Mini-Series: This is Part 1 — Rock Bottom Pattern. Continue with Part 2 — The Morning I Finally Listened to My Wife.
Rock Bottom Isn't a Place, It's a Pattern
!Hero – HYROX finish photo | Why it matters: first official race completed, proof of direction
Caption: HYROX Mumbai Men's Doubles finish — 1:37:23. Start of the athlete identity.
I didn't "hit" rock bottom at 103 kg. I built it—one skipped workout, one "tomorrow," one late-night snack at a time. Rock bottom wasn't a moment. It was a pattern I rehearsed for years.
Where I was vs who I was
!Throwback – Heaviest phase | Signals the "pattern built over years"
Caption: 2022 (~103 kg). Rock bottom wasn't a moment. It was a pattern.
Between 2022 and early 2025, I wasn't lazy; I was undercapacitated. I could work long hours, but a single flight of stairs felt like a negotiation. I kept changing apps and programs but not daily behavior. The loop looked like this:
* Monday heroics → Thursday slide → weekend reset.
* New tool > new habit. Installing trackers felt like progress; obeying them was optional.
* Selective honesty. I hid from mirrors, cameras, and any sport that measured effort.
The scale told one story. My calendar, steps, and workouts told another. I believed neither long enough to change.
The catalyst you can't buy
!Morning accountability – shoes by the door | Visual cue for routine
Caption: The 6 AM question: "Are you going?" — Answer: already dressed.
It wasn't a podcast or a hack. It was my wife, Shubhangini—the accountability I didn't want but needed. Every morning: "Get up." For two weeks I argued. She kept repeating it. By Week 2, a quiet truth landed: motivation is unreliable; systems aren't.
So I made a decision: build rules boring enough to repeat on my worst day—no heroics, just consistency.
I'll break them down in the next post with my first 14-day log.
Why patterns beat willpower
Willpower asks, "Do you feel like it?"
Patterns ask, "What does the plan say?"
Once I stopped negotiating and started following a plan, decisions got cheap:
* Meals followed a template.
* Workouts lived on my calendar, not in my head.
When I missed, I resumed the next* block—no "make-up marathons."
That shift—from identity = "trying to change" to identity = "athlete who acts"—is the only transformation that lasted.
Discipline has receipts
!Weight trend – Mar→Sept 2025
Caption: 90.0 kg (Mar 1) → 77.0 kg (Sept). Trend bent when rules > motivation.
* Weight: 103 kg (heaviest) → 90.0 kg (Mar 1, 2025 "Day 0") → 77 kg (Sept 2025).
* Fitness: From "avoid running" to finishing HYROX Mumbai Men's Doubles (1:37:23)—exposed weaknesses (run pace ~7:11/km, sled fatigue) and strengths (grit, carries).
* Capacity: VO₂ Max 36.8 (Aug 2025)—not where I want it, but finally a baseline I'm training up from.
Are these elite numbers? No. They're honest—enough to plan, measure, and improve.
The day the scale stopped lying
!BCA checkpoints – March 1 vs March 29
Caption: Early receipts: fat down, metabolism steady, compliance rising.
Week 2 of following the plan, my trend line finally bent. Not a miracle—math:
* Calorie deficit + protein anchors → fewer binges, better recovery.
* Steps on off-days → appetite control without wrecking legs.
* A no-zero safety net → no "I ruined it" spiral.
I didn't get "motivated." I got predictable.
What changed in my head
* I stopped starting over. When I missed, I resumed. No penance workouts.
* I chose boring progress. Thrusters and lunges beat novelty classes.
* I learned to love proof. Pace tables, splits, and logs argued better than my feelings did.
Shubhangini still asks, "Are you going?" Most days I'm already dressed.
If you're reading this at "rock bottom"
You don't need a dramatic breaking point. You need one rule you can keep for seven days. Then stack a second. Then a third. You're not stuck; you're un-patterned.
Data Card — Early Receipts (snapshot)
!Data Card – Early Receipts
Caption: Snapshot you can skim in 5 seconds.
* Start → Now: 90.0 kg (Mar 1, 2025) → 77.0 kg (Sept 2025)
* Heaviest: 103 kg (2022)
* Training cadence: 5×/week target with a no-zero safety net
* Race: HYROX Mumbai Doubles 1:37:23 (weak link: run pace ~7:11/km)
* VO₂ Max: 36.8 (Aug 2025) → raising with Z2 + threshold blocks
What's next (and why it matters)
* Run economy: Drive toward 6:xx/km with weekly threshold + steady Z2 volume. Better running carries every HYROX station.
* Station economy: Sled push/pull technique under fatigue, lunges efficiency, wall-ball stamina—your "free speed."
* Body comp: Glide from 77 → 72 kg without losing strength; power-to-weight is the simplest HYROX cheat code.
CTA
!Next post teaser – rules card blur
Caption: Next: the 5 rules + my 14-day log.
Next up: The Morning I Finally Listened to My Wife—the exact rules and my day-by-day, 14-day receipts.
Continue to Part 2: The Morning I Finally Listened to My Wife