Ever since he could remember, Hemal had been laser focused on his career. 

A high performer at work, every ounce of his will and determination went into becoming a Partner at his consultancy firm.

His ambition was so intense that he didn’t really have the time or the inclination to think about his health. 

“I was so busy that my work consumed all of my time. I would travel Monday to Thursday every week. While on the road, I didn’t think much about my diet. I just ate whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.” 

Despite his high stress levels Hemal was blessed with good health, he didn’t have any medical conditions. However, he still felt lethargic and had no energy left in his tank at the end of week. 

On weekends, he wanted to spend quality time with his family but he just didn’t have the energy. 

“My daughter was full of energy and wanted me to play with her. But I just had no energy plus I had this chronic back pain that made me want to lie on the couch the entire time.”

Reality Check 

Hemal had been feeling the need to lose some weight for a long time. 

12 years ago he was determined to shed the extra pounds so he joined the gym and changed his diet.

“In 6 months, I lost 50lbs (22kgs). I looked great for a few months but I soon put all that weight back on again.”

What Hemal was missing was a long term, sustainable solution. 

And then Covid hit…

“I was finally made Partner at my firm, and while I was thrilled that I had reached my goal, the stress levels were really high. I started working from home as the world had shut down due to Covid, And we had just had our second child. So balancing work, two children and family commitments made me feel like I had no control over my day. 

I was barely leaving the house, I had no exercise and my diet wasn’t great.”

On a mental level, Hemal knew his health was suffering but he didn’t realise the severity of his situation. 

“Now, after one and a half years of following the RNT programme, I look back and realise how bad the situation was. At that time I sought comfort in my work and I hinged my confidence on my success at work.”

And then, during Christmas of 2022, Lockdown was slowly ending and Hemal felt that this was the perfect time to take control of his health. 

“I realised then that I was missing out on a golden opportunity to sort out my health. I was working from home, I wasn’t travelling every week, so this was the perfect time to do something. 

My biggest driver has always been to create a better life for my kids. I wanted to set them up for life and I didn’t want them to have to worry financially. 

I had achieved my goal of becoming Partner, but I realised how much time I had missed with my kids. 

When my son was born, I was there around him all the time as we were all at home. I didn’t have that with my daughter. I want to be present and play an active role in my kids’ life.”

Setting Up A Routine 

Even with reduced travel, Hemal’s schedule was really busy. 

So, when he looked at everything he was expected to do with the RNT programme, he wondered how he could fit it all in. 

“I have a Type A personality, so when I set my sights on something, nothing is going to stop me. 

Even though I have never been a routine type of guy, I started going to bed early and woke up early so I could head to the gym before work. 

The downside of that was, I didn’t get to spend quality time with my wife in the evenings. So we decided to be more mindful about how we spent time together during the weekends. “

Once Hemal had got a handle on meal prepping, training and getting in his steps for the day,  he made rapid progress. 

“I was pushing myself as hard as I could! So, when I had lost a lot of weight, my coach asked if I wanted to switch out of The Process Phase and into Consolidation. But I was just not ready to do that. I had lost a lot of weight and had gained strength but I wanted to get leaner. 

Apart from the physical motivation, I wanted to see if I could get there mentally. If I had the required mindset to keep pushing on 1100 calories a day.”

Hemal found that he was thriving. Despite being really low on calories with a high energy expenditure, he found that he was so on top of his game at work. 

The time spent walking and training also helped him turn inwards. He began to analyse his behaviours and his motivations while also being mindful of where he was applying his energy. 

Nailing Training And Nutrition 

For someone with such a packed schedule, Hemal had to make a conscious effort to carve out time. 

“I would wake up at 4am, head to the gym and get about 7500 steps. I would head out for a walk again after lunch and block out my lunch hour to do some cardio on my Peloton.”

Figuring out how to follow his nutrition plan took a bit longer. 

“I had never eaten these foods before in my life. I had never eaten that much fruit and vegetables before. 

But now I can easily kill a bowl of veg when I’m hungry. It’s great because my daughter says, ‘Daddy used to eat a whole pizza, now he eats a load of vegetables!’” 

Apart from including fruit and vegetables to his diet, Hemal realised how different foods made him feel throughout the day. 

“I’ve always struggled with my gut health and I’ve also had chronic back pain that I thought was caused by a degenerative disc, but now that pain is gone! 

I recently had an MRI done as I wanted to clarify what was happening in my spine and the doctors told me there was nothing wrong with my back! 

So after following the RNT programme I have no back or gut issues! It’s amazing!” 

Cementing New Habits 

Hitting Checkpoint was a significant moment for Hemal. 

“I hadn’t seen my abs since I was 15 years old and so getting to my Checkpoint weight was hugely emotional. I couldn’t believe it was me in those photos.”

But navigating nutrition after he hit Checkpoint wasn’t a smooth ride. 

“Soon after Checkpoint, I had 8 weeks of back to back travel. I didn’t have my meals prepped so I had to eat intuitively. I tried to follow the one plate rule but I had to face all of these trigger foods. And it was a real battle to deny myself and stick to my meals.”

However, with the support of the RNT coaching team, Hemal soon got back on track. 

He took this as a learning opportunity and dived deep to understand his motivations and how they shaped his behaviour. 

With this new found awareness he was able to rewire life long habits that weren’t serving him. 

“That’s when I started to change how I perceived things in my life. With RNT, I have developed a much deeper appreciation of my physical and mental well-being than I ever had before.”

Making The Identity Shift 

Today, Hemal enjoys his new identity as a healthy, active and energetic person. 

“Being able to bring my best self has been an absolute game changer on all fronts. I am able to better serve my clients, and be a better leader to my team. 

I love playing with my kids and now they get winded before I do! I want to continue on this path so I can still play with my kids 10 years from now.”  

As if to really throw a spotlight on his new identity, Hemal had a really interesting anecdote to share:

“I was driving back from the gym and I was speeding as I had a flight to catch. But as luck would have it, I got flagged down by a cop. 

As per protocol, the policeman came to my car and asked to see my licence. I handed it to him and when he looked at my ID, he couldn’t believe it was me!

He was so impressed with my transformation that I actually didn’t get a speeding ticket!  

We spent a few minutes talking about my transformation and he waved me off with a warning! 

It was unbelievable!” 

The Podcast 

Hemal’s journey has been life altering on multiple levels and he goes into a lot more detail of his journey in Ep 364 of RNT Fitness Radio. 

In this podcast he says, “I realised through RNT, what’s the point of working so hard if you aren’t taking care of yourself. It’s only going to leave you physically and mentally broken. You have to find the right balance, otherwise it’s not going to be worth it in the end.”