It has been 8 years since I was diagnosed with Heart Disease (Coronary Artery Disease). My blood tests were mostly normal and there were no real red flags. And yet, there I was: at the 98th percentile of calcification of my arteries for my age.
Once I was over the initial shock, I realized I was actually incredibly lucky. Cardiovascular disease accounts for more deaths (32%) than the next 4 biggest causes of death combined (all the cancers, respiratory disease, diabetes and dementia). According to Stanford Health, among South Asians, heart attacks are happening earlier (25% of heart attacks occur under age 40, and 50% occur under age 50) and with higher mortality rates (there is a 40% higher chance of mortality from heart attacks among South Asians than the average population).
It led to me making a lot of changes to my lifestyle (food, exercise, sleep) in ways that did not require me to give up eating and doing all the things I love. To ensure my changes were medically, scientifically and nutritionally sound, I worked very closely with a number of amazing clinicians, dietitians and exercise trainers.
I am sharing a few of the improvements I have seen in my health parameters through this journey to demonstrate how effective these changes have been while being quite simple to implement. Moving forward, I will share my learnings and observations on these interventions through my GeneClinicX Instagram account and on my LinkedIn account, that I hope can help those of you that are looking for sustainable and fun ways to stay or become healthy. Your feedback and questions are very welcome!
82 comments
Vijay Ramanan: Is that Renpho for body fat? Is it with Athlete mode? What’s your Insulin level fasting and post-prandial? Have you cut your fructose intake? RHR 46/min is amazing.
Nickhil Jakatdar: Vijay thanks. Yes, Renpho is a BCA tool so provides a lot of interesting data around subcutaneous fat, visceral fat, muscle mass, etc. I did it in Athlete mode. I have cut my fructose to a certain amount but I have not cut down my fruit content as much. My insulin level is at 4 (uU/ml) and post-prandial needs to be tested more recently. My RHR has gone down even further since these results and as per my Oura ring is now between 39 and 42 bpm! Very excited about that marker amongst others.
Hemant Joshi: Wow! Amazing! Would love to know in detail how you achieved this
Nickhil Jakatdar: Thanks Hemant! Hope you follow this thread here and on LI / IG. Or join me in one of my seminars on this topic. I will post dates here as and when they come up.
Olesya K: Would love to find out more about your updates and seminars! Thanks
Nickhil Jakatdar: Olesya Will keep you updated on the new dates through this forum.
Ajit Kher: Incredible, Nickhil. Lifestyle changes have personally helped me battle MS.
Nickhil Jakatdar: Ajit I can vouch for that comment! It was wonderful to see how amazing you looked when we met at Saeesh’s place. It is incredible how impactful lifestyle changes are…wish we were taught this earlier in life!!
Ajit Kher: Nickhil Jakatdar true that
Vasudha Krishnan: Thx for sharing your results and love your zeal to help others. The results are a testament to your dedication, willpower, hard work and sacrifice.
Nickhil Jakatdar: Vasudha thank you! That is very kind of you!