Written By: Debjani Arora | Updated : June 22, 2018 5:48 PM IST
When I was told that Ruchi Kishore is a trainer and specialized Pilate expert at Viiking Trance Fitness by Sachiin Joshi I didn't give her much credit for being the kind of fit and fabulous she is. As like anyone else I thought that it is a part of her job. Of course, being a trainer she cannot flaunt the flab like other women her age who crib and cry about postpartum weight gain. Lethargy, baby duties, the usual rut of life keeps most mothers occupied and weight loss settles at the bottom of their priority list. Ruchi's was no different from most of ours. But she chose to act, unlike many others who resort to living with the lard forever. Here are four ways in which new mothers are body shamed and why it should stop.
Needless to say, her journey was a rollercoaster ride full of trials and tribulations, shedding of enormous amounts of sweat and blood, bruises and disappointments and much more. But seeing the end result we can say that it was all worth it. In fact, looking at Ruchi it is really difficult to guess her age. When she informed me that she has two sons aged 20-year-old and 17-year-old my jaw dropped. I really thought she might be a mother to two young kids who would be less than 10 years of age.
She sensed my astonishment and said, 'It was not easy. After two pregnancies I ballooned to become 90 kilos. I hated my weight, I hated my body. But I didn't know what to do about it back then. The downside of being overweight is that you feel like the old and ailing. Your body doesn't behave your age and makes you feel sick every passing minute. It was an ordeal for me to move around the house toting that weight. So, you can imagine my frustrations when my kids kept me on my toes. I couldn't get up from the bed, lie down or even walk five steps in the neighbourhood without huffing and puffing. And all that fat within me just gave a feeling of discomfort, I was never at ease,' she recalls her days of being overweight. Read to know why it is difficult for mothers to lose weight postpartum.
The quest
Ruchi's husband, on the other hand, a yoga enthusiast kept her motivated and encouraged her to lose weight. 'My low energy levels coupled with a lethargic body were no match for my husband's high spirits and my kids' hyperactiveness. I felt left out. My body, on the other hand, was ageing and ageing too fast. But I had decided that I would not allow that to happen. Yes, I cannot stop the age-clock but I will not age prematurely as it was happening to me. I took the matters seriously and started to workout at a local gym to get fit,' she recalls. It was the year 2010 when she took up fitness seriously.
The roadblock
Now if losing weight was an easy quest then the entire human population (or a majority of it) would not be struggling to fight the lard like they do with little or no success. It takes a lot to win this battle and most often people give up when they encounter the roadblocks. Ruchi too had a few. 'To begin with, I was overwhelmed with the pieces of advice that came my way though instructors, trainers and dieticians. They did less to help me get fit but made me gloomy and miserable. Moreover, the diet advised at these local gyms was setting me up for disaster. They were written down without much consideration which kept me hungry all the time, made me irritable the wrath of which my kids had to face mercilessly. Meanwhile, because of my weight, I started suffering from a backache and heel pains,' she says. Here are five exercises a new mother can do with the baby to get fit.
Needless to say, she was ready to throw in the towel, but she took a different route instead. 'I thought let me learn about nutrition and how to feed myself the right way to lose weight. I joined Yasmin Karachiwala's fitness academy and started training under professional trainers. There while studying nutrition I realised that every body is different and needs to be treated differently. I learnt that starving is not the way to transform oneself but it is proper nutrition and training,' she says. Here is an ultimate food guide to help your body get all the nutrients.
The transformation
Ruchi didn't go overboard with her expectations or goals. 'I set myself for small achievable goals. I told myself let's start with shedding 1 or 1 kilos first. I didn't have a target of losing 5 or 10 kilos at a stretch. I started with bodyweight exercises where I had to use my own body more than any machine. This helps your body to get agile and prepares you to take advanced challenges later. Floor exercises like ab crunches, knee crunches, exercises with therabands and other props made me flexible and made sure that I used every part of my body uniformly. Next, I moved to spinning, when I lost a few kilos. When my body became agile like a feather I was introduced to weight training by proper trainers at the institute. It took me three years to come to 65 kilos from the whopping 90 kilos that I was,' she says.
But she hit the wall soon after. 'When you lose so much of weight your body gets used to the certain kinds of exercises you do and reaches a plateau. When I came down to 65 kilos my weight didn't go down any further no matter how hard I tried. So I tried Pilates and my body responded to the moves wonderfully. I started losing more weight and become strong and flexible too. I was so dedicated and focused with my targets that seeing my enthusiasm I was asked to join Viiking Trance Fitness by Sachiin Joshi as a trainer. By this time I also became a certified trainer in all forms of Pilates,' she says.
The diet
Ruchi has ditched junk food and white sugar for the better. 'I prefer simple home cooked foods made in a moderate amount of ghee or oil. If I ever crave for foods from the restaurant I do eat it but make sure that I don't go overboard. After ages of watching my diet, I have finally realised what is portion control. To control my sugar cravings I have two dates whenever my sweet tooth nudges for attention. I put my mind into what I eat. If you want results to show you cannot be careless about the food you eat,' she advised.
Diet chart:
Soaking in her new found persona and helping others get back to shape Ruchi is probably in the best phase of her life. 'I want to help anyone who wants to get fit. Right now I am helping my son lose some weight who gained a lot of weight during his board exams due to stress,' she informs. Her mantra: stay fit, help others get fit.
Image source: Viiking Trance Fitness
