The before pic is from Holi exactly two years back... I had put on a lot of flab because of a meniscus injury...vicious cycle that,didn't know I could workout around that injury,hence gained that flab(pigging out in the jungle )which made it worse..after pic from a week back 
What changed?.....There was this dancing event that was put up by the ladies of a station in Feb that year,I was also a part of it and that damn knee started bothering me again😑
Decided to do something about it....So on 6th March 2018 I started with Intermittent fasting and doing light bellydancing sessions at home that didn't tax the knee too much...about 2 months later wore some knee supports and took to the Badminton courts
On that intermittent fasting this thread from about 2 years back 😁
Then about 3 months later I discovered something that in time changed it all!.....DEADLIFTING
I read up stuff(posterior complex strengthening) followed instagram handles that were into fitness and physiotherapy and that is how I learnt that I can exercise and strength train around that injury literally& figuratively speaking
Deadlifting uses hip hinging and strengthens the hamstrings glutes(most of us are quad dominant),calves,erector spinae,the lats,traps.... the whole back complex ,it's a compound exercise that involves the whole body even your damn fingers(grip strength)
Added weighted hipthrusts to my repertoire couple of months down the line(do about 70kgs nowadays),great to activate them glutes and kinder on the knees as compared to squats....I do squats too nowadays but go lighter on the wts( about 40 kgs max)
The knees are fairly strong nowadays.....the glute activation helps me with the dancing and the badminton(though badminton is bandh for the last 3-4 months the courts here have gone under MES repairs😬)
On the 'weight' loss front....somebody who had seen me in person from about 4 years back met me recently and asked 'aapne kamse kam 20 kg reduce kiya hoga'😬... nopes more like 7-8 kgs....I guess this is what they call 'Body recomping' ..the scales dont matter that much
And on the 'diet' front,still do IF occasionally but I still have 2-3 cups of chai daily with sugar,lunch is still mostly rice with fish/chicken curry or dal with a side serving of veggies....
yeah and still drink my 2 peg vodka nimbu marke occasionally with the Pati (kal raat was the latest ocassion😁) .....but was in the gym today morning and did my 5 sets of deadlifts along with other strength training sets
Long thread😬..... Bottomline consistency coupled with sustainability is the key ...dont go for drastic diets or changes in exercise regimen
Forgot to add that I have also incorporated yoga into my fitness regimen....about twenty minutes of it before the bellydance/odissi practice...which takes care of the flexibility and mobility part of activities and good for joint/spinal health too
And no I dont use any fitness apps(yeah call me technologically challenged)...Unless you can call instagram one😬
Also over a period of time I have realised that in the gym I do compound exercise that doesnt need a trainer/spotter(majboori ka naam MG..used to be the only one in the gym quite often in Chilka)Hey with deadlifting if you feel that you are losing your grip just leave the bar🤷♀️
Can't do that with a barbell benchpress😬😬😬
Also on my 'Diet' bit....I would like to clarify here that I don't suffer from diabetes,High BP,PCOS,rheumatoid/gouty arthritis,Hypothyroidism,hypercholesterolemia or any such chronic health issues ....yet (unless you count migraine 😬)
So someone asked me on DM if I ever had cellulite😬.... unlike most women I have 'Dromedary' tendencies😬 that is primarily I tend to store fat around my back not on the thighs and then on the middle section😬...so nopes have not been bothered by cellulite much
To conclude this longish 'gyaan baantu"😬thread from where it started,not the first time in life when one has experienced the 'adversity-toad'scenario,In fact 3 pursuits in current stage of life that has brought immense personal joy and satisfaction has been result of injuries🤷♀️
The current fitness regimen, and painting and bellydancing ,pursuits picked up as a consequence of suffering from a bad ankle injury and being laid up in bed with a cast a decade back....
To cut a long kahani short laid up in bed with a cast with nothing to do(nopes not even TV cause no daytime bijli) took up sketching..then came painting, took up bellydancing because was advised not to put any strain on the ankle for 6 months🤷♀️
And all thanks to the wonderful online community of artists,fitness experts , dancers on YouTube,painting forums,Instagram,facebook yup even the much maligned whatsapp.....Havent learn any of the above from any person irl🤷♀️
Toh Modiji beshak chhod dein online media hum nahin chhodhenge 😛
