96.1

Today is my birthday, and there's no better day to restart something I've been putting off for three years (for various reasons). Let me tell you about 96.1+, it is not a radio station, not some mystical life code, but the number that launched my decade-long obsession with human health.

Where It All Started

Back in 2015, I weighed 96.1 kg. Seven months later, I was 82 kg. That transformation sparked a question that has consumed me for ten years: What is the right fuel for the human body?

If the answer were simple, we'd all know it by now. Keto evangelists demonize carbs. Ancient masters like Mahavir and Buddha forbid meat. Yet I've watched vegetarians and meat-eaters alike struggle with terrible health. The contradictions were maddening.

So I decided to turn my own body into a laboratory.

Ten Years of Self-Experimentation

For a decade, I've conducted ruthless experiments on myself with no labels, no fear, no judgment. Just data. I wanted to see what happens when you change the control parameters:

• Pure keto vs. nutritional ketosis

• Water fasting vs. paleo

• Vegetarian vs. vegan

• Gluten-free living

• Lactose elimination

• Complete sugar abstinence

• Sleep deprivation effects

• Walking vs. running protocols

• Alcohol's impact

Without a team of doctors or perfect instruments, I conducted these experiments with whatever I had. No excuses. It took ten years of relentless curiosity, but I finally have answers.

The Reality Check

I'm not David Goggins, and I don't want to be. I'm a 47-year-old corporate professional, perimenopausal, insulin resistant, with fluctuating thyroid levels and HbA1c hovering between 5.5 and 6.5. Like many Indian mothers post-childbirth, I carry stubborn weight around my abdomen and thighs. I was also born with a congenital autoimmune condition.

Life pulls me in every direction: family, work, in-laws, kids, the desperate craving for personal time. My weekend thrills are painfully ordinary: OTT binges, biryani buckets, scattered friend catch-ups, and short holidays that feel like brief escapes. I'm the perfect embodiment of our modern era: all the metabolic disorders packaged in one overwhelmed human.

I always wanted to share my grand finale whenever I got to it. The time has come now. I am finally ready. I made up space in my calendar this birthday to next birthday to focus on health. One final experiment in sustainable wellness for people like us doesn't hurt.

I have put together all that I learnt, observed and experimented in my upcoming book (Sensibowl) but who learns from books. It is always easy to learn by doing than by knowing. I want to apply everything I've learned about the human system in this modern pressure and designed obstacles and see how it goes and that too in public.

A part of me is nervous because people say menopause is brutal on a woman's body. My hypothesis is we're 99% similar as homo sapiens and what works for a modern-day, metabolically deficient person like me will likely work for you too.

This isn't about motivation or willpower (we don't lack those). The brutal reality is that maintaining health today feels impossible. We're walking uphill against entire industries designed to work against us. The environment itself conspires against our wellbeing.

But I believe there's a path through. And I'm going to walk it here, boring but consistently, one day at a time. If I can do this with my chaotic schedule, no one else has a reason not to.

I will do exactly what I preach: eat nutritiously, sleep enough, move well. The three first principles. Nothing mind-blowingly difficult.

This is my invitation to walk this path with me if you choose. All along, this has been a curious experimenter's journey, and for once I want to share the data publicly and see where it takes us.

Important note: For deeper health issues, please consult a healthcare professional. This experiment is for those of us dealing with the typical metabolic challenges of modern life.

Ask your hardest questions. Bring your deepest doubts. Share your own struggles. Let's navigate these 300 days together.

Because gaining health in the modern world shouldn't be a solo journey.

Day 1 starts now.

Here's to the next 300 days of brutal honesty, daily accountability, and the pursuit of sustainable health.