Rebuilding Control.
A Body Transformation Run Like a Product.
TLDR;
Over the last six months I reduced my weight from ~220 to ~175 pounds (-45) and body fat from ~29.7% to ~12.6% (-17.1%). However, this article is less about weight loss and more about regaining alignment with myself and rebuilding personal agency by using product management thinking to do it. I approached this as a one-year project (9/1/2025 → 9/1/2026), applying concepts like outcome definition, measurement, short feedback loops, and continuous adjustment to something deeply personal: my body. This is a reflection on the first half of that journey: what motivated it, how the system works, what changed, and what didn’t.
Why — Motivation
My initial motivation did not start with aesthetics (though walking around SoCal beaches in a shaped-up body does sound nice). It started with a feeling many people recognize and rarely open up about: that too many things in life drift outside of our control. Over the last few years that feeling intensified for me due to pandemic disruption, politics, war in Ukraine affecting people close to me. All of it contributed to a broader sense of instability, injustice and helplessness. I started noticing that life felt increasingly reactive rather than intentional, as if I were more of a passenger than a driver. It became harder to point to something that was fully mine to shape. At the same time my doctor pointed out early signals of health issues. Nothing dramatic yet, but enough to make the trajectory visible.
There was also something more personal. Somehow, over time, I had developed strange relationship with my own body as if I was operating it, rather than being fully integrated with it. That separation likely started much earlier in life and shaped how much responsibility I felt towards myself. Starting this project was less about losing weight and more about re-aligning with myself.
In short, I wanted to feel whole again, and I decided to apply what I know best: product thinking and a level of focus (that, at times, borders on obsession) to get there.
What — Defining the future
When product teams start a new initiative, we often ask a simple question: “What would success look like one year from now?” I applied the same exercise to myself. I imagined a version of me one year later and asked: “What would that version of me observe?”
The answers were mostly experiential: “I am lighter, leaner”, “My knees do not hurt when I bike, snowboard, or dance”, “I feel stronger and have more energy”, “I like how I look”, “I enjoy food mindfully rather than consuming it”, “I feel more social and open”, “I sleep well”.
None of these outcomes were about hitting a specific number on the scale. They described how my life should feel. As a Product Manager, I knew there would be measurable inputs required to get there, such as reducing weight, increasing lean mass, improving sleep quality. Those were signals along the way, not the goal itself.
How — Running Continuous Improvement Cycles
Despite having a clear vision, I initially struggled with a more practical question: “What exactly should I do to drive systemic change?” My initial research pointed to three obvious areas that matter most: nutrition, exercise, and sleep/recovery. What was less obvious was how to approach these areas without turning the whole effort into an overwhelming plan. So I went back to something familiar. Instead of trying to optimize everything at once, I treated this as an iterative system and applied continuous improvement (e.g., kaizen)— a concept I had grown to appreciate during my time at Riot Games, where we ran agile cycles (sprints) on weekly or bi-weekly basis to deliver game features to players.
Working in “sprints” across the three pillars
And this is how I started it in late August 2025. Each week since then became, in a way, a small sprint. It was not formal, but consistent. I planned most of it in my head during long walks to the Pacific Ocean.
Each sprint focused on incremental improvements across the three areas. I decided not to chase perfection and allow simple changes to stick first, and only then I would add more.
Nothing started fully formed and improvements were introduced gradually often evolving through me trying. In a nutshell, I would learn something new, introduce it, give it time, and then decide whether it stays, needs adjustment, or gets dropped. Sometimes I would defer new things (punt to the next sprint) if I felt overwhelmed. Sometimes I would introduce something immediately if I was curious or impatient enough.
Over time, the system built itself. Six months later, there is a lot going on, but none of it was planned upfront. It emerged through iterations, and it does not overwhelm me because most of it is now habits.
Sources of inputs, techniques and changes
Keeping my mind open, I initially explored a range of inputs: mostly YouTube and online sources from people with some credibility in nutrition or fitness science. I did not try to follow any single source precisely, instead, I formed a rough “average” view and selected what felt both reasonable and grounded. The goal was not just to accumulate information, but to identify things worth testing. When in doubt, I would sanity-check ideas through ChatGPT (talking to it in voice mode during my walks) to reduce obvious mistakes.
What stayed (worth mentions):
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Certain changes consistently proved useful and gradually became part of my baseline.
Overall health tracking using devices became a simple and effective layer. My Apple Health app worked well as a central place to aggregate data across different inputs. I mostly ignored various metrics such as precise calorie burn estimates, as they are known to be inaccurate, and instead focused on trends and direction.
Weight tracking turned out to be one of the most reliable signals. I invested in a good digital scale and combined daily measurements with weekly evaluation. Three months into the project, I also added quarterly DEXA scans for high precision checkpoints. While daily numbers fluctuate significantly due to hydration and timing, weekly averages provided clear signals. This aligned naturally with the agile sprint model.
Walking became the foundation habit. It was easy to start, easy to sustain, and delivered multiple benefits at once: steady energy expenditure, mental clarity, and space for reflection. It also became the place where most decisions about the system were made.
Resistance training quickly evolved into something broader. It started with dumbbells and basic strength work, then gradually shifted toward the question: “what can I actually do with my body?” That led to calisthenics, mobility work, cycling, weighted walking, rucking, light jogging, and some elements of boxing-style conditioning like jump rope and movement patterns. The goal shifted from lifting weights to building capability and doing more things I actually enjoy.
Nutrition followed a similar path. Strict calorie tracking worked early on but was not sustainable long term. What replaced it was familiarity, things like standardized portions, known ingredients (while continuously exploring broad diversity), and a stable baseline of meals. Protein intake became a key lever, primarily for managing hunger and supporting muscle growth. My daily intake typically stays above 100g and often closer to 150g (~0.9g per pound).
My relationship with food meaningfully changed about three months in. Instead of treating it as fuel, I started to appreciate it more. Besides satiety, I started to index things like flavor, texture, preparation. The cravings shifted naturally (without effort) away from processed foods toward simpler, whole ingredients.
Some adjustments worked specifically because they were flexible rather than rigid. Opportunistic fasting (especially during business travel, e.g. flights), eating earlier when it made sense, and adjusting intake based on context proved more durable than strict rules, and such flexibility made the system more resilient.
What didn’t stay
Not everything worked. And importantly, just like in the product development approach I follow, things that did not work were not treated as failure. They were simply removed or changed to fit. Some things stayed for a while, then got dropped as I felt no need to have them.
For example, early on, I relied on tools like Noom and Fitbod. They were useful for creating initial structure, and after some time felt unnecessary. Once I internalized nutrition or exercise patterns, I stopped using them, and it felt like dropping crutches I no longer needed. The system gradually moved away from external tools to rely on habits.
I applied the same to external advice. Initially, I consumed a lot of content from influencers and online sources. It helped me build a baseline, but quickly became repetitive. Hence, I reduced it to a small number of inputs and relied more on my own observations and reflections.
Notably, strict rules did not hold in my case. Things like rigid dieting, hard restrictions during holidays, and fixed eating windows only worked temporarily but did not integrate well into real life (so I dropped those).
Completely eliminating alcohol fell into the same bucket. Instead of zero tolerance, I focused on reducing its impact through smaller, slower consumption, simpler choices and a few lightweight rules, such as if I drink alcohol it has to be great (good wine, or exciting cocktail).
Looking back, I see that the changes that stayed were simple to execute, easily adaptable to my real life, and did not require constant attention. They improved both performance and experience. All the changes that required strict discipline or constant tracking tended to disappear (though some played an important role early before being dropped). So it is less about willpower or strict rules. The better angle, I have found, is the balance (which I am still finding) between discipline and genuine alignment with how you want to live.
What comes next and some newest things
As I progress, I continue to experiment while keeping the main target in sight to reach roughly 170 lb at ~10% body fat by 9/1/2026. I may go slightly lower this summer to explore how it feels there, but early signals suggest it becomes increasingly demanding and less practical, especially given a demanding job and baseline stress levels.
My backlog of improvements continues to emerge naturally from the system itself. Some are obvious gaps. For example, adding a pull-up bar to my garage alongside TRX (cables) to improve “pull” movements. Others are more of extensions of mobility work such as more yoga, intentional stretching, expanded calisthenics work.
I reminded myself several times during this journey so far, that it is not a highway. It is more like a gravel road with off-road detours. Progress takes time, and setbacks are part of it just like in product development.
My biggest issue to tackle in the next 6 months is sleep quality. Despite progress in other areas, sleep remains inconsistent. This is now clearly a limiting factor. I have signals of what might help (tried wind-down routines and small environmental changes such as weighted blanket, sleep mask, but no consistent solution yet).
Relative to sleep and recovery, I am starting to notice a potential fourth dimension beyond physical systems: something closer to peace of mind, which I think will help me sleep better too. So I very well might be adding mind theme to my sprints next week, and going after simple practices that make me more balanced, calm and kind.
End of part 1.
If you are curious and have any questions — feel free to ask in comments. If you are on a similar journey and have shared it in an article or a video, please share as well, I love learning how it goes for everyone else and get more inspiration from the people doing the same.
