Strength Training Routine From A Cardiologist Who Lost 30 Pounds, Got Fit

• Losing weight and gaining muscle, the cardiologist said he only exercises three days a week.
• His coach shared the exercises and tips that helped him achieve a lasting fitness transformation.
• Consistency and building small but meaningful changes over time was key to his success.

When cardiologist Dr. Amar Sherry wanted to take control of his health last year to set a better example for his patients, he knew his busy schedule meant he didn’t have time to spend hours in the gym.

But with the right diet and exercise plan, he was able to Lose 30 pounds and gain muscle While you only go to the gym three days a week.

The most important part of building muscle and burning fat, Sher told Insider, is consistency, and finding exercises he can stick with over time.

“The most important thing was staying consistent with it. It wasn’t fancy. The core exercises and the gradual overload helped me lose weight and gain strength and muscle mass,” he said. “Stick to the plan for weeks on end, and that’s when I see results.”

For help, Cher reached out to Kunal Makwana, Coach and Director at Fitness cam.

Makwana told Insider he’s based out of London but often does training remotely (as he did with Cher), specializes in fitness transformations, especially for people of South Asian heritage, and loves working with busy professionals like doctors and lawyers.

“The goal is not just to get them in shape, we want them to stay fit as well,” Makwana said.

He said Cher’s training plan was simple and designed to build total body muscle and strength with just 45 minutes of gym time, three days a week. He has also worked with Cher to add Quick and easy daily habits To help him get better health and maintain his results in the long run.

A fitness transformation starts with building habits

Makwana said the first thing he does with any client is assess what they’re actually doing. For the first two weeks of training, he makes small adjustments towards healthy habits.

“In the beginning, we don’t change much. Our philosophy is less is more, to avoid confusing people,” Makwana said. “We want to create sustainability from day one, so when they get to the next stages it’s easier for them.”

He said The first few steps towards a healthier routine are very simple and easy, often has clients wanting to move faster, or asking “Is that it?” But sticking to a steady pace, even if it seems slow at first, pays off in the long run, according to Makwana.

For Cher, that meant an addition More walking To his day, encouraging him to continue his hobby of teaching Bollywood-inspired dance fitness classes.

“He didn’t have a structured training plan,” Makwana said. “We got him moving. The dancing was great from an activity perspective, but he wasn’t moving all day.”

Three workouts a week is enough to build muscle and lose fat

After the initial phase of habit-building, Makwana began to focus on losing fat and building muscle by making Cher’s sparse workout sessions more regular.

As a doctor, he worked long hours, so a realistic goal was three sessions a week of about 45 minutes each.

The program designed by Makwana follows a split exerciseWhich means that each session had a different focus. For Cher, one day a week was set aside for an upper-body workout, one day for a lower-body workout, and one day a combination of the two.

A typical workout involves four sets of 12 to 15 repetitions, with about a minute of rest between sets.

After the initial phase of habit-building, Makwana began to focus on losing fat and building muscle by making Cher’s sparse workout sessions more regular.

As a doctor, he worked long hours, so a realistic goal was three sessions a week of about 45 minutes each.

The program designed by Makwana follows a split exerciseWhich means that each session had a different focus. For Cher, one day a week was set aside for an upper-body workout, one day for a lower-body workout, and one day a combination of the two.

A typical workout involves four sets of 12 to 15 repetitions, with about a minute of rest between sets.

The upper body exercises included exercises for the shoulders, chest, arms and back:

His lower-body workouts included exercises to target the glutes, quads and hamstrings such as:

Makwana said Cher stuck to the same exercises from week to week to make it easier to track his progress and to know he was getting stronger, as he was able to put on more weight over time.

“We didn’t change training for no reason because we wanted him to get stronger,” he said.

To build strength and muscle, it is essential to keep challenging your muscles to stimulate them to grow back bigger and stronger, a principle known as progressive overload.

What has changed over time are the repetitions – as Scheer gained strength, his workouts shifted to sets of 6-10 repetitions, but with heavier weight and longer rest periods to improve his recovery.

Save time in the gym with a functional warm-up

Since Cher had less than an hour to spend in the gym, there was no time to waste. However, warming up helps prevent injury and makes the exercise more effective. But instead of starting with 20 minutes on the treadmill, Makwana made the warm-up process more efficient using the exercises he was doing, but with much less weight.

“We didn’t do a traditional cardio warm-up. We started with a lighter version of the same moves for the first few sets,” he said.

Warming up with the same movement patterns you use for working sets can help activate and target the appropriate muscle groups for a better workout.

To lose weight and keep it off, you need a sustainable routine

Previously, trying to stay healthy, Cher would motivate and start going to the gym, but backs off when his schedule gets busy or other distractions take over.

The biggest difference for Cher in working with a trainer and following a fitness program was that he was able to stay on track for months, according to Makwana.

By gradually ramping up his workouts and adding more and more healthy habits, rather than trying to fix everything at once, it became a natural part of his routine and easy to stick with after the initial transformation was over.

“These little things add up over time,” Makwana said. “It’s about playing fitness as an endless game rather than a turnaround that takes a few weeks.”