Jumpstarting my weight loss journey with TFL

I am Tania Thimraj, and I have lost nearly 12 kgs. after I started the Jump Start program last year with Dr. Sheela Nambiar. I signed up for the 12 weeks summer program in May 2018. I was an anxious, stressed out and overweight PhD student, travelling between the US, Sweden and India for my doctoral thesis projects. As of October 2017, I weighed around 76Kgs. When I moved to Sweden for work, my diet consisted of store bought, ready to eat in 7minutes, pre-packed frozen foods and bread. I had an aversion to cooking and to eating salads and wouldn’t eat anything without meat. I realised it was taking a toll on my health when I couldn’t walk up a flight of 10 stairs without having to stop and catch a breath.

That was me – far left…….

I joined a gym and started doing cardio about 20 minutes each on the treadmill, stationary cycle and the elliptical. This, I was doing aimlessly and wasn’t regular or motivated.

While scrolling through Facebook one day I saw a post from TFL which intrigued me. It said 12 weeks to a Slimmer You. I read it again and I thought to myself, that Dr. Nambiar is not one to propagate the idea of quick-fix diets and false claims to losing weight. So, I emailed her to ask her about the package, which was JumpStart – a beginners program to jumpstart your weight loss and wellness.

We set up a Skype consultation and as expected, it was a very well thought out program with a focus on all aspects of fitness both physical and mental and how the two relate. I had a long chat with Dr Nambiar about how I was feeling and why I wanted to start the program. Following that, on our next online consultations we discussed what my short-term goals were, what my long-term goals were and we discussed how I was feeling and my anxiety and how to cope with it.

She gave me a workout plan for 6 days a week and encouraged me to give it my all for the next 12 weeks. We had weekly consultations over skype/watsapp, as I was living in Sweden and she is based in India. We discussed my food habits and what I needed to include and what I should avoid. She spoke to me at length about the different food groups, the importance of maintaining a food journal and portion and serving sizes. I received a lot of recipes, which changed my attitude towards vegetables. We also discussed pre-menstrual cravings and heathy alternatives to desserts.

Within a few weeks of starting the program I realised that I felt much better mentally and physical I had lost weight too. I became more mindful of what was on my plate and what was missing and how to incorporate different food throughout the day.

Contrary to what I believed, I actually ate more but it was more fruits, more vegetables and all the good stuff.

Another important aspect apart from mindful eating and regularly working out, was working on my anxiety and stress. Dr. Sheela Nambiar helped me understand the reason for my anxiety and that there were things that were beyond my control and how I need to focus on things I can control in my personal life as well as at work. She stressed the importance of maintaining a gratitude journal. Dr. Nambiar also helped me with coping techniques during pre-menstrual mood swings and emotional changes. By the end of the program (12 weeks) I had lost 7 kgs.

I have continued working out with Dr. Nambiar after the 12 weeks by extending the program and have weekly skype/watsapp consultation with her. She helped me adapt my workouts and diet while travelling too. Though I live in a different country and have not trained at the gym with her, anytime I need clarification she is always helping me out. She sends me videos of exercises I don’t know or during our consultations she will show me how to do the exercise with the right form. The routines are always new, with varying intensities and pushes me to better myself and this clearly shows in the way I look and feel. I have become stronger and have more stamina. I can walk up 100 floors in 20 minutes on the stair master now. I couldn’t run when I started and now I run at 10km/h on the treadmill. I lift heavier weights. I have lost a total of 12 kgs. and I have reduced at least a few sizes. My clothing sizes went from XL/L to M/S. I am very proud of myself for having kept at it and not giving up. I do have some bad days and sometimes I don’t feel like working out for a whole week but I know that when I’m on a call on Saturday morning with Dr. Nambiar, I need to report something positive and I push myself to go workout no matter the mood.

This is me now!

I have recommended the program to my family and friends as Training For Life with Dr. Sheela Nambiarhas been one of the best decisions I have taken. The program has been very rewarding not only in terms of weight loss but it has improved my confidence. My approach to dealing with stress and also my outlook on health and wellness has completely changed.I still have a long way to go to reach my ideal goal but I look forward to continuing to work out with Dr. Nambiar, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and incorporating what I’ve learnt from her in my life.

 

Tania Thimraj