A dream body in 7 months: how yoga, mindful eating and ‘now or never’ attitude helped menopausal mother of two lose 10kg

• Fitness has always been a part of Bhakti Mathur’s life, but age and the onset of menopause caused her weight to creep up, so she decided to shed the pounds
• Eager not to have regrets at 60, the 51-year old walked more, ate less, practised intermittent fasting and, after seven months, looks and feels better than ever

I have always wanted the mirror to like me. Maybe that makes me vain, but that is the way it has always been. And for months, the mirror had stopped being my friend, showing me unwanted extra weight around the stomach, the sides of my waist and back.

Growing older and the onset of menopause made it easy for my weight to creep up. I was at my heaviest – 61.7kg – in June 2023.

One morning as I looked at myself in the mirror, I said: “It’s now or never.”

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That epiphany led me to shed 10kg (22lbs) over the next seven months, reducing my body fat from 25 per cent to 16 per cent, to get the body I had wanted at 15 – at the age of 51.

Fitness has always been a part of my life. I took up long-distance running to shed the extra pounds gained during my two pregnancies in 2008 and 2009. I ran eight half marathons in Asia before taking part in the New York Marathon in 2017.

I stopped running in 2020 after a decade, triggering the slow rise in my weight.

Mathur celebrates Diwali with her family in 2022. Photo: Bhakti Mathur

A friend recommended I contact personal trainer Shokhrukh Ergashev at HIT, a Hong Kong gym. We set a target for me to reach 55kg over four months.

To get fit, he advised me to walk 13,000 steps daily, strength train once a week, and follow a calorie deficit diet.

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I began walking wherever I could, including taking my two dogs for an evening walk. This became the best part of my day, a time I could be with myself and let my thoughts unfold. Regular walks were more impactful than going for a long hike once a week.

On days I felt lazy and wanted to stay in bed, I reminded myself of this quote: “Never let your mood dictate your actions. Once you take action, your mood changes.” A walk always made me feel energised.

On days that I had not met my step count, I would jog while watching Netflix at night or run circles around the dining table. With regular cardio exercise, my sleep improved. Tired, I would sleep earlier and longer, getting seven to eight hours a night.

Mathur works out with her trainer, Shokhrukh Ergashev, in Hong Kong, in March 2024. Photo: Jonathan Wong

I have practised Iyengar yoga since 2016 and am training to become a yoga instructor. This yoga practice helped with the strength training sessions. Standing poses such as adho mukha vrksasana (full arm balance) and inversions such as sirsasana (headstand) had made me stronger and helped prepare me for exercises such as squats, push-ups and lunges.

My greatest motivation was to have my two boys, aged 14 and 16, train with me. They get to see their middle-aged mother working hard, and there are no excuses for them not to train hard.

While I am mindful of what I eat, I used to eat without thinking of calories.

Mathur does a headstand on holiday in Phuket, Thailand in December 2023, when, for the first time in her life, she felt great wearing a bikini. Photo: Bhakti Mathur

I followed a 1,200-calorie-a-day diet for three months and made a meal plan following recipes from cookbooks my trainer suggested. The meals were a healthy and delicious combination of protein, fat and carbohydrates. They were filling, nutritious and low in calories.

Now, breakfast for me is usually an egg, toast and cooked vegetables; lunch and dinner consists of dishes such as fried chicken, pesto fish, baked sea bream or Mediterranean sole, with cooked greens and brown rice.

Having konjac noodles, made from the root of the konjac plant, in place of rice is useful. I switched to snacking on fruit such as watermelon and berries, Greek yogurt and nuts instead of savoury Indian snacks that I would have consumed earlier.

The real reward is not the goal, but the person who you become in the process Bhakti Mathur

I kept a food diary, writing down everything that I ate in the day. It made me realise that I was eating more than I thought.

I am now eating more protein, while eliminating red meat and cutting out Indian food. My trainer would advise me in advance which food to eat when I went out to dinner.

On holidays, I would follow intermittent fasting so that I could enjoy two good meals a day.

Mathur trains with her sons Veer (middle) and Shiv. Photo: Bhakti Mathur

I also increased my daily water intake from 1.5 litres to 2.5 litres per day. With higher hydration levels, my digestion has improved, and my skin looks good.

Within three-and-a-half months, by mid-September, I had lost 6.7kg to reach my 55kg target. My husband and I celebrated with a date night at a Chinese restaurant.

I loved the way I felt and looked – lighter, leaner and full of energy. I increased my daily calorie consumption to 1,800 calories and reduced my daily steps to 10,000. I went back to eating dates and dark chocolate to satisfy my sweet tooth.

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People began noticing the weight loss and complimenting me. In December 2023 we went for a family holiday to Thailand and for the first time in my life I felt great wearing a bikini.

In January this year, I decided to lose another 3kg. The weight loss from 55kg to 51.85kg was more challenging. I did intermittent fasting for a few days. After a big meal out at a restaurant one weekend, I did a 24-hour fast for the first time. I felt light and full of energy by the end of it.

Here are the ways I achieved the weight loss.

Mathur with her trainer Ergashev and her 16-year-old son Shiv at her gym in Hong Kong. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Celebrating the small wins: Every time I dropped a kilogram, I treated myself to a piece of cake, a new dress, or a massage.

Staying accountable: Standing on the scales each morning kept me on track. When I was tempted to eat something sweet, I thought of what the scale would read the next morning.

Family support: My husband has been very supportive. There was a period when I cut down on dining out; he is a foodie, so this was annoying for him. Nevertheless, he encouraged me to keep going.

Be your own best friend: On days when I did not feel like exercising, I would remind myself of a quote: “The pain of regret is heavier than the pain of discipline.”

Think big, act small: Small steps, taken daily, yield massive results over time.

Know your why: The key to losing weight is to ask, “how badly do I want it?” If you have a strong “why”, the “how” will follow. I never want to have any “what ifs” in life. At 60, I do not want to think, “What if I had worked hard to get the body that I always wanted?”

The mental transformation has been more significant than the physical. I have learned that I can achieve whatever I set my mind to. The real reward is not the goal, but the person who you become in the process of working towards your goal.

The best compliment that I received was from my husband, who said: “You look younger and fitter than when I met you 30 years back.”

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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.

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