Fitness Journey From Couch Potato to Fitness Coach – Rohit Mehrotra

In this post, we feature Rohit Mehrotra, one of our veteran FuelFitters and a member of the FuelFit Coaching Team. While a number of our members have trained alongside him during our sessions, seen him at the FuelFit events, or even been coached by him, only a handful know of his incredible fitness journey and transformation.

We want to thank Rohit for his openness and willingness to share his fitness journey with us.

What were you like before you embarked on your fitness journey?

 

Rohit: The most honest answer would be, before I started with FuelFit, I was a coach potato who just ate and watched television, without doing much in terms of fitness.

To illustrate, in 2010 or 2011 I participated in the JP Morgan Chase 5.6 km run, and trust me, my time was really bad (although that’s not the point here). At that point of time, I told myself that one day I will run 21km. Believe it or not, when you are not able to run 5.6 km, dreaming about 21km was a very far and distant dream, but one that I was able to make reality in the end.

What made you decide to do something about your health and fitness?

 

Rohit: The main trigger that made me realize that I need to start doing something was my doctor’s advice to me to lose weight for health reasons.

One day, one of my friends introduced me to FuelFit and Saudi. I liked the idea about having fitness at my doorstep and joined FuelFit and as they say, the rest is history.

What was the biggest challenge in your journey so far?

 

Rohit: To me, reducing weight for one time is still relatively easy. It’s the maintenance of the weight that’s a bigger challenge. Everyone has a different body type and for me if I just eat and don’t exercise, I will gain weight again. I also had a fair share of injuries. Last year, I had to lay off exercise for about 4 months. It’s the desire to come back that keeps me motivated.

What is your biggest achievement?

 

Rohit: So far, my biggest achievement has been those times when people look at me and say, “I want to transform like you”. This gives me a sense of pride and I really feel happy about it.

I really want to create awareness of exercise and fitness for people and if my transformation helps in achieving that, I feel proud of it.

What has been the most rewarding?

 

Rohit: The most rewarding thing in this journey is that I feel my intrinsic motivation has increased, which means rather than having goals like “I want to look good for marriage”, I have goals such as “I want to remain fit and moving for entire life”. That I would say, is a major mindset change for me.

I notice many people are more motivated by extrinsic factors, and there is nothing right or wrong with that, it’s just that extrinsic motivation is more difficult to maintain in the long term.

Why did you decide to be a coach on top of being a member of FuelFit?

 

Rohit: I became coach for the sole purpose of health awareness. I try to do my bit in whatever way I can. I would be extremely happy if I can make a difference to anyone’s life.

How has fitness impacted your life?

 

Rohit: The impact has been amazing! For example, I have gone on tougher road trips with lot of energy even with my 2 kids. I don’t think my energy levels and fitness would have been same had I not been doing exercise.

Since I am a coach with FuelFit, last year I got a chance to attend a fitness convention in Thailand. There I realised that so many people are working hard to make an impact in the lives of others in terms of fitness, nutrition, movements etc. I can surely say had I not been a coach I would have never attended a seminar like this in my life.

How would you describe your fitness journey and transformation?

 

Rohit: Aha, that’s an interesting question! When I look back or see my pictures from five years ago, I sometimes ask myself how come I was like that. It’s not only about the weight loss, it’s the overall energy and the fitness awareness. I am a person who loves to eat (which I still do), but it’s the control that I have got now. Earlier I was neither exercising nor controlling my diet, and that resulted in me being overweight.

Do you have any new fitness goals and aspirations?

 

Rohit: I don’t have and “new” fitness goals. My goal is to remain active throughout rest of my life. However, I do aspire to improve my 21km time. I have done one 21km run and after that I got injured so I haven’t done a second one. But yes, that is something I would love to do.

Do you have any advice for those who are thinking of doing something about their health and fitness?

 

Rohit: My advice to people who are trying to reduce weight would be to take one step at a time and be consistent in your approach. Try not to take shortcuts. There can be 10,000 different plans available in market claiming to help you “reduce 5 kg in 5 days”. Do not blindly go on a fad diet or workout program. Ask a million dollar question before you start any exercise or nutrition program, “Am I able to do this long term?”.

Is there anything else you would like to share?

 

Rohit: First of all, I would really thank Saudi, Berni and entire FuelFit family. To be frank my fitness journey so far has been entirely with FuelFit only. So, I give high regards to the entire team as that has really motivated me. I have tried gym and other options but nothing worked.

I actually love to be addressed as “veteran” during the annual FuelFit anniversaries, as it suggests that I have been part of FuelFit for over 5 years.

Finally, I would just say that I have fallen in love with the word “burpee”, and for those who want to start any kind of bootcamp, I want to add a dialogue in SRK (Sharukh Khan) style, “Come fall in love with burpees”. I guess for anyone who has been doing bootcamp long enough should fall in love with burpees or else he or she cannot fall in love with bootcamps.

If you would like to read about another coach’s fitness journey, click here.