Real journeys.
Meaningful change.

“I lost my cardiologist, I lost my GP, I lost my diabetes and cardio issues and blood pressure!”

Part 1: The backstory

It was August 2018, less than a year away from my 60th birthday. When I asked my spouse Chandu what gift she would like for us to celebrate the dual milestone of our 32 years of married life and my milestone birthday, I expected her to say “let us visit an exotic destination” or “let us go on a cruise.” Instead, she just said, “Can you be the man I married 32 years ago?” In a moment, just like Aladdin had no idea of the adventures he would have when he was asked to retrieve the magic lamp, I had no clue about the magical journey I would undertake to retrieve the fountain of my youth.

I was puzzled. Was I not the same person she married? In my mind, I had thought age had refined me like vintage wine in a bottle. Instead, this person who had always sworn to speak truth to me had acted as though the wine had got a bit old and stale.

To prove her wrong, I immediately dug some old school pictures out. There I was, all of 29 years old, leaning casually against a pillar, looking lean, rugged and fit as a fiddle. This version of me looked like he was ready to run a marathon at a moment’s notice. In another picture from the same era, I was crouched down in front of a black Mustang, on the balls of my feet, as though I was ready to run a sprint at a moment’s notice.

Then I took the most recent picture of myself out. There I was, sprawled out on a chair with a silly, complacent, satisfied grin in a casual café in Bengaluru, having eaten the biggest and most satisfying Ghee Roast Dosa and patting my rotund stomach. In another recent picture, I was slouched between two young employees, with my 38-inch paunch flopping over my belt.

I recalled vaguely that the young man against the pillar used to play two to three hours of squash a day, worked hard, had enough bounce and energy for more than 18 hours a day, and ate sparingly because he could not afford too much. These days, that pudgy guy on the chair had aches and pains in all his joints, took pills for sugar control, blood pressure and cardiac issues twice a day. He snored, huffed and puffed like a steam engine and, whenever he had an excuse, flopped down on the couch saying, “I am tired, give me something to eat,” with no energy for good personal interactions with his near and dear ones.

My doctors had told me that I was a high-risk candidate for heart problems and that I had metabolic syndrome. Both my cardiologist and GP wanted me to increase my dosage as they continued to see my body deteriorate from age, stress and poor lifestyle habits. I knew I had to do something, but what? I thought I had tried everything. I was vegetarian, did not drink pop, tried to keep stress levels down, walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes a day, took my medications regularly and used many supplements. Even after all this effort, year after year, my body appeared to be winding down.

Fast forward 18 months. I was a fit 60-plus-year-old with a lean 32-inch waist, a body very similar to the 29-year-old graduate student except for the grey hair and beard, minimal aches and pains, no snoring and, more importantly, my wife and daughters teased me that the energizer bunny was back. People asked me again and again how much weight I had lost. My answer was always the same: “I lost my cardiologist, I lost my GP, I lost my diabetes and cardio issues and blood pressure!”

About my weight, it is what it is, just another indicator of my overall health and well-being. If you are a fan of numbers, my BMI was 21, my triglyceride-to-HDL ratio was well below 2, my LDL-to-HDL ratio was below 3, my A1C was 5.6 and my average blood pressure was 130/80 with a resting heart rate of 48.

Part 2: The learnings

So what changed, and how did the new “Me 2.0” transformation start? At the end of August 2018, my wife and I visited Shobha and Eashwar after dropping off our daughter at graduate school in New Orleans. We had not seen this wonderful couple for more than 10 years. We were shocked to see a younger, much more vibrant couple than we had seen a decade ago. It was as though they had stepped into a time machine and set the dial back 10 to 15 years.

Both told me that they were independent of most medication and kept referring to “WFPB” and a “lifestyle change.” It was refreshing to see this couple working in harmony and inspiring people around them through something they deeply believed. The “secret sauce” was not a secret, but a consistent application of wholesome, evidence-based nutrition combined with awareness and body fitness.

I could not believe it, and I am still in awe that making a switch to whole plants and moderated eating could make revolutionary changes to our bodies. After keeping up with learnings from evidence-based researchers and advocates, I became firmly convinced of the importance of the relationship between human health, sustainable eating, the planet and living animals.

I learned from Shobha that you do not need oil to make salads and that thousands of tasty dishes can be cooked without it. I learned that uncooked plants can be a source of prebiotics and contribute to a healthy gut. I learned that eating healthy does not mean starving yourself with a taste-deficient meal. I learned that big changes can happen in incremental steps, and that why you are doing it is more important than the how that most people obsess over.

I learned that Shobha was, and still is, the driving force for an enthusiastic community of people on the same journey, inspiring, coaching and supporting each other. A big part of my journey has been the constant encouragement of my wife, who witnessed these remarkable changes and works with me to motivate mindful actions.

The most important thing I learned was that a whole-food, plant-based diet is the first step toward holistic change for the better, contributing to a more alert mind, an active body and a more positive attitude. I began calling it the “WHOLISTIC” lifestyle: whole foods, whole-body workouts and whole-mind awareness. When the three components come together in harmony, the results are not just a gift you give yourself but an everyday gift you give to those who love and care for you.

Shobha is our kindred spirit in this transformational journey and the person who lit our lamp of awareness. While I cannot truly pay her back for this gift of life, I can pay it forward by being the best I can be every day and inspiring others around me to do the same.

Warm regards,
Gopal

View the original story

“The more dietary and lifestyle changes I made, the more benefits I saw in my physical and mental health. Slowly but surely, my pains and aches disappeared, my balance improved… Within a year, I was off all my medications.”

My name is Syed Abbas. In my late 20s, I was diagnosed with a muscle-wasting disease called Limb Girdle Muscular Dystrophy (LGMD). Within a few years, my muscles became very weak and I began to fall while walking and sometimes even standing. I also started getting recurring bouts of very painful hip bursitis, which would result in being bedridden for weeks at a time, unable to move, get up or even sleep at night.

The painkillers would not work and I would resort to powerful steroid-based injections until, after some time, even they stopped working. I also developed skin disorders and chronic constipation. On top of that, I lost my job and we started facing financial issues that brought even more stress into my life.

A combination of all this took a huge toll on my mental health, and I developed anxiety and became depressed. I had so many negative thoughts, anger, future worries, past regrets and self-pity in my head. At the same time, the list of medications kept piling up. At one point, I was taking prescription medications for pain, skin disorders, chronic constipation, anxiety and depression. After seven years on medications and seeing no improvement, I had lost all hope. In my desperation, I asked for divine help.

The divine intervention came through a loving and caring friend who had experienced anxiety and stress. Instead of taking medications, she decided to use a holistic approach and practiced a breathing exercise called SKY, Sudarshan Kriya Yoga, taught by the Art of Living Foundation. Beaming with joy and happiness, she shared how the breathing exercise had helped her deal with stress and anxiety that had built up over the years.

I was desperate to try anything. The first time I practiced SKY with a teacher, it blew me away. The burst of energy I felt cannot be explained in words. Soon after, I added a daily meditation practice. The combination allowed me to think more clearly and, for the first time in years, I decided to take charge of my own health by enrolling in a year-long holistic nutrition certification program focused on feeding the body the foods it is designed to thrive with.

The nutrition program helped me understand how my body and mind had been affected by years of junk and fast foods, and by job, family and health-related stress. This was an eye-opener. I started adding more fresh fruits and vegetables in the form of green juices, smoothies, big salads and other whole plant-based foods. At once, I removed processed, packaged and animal-based foods from my nutrition plan.

The more dietary and lifestyle changes I made, the more benefits I saw in my physical and mental health. Slowly but surely, my pains and aches disappeared, my balance improved and my frequency of falling became less and less. Within a year, I was off all my medications.

Lessons learned

In the last seven years of my health journey, I have realized how important it is to have a good support system, especially when trying to turn health around. I strongly believe that when we seriously commit to restoring our health and take necessary action, the divine takes care of the results.

I have been lucky to be blessed with many friends who helped me navigate the often complicated and misunderstood world of nutrition. One of these God-sent friends is Shobha Swamy. We are truly inspired by her and the health-conscious community she created. My wife and I have been part of Shobha’s health and nutrition group for quite some time and have learned so much. Her in-depth knowledge of nutrition and, above all, willingness to help others is unmatched. We learned many new recipes that are both healthy and tasty.

It has been seven years that I have been medication-free, and I feel the happiest I have ever been. I go to sleep with a smile and wake up with a smile. Even though I still have muscular dystrophy, I consider myself fortunate that I am still able to walk and do many daily chores I once thought were not possible. Many people are amazed by how well I am still able to manage my condition. I attribute it to a combination of SKY breathing, Sahaj Samadhi meditation and a nutrient-dense diet. In five years, I completed three 5K walks as proof, to me, that true health lies in adopting a holistic lifestyle.

These days, I do my best to help others improve their physical and mental well-being using a holistic approach that includes a nutrient-rich diet, breathing exercises, meditation and physical exercise. I encourage people to make changes to their diet and lifestyle habits before they are diagnosed with illness. It is much easier to work toward prevention than to recover from sickness.

Warm regards,
Syed

View the original story