Motivated by a broken heart, the guy lost 13kg in 2 months

(Dan Tri) - Once weighing 95.5kg due to uncontrolled eating habits, the young man lost 13kg after 2 months of regular exercise, regaining his health and confidence.

Decided to lose weight after emotional shock

Once weighing 95.5kg, Ly Cong Khanh (19 years old, studying in Hanoi ) often had chest pain, felt sluggish, and easily tired. Sometimes, the young man was sad and lost confidence because his appearance always looked "plump" but he never really thought about losing weight.

“Back then, I often had chest pain and a fast heartbeat. I felt tired no matter what I did, my body was always heavy. There was a time when I could barely breathe just carrying a water jug upstairs,” Khanh recalled.

Khanh before (left) and after (right) losing 12kg has a clear change in appearance (Photo: Character provided).

During that time, the student regularly ate 3-4 bowls of rice for lunch and dinner, and often ended the day with mixed sandwiches at 11pm. In addition, he also had the habit of eating greasy foods, mainly take-out food, which caused his weight to increase significantly.

“I eat a lot but don’t feel full. There are weeks when I eat bread late at night for up to 5 days in a row. The habit of eating late at night, combined with eating greasy food from restaurants almost every day, is probably the reason why my weight has skyrocketed recently. I have almost no control over my eating, I eat based on my emotions,” Khanh shared.

Before losing weight, Khanh often preferred greasy foods (Photo: Character provided).

The story really began to change when Khanh had feelings for someone for more than a month. And when both stopped, Khanh fell into a state of depression. That was also the time when the young man looked back at himself, both emotionally and physically.

Especially, when her health was alarming, the chest pain lasted for a long time, the feeling of sluggishness and heaviness every time she moved made Khanh realize that this was the right time to lose weight.

For him, losing weight is not just about changing his body shape but also a way to relieve emotions and stress in a positive and healthy way.

Muscle pain, hungry at night but determined not to give up

Khanh still clearly remembers the milestone that marked the days of his personal change, which was May 25, when he signed a training contract.

As a student, Khanh's limited financial resources made him hesitate many times about the cost of the gym and hiring a personal trainer. However, his strong desire for change made him overcome everything.

In the first workout, Khanh got acquainted with resistance through exercises for the back muscle group, including three back pulls and two front arm raises.

Even though these were just introductory exercises, for someone who had never practiced seriously, they were enough to make the student sweat and exhaust his energy.

Each of Khanh's training sessions lasted about an hour. After finishing the resistance training, he stepped onto the treadmill. Because he was not used to it in the first few days, in 20 minutes, Khanh could only run for 4 minutes, the remaining 16 minutes were spent walking.

“The first week I went to the gym, I was not used to it, my muscles hurt terribly. There were times when I felt very discouraged, I just wanted to quit. But because I was determined, my will was stronger than the pain, so I tried to go to the gym again,” Khanh recalled the most difficult time.

Looking back at the painful and tiring time, Khanh thought about giving up many times. Each time, he tried to encourage himself, think about the reason he started and motivate himself not to give up.

“I often tell myself, ‘Come on, there are only 90 seconds left, it’s just the time it takes to wait for a red light’. I always compare running time to very ordinary things like waiting for a train, waiting for a red light, waiting for a lover,” Khanh shared.

Every day Khanh practices hard, maintaining discipline for his own goals (Photo: Character provided).

Not only exercising, Khanh also applied a calorie deficit diet, consuming less calories than the body burned during the day to lose weight. Changing eating habits was really a big challenge for Khanh during the transition period.

Before, Khanh ate freely, often eating starch, greasy food, and late night snacks. But now, the menu is tightened, only starch is available at noon, and completely cut out in the evening.

The first two weeks, looking at the menu with no starch, only chicken breast and boiled vegetables, Khanh could not help but feel discouraged. There were nights when the student tossed and turned because he was so hungry, not used to this calorie deficit regimen.

“I only ate carbs at noon to maintain my strength for training, and I almost cut them out at night. For the first two weeks, my dinner consisted mostly of chicken breast, boiled vegetables, and two eggs.

I studied in the afternoon, often stayed up late, and changed my diet, so I was very hungry. Sometimes I was so hungry that I couldn't sleep," Khanh said, looking back on that period of time.

Living with his brother, sometimes when he saw him unwrapping a bag of chips or eating snacks, Khanh couldn’t help but feel hungry. There were times when the thought crossed his mind: “Eating one bite probably won’t hurt.”

But then determination pulled the young man back to discipline. Khanh always consciously had to be strict with himself, not allowing himself to eat uncontrollably like before.

Lose weight slowly, “slow but steady”

Previously, Khanh also applied many weight loss methods such as skipping breakfast, playing tennis, cycling but they were not effective.

Now, he has learned to listen to his body. Khanh chooses to lose weight slowly, prioritizing starting with the motto "slow but steady", avoiding exhaustion or overload.

Warming up before running has become a small habit that helps Khanh persevere on her weight loss journey (Photo: Character provided).

During a mid-autumn festival event, Khanh had the opportunity to meet Vu Tien Manh, a visually impaired marathon runner. The two had the opportunity to share their training habits.

“Mr. Manh told me that fat people don’t need to run right away, just go slowly and gradually increase the speed, it will be more effective. If you try to run too soon when your body is not ready, it is easy to get knee pain,” Khanh shared.

Manh was a special inspiration for Khanh on his weight loss journey. He learned to start small, walk before running, not push himself too hard at first and gradually improve his speed.

Besides, Khanh is always aware of the balance between rest and exercise. There are sessions when Khanh has to pull his back with 40kg weights, divided into 4 consecutive sets. High intensity, heavy exercises make the muscles quickly tired and exhausted.

At times like these, instead of forcing himself to finish the workout, Khanh chooses to rest for 2-3 minutes to recover his heart rate, breathe evenly and regain strength. This balance helps him maintain a steady workout spirit, both limiting injuries and increasing physical efficiency.

Regarding diet, although Khanh is strict with himself, he does not choose extreme methods. He does not force himself to eat too little, nor does he limit himself to eating only vegetables or chicken breast. Each meal is prepared by Khanh to be delicious, nutritious and still ensure the necessary amount of calories.

Khanh shared: “Currently, I maintain a daily intake of 1,000 to 1,300 calories, not wanting to push myself too hard. Instead of completely cutting out my favorite dishes, I still combine pork, shrimp or easy-to-eat, easy-to-prepare ingredients.”

The meals Khanh prepares are nutritious, delicious and ensure calories (Photo: Character provided).

The 2-month journey of losing more than 13kg not only helped Khanh improve his health but also became a milestone that made the young man more confident and positive.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/lay-dong-luc-tu-that-tinh-chang-trai-giam-ngoan-muc-13kg-sau-2-thang-20250805064804277.htm