If youve been trying to lose weight for a while now, you probably already know that intermittent fasting works. But (theres always a but, isnt there?) intermittent fasting alone will not help you get as far as youd like to go on your fitness journey.

To ensure great results (read: ripped results!) you need to start working out daily as well, like 22-year-old Delhi-based Harshit Tyagi did to lose 20 kgs and trim from 98 kgs to 78 kgs. He tells us, Ive been obese for most part of my life and therefore also lacked confidence. Id live in this constant fear that people around me will body shame me."

"What finally became the tipping point for me to whip myself in shape was the fact that a couple of years ago, I gathered the courage to approach my then crush to wish her a happy birthday and she walked past me like I didnt even exist. In that very moment I decided that the solution to this problem is in my hands and I need to do something about feeling invisible right now!" he says

"I was determined to not ever feel this way again, and commenced my weight loss journey by embarking on the below weight loss plan, he adds.

Much like every other teenager, I too didn't have much knowledge about nutrition and fitness and decided to enrol myself in a gym to shed some weight. I joined a gym close to my house and followed my gym trainer's advice to the T. During the initial few weeks, I focused all my efforts towards cardio.

And, shortly after noticed that most gym trainers recommend the same training regime to everyone be it a skinny person or someone who wants to lose fat! So, I tried to expand my knowledge in this domain and formed a training and diet regime for myself after experimenting with different diets and exercise regime.

I learnt two important things on this quest of information:

1. You have to be mindful of what you eat. I tried many different experiments with my diet such as eating no food items with processed sugar and drinking a litre of water as soon as I woke up. I also increased the amount of lean protein in my diet and started consuming more egg whites with green vegetables before I finally settled on an intermittent fasting pattern of eating, but more on that later.

2. I realised compound movements provide better results than isolated movements as they involve more muscle activity at the same time. Hence, I switched from exercises such as bicep curls, lat pull down to deadlift, lunges, squats and bench press. I also shifted my focus from movements that involve machines to exercise with regular dumbbells and barbells. This improves your balance and makes sure your weak side (my left side) is also pushed to its limits.

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These learnings led him to create the below weight loss exercise regime.

After trying out a lot of workout routines, I (finally) settled on this 4-day workout routine:

Day 1: Deadlift + Bench Press + Military Press

Day 2: Squat + Farmer walks + Lunges

Day 3: HIIT Training + Abs

Day 4: Clean and Jerk + Snatch + Power Clean

For exercises on Day 1,2 and 4, I do 3 sets in 12, 10, 8 reps with increasing load in every set. I try to keep my form correct and movement slow. This keeps muscles in tension for a longer period of time. On Day 3 I do HIIT training of 8 sets with 30 seconds exercise and 10 second rest.

30 seconds: Jump Rope

10 seconds: Rest

30 seconds: Push-ups

10 seconds: Rest

30 seconds: Jump Rope

10 seconds: Rest

30 Seconds: Jump Squats

10 seconds: Rest

30 seconds: Jump Rope

10 seconds: Rest

30 seconds: Push-ups

10 seconds: Rest

30 seconds: Jump Rope

10 seconds: Rest

30 Seconds: Jump Squats

There is no one-size-fits-all formula, but you can also try this workout and see if it fits you. This workout aims at strength and agility.

Now, lets come to how intermittent fasting changed my life, Among the diet experiments, intermittent fasting turned into a habit.

Intermittent Fasting (IF) is an eating pattern that cycles between periods of fasting and eating. It doesnt specify which foods you can or cannot eat. It only focuses on when you should eat them.

There are many IF plans and patterns that you can follow, but the most effective one, according to studies is the 16:8 IF diet. The 16:8 IF diet entails one to observe a 16-hour fasting period, followed by an 8-hour eating window.

You can commence a 16-hour fast at 10:00 pm in the night, after you eat your last meal of the day and go to sleepthats 7-8 hours gone right there. You can break the 16-hour fast at 2:00 pm with your lunch and eat small meals till 10:00 pmthis makes up the 8-hour eating window. Alternatively, you can also begin your fast at 8 pm and break it at 12 pm, the next day.

I observed the 16:8 diet split and ate in between 1:00 pm to 9:00 pm.

Meal 1 at 1:00 pm: 10 Almonds and a seasonal Fruit

Meal 2 at 2:00 pm: Dal and Sabzi with Roti

Meal 3 at 5:30 pm: Poha/Upma/Omelette/Milk with Oats

Meal 4 at 8:30 pm: Dal, Sabzi and Eggs

I do not measure the quantity of food. ie. at until I feel full. The key here is to repeat meals every day and stay consistent.

Its easy to lose the initial weight and feel good about it, but as you keep going you realise that you have to push even harder to achieve more results. Your body reaches a plateau state. When I felt I had achieved what I desired and was confident about my body image, I started looking at workouts as fun activities instead of challenges

I have resorted to jogging, skipping rope and HIIT workouts now as a medium to maintain my weight. I do not have a fixed schedule for the gym anymore but whenever I go to the gym I aim for heavy weight workouts.

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Try including compound exercises in your routine instead of isolated workouts. Make your own workouts and keep playing and experimenting with them. But on the same note, find a mentor/trainer who understands your end goals and doesnt suggest the same exercises to everyone.

Disclaimer: The diet and workout routines shared by the respondents may or may not be approved by diet and fitness experts. GQ India doesn't encourage or endorse the weight loss tips & tricks shared by the person in the article. Please consult an authorised medical professional before following any specific diet or workout routine mentioned above.

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