Health Calculator

Initially, when I was approached by Reebok for the Reeboot 100 fitness challenge, I have to admit I was pretty nervous. It wasn’t just any fitness challenge; it was a ‘public’ one. I had multiple thoughts running through my mind, one of which was ‘What if nothing happens?’ Needless to say, I was scared, and worried. At the same time, I was curious about it. Can I really do this? And if I did manage to pull it off, how amazing would that be!

I went on to accept the challenge, mostly to step out of my comfort zone, and because I felt I owed it to myself to take better care of my health. If my taking on this challenge could inspire others to be fit, it would definitely be worth it.

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The training started with me walking into the Reebok Fitness Studio in Mumbai, and meeting my trainers, or as I like to call them, the two ‘evil angels’, who whipped me into shape – Vinata and Bindiya. These were the two women who would be pushing me over the edge and testing my physical boundaries, regularly. Let me tell you something about them – they’re extremely fit, which is obvious, since they’re fitness trainers, but also terribly intimidating. The positive side of having two female trainers is that it keeps your ego in check. When you’re with two women, who can lift more weights and do more push-ups than you…. it really puts things into perspective!

On my first day they took a lot of measurements (inches, kilos…the works) and strictly told me I had a lot of work to do. Not something that happens to me, every day. Once the challenge started, I was measured, every 10th day. Sensing impending danger, I would get tensed, the night before. Although, when the reading showed an improvement, I would jump with joy. Here is when a definitive moment of realisation occurred: if you are following a fitness regimen, your moods revolve around your readings and measurements. My diet was essentially a balance of carbs and protein in the day, with low or negligible carbs for dinner. Of course, it was not particularly easy to follow a diet on a regular basis, although it wasn’t too tough either. It just requires mindfulness, which seems quite simple, but is difficult to sustain in the long run.

What remained tough for me were the cheat days. I wouldn’t deny that I didn’t have the temptation to binge. That wasn’t going to be possible. I had days when I would just let go, mostly on a vacation, but then I would try and make up for it the next day. Sometimes, if I was really tired, I would skip a workout. It happens, no doubt, but you have to push yourself and try harder in the next workout.

Another task was constantly saying ‘no’ to unhealthy food, which is often a part of Indian (ahem..Punjabi) hospitality. I speak at a lot of events and the host would later come up with trays of food, which looked delicious, but I would have to refuse. This greatly upset them, but I was determined to stick to my promise of getting healthy.

This definitely taught me a lot and made me a different person to a great extent. I have understood now that fitness is a process, not a goal, and that has been my greatest takeaway. Even to maintain good health, you have to continuously work towards it and are never really done. A message I’d also like to send out to all my fans, and others like me out there who are waiting to take the plunge–fitness is for everyone, whether you’re an actor, model, marketing executive, journalist, photographer or writer. Your vocation should not dictate whether you should be fit or not. You just have to be!

Chetan Bhagat lost seven kg fat, and gained two kg muscle. He now weighs 73 kg.

From the July 2015 issue of L’Officiel India.