 All right everybody, it's time for some honest truth obesity is a choice Yeah, I do I do want to say this before before before we get into it that doesn't mean it's not Super hard to deal with that doesn't mean that oftentimes the cards aren't stacked against you That doesn't mean that there are easier and harder situations And I would even say that people don't and it's not that we shouldn't deal with it with empathy understand and understanding But what I said is very true being obese is Largely very much largely a choice Do you think there are exceptions to the rule very very little? Medical exceptions like less than 10% less than 5% less than one less than 1% less than 1 yeah It's a very very small now there's a a range of sizes that people can come in genetically speaking I'm talking about obesity. I'm not talking about You know 15 pound difference between one person another person But rather the 30 40 50 60 plus pounds of body fat that we see now that it's so commonplace And it and I know that the arguments. Oh my god genetics are to play and it's so and you know, that's not quite true If you just go back up 150 years or so For example, there's the famous pictures of circus Back in the day circuses used to have what are called freak shows and they stopped doing these because They're you know kind of taking advantage of or poking fun at things that I don't think we should Yeah deformities and yeah, and it was terrible, right? We'd have like the bearded lady or or you know the crab claw kids with you know deformed hands And a common one in circus freak shows was like the circus what they would call the circus fat man or fat woman And if you look at these people they have we have pictures of them at the turn of the century They were these people would not They wouldn't turn any heads today. They were like 400 pounds or something 300 maybe yeah And today they wouldn't turn any heads, but they were so big at the turn of the century You know you're talking about like you know 1890s or 1900 That people paid money to look at them because it was so wild and so odd And we didn't evolve we don't evolve so quickly that all of a sudden our genetics changed so rapidly that now Being obese is something that we don't have control over It just it just doesn't work that way. I think culturally we've normalized it so much now that Yeah, you don't I mean that's why I think that that cuts through so hard Right is because it's we're getting so much information about you know What what what it is that is actually like, uh, you know something that is causing you to have this You know, um, obesity this this disease. This is not you know your fault like you're a victim of this Uh, you know instead And and and to be fair like a lot of it is wrapped in with trauma And so there's there's a lot to unpack there. It's not like an easy thing to address Totally and you know, there's a lots of empathy. It needs to be You know given to to people in that state, but It should be an empowering message that you can You can choose to to really address it. That's that's 100 accurate. Um, you can have empathy and be honest Actually true true empathy and love is honest. That's right. It's not lying But it doesn't it's not being a jerk, right? So what I'm not saying is obesity is your choice So, you know So, you know, stop complaining and just go take it or whatever and it's all like no no That's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is It is a choice. It's hard as hell But one of the worst things that we did around obesity with popular messaging and the fitness industry is partially to blame But popular media in general is mostly to blame Is the disempowering message that it's not your fault that you have no power I should say you have no power over What a terrible message that we sold people now. Why is that message? Why is that the popular message? Because the cells 100 the the personal responsibility empowering message doesn't sell Bullshit products. It just doesn't if I'm here trying to sell you a product And I say to you hey look, you know your choices and what you choose to eat and how you're active and your relationship with food That's largely what will change this You're not buying anything for me, but if I say it's not your fault. Yeah, it's your genetics. Oh my god We got this pill though. That'll fix it. You're gonna buy what I have to sell if I'm a politician Uh, I am not gonna get elected on a message of hey, this is in your power. Here's things you can do I'm gonna get elected by saying it's not your fault. There's nothing you can do But if you elect me, I'll fix it for you, right? So it's this terrible terrible message and then what clouds it are assholes and jerks That like to point out the I guess the folly in obesity. The problem is when you're uh, when you're obese Your challenges are out in display for everybody, right? So if you're an alcohol if you're a functioning alcoholic or drug addict or gambling addict or Sex operating the same room and not know you wouldn't know I can't look at someone walking down the street And be like wow look at that shitty husband or bad person, right? I don't know I don't know that but it's I could look at someone who's 80 pounds overweight and say oh, they they have challenges With exercise and nutrition. I think that's why it's such a sensitive topic right there. That's exactly why because it's not It's like you can't um, you can't hide it the same way that you can hide other conditions or issues, right? So You know, it's weird though. It's like I don't think that statement I mean, I was kind of teasing you about my reaction. Um, because I know that there's it'll trigger somebody Uh, but the truth is that that just 20 years ago that wasn't like a That there was no debate around a whole lot of controversy. Yeah, there was no but because this this uh idea of health at any size that movement and that you know, you know Demonizing trainers or health professionals or fitness people that are talking about obesity is like fat shaming I think because of that movement in that direction. It becomes like this. Ooh taboo conversation It's like it it's not it's pretty straightforward actually Yeah, you know, it's like and it and it again, I can say it without Um, without it being that I'm I'm I'm shaming you for it. Like I have I have tremendous empathy I mean majority of the clients that I help most of my life struggle with this in one way or another It's the reason why what we do what we talk about is not the x's and o's most of time It's about behavior stuff 100 and and we why we recommend that people go if you especially if you battle with this And you are morbidly obese that you see a therapist because there's normally A root cause of this and it's not just thermal law of thermodynamics That's the that's of course the the science behind why we got in this situation But it's not the the the true mechanism that has caused us to go down this and so I think you can say those things and and also still have empathy Simple does not mean easy. Okay. Climbing mount everest Uh, I mean technically speaking requires putting the right foot in front of the left. That's simple. Yeah Right, it's simple, but does that make it easy? No, it's hard as hell, right? Stopping stopping an alcohol addiction Simple don't stop drinking alcohol. Right. Does that make it easy? No obesity is a challenging issue But the the formula is simple and the problem is a lot of people in fitness They understand that obesity is a choice from that perspective And they treat simple as easy. Well, you're just lazy or you're just yeah, whatever No, no, no, it's challenging. It's hard But that also doesn't mean that it is a choice that you're making every single day And your choice can be to move in one direction or stay on the path that you are But you have to empower yourself first the problem the challenge with being empowered is it requires The responsibility and the understanding that you have control and that's a hard thing to do It's a hard thing to look at your life or your situation something that's causing you so much pain It's very hard to sit down after I don't know 15 years or maybe a whole life Of having this pain and saying oh, man, a lot of this is my It's my fault Like there was a lot of things I could have done that did I didn't do or there's a lot of things I did That contributed to this that's a very painful realization But if you don't make that realization nothing happens, right? Nothing will ever happen for you So and part of the reason why adam I think the messaging around obesity has started to move in the direction you were saying Is because we're getting to the point where a majority of people in modern societies are obese And now when most people Or obese well the popular messaging now is hey, leave me alone. Don't tell me it's fat shaming and And I know it's not it's not a choice and it's not my fault type of deal Because I get it. You don't want to hear it. You just don't you ever try to talk to somebody who's got a real Issue with some form of addiction or dysfunction and they don't want to hear it. Yeah, you ever try It's it's it's just a it's a losing battle and they don't want to hear it And they don't hear it and it's they don't hear anything you have to say. Yeah, especially now because there's so many Different narratives out there to glom on to that will help kind of You know feed your Your justification of of the you know, well, this is the the identity that now you've you've Assumed so now this is who I am and this I'm proud and you know And there's all these other things that kind of go in that direction that you can get behind and it's it's a whole industry it's a whole industry of Feeding you bullshit in a sense to make you feel better Which you know is something that everybody kind of struggles with that right now because there's so much information out there That you can really get whatever it is you're looking for But what what is really truly healthy for you? What is really truly will feed you? Um, you know sustenance that will will then move you in a direction where your body is going to benefit from it And you know, everything else will transpire. I think that Money and marketing is is largely responsible for this messaging But I also think that the fitness industry is very responsible to I think it's a it's an over correction From the shitty job that we've done for the last, you know Three or four decades. Yeah, we just I mean and look at how we still we still do it. We still, you know Put bodies up there to show transformation pictures We still promote this motivation hype extreme Ways of training and encourage it with shows like the biggest loser. That's right. So I I think that And I think that's the where I have empathy for the the people that kind of side with that messaging of health at every size And it kind of are pushing back where I understand it is that it's it's a correction from the other extreme It's more a rejection of the terrible messaging and all the crap diets. You know, here's a here's another controversial fact Uh people who struggle with obesity Will have more success Hiring a therapist then they will following a diet or hiring a lot of trainers It's a truth because a lot of this was is not Is not due to the fact that you don't know what's healthy and what's not healthy It's it's more around the behaviors and what's driving it and how you feel about yourself and by the way too We're talking about obesity right now, but that is I think that's um This is connected to to anything that you you struggle with in life. Anything that you did you use to hurt yourself? Yes, whether it be uh the way you talk to and communicate to your your spouse or your partner The way you treat your children the way you interact with uh your peers like So much of this is rooted in in the way you were raised or the trauma that you've been through And then this is just a reflection of that. It's just another one of those This this this person is now just chosen to cope with it Through food and overeating or lack of exercise and movement or the combination of the two of them But they're they're no worse or better than somebody like you were kind of alluding to early on that You know beats their wife or freaking yet screams at their kid or you know Gambles like crazy and loses all their money like all these things are Our issues that are are rooted in something deeper than the the the actual mechanism that you are that everyone's being able to see Yeah, I'm sure there's you know, we have a large audience like if you're watching listeners raise your hand if you're perfect All right, I can tell you right now Nobody is going to raise your hand raise your hand if you have a challenge with something That tends to cause you damage or trouble in your relationships or your own health, right? Everybody's raising their hand so Obesity is visible and it's easy to pick on and if you're a kid you get picked on for it And you feel not attractive and then the marketing and messaging is so I get it I get it, right? We're in an environment. We're in a world now where Markets have done such a damn good job of giving us what we want and what we've told markets that we want Is fast cheap tasty food? So that's what we have a lot of and markets We've also told markets what we want is I don't want to move I want to relax all the time. So lots of products and services are I mean door dash exploded because uh people like to sit at home They don't I don't even want to drive down the street to get food I want it to come right to my door, right? Yeah at some point I'm sure there's gonna be a service where they come to your couch. I don't want to walk to the door I mean, I'm we're laughing, but uh, I wouldn't be totally shocked if there was something like that, right? So yeah, it's an environment that's challenging. It requires a completely different approach But that does not mean That it's not that obesity is not a choice that it doesn't come from Choices that you make on a daily basis. And so that's the thing that we need to understand We have to start there. We have to start with the I have a lot of power By the way, I'm not saying everybody is going to get shredded We're all going to look like supermots. That's not what I'm saying. Okay. I'm so I'm talking about just generally healthy. Okay, not You know obesity or extreme in the other direction. I'm just talking about general health, but it starts with People saying I have a lot of control and power over this But boys is hard I don't know what to do and I don't know what that looks like But I do know that I have a lot of control and power and you have to start there You can't start with I have no control and no power over this and I'm I'm this is I am All of this is a result of things out of my control. So like where do you go from that, right? Well, do you do you think because obviously it's becoming the norm like you're saying It's more and more the majority is is becoming uh, you know, they're the majority is already overweight And we'll be say things that like almost 40 40 percent is what I think I read last So based off of that um, do you predict that That will be a motivator to drive traffic into gyms or do you think that it'll become Like oh, well, this is just how I am why I even go to the gym and work out So do you think it's going to impact gyms and the fitness space in a positive or a negative or a Net a net, you know Net zero from it. It depends and here's what I think I think if gyms want to be successful Um, I'm glad you brought that up by the way because I wanted to talk about gyms Also on some other topics, but along with lines of what you're saying I think if we start to talk about fitness and its benefits on mental health I think we'll have way more success and stop Focusing so hard on the physical visible changes that it it provides which it does it does make you look different It does You know, you look healthier more fit more muscle, you know less body fat all that stuff But if you ask anybody I swear to god Go ahead talk to anybody who's worked out consistently for more than 10 years And ask them to list the top five reasons why they like to exercise and work out. I guarantee you One of the top five if not number one is the mental benefits. I guarantee you It's not the makes me look good and I like being buffed and I like looking whatever It's the mental health effects and I think that's what we need to focus more on Could you imagine if people worked out? Just because they knew it made them feel better mentally and emotionally You imagine the side effects of that and what that would look like just a happier society. Oh, I would love that Oh, it's just like, yeah, I think a mental part of it is a huge factor and I I think with this information like we just saw one study that finally came out, you know, that that proves that You know lowering your body fat will help, you know be more resistant towards Uh, any kind of diseases out there any kind of illnesses, you know, and I think that For some reason we just we forgot that or are like the general population just ignored that fact That's been around like we've known that and we didn't need a study to tell us that Uh, but apparently we do and so I think with more of these studies finally like kind of emerging Uh and showing people improving people that if you do make better choices with your food Nutrition and you move more you get exercise you get sunlight Uh, you know, you're gonna you're gonna be healthy. You're gonna thrive. You're gonna be energetic again Hopefully that's the push then to put people I mean that's the hope but the truth is You know media is in the the business of attracting eyes and viewers and nobody wants to hear that That's work. Yeah, that's not sexy. Yeah, it is. So, you know, but the other option isn't working No, you got to make the the pill form is not working. No, no Messaging around giving those people hope that they won't have to do anything about it Like, you know, it'd be a better headline and that will get more attention and more views and more people talking about is You know Pfizer comes out with a pill potentially that could reduce body fat by, you know 2% if you take it every single day for the next five years like that's more interesting And we'll get more attention than all the things that you're saying right now It's just unfortunate. I think too when you market fitness, uh, so heavily on on the visible changes the physical like aesthetic changes That a lot of it causes a lot of shame sell and hate Within yourself very powerful short-term motivator, by the way, right? If you hate yourself and you feel disgusting You're likely to buy a gym membership or buy Supplements or do something in the short term terrible long term the long term It fails because at some point you get you just can't you don't want to hate yourself anymore And so you you end up stopping but a very short term a very powerful short term motivator But again, I think telling people focusing on the visible physical changes Is going to motivate people the wrong way. I think if we because here's a fact and this is one that is just It's profoundly under, um, I guess under delivered under representative, uh, maybe misunderstood The effects that movement and exercise have on mental health Are pro there's no drug that we have on the market that comes close It's at least as effective in the short term is very powerful SSRI drugs in the long term More effective. There's no you don't build a tolerance. It actually keeps getting better, right? Drugs tend to not get better after a certain period of time. You have to change drugs There's other side effects the side effects of the mental health effects of exercise are you get leaner? stronger more energy hormone balance like all these positive incredible things Um, so I think that's the message that we need to push a little bit Which is part of the reason why I said in a previous episode Why I think we're about to see an explosion in gym memberships. I think people kind of are feeling that I don't know if they're super aware of it, but they're feeling like I got to get out and get moving And then combine that with which I think is a negative thing the new fear around, uh, I don't know if you're seeing the messaging around Obesity and COVID but that's really starting to well, that's the thing I just I feel like you know at some point people are going to go back to the grassroots of like what we're Initially trying to do for Improving our our overall health. We all knew what that looked like. Yeah, it's not a mystery You know, it's just been bombarded with this new thing that came about out of nowhere And all of a sudden now pharmaceuticals are the only answer. Yeah, it's not it doesn't make any sense to me Step one, uh, realize that you have a lot of Impact and control over it step two hire somebody that can coach you properly Therapists do a damn good job a really good experience trainer or coach will do a damn good job and then step three Uh, be kind to yourself because it takes time and it's really hard. Um, and and and then you'll have the best chances You'll have the best chances the problem is in the past people are like, okay, I have control I think Let me buy this pill, right? Oh, let me follow this crazy diet and then and then and then it fails And then they do it again and it failed and then what's the message that they get? It's out of my control Right. I can't do anything about it. This is just the way it is and whatever It's not my fault and then you get pissed off and angry And you go in the other direction where you're like anybody who tells me otherwise is fat shaming me Yeah, and you're always in a fight. Yeah Hey, if you enjoyed that clip you can find the full episode here or you can find other clips over here And be sure to subscribe