My thoughts while reducing weight

I am trying to reduce weight and it is easier said than done. Everyone around feels that they know the scientific way to reduce it and it can be really frustrating and some people even lose their life but cannot lose weight till the end of their life! For example, Ricky Naputi. I have created a Wikipedia article on him as a reminder to myself that the fate is faced is not impossible for anyone if they will not take enough care.

I do not feel like talking anything scientific about the process of weight reduction here. Weight reduction is possible by using scientific ways is a fact and nutritionist will be able to tell more about it. They have that right and necessary training. Here I want to share how I am convincing my own mind to reduce weight. So how to achieve the scientifically possible goal and what mental attitude I am keeping is the topic of this post. While sharing this, I must declare what has helped me mostly in achieving this state of mind. Naidu sir and Chinmay Yuva Kendra and the discussions in Chinmay Yuva Kendra has helped me to think in this direction and the things you will read in this post and elsewhere has surely some impact of these things.

I have already reduced about 19 kg of weight primarily by calorie restriction and counting calories is the most effective way to know the mathematics behind weight reduction. Sometimes we are able to do that as well. We count the calories correctly but when it comes to restricting them, we have to fight a lot with our own mind and that becomes very difficult. I do not claim anywhere that I have won my mind or it is a easy task but it is surely a way for faster progress along with scientific knowledge. I am also writing this blog post as a loud thinking. It will serve as a reminder to me when I will forget what were my thoughts because of which I was able to reduce so much of weight. Because "thoughts get translated into action" is my belief. Hence doing work on the thoughts will bring multi fold results than working on behavior / external actions. Nayana (Dr. Abhay Bang) also says that the results of research are always multi fold than other methods like struggle etc. 

• If I will think that I was getting to eat a lot and now I have to reduce that for weight reduction, its painful. But if I will think that what I have to do is fasting and I am getting eat a little during that fasting, that will make me happy. Now is it safe to do fasting? In my opinion, yes for me at least. If you have some doubt about it, you should consult your physician.
• Unless I will stop food, the body will not start burning fats which it has stored. So giving it some opportunity to burn fats is very much necessary.
• If I am afraid of having some micro-nutrient deficiencies, I can always take a multivitamin tablet as mentioned by Dr. Roy Taylor in one of his conversation video with a patient.
• I claim many times that I can eat it and not eat it as well. If I have really achieved that state of mind, not eating it will be beneficial science tells me. So it is a time to exercise mind control.
• Telling mind that nothing will happen even if I will not eat is very very important. Our mind is so much clever that it provides us with all kind of logic to eat food but no harm will happen is a reality. In fact eating more will cause harm is a reality. 
• I am not running away from the food for the whole life. I can start eating normally (what normal means at that time is different thing) once my BMI is below 25 and will need to reduce the weight again if the BMI goes above it.
• Water is always there and I can drink it as much as I want (its not scientifically correct in fact because excess of water can also kill) and when I want.
• It will surely cause a little trouble but it is in best interest of me to take this trouble now so that it will avoid future troubles.
• Weight reduction should be priority of my life! Without being this as a priority, its difficult to achieve it. 
• Not overdoing it is the key. If it will start causing serious conditions, I know I have to stop, take some steps back and try again. Nothing wrong if I fail. 
• Eating proteins over carbohydrates delays the feeling of hunger for the next meal is my experience. Also eating proteins reduces the feeling of weakness is also my experience.

Thanks a lot for reading. A word of caution. Do not try to reduce weight if it is not needed. I would not suggest anyone to reduce weight if their BMI is already below 25. 

- Dr. Abhijeet Safai 

Science means learning to say 'I don't know'!

I read an article which is an interview with Dr. Ashok Vaidya which has this title and I am compelled to think on this topic because it is such a wonderful thought! 

We need to read the title carefully. The title does not say that science means saying I don't know. But it says that Science means learning to say I don't know.

Not knowing is neither crime nor a credit but generally people consider that if they will give this answer of "I don't know", they are making some crime and hence as per a source, people in India misguide instead of saying that they don't know if they are asked a question whose answer they are not aware of.

Saying I don't know does not mean shrugging off responsibility always. It can mean so many other things. It means that the person is honest. It means that the person probably knows something other but not this particular information. It also means that the person is not interested in that field and do not want to continue to think in the same line of logic.

One is not supposed to say that they don't know but they should learn to say it in a creative way. In the end no one knows everything and there is no one who does not know anything. So saying that we do not know simply means that we do not pass a particular standard of knowing about that issue in that field. It does not mean that we do not know anything at all.

My experience is, the more I say this sentence, the more I am inclined to solve that problem because I secretly feel guilty for not knowing something. Its possible that if some wrong answer is given, the person who asked the question will also forget it and the person who gave answer will also forget what he shared because he answered only for the same of answering. In contract a person who pauses and says that he does not know might think about it later and may take it up as a challenge to know the answer.

Saying I don't know is difficult. Hence people avoid saying it and give some wrong answer instead. We should throw away the burden to know everything.

I remember that when I met Himmatrao Bawaskar, he shared with me that if does not understand something about a patients symptoms, he asks them to wait and starts reading the book in front of them and tries to find out the correct diagnosis in front of patients! What a great level of honesty! I love such honest people from the bottom of my heart and my salute to them!!!

Let me tell you from my own experience what happens when you give this answer of I don't know. Nothing much happens most of the times. In most of the cases, the person asks you to find out the information. You request for some time to gain the information and next time you give information confidently. Let me share with you that in this process, people's trust increases on you. So though it might feel momentarily painful and embarrassing to show the ignorance, in the longer run, it is always the best policy. It prevents harm, it prevents damages arising out of actions one might take because of ignorance.

Naidu sir had said once that "No question is a silly question". So let's not be afraid to ask questions and when we are asked a question and if we are not aware of the answer, lets not be afraid to say (because we can always start the process of finding it anytime) - I don't know!