English: From a Banker to the Founder of two companies - "Makoto HR Solutions" & "The Earth People" along with his Vegan better half Ms. Disha Khanna.

For the first 10 days after ditching meat and dairy, Siddharth Shukla was quite miserable. The 41-year-old Ironman triathaloner—who started training for triathlons in 2016, practising 15 hours a week—took the call in 2015 after a prolonged battle against kidney stones.

"Year after year, I would develop kidney stones 14 millimetres in size. That, paired with a corporate banking job, led me to falling ill frequently. While I stayed as active as possible, my blood pressure and cholesterol, too, were on the higher side." At the time, though Shukla was working in a corporate banking job, he regularly played football and practiced taekwondo.

Though he switched to vegetarianism in 2010, the problems persisted. Finally, on analysing his condition, he discovered that he had an excess of calcium oxalate in his body. By 2015, after connecting the dots and becoming more aware of what worked for his body, he turned to a 100 per cent plant-based diet.

"Initially, I'd feel weak and low on energy. I had cravings for refined carbs, but I stuck to consuming only raw fruits and vegetables. On the 11th day, however, I woke up with the urge to run." On that day, he ran at an average of eight minutes per kilometre. Over time, Shukla says, he noticed his stamina increasing "very quickly" and his ability to run longer distances improving. Even his breathing pattern was corrected. That his hair and skin started looking healthier was the cherry on the cake.

By 2017, his heart rate dropped from 86 beats per minute to 38bpm, that of an optimal athlete's. His cholesterol, which was at a high of 239 mg/dL, is now below 200 mg/dL. "At 38, I decided to start training for an Ironman Triathalon—most would think that's impossible, but, for me, turning vegan made it easier," he says.

For a generation that grew up on the "eat meat for your proteins" advice, Shukla as a top-notch advertisement for veganism may seem counter-intuitive.