My last article was about dealing with my emotional health. This article is about the process of getting myself into physical shape.
In slightly over 4 months, I managed to bring my weight down from 80KG to 67KG. It was the first time in the last 20 years that I had managed to achieve my ideal weight and I was pleasantly surprised at the result! For 20 years, my weight has never gone below 75KG. Physical health was never a priority for me and there was no existing system or discipline to look after my physical body. Here’s my story:
A Visit to the Doctor
Through a visit to the doctor in June 2019, I discovered that I had severe hypertension. Several readings of my blood pressure were taken, with the highest reading being a massive 190/110. This discovery was a shock to me. It was a shock to my family as well as I did not have any prior medical history in this area. I suspected that the high level of stress at work was a key contributing factor. Before this discovery, I had taken my physical health for granted. I ate what I wanted and paid little attention to my diet. There was also no attempt to participate in any form of regular exercise. I often worked late into the night and I struggled to sleep well. I also experienced a recurring back pain and a stiff back. This meant that there were times where I had to sit on the bed for a few minutes after waking up because my back was too painful. Despite these issues, there wasn’t any personal conviction to watch my health closely.
Enrolling in a Weight Management Program
After my visit to the doctor, I was certain of one thing: my lifestyle needed to change. I did not want my physical health to suffer further. My blood pressure was a big warning sign. I certainly did not want my wife to be a widow and my kids to be fatherless. As I shared in the previous article, I made the decision to leave my company and to stop what I was doing. I felt that the severe hypertension affirmed my decision to leave. I needed to get my physical health back in shape and time away from work was critical. To bring down my blood pressure in a sustainable way, I was recommended to reduce my weight and watch my diet. I enrolled in a 6 months long weight management program at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. As you now know, the weight loss was a success. My blood pressure also came under control and no longer causes me stress. Amazingly, my recurring back pain also disappeared! I suspected my weight loss was a contributing factor and I am very happy with the overall outcome.
A Contrast: Before the weight management program and after
How did I manage this change?
Upon reflection, I believe that part of the success was due to intentionally applying some lessons learnt from this book: “Switch – How to change things when change is hard" by Chip and Dan Heath. There were four principles from the book that stuck with me. In sharing my story, I hope it can motivate those who might be in similar situations to achieve change. For a greater understanding of the principles, I highly recommend that you read the book. (And in case you are wondering: I do not receive any monetary benefits from sharing about this book).
1. Find the bright spots:
This refers to leveraging what we already have and looking for what’s already working. For me, losing 13KG felt impossible but thankfully, the dietician from Khoo Teck Puat Hospital was a great help. I was pleasantly surprised that I did not have to go on a painfully restrictive and unhappy diet, like I imagined I would have to do. On the contrary, I realized that I could continue to enjoy food that I loved and keep to 3 meals a day. That was a bright spot.
I also wrote down a list of things or “bright spots” that were already true and empower me towards my goal of losing weight and lowering my blood pressure.
I’m motivated to lose weight for my family
I have a supportive wife. She is my greatest cheerleader
I love swimming and I can create an exercise regime in this area
I used to be a competitive swimmer when I was young. I can easily swim 20 laps or more
I have easy access to an Olympic size swimming pool nearby my place
I own an Apple Watch that can help me count laps
I have no desire for sweet drinks.
I can continue to drink coffee and I am able to drink coffee without sugar
I can eat my favourite food ONCE every week (this sounds great!)
I have little desire to snack
I am not tempted by ramen or baked rice (unhealthy food options)
I love fish soup (healthier choice)
I love Chinese style cooked green vegetables and I can eat lots of them (vegetables help to make a person feel full from a meal)
I have a weighing machine at home and I can closely monitor my progress
I have some good looking shirts that I will love to be able to squeeze into
The above list motivated me into action.
2. Script the Critical Moves
This refers to having clear and specific steps needed to reach the goals. For example, for a healthier diet, go for less or no sugar in coffee or drinks; use skimmed milk instead of full cream milk. To script the right critical moves, it is also necessary to first gather the right data.
One critical data point: The main bulk of weight loss (70% of the time) comes from a changed diet instead of exercise. Therefore, I needed to make a change to my diet to be successful. I found out from my dietician that FRUITS were a main source of weight gain for me. I love fruits and fruit juice. I had the idea that fruits were much better options to chips and fries, while fruit juice was better than bubble tea. I was WRONG in this aspect. Another helpful data point was that I could lose 0.5KG weekly if I kept my daily intake to 1500 kcal (this data is specific to my height and weight).
Using these specific data points, I scripted down my critical moves to reach my goal:
Take 2 fruit servings a day (I was taking 8 servings daily previously). Have a green kiwi / green apple / pear for lunch. Do the same for dinner
Stop drinking vending machine fresh orange juice (1 cup is equivalent to 4 serving of fruits)
Finish my large water bottle of water by noon every day. Refill and finish another bottle by evening
Swim 30 laps every Monday, Wednesday and Friday
Measure my blood pressure twice a day: in the morning and evening
Measure my weight every Monday morning
Use the Health Promotion Board (HPB) app to track my calories intake and find the combination of tasty meals that can hit the 1500kcal daily diet
Have one cheat meal (regular size portion) for Saturday and one for Sunday. Rest of the 19 meals will be kept strictly to the recommended options given by dietician
Read: “The Power of Naming An Emotion”
3. Point to the destination.
This refers to having a compelling picture and being clear of the measurable end goal. It is about imagining how success can benefit me and others.
My Measurable Goal: My aim was to bring my blood pressure under control by losing weight. My blood pressure needed to be below 140/90 and my ideal weight was 67KG. That was my end goal for the 6 months.
The Compelling Picture: I imagined the picture of my family spending quality time together. Without me being in good health, this might not be a possibility. I also imagined the extra energy gained from growing stronger due to exercise, which would allow me to play more effectively with my 3 young kids. I also imagined feeling much happier looking at the mirror: without a belly and with a sharper chin. I look forward to being fitter and healthier. I imagined having a sharper mind and having a greater ability to focus. which would expand my mental prowess which is important for me.
4. Shrink the change
The idea is as follows: If you want to motivate a reluctant elephant, you got to lower the bar, NOT raise the bar. Small emotional victories also bring more lasting changes! When a task feels too big, the reluctant elephant will resist.
For 20 years, I had no success in weight loss.To lower the bar, I bought new goggles and swim gear to make myself happy. I researched and found the swimming pool that had all the attributes I wanted - close to my place, not crowded and with good bathing facilities. I also worked out a morning routine that gave me 1.5 hours to swim and shower. I was ready to swim!
I started joining my wife and 3 kids in eating baby oats for breakfast. Eating together was emotionally helpful. I eventually got used to eating oats which was not only healthy, but also lowered blood pressure. I also stopped drinking fruit juice. I drank coffee or water instead. I also found an alternative drink with zero calories: Ayataka Green Tea!
My small emotional victories after the first month:
I aimed to lose 2KG but I lost 3KG.
My blood pressure stabilised and remained around the range of 125/85.
With this, I started to believe that I could do it. I implemented my new diet progressively. The HPB app allowed me to input the local Singaporean dishes with the required calories data attached to the food. What I did was simply to log all the food I have eaten and monitor the total amount by the end of the day. By being able to experiment and adjust my food intake daily, I soon found the combination of food that allowed me to reach my 1500kcal a day target.
Eventually, I started to achieve more emotional victories such as wearing M sized t-shirts instead of L size. My pants became looser. I started to get compliments and encouragements from friends and I finally hit my goal.
Conclusion: “What is my health worth?” This is a question that I had pondered when I was working hard at getting my health in order. I have never prioritised my physical health but that has changed. I have since gained a new perspective on the benefits of healthy living. I continue to swim 3 times a week and I now make it a point to eat healthily. This has made me happier. I used to wear L sized male t-shirts and I can now wear S size! I hope my story has shown that aiming for a weight loss is achievable and definitely not as torturous as it seems.
Read: Halftime: An Audit of My Life
Written by Victor Seet
