At BrilliantRead Media, we always strive to bring meaningful and powerful stories from India and around the world to empower and motivate our growing community. As part of this endeavour, we invited Sahiba Bhardwaj for an exclusive interview with us. Sahiba is a Nutritionist, Speaker and Founder of B.FIT Lifestyle. Let’s learn more about her background, journey and her advice for our community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Sahiba:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey?
I was a copywriter with a PGD in Content creation and management. But during my pregnancy which was a high-risk pregnancy, I developed gestational thyroid. Post-delivery, like all new moms, my focus shifted to my baby and I was also not informed about continuing thyroid medication.
I gained 10 kilos post-delivery and my TSH levels shot up to 95 uIU/mL (the normal range is 0.55-4.78). I was fat, didn’t know how to dress, depressed, terrible skin. I stopped socialising and was miserable. That’s when I got my thyroid checked again, was put on medication again and my weight-loss journey began from 91kgs.
In 2 years, following diets given to me by unqualified dietitians and exercising, I lost 30 kilos but also messed up my skin due to nutritional deficiencies and my relationship with food. But when people started asking me about my transformation, I realised I wanted to help people but not without the in-depth knowledge of nutrition and human anatomy.
That was when I switched my career and studied again. Interestingly, I was not eligible for a master’s program because I came from a Commerce background. So I did my college-level Science courses from the University of Berkeley, California and made myself eligible for the Masters in Nutrition Science and Policy program at TUFTS University, Boston. I also got Lifestyle management CME certifications from Harvard Medical School. And that’s how Nutritionist Sahiba B. was born.
‘B.FIT Lifestyle’ is such a unique name; talk us through more about it, please. Our audience would also love to know what kind of problem you are solving?
B.FIt Lifestyle in fact is a pretty common name. Through my own personal weight-loss journey with Hypothyroidism, I realised several gaps in the market. Usually, the person who is looking to drop weight is fighting many inner battles- emotional and mental.
So it’s not about just following a diet or a workout routine, it’s about making a lifestyle change which cannot happen overnight but is a gradual process. Hence, the take on Be Fit but in a holistic way.
Through my consultation process, the initial consult is a long elaborate call where we assess their emotional, mental and physical health status. At the moment we have many mental health and fitness coaches that we recommend to our clients while we focus on their nutrition and health.
Despite the challenges, what keeps you going when things get tough?
You have to keep the ‘why’ in mind always. Why did I choose to do this and why did I choose this field? For me, I have had a first-hand experience of the struggles that a person faces during their weight-loss journey.
I have helped hundreds of people till now and when I see them make the transition to a healthier life, their blood markers improving, their relationship with food and their body improving, it’s extremely gratifying. Keeping those moments in mind is what helps me keep going.
What are the three most important lessons you have learned in your life?
(1) Believe in your gut – Your intuition is stronger than anything. Trust yourself and the little voice in your head, whether it’s in your business or personal life.
(2) Honesty and integrity – These two virtues are greater than anything material wealth can buy. Work with sincerity and integrity so that you can sleep peacefully at night with a clear conscious. And as a nutritionist, I know how important prioritising a good night’s sleep is for our health 🙂
(3) Faith over Fear – We tend to give in to fear more than we should. But I have learnt over the years that if you have a dream and if you can see yourself living it in the future, then have faith and work towards it. If you give your 100% and keep the faith, you will turn your dream into a reality.
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
The keys to success would be:
> Believing in yourself and your dream/success
> Putting in the work. Be a doer and not just a talker.
> Collaborate or partner with like-minded people who can help you get closer to your goal
> Time management and discipline
> Prioritise your health-physical, mental, emotional and spiritual
> Learn to say No to people, to situations that don’t align with your path and vision.
What should young aspiring nutritionists/dietitians keep in mind before entering this field?
Anyone entering the field of nutrition, health and wellness should keep the following things in mind:
(a) You are going to work with people’s health. People will put all their trust in you. So make sure you get yourself a good qualification so that you have in-depth knowledge about Food, Nutrition, and Human Anatomy. A 3-month certification will not suffice and won’t do justice to Nutrition Science.
(b) No One knows everything – so don’t try to portray that you know it all. Also, there is no shame in referring people to someone else who may have more expertise in that field. For instance, there have been times when I was approached for clinical dietary help for a child with epilepsy. I referred the child to a pediatric nutritionist who dealt with similar cases.
(c) Always remember the ‘why’. Why have you chosen this field? People in this space are more like healers so you will need a good mix of compassion and patience along with a strong knowledge base to be able to help people.
Last but not least, what about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
When I see my clients/mentees achieve their fitness goals, their health status improves, medical conditions improve it gives me immense satisfaction and reiterates my reasons for choosing this profession.
Being able to educate people on the subject of nutrition and using food as medicine, sharing my knowledge with the world is very humbling. I often say that I am a student of life and science and there is so much to learn still.
Every day we hear about new findings from research studies which help us understand how our body works and how food impacts our health. Learning, reading, and upgrading my knowledge keeps me excited.
I have been part of many panel discussions around Nutrition and have had the opportunity to meet other accomplished individuals from the fitness and health industry through my TV show Healthy Tales with Sahiba. It’s inspiring to see all the great work being done by people in this field and an opportunity to learn and collaborate to improve the health of so many people.
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
