Being a skeptical shy girl walking into the gym for the first time to being a somewhat confident person finding her way through fitness, it has been a fantastic 3 months from a mental/physical health perspective.

I still remember the day I had to lift my suitcase from the overhead compartment while waiting to disembark the train. I had overestimated my own strength. I thought I had a strong hold on it but I did not. The suitcase slipped right off my hand and almost landed on a passenger's head. Thank god, they were quick enough to avoid the fall. I am still shocked I was not sued.

Don't get me wrong. I love being independent. I have been ever since I can remember. Being the youngest child in my family had its perks but also issues. I was always fighting to prove myself somehow.

While all of this is true, in that moment, I felt a rush of embarrassment making me blush all the way home. If only I was stronger- I thought replaying the incident over and over in my head.

My decision to purchase a gym membership was a result of constant contemplations. The main factor holding me back was "looking stupid". I cannot express how silly it is. No one is judging me because they all remember when they first started. The gym community is kind, polite and understanding. I am usually the only woman on the whole floor. No one cares what I do. Every time I am pushing myself, I am sweating like crazy and I definitely don't look pretty or cool. But I've never felt as beautiful as I do after a successful workout.

Every person belongs there! Dot!

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Four important things will determine if we will see good results:

Lifting heavy

When starting out, it's safe to begin slow and perfect the form. For simple exercises like shoulder press or bicep curls, 2 kg's is a decent start for women. But it's important to not stop there. Pushing through 3 kg's till 5 kg's in the immediate months can bring great results. More importantly, it's proof that we are getting stronger.

There's a rule of thumb to follow regarding this. Progressive overload.

If today, my shoulder press looks like this: 2 kgs, 12 reps and 3 sets, Next week I should aim for: 3 kgs, 6-7 reps, 3 sets. Once I can do 12 reps with 3 kgs, I should aim for 6-7 reps with 4 kgs. Don't forget to push till failure in your last sets.

This way, we are constantly ensuring microscopic tears in our muscles leading to more gains when we recover (also called muscle hypertrophy).

It basically translates to "No pain, No gain".

Cardio

While lifting burns calories and leads to muscle growth and strength, additional cardio post workout burns a lot of calories too.

I used to jog and run on the treadmill until I came across LISS- Low intensity steady state. High intensity cardio, while beneficial for fat burn, can also breakdown muscles.

LISS is a kind of cardio that burns fat while promoting muscle growth. It keeps your heart rate constantly high and doesn't lead to fatigue by the end of the session. Walking on a 10% incline at 5.0 kmph speed for 30 mins burns roughly 200 calories. This is my current favourite cardio routine.

Food

The toughest aspect to control so far, Food. I never realised how difficult intentional eating was. I would gladly avoid this but protein is our best friend. On an average, we are supposed to consume 1.2-1.6 g of protein per kg of bodyweight in order to promote muscle growth. If this intake is unmet, lifting weights will have no impact.

I recently figured out how little protein I consume on a vegetarian diet. Taking protein from plant protein isolates helps meet this goal. But it's simply not enough.

Finding the best recipes and foods (primarily consisting of whole foods) is ideal to ensure we receive balanced nutrition to support workouts.

There are tons of recipes online but some popular plant protein sources are: Tempeh, Tofu, Legumes, and Soy. Tempeh is the highest in protein so far and tastes amazing if cooked right.

Rest (still mysterious to me)

I follow tons of people online who are "all-in" in their fitness journeys (especially women). It's motivating to see them enjoying the same challenges we face when it comes to lifting and fitness in general.

One thing every person recommends is a good night's sleep (~7 hours at the least). During sleep, the body releases human growth hormone (HGH), which plays a crucial role in muscle repair and growth. HGH stimulates protein synthesis, the process by which damaged muscle fibers are repaired and new muscle tissue is built (aka gains).

Sleep also reduces soreness so we can rally again the next day.

I am sure there are tons of other reasons why sleep helps in our fitness journey. In fact, I am yet to understand this better. I have always been a peace-loving night-owl and sleeping is something I take lightly. I do sense a change in the quality of my workouts when I am not sleeping enough. I hope to tackle this aspect soon enough.

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It's not meant to be easy but there is joy in being able to move my body today. And I am grateful for it. I want to ensure I keep myself happy and strong because I owe me that much.

I cannot wait to walk into the gym tomorrow, ready to do what it takes to see the results I want.