing. Just be sure to stick with whatever you choose to do. Your ‘me time’ should have the same priority as everything else you do for people around you. Even if you have to spend some time in reworking your schedule, the ‘me time’ should be spent exclusively on yourself and everyone else should respect and appreciate it.

Whenever possible, try meditation in order to create a balanced system and to soothe your mind. Taking out time for yourself will help you cope with everything in a better way. It will take away the feeling that life is passing by without you doing anything for yourself. On the other hand, by spending time in doing something that you enjoy will take away the feeling of being stuck. You will find yourself going through daily duties with much more ease and joy and the benefits will also be far-reaching.

Tree in the wind

Imagine yourself as a big tree with branches that reach out to the sky and wind that makes the leaves and branches sway to and fro. As the wind gets stronger, the branches teeter-totter and the tree bends down. After sometime, the wind starts blowing from the other direction making the tree branches move accordingly. You can also make wind-like blowing sounds while doing this fun exercise.

Growing tree stretch

Imagine yourself as a little seed, buried in the ground. Curl your body, squat, or lie down on one side. When it rains, the little seed starts sprouting and moves up to reach the surface of the ground. Get on to your knees and slowly move up your arms. Once the little sprout reaches the ground, it starts growing bigger and stronger; trying to reach towards the sun. It grows till it becomes a big, beautiful tree with its branches stretched out. Now this tree is so beautiful that you want to give it a big hug. So give that tree a hug and then go back to a being a little seed again. Repeat three times.

Hopping

Play a game with your kids. Ask them to name all the animals that hop. You can help them by giving clues like making sounds and mimicking those animals. This category will have animals like frogs-small, green ones hopping from one lotus leaf to another. Then there would be rabbits that are a little bigger, with long ears, little puffy tails, and a beautiful soft coat. Place your hands on your head and hop around. Ask your children to do the same. Then jumps in a big kangaroo; with a pouch where the mother keeps her babies. You can wrap dupattas around your waists, place a doll inside, and then hop around like kangaroos. Many birds like sparrows also hop. Flap your wings and hop like a little sparrow. I am sure you can find many more examples of animals that hop. Let your imagination take you on a fun-filled journey with your kids!

Walking

Mimic the way animals walk. You can mimic a cat, tiger, dog, monkey, horse, elephant, penguin, or any other animal that comes to your mind. If you are mimicking cats or dogs, stretch like them, wag your hip area, and then walk on all fours. Monkey walk is the most challenging exercise, though kids love it. You need to bend your knees and place your palms comfortably on the floor. Your weight should remain on the legs and arms should be used only for extra support. The distance between your hips and the ground should not be too much and your legs should be relaxed. If not, your monkey walk would turn into elephant walk! Now imagine yourself as a monkey and start chattering like one. If you have problems in your neck or shoulder area, do this exercise without placing your arms on the floor. Your way of walking would then resemble that of a chimpanzee’s rather than a monkey’s.

Flamingo Balance

There are many flamingos which are standing still, balanced on one leg. When they get tired they change legs and stand on the other leg. Perform the same exercise with your kids and change legs when you are tired.

Nature and animal kingdom

You can try many ways to involve your children while exercising. Begin by mimicking everything your kids do while playing and running around. You’ll’ probably find this quite challenging since children have abundant energy. Keeping up with them will help you keep in shape. You can also get creative and integrate exercises into their playing time. You can take inspiration from nature and the animal kingdom to create an exciting exercising routine. It will not only be fun but will also help you build a good rapport with your kids. Moreover, these exercises will take care of your, as well as your child’s overall fitness.

You may also like: Yoga for kids

Excerpted with permission from Work It Out Without a Work Out by Vesna P Jacob, Random House India.

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Q. How can one know whether he or she is suffering from diabetes?

A. The classic symptoms of diabetes—increased thirst and increased frequency of urination—are not always present and many patients are unaware that they may have diabetes. Hence, doing periodic blood tests to check blood sugar levels is recommended. HbA1c [Glycosylated haemoglobin] is the blood test, that indicates your glycaemic status accurately. This test does not require fasting but should be carried out in an accredited laboratory. A level of less than 5.7 is normal and 5.7 to 6.5 is considered pre-diabetes or “diabetes at risk” category. A level of 6.5 and above is definitely indicative of diabetes. Other tests like fasting blood sugar and post-meal blood sugar can also be done, but theses parameters can show variable results on different occasions.

Q. What lifestyle modifications can help us to prevent/treat diabetes?

A. Obesity is a social problem and the solution to it begins in the home. The family should adopt a healthier lifestyle and switch to eating a healthier diet. It’s understandable that high calorie foods are difficult to resist, but we should avoid foods that are rich in simple sugars, oil/ghee and processed refined flours. It is also difficult to find the time to exercise in today’s busy life schedule, but it should be made a habit. Sedentary lifestyles contribute to a lot of diseases including diabetes. Lifestyle modification should not be looked at as a punishment because you have diabetes or you are putting on weight—it should become a commitment to living a fuller life.

Q. How should one keep diabetes under check?

A. Follow the ABC approach—

• Quarterly monitoring with HbA1c [Blood test] helps to gauge the blood sugar control. The target level should be <6.5 – 7.
• Blood pressure should also be <140/90 mmHg. If persistently high, medications may be required to bring it under control.
• Cholesterol should be under control. LDL should be <70 – 100 mg/dl and HDL levels should be <40 – 50mg/dl. Triglycerides should be <150mg/dl.

Controlling blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol is critical to prevent complications like heart disease and kidney failure.

Q. Why is the number of diabetics increasing these days?

A. Obesity is the mother of diabetes. With the recent transition in our economy, and changing lifestyle, obesity has become rampant. Excess fat in the body leads to insulin resistance and high blood sugars. Heredity also plays an important role. Research has shown that recognising and tackling obesity with lifestyle changes can prevent diabetes.

Q. What medicines are available for diabetes control?

A. There are different classes of medicine available [oral/injectables]. Metformin is the basic and first line drug. It not only decreases blood sugar but also causes some weight loss and does not produce hypoglycemia [excessively low sugar level]. Other drugs like DPP4 inhibitors, sulphonylureas, glitazones, and insulins are to be used judiciously as add on drugs if metformin alone fails. Patients need to understand the dosing, frequency and other specifications attached with different medications prescribed.

This was first published in the November 2015 issue of Complete Wellbeing.

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Sleep experts say there are a number of things you can do to lose weight and improve your sleep:

• Make healthy choices for your meals. Avoid fast foods. Eat more fish, fruits and vegetables; avoid foods high in carbohydrates or fats.
• Start getting consistent exercise, which will improve the quality of your sleep. Most experts, however, advise us to avoid exercising less than three hours before bedtime, because exercise is arousing and can make it harder to fall asleep.
• Examine your sleep schedule. Are you getting at least seven hours of sleep each night?

Do you wake up feeling refreshed or lethargic? Do you wake up frequently during the night? Are you underweight, overweight, or just right?

Workouts and Sleep

A productive workout is just not measured on how many minutes or hours you exercised. It goes further. What are the results of your workout? Your body burns calories even when you sleep. When you exercise, your muscles get broken down [not literally] and they get repaired, which means that they develop in size or strength when your body is at rest. So if you have less sleep or rest, your muscles don’t recover completely and there are chances that you may get injured during your next workout.

Several people I know pump iron or run every single day of the week, and these people struggle to achieve their fitness goals and end up getting frustrated, or trying even harder. The key is to rest. Let your body and muscles recover and you will find your next workout all the more productive. A great workout will promote a good night’s sleep. Sometimes you will find that your body requires more sleep. It usually depends on the amount of physical activity you have had during the day and also the amount of mental stress.

In order to sleep better at night and reduce daytime sleepiness, try practising the following
sleep tips:

• Maintain regular times at which you go to bed and wake up, including on weekends
• Establish a regular, relaxing bedtime routine such as taking a bath or listening to music
• Create a sleep-conducive environment that is dark, quiet, comfortable and cool
• Sleep on a comfortable mattress and pillows
• Use your bedroom only for sleep and sex
• Finish eating at least 2 – 3 hours before your bedtime
• Exercise regularly but avoid it a few hours before you go to sleep
• Avoid caffeine [e.g. coffee, tea, soft drinks, chocolate] at night
• Don’t smoke—not only is it a major health risk, it can lead to poor sleep
• Stay away from alcohol at night; it can lead to disrupted sleep later

Sleep therapists today suggest that you listen to your body. It’s the best indicator for how much sleep you require, though you must draw the line between sleeping out of laziness and out of requirement. These two elements should not be confused. The same way some people eat when they are bored or depressed, some people sleep.

Aim for deep and undisturbed sleep. Seven hours of irregular sleep may not be the best solution.

The post Sleep problems? Listen to your body appeared first on Complete Wellbeing.

The extraordinary transformation of Adnan Sami is the stuff that inspiring stories are made of. He lost a whopping 130 kilos in a span of one year — a feat that few can imagine, leave alone achieve.

Manoj Khatri interviewed Adnan Sami to find out how he did it and what was his experience of going from fat to fit. Here are the excerpts from the interview with the award-winning singer-music composer:

What is obesity? How serious is it? How does it affect a person?

Adnan Sami: It is very serious, but I did not know the seriousness of obesity till my nutritionist told me.

When I signed up for losing weight, they did a lot of tests on me to check my reaction to various foods. What I realised is that it’s all in the mind. Everything you think and do affects your health. For some people, even if they smell food they put on weight [like me].

Every person reacts differently to different foods, and situations. Nutritionists analyse all your habits as a person – physical, physiological and emotional. They make you change your lifestyle, and do not make you feel that you are on a diet.

It was a tough call for me. I was put on a no-sugar, no-rice, no-bread, no-oil diet; only high protein. They asked me questions like, “What do you do when you are sad, or happy.” My answer to both was: “I eat!” I associated food with every emotion. It was difficult then. I had no self-control. When I was depressed, I used to eat and then feel guilty, and again eat. It was a vicious cycle. It was difficult to get out of this. You lose confidence.

There is another important factor that my nutritionist pointed out. Obesity can be genetic [disorder] and that is what people don’t understand. They simply pass comments like, “Ah, what a careless person.” But people are genetically different and that is also true for their eating habits. We know some people who eat a lot, but still do not put on weight, and for some, eating small portions also amounts to a lot of calories [their body makes a mountain of a molehill]. The body set-up and chemistry is different for each person, and it reacts in a different way to every food.

Obesity is as much a disease as any other physical disorder. Today, people are sensitive and sympathetic towards those who suffer from drug or alcohol addiction, but they don’t realise that obesity is as serious an addiction. which is why people go to rehabs or controlled-environment farms. But, what happens is that you follow those rules only till you are there; the moment you are out, you go out and party, and start hogging.

People look down upon obese individuals and make fun of them. You don’t make fun of a person’s physical disability—if they’re handicapped, blind, short, tall; it’s not their fault. This is true for obesity, too. Many times, for most people, especially for those who are morbidly obese, it is not that they are just over-indulgent, but they seriously have a mental/physical problem. Hence, people need to be made aware and educated as there is a lot of ignorance about this aspect.

The first few weeks are always the most difficult. Can you share your experience when you started your weight loss programme?

Adnan Sami: For the first month-and-an-half or so, I went through serious withdrawals—just like any person with an addiction goes through. There are so many things that we take for granted. For example, we walk into the kitchen, open the fridge, and just stare at it. We have nothing better to do, so we indulge. It’s all calories. To discourage me, my mom stuck two fridge magnets—one right on the handle saying, “STOP! FAT HERE!” —like a traffic sign. The other said: “A Moment on the Lips, Forever on the Hips.”

In the US today, obesity is acknowledged as a certified disease. So, they treat it with seriousness. It is a huge problem in the US, the most obese nation in the world. India is not far away. People in India are unaware, and it is time that they start taking care. Because the US is aware of the obesity problem, there is a parallel diet food industry that runs there. Today, you will find a diet solution to every kind of food. You even have one per cent [fat] milk there.

Coming back to your question, my nutritionist came up with all possible options for me to snack. Rather than grabbing potato chips and going crazy with them, I could have home-made popcorn without butter, may be with a little salt. She asked me whether I liked ice-cream. I looked at her and said, “Hey look at me and get serious. Do I look like the kind of person who doesn’t like Ice-Cream?” [laughs]. She said, “OK fine, whenever you feel hungry, or you are watching a movie, instead of having a chocolate ice-cream, grab diet fudge sticks [they are made of fudge chocolate], but they have only 30 calories. You also get a lot of diet ice lollies which have only 20 calories; soft drinks with one calorie with different flavours.” I suddenly discovered a whole new world. So, whenever I had those cravings, I grabbed these things and they helped me pull along the initial stages. By the time I was ready to come back to Mumbai [after three months], I was following a diet regime which I had settled into. After that, when the scale starts talking to you, and starts coming down, it gives you encouragement and energy.

What has been people’s reaction to your weight loss?

Adnan Sami: A lot of times people say to me, “Oh my gosh, you have lost 130 kilos. Why didn’t you do it before?” But, they don’t understand that if I could have, I would have. The point is, first of all, it took me Herculean strength to build up the courage and the mental strength to go through such a task. Frankly, in the beginning, I didn’t think I was up to the job. I saw this huge mountain in front of me and said: “How the hell am I going to climb it?” At that time, I had tried [to diet] and failed so many times. I would break my resolve within a week’s time! The kind of profession I am in, there is always something or the other happening. There are parties, functions to attend, we travel a lot, and it was difficult to stick to the diet.

Did obesity affect your professional life? If yes, how?

Adnan Sami: Oh, yes, it did, absolutely. Take travel, for instance. In my profession, airports figure very prominently as we have to travel a lot. There was a time when I used to love travelling a lot, because I have grown up in that kind of atmosphere, where we have lived in different parts of the world. We have travelled extensively, exploring new cities. But, a point came when travelling became my biggest mental block—my biggest fear and nightmare—because of the big airports where there is a lot of walking involved and I used to hate it. Not being able to travel was affecting my profession.

I couldn’t fit into the chair of the aircraft. My biggest fear used to be: will I be able to fit into that aircraft chair? It was so frightening for me. Then I began to choose airlines where I would still feel a little bit comfortable as they had bigger seats. Then a point came when even in those I was starting to barely fit. I had to make an effort, and hold my breath to sink in. There was even an occasion where I didn’t fit into a seat in the first class and so I had to shift to Economy and pull up the middle armrest and use two seats together. It was very upsetting and embarrassing. Then I used to weep within myself and wonder what I have got myself into. Even then, I wouldn’t be able solve it.

I had to [then] use a wheel chair at the airport and a time came when I used to not fit in airport wheel chairs because they were too small for me. So, I had to get a wheel chair custom-made, which used to travel with me wherever I went. If I had to walk [I am talking about the last stage before I went on diet] I had to use a walking stick. A lot of people thought I was making it up. But, the fact of the matter is that I actually had a walking stick. My legs had become so weak that they couldn’t carry my weight. It was really terrible, terrible.

Where did you derive your emotional and mental strength from, especially during the period when you were consciously losing weight?

Adnan Sami: When you have a sword hanging over your head—the doctors had given me the ultimatum that, “We give you six months, that’s it”—it’s inspiration enough. I had tremendous support from my family: my father, brother, mother. They held my hand through it all, and it couldn’t have happened without them. They were there for me 24×7. I remember when I lost my first 5-10 kilos, all of them were like, “Wow, you look so different,” and I looked in the mirror saying “From where? What are they talking about?” They’d say, “I tell you, those trousers, they look a little bit loose from here,” and I used to wonder, “May be, I can’t see it.” But, that really worked for me. When I would have a craving they used to say, “Hey, listen you are here, it has already begin to show; now you can’t stop it,” and that used to keep me from giving it up. So, my family encouraged me tremendously.

They were also with me in tangible ways. Like in the beginning, I was not in a position to exercise. I was too big for that. The initial exercise we used to do was to arrive at a shopping mall and I used to walk five steps, then stop and continue. During those five walking steps, my father and brother would be right next to me, to support me in case I lost balance. My legs had become so weak, that suddenly I would have a spasm and my legs would suddenly say, “No!” They were standing next to me to take care, in case I plummet. For me, even standing was an exercise.

What was your state of mind just before you determined to get rid of obesity?

Adnan Sami: At the time when I was given the ultimatum [May 2006], it took me a lot between then and the first week of July to mentally condition myself to do this. My initial reaction was, “Okay, well if this is it, I cannot control it. If I have to go, everybody has to go someday.” I didn’t have the courage. I believed that I couldn’t do it. I had tried it so many times earlier and I had become so addicted to it. You will not believe, I was given the ultimatum and I went straight after that consultation and hogged at a buffet. That was the reaction. Initially, I didn’t want to even face the truth. My reaction was, “Ha, what a melodramatic doctor! I am not going to die because of eating, what does he know!” But, deep inside my heart, I knew whatever he said was so right because I knew how I was living. I knew I couldn’t sleep, or even lie down on the bed. I was sleeping on the sofa, sitting posture. As a result, I developed lymphodoema [swelling of the legs], water retention, my body was swollen, and my legs were “blown” because the blood was not pumping up properly. I was in a bad state.

You know, there are two types of fat, one which is just beneath the skin and one underneath the muscle. The fat that I had developed beneath the muscle was dangerous; it had started to push into my diaphragm and ultimately ended up pushing into my lungs. So, breathing became very difficult for me, which is why I couldn’t lie down. As I would lie down, it would automatically push up and get into my lungs causing difficulty in breathing. As a result, I had to get up and allow gravity to pull it down. I also became an asthmatic, and this was really a nightmare.

I remember speaking to my dad that this is it. “Dad, listen, I just wanted you to know that I have lived my life and enjoyed everything. So, if I go there should be no regrets, because I have lived life a king and enjoyed every indulgence in the world.” Imagine my father listening to this nonsense from his son. He didn’t pay attention to what I said. He just shook me up, and said, “Damn you, I am not going to take this. I am not listening to this nonsense; you are going to get out of this. You have been through all kinds of trials and tribulations and have come out of it, and you have been a fighter all through. I am not going to let you go down like this. You are going to give me six months of your life. Today, I am exercising my right as a father to order you to give me six months. You are not doing anything else; otherwise, I am walking out of your life.”

So, he gave me an ultimatum of a different kind. Then, we started negotiating. I said I can’t give six months, I have work to do. He said, “Work can go to hell. How will you work without your health?” He was right. Ultimately, we negotiated it down to three months. He put a condition: “For these three months, there’s no work or anything else. You are going to forget the world and solely be there for me.”

I went to Houston and shut myself from the world. The night before I was to hand over my diet to the nutritionist, she turned to me and said, “All right, tonight you will have your last indulgent meal and after that you will follow whatever I am saying.” So, she said go out there and eat whatever you want for the last time. I remember I had a huge feast that day. I call that my “last supper”. The next day, I started. And, the rest is history.

When did you begin to feel “it’s working!”?

Adnan Sami: Initially, I couldn’t exercise, it was only diet. So, for the first two months it was only dieting and just doing very minor walks. It was only after I lost my first 40 kilos that I was in a position to start doing the treadmill. To be honest, I did not feel that I could run even 100 metres, but I began to realise little things like I could lie down. Initially, I could lie down only with the help of pillows at the back where I’d stretch my legs and needed help getting into and out of the bed. So, I started noticing small changes like I could lie down, sleep longer, my sleep apnoea was beginning to disappear slowly, I could stand longer [Hey, I got up on my own today. I didn’t need two people to help me out]. It was very gradual. Then, as I moved forward, things began to get better and better.

Today, I play tennis and squash. I love travelling again and don’t have to travel by Economy. I don’t need belt extensions any more. Earlier, the belts didn’t fit me. These are things you don’t even think of. I used to get a belt extension and even that used to be at its tail-end. I used make that bigger sometimes. So, now, I don’t need them. Basically, I can lead a normal life. These are things that we take for granted, but they did happen to me, and it was terrible. Recently, I was in Malaysia and I even went sailing and had a great time. I am enjoying it. Sometimes you have to reach rock-bottom to come back, because you can’t go any further.

If I were to ask you to divide in terms of percentage, how much was it mental and how much physical?

Adnan Sami: 70 per cent is mental; only 30 per cent physical/physiological. So, I think it is more mental than physical. Our body has enough reserves to go without food. Most of the times, our mind controls the stomach.

There are occasions when your stomach is sending you a signal that I am full, but your eyes are saying: one more. Wo kahte hain na, pet ki bhuk khatam ho gayi par aankhon ki nahi [It is said that stomach’s hunger may end but the eyes are still hungry]. It’s exactly that. Your eyes and mind are tempting you whereas your stomach is saying, “Hey, hang on, I am full, I cannot take it,” and your mind says, “Shut up, I am sending it down, so deal with it! I am sure you will find a place…do something, negotiate with your intestines and create some space, but I want that damn thing down!” That is another problem we face: the mind and the body are two separate things, and are often not in agreement.

After I started my weight loss programme, attending parties became a nightmare. Imagine going to a party where you can’t eat or drink! I used to sit there with a glass of water. Initially I felt weird about it. I didn’t want to tell people about my diet. Nobody ever imagined at a party that I am sitting there with a glass of water. People used to walk up to me and say, “Oh, since when did you switch to vodka?” They could never perceive that I could be standing with a glass of water, because I usually would have Scotch or something. became sick of that and if anybody asked I would say, yes I am having vodka.

Yet another problem was when I went to somebody’s house for dinner. Our culture is such: “You’ve hardly eaten anything. Here, have some more,” and things like that. I used to keep a huge pile of food on my plate and the host would look and say, “He is going to have a good time today.” Then I would quietly put the plate away without so much as a bite. And, if anybody asked, I would say, “Didn’t you see? I finished off my plate” They used to agree because they saw me with full plate a while ago. But, to have the ability to put it away is difficult, and that’s where the mental strength comes in. So, yes, 70 per cent of the effort was mental.

As far as the body is concerned, it does not suddenly get into spasms and say [makes a desperate face], “No, I need that brownie, now!” The body has plenty of reserves.

Physical changes are evident. But, in what ways has the experience changed you mentally, emotionally and spiritually?

Adnan Sami: Spiritually, I look at this as a second lease of life from God. My faith and belief in God has become more profound. It is said that God helps only those who help themselves—it could not have been truer than this situation. I tried, I worked hard, and God helped me. I feel that my effort could’ve lost me only five kilos; my belief is that God helped me lose the rest. I feel that God has rewarded me. It is not just the question of losing 130 kg, but doing it in a year’s time is an effort worth considering.

Emotionally, it has made me much stronger. It has also pumped in the most amazing amount of positive energy. It has made me believe that there is so much that one can achieve. Physically, too, it has made me more confident and amazingly more energetic.

I feel more in control of my life. I feel that I have my life back—the reins of my life are back in my hands. I am not anymore on board some kind of a runaway train which is out of control. This is an important factor for confidence.

I can be more spontaneous now. A small example: earlier, if my friends suggested that we go out to eat at a restaurant, I wasn’t sure whether I will be comfortable there. I thought: what kind of chairs would they have, do they have chairs with armrest, or are they armless?; what if I don’t fit in them, I don’t want to walk out feeling embarrassed. These were the questions that came to my mind. I would agree only after confirming that the restaurant we were visiting had an armless chair, and if they don’t, they would organise one. This may be a very small thing, but everything became a managed affair, a production. If I went for rehearsals, my chair would go before me, because I did not fit in those plastic ones they have. I didn’t feel free. I couldn’t travel alone. I needed a helper with me. I had become subservient to my physicality.

Today, if somebody has to suggest, “Let’s go, and check out that place,” my response is, “Hey I am game, let’s go!” Today, I can get up and do whatever I want.

We take a lot of these things for granted and only realise their value when we are deprived of them. One more important thing is that you begin to value life. Today, I value every single thing that I am able to do, which I couldn’t do before. Sometimes you value those things that are suddenly snatched away from you. Today, I value being able to walk into any store and find my size. Recently, I was in Kuala Lumpur and I loved the fact that I could walk into any designer store and pick up anything I liked. The funny thing was that in the past my size was 6X, and that size is not available anywhere, apart from those special plus-size stores and those were a handful in the States. So, everything was tailor-made for me. Even the tailor would require two tapes to measure me. So, whenever I would walk into any store and was lucky enough to find my size [and, 6X was the last size available], I would pick up anything, even if I didn’t like it. That mental habit had become so apparent in my mind that I used to buy five of them, instead of one.

So now when I went to Kuala Lumpur, and I liked something, I was automatically picking five pieces. My wife said, “No, you don’t need to, buy something else instead.” I still insisted on buying five. She said forget, change that, you don’t need to do that anymore. It took me a while to accept that I could actually do that.

I met my dad recently and complimented him on one of his shirts. He said “Listen, just try it if you like it.” My reaction was, “Dad, are you crazy? Me fitting into your clothes?” He said, “Yes, you should be.” I tried it and, wonder of wonders, I actually fit into my “normal father’s normal shirt!”

Even today, when I see some new shirt, and get about to try it on, my first reaction is, “No way, it’s too small for me. I won’t fit in it.” Because, I had been so used to those big, huge ones. And, suddenly when it fits, I feel: Wow!

It’s a whole new world, and I feel great about it.

What would be your advice to our readers who are struggling to overcome a health challenge?

Adnan Sami: Two things: one, regardless of what your ailment is, always consult a professional, before you take any step. Go to the expert. Don’t think that because Adnan Sami did this, it will work for me. Your body is different and may react differently. You need to find out from the expert what the issue is. Consult the relevant expert.

Two, if I can do it, anybody can. Because, I never thought I can do it. I am a living, breathing example of mind over matter.

Everybody, including me, had written me off. I proved to everyone, including me, wrong. If I can overcome it, anybody can.

The post Adnan Sami shares his weight loss journey (Interview) appeared first on Complete Wellbeing.