“Did I ever imagine that this journey of weight reduction would eventually turn into a career option? Never! But here we are. They say change comes in waves but the tipping point for me was the day the doctor told me that I had a few months to live.

Growing up as a kid who loved to eat, I was overweight by default. So even from a very young age, I was subject to every form of body shaming comment and it only got worse as I grew older. I would counter them by calling them out in public and putting them in their place but one can never shake off the feeling of shame associated with being a fat girl in this society.

I remember the times I had contested for singing competitions and subconsciously, my weight was one of the deciding factors in the selection process. As the years crossed by, I ploughed through graduation and worked in the corporate for a couple of years before deciding to call it quits.

It was an incredible moment for me because my entire course of life changed from that instant. I wanted to thread away from the laid down path and make one of my own. As someone who had a good following in Quora, a startup in the travel industry sought me out and I began my work with them, simultaneously moving out of the house.

Bit by bit, I worked my way up the career ladder and despite the pay cut, I became financially independent. It was probably around this time that upon seeking medical advice for a condition, I was given the death sentence – that I had a few more months to live!

I gave in then and there, to change my world around and to learn to love myself, from within! This was one of the truest revelations because self-love, I would come to realise later, was the actual game changer. I started to work out regularly at a nearby gym and started training with dead weights. To make a record of my progress, I started my page ‘liftlikegaya3’ for my own documentation.

And as the years rolled by, my progress improved slowly and steadily and the community opened itself to me. People from different parts of the world wanted to seek advice on how to begin and started discussing the issues they faced.

It was greatly empowering for someone who had crossed that stage to help someone in need and the feedback was reward enough. This eventually led to my blockbuster IGTV series ‘Girl Get A Grip’ which was received extremely well by the community and my growth, along with my fitness, took a steep upward curve.

And the journey revealed itself to me! I wanted to continue helping people and fitness became something I had become incredibly passionate about so, I decided to launch my own fitness program! A course to help people work through their weight loss journey complete with health care tips and workout regimens.

At this point, it might a cliche to mention this, but all those years of body shaming did really help me get a grip and now, I am in a position to help so many others to get on board the self-love bandwagon and own their lives. The journey is long and far but I am here to stay and I am so proud of all the battles I fought to stand tall and proud here today.”

#Fitness #Health #Journey #Weightloss #Strength #Courage #Motivation #Healthcare #BodyPositive #Society #Confidence #Chennai #Madras #HumansofMadras