To Lift Heavy Things

"I have a proof-based confidence system. I need to see results to feel confident.”

I’ve known Megha as a very cool designer and illustrator living her best life in London - looking amazing in every single selfie. She also happens to be my partner’s best friend, so yes, I’m hoping to earn a few brownie points here.

On what makes her feel good, she sent me an 18-minute voice note (her words: “professional yapper”) that covered everything from gym awkwardness to neuroplasticity. It’s full of humour, honesty, and the kind of chaos-strength combo that makes you feel like you’re not alone.

This is her story: about strength training, moving through the fog, and slowly building the kind of brain that believes in you.

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Strength Training (and the Chaos It Quietly Fixes)

What’s something that makes you feel good?

“Working out… specifically strength training slash moving my body.”

Megha’s had an on-again, off-again relationship with gyms since 2018. At first, it was a social thing, then a lockdown coping mechanism. But the moment it really clicked came in the middle of a particularly bleak London winter.

“Even if I didn’t train properly, I’d just go — just to step outside. It became one of the only things that gave my day structure. It gets dark at 3:30 p.m. here. Like pitch dark. And I was working from home, sick for two weeks, eating buttered toast for dinner, and hadn’t left the house at all. I realised I hadn’t had a single in-person interaction. It hit me like a truck.”

She didn’t join the gym for a glow-up. She just needed to get out of the house.

At first, it was painfully awkward. She imagined people staring at her form, judging her reps.

“The gym was split across three floors, and in four months, I only went to the free weights section once.”

“There were so many voices in my head.”

But she went anyway. Day after day.

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Why does it work for you?

“I have a proof-based confidence system. I need to see results to feel confident.”

Lifting gave her proof.

“The fact that I was able to lift more than before… it did something to my brain,” she says. “If your brain tells you you can’t do something, but you go ahead and do it — something changes. And you start believing in yourself a little more.”

It started as a reason to step outside, and slowly, it seeped into everything: her work, her food habits, her energy levels, even the clothes she felt confident wearing.

“I don’t see gym time as wasted time. It’s time spent being good to my body.”

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Can you describe a moment that stood out?

“Deadlifting 70 kilos. I never thought I’d be able to do that. But I did.”

Even something as basic as carrying groceries without getting breathless became a quiet personal victory. She’s still chasing her first pull-up (“Not asking for a lot. Just one.”), but every small bit of progress makes her want to keep going.

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Would you recommend this to someone else?

Megha swears by a quote from actor Hrithik Roshan that sums up how she feels about her journey:

“Take your body to its fittest potential once. Know that address. If you don’t like it, you can go back. But how can you say it’s not for you if you’ve never been there?”

There are plenty of physical benefits: better bone health, more energy, ageing well. But for Megha, it’s the mental shift that matters most.

“It gives you proof. That you can do hard things. That you’re not stuck. That your body can surprise you.”

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You can see Megha’s work (and workouts) at @meghasharmaa_ on Instagram.