Last year, senior Hugo Castejon decided it was time to change his body and lifestyle.

The gym, however, did not satisfy his craving to achieve the ideal body. He began counting every calorie he consumed with the forethought of how he would burn them off.

“I started restricting myself in terms of eating,” Castejon said. The sudden decision to lose weight came from a deep lack of confidence that had festered over time.

“I had this cover that everything was okay and I played it off like nothing was wrong,” Castejon said. “But I still felt uncomfortable.”

With the media constantly relaying the message that thin was best, it was hard to be confident with the increasing insecurities.

“A lot of people who are overweight say, ‘I love myself, I’m beautiful,’” Castejon said. “But at the end of the day, how can you really feel like that in the society that we live in?”

According to his close friend senior Aathi Parthiban, Castejon became obsessed with altering his body image. When he first confronted her about his decision to try and lose weight Parthiban was in complete agreement. “If you want to better yourself,” she said to him, “of course I’ll be supportive.”

Yet as time went on, Parthiban could clearly see that what had started out as a way to boost confidence in her friend had turned into an unhealthy habit. Castejon began using a motivational journal in which he kept pictures of different models. She soon realized there wasn’t anything she could do to help.

“You can only do so much when someone doesn’t want to eat,” she said. “You can’t shove [food] down their throats.”

The desperation to lose weight and find his ideal body gradually escalated into one too many trips to the gym and veggie detoxes.

“I was tired. I didn’t look as happy anymore,” Castejon said. “I realized it wasn’t a lifestyle I could maintain forever.”

With many of those close to him warning that he was getting too thin Castejon decided to ease up on the slim down. He still frequently exercises but no longer limits his eating habits. It has been a long road to finding confidence but Parthiban said, “He’s comfortable where he is now.”