In Moderation
Providing health, nutrition and fitness advice in moderate amounts to help you live your best life.
Rob: Co-host of the podcast "In Moderation" and fitness enthusiast. Rob has a background in exercise science and is passionate about helping others achieve their health and fitness goals. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the show, providing valuable insights on topics such as calories, metabolism, and weight loss.
Liam: Co-host of the podcast "In Moderation" and new father. Liam has a background in nutrition and is dedicated to promoting a balanced and sustainable approach to health and wellness. With his witty and sarcastic style, Liam adds a unique flavor to the show, making it both informative and entertaining.
In Moderation
From Obese to Beast: Personal Journeys of Transformation
Join us for an insightful episode filled with emotional reflections and powerful stories of transformation, as we chat with John, known as 'Obese to Beast.' In this engaging discussion, John recounts his remarkable weight loss journey, shedding over 200 pounds and facing the myriad challenges that come with such a transformation. Discover the pivotal "click moment" that set John on a new path, as he navigated emotional eating, binge episodes, and the importance of taking personal responsibility for one’s health.
Throughout the conversation, we dive deep into the significance of building a sustainable lifestyle, the emotional ties we hold to food, and the misconceptions surrounding loose skin—an experience many face after significant weight loss. John emphasizes how fostering honesty and self-forgiveness can pave the way for healthier habits and decisions. With candid reflections on how bodybuilding shifted his perspective on nutrition and fitness, John encourages listeners to figure out their personal paths to wellness without the pressures of societal expectations.
This episode is a must-listen for anyone striving for a healthier lifestyle or seeking motivation to change. The narrative offers not only hope but practical advice for overcoming obstacles on the journey to better health. Join us in exploring the depths of personal change, emotional healing, and the celebration of life's milestones. Tune in now, and don't forget to subscribe for more inspiring conversations!
You can find John as ObeseToBeast on all platforms
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Hey everybody, welcome to episode. Okay, we do base 69 here, so I want to say it's 69 plus 4? I'm going to go with plus 4. I believe you are correct.
Speaker 2:You have to think about it too.
Speaker 1:You don't even know. You don't even know.
Speaker 2:I actually am not sure if we're on 73 or 74. But I think you're right. We are 69 plus 4.
Speaker 1:A whole system to help us and it's not even helping us. That's fucking great to help us and it's not even helping us, that's fucking great. Oh shit, welcome to episode. Whatever it is, who cares? Does anybody like keep track of it? Like, oh, nobody fucking knows. Hold anyway. Um, we have someone on the podcast now that we've been trying to get for a little while. Just got a little bit back and forth, we finally got there.
Speaker 3:Obese to beast how you doing everyone. I'm good. I'm good. I'm happy to finally be here. Yeah, that was my bad. We, uh, we. We were going to do it sooner, but then I moved cross country and then a bunch of other stuff happened. But I'm here now.
Speaker 2:That's all that matters we'll just blame the girlfriend for getting yeah, making me move, yeah, it's her fault, we were talking about before this started, just like weather and fucking.
Speaker 1:Let me tell you, man, I'm I'm thinking about moving more like northeast, but like just it sucks. It's like five months out of the year it's snowy and cold. If we move like go straight northeast, we have to get into like snowboarding and skiing are you gonna do? That are you like?
Speaker 3:I feel like, if you go, if you go that area you kind of like, have to embrace it I've thought about snowboarding, but I'm also like an incredibly huge weenie and so like the thought of like hurting myself, which is funny because, like I grew up skateboarding right and I was skated recently, but like I was never good at it because I was too afraid to hurt myself, and so like, uh, but snowboarding definitely looks fun, like that's the thing that like my mind goes to, I think, because I skated, obviously and stuff like right, that's like in my head.
Speaker 1:I'm like that's what the cool, like I still remember like the movies I grew up watching right, where the snowboarders were cool and the skiers were like lame, you know and so, like you know, no hate to all the commercials you have like a fucking what you call like a mountain dew commercial.
Speaker 3:They were all snowboarding well, and then the skiers would be wearing, like you know, lycra, like they're about to do a triathlon, which I've done, a triathlon, and I've worn all that stuff, you know, but like I never felt cool when I wore it, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:But the snowboarders want to know where the cross-country skiers land on this if I did skiing, I would embrace that fully like full neon, like just like bright green. The helmet that goes back like just all of it, you know like malcolm in the middle, or like, yes, exactly, that's exactly what I'm thinking. Think that if you ever seen that episode of malcolm the middle, that's exactly what I'm talking about.
Speaker 2:That's what I would look like, skiing because you just have to like own it is. Um, I've got the cross-country skis and I've got a takedown bow, so I can literally just ski out and to somewhere get some rabbits for pippin. Do you have any lycra?
Speaker 3:I'm gonna have to invest in lycra yeah, I think you do, but I mean it's hunting so it has to be like some sort of camo lycra yeah, exactly some woodland camo. You need to hit up real tree see if they'll make you some.
Speaker 1:I think you should take it up, listen what is snow if not like water in a different form, and water doesn't hurt, like. So you'll be totally like, just think of it that way and you'll be fine. I'm like, I'm totally like I know I'm gonna fall over so much and like hurt myself or whatever, but I I feel like you just kind of have to embrace it and I it's it seems like a fun pastime, because if you're gonna go northeast you have to do that, but anyway, uh, besides, why don't?
Speaker 3:you give us a little bit on your just saying yeah, I was talking to someone recently in my one one of my mods on, uh, my live streams, and she was she's from canada, right, and she was like yeah, I'm gonna go tobogganing. And I'm like tobogganing, what is that? And she's like she sent a picture and I was like that's a sled, just call it sledding. And she's like no, it's different. And I was like that's a crazy word is the crazy word.
Speaker 1:It's the, the olympic thing where they run and then they slide down on the thing, or does that's where they lie on each other, lie on top of each other? I'm I think I have no idea what she said.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think you're thinking what she said was basically just sledding. She's like anything can be a toboggan that you can toboggan with, like a trash can lid, and I was like that's just a sled, like why it sounds too fancy I don't know.
Speaker 2:Well, we got a toboggan while we're wearing our toques.
Speaker 1:Yeah, oh man, I remember using a fucking trash can lid, especially the metal one too. You get the metal trash can lid, that's got the, that's got the handle on it. That would just make way off course you get hurt. Oh, that was good times, man it's good growing up without a lot of money was fun you make the floor is lava, okay, oh shit well, yeah, give us a little bit back, a little bit about you and your.
Speaker 3:You know, backstory, that sort of stuff, what you do on social media, all that sort of stuff yeah, so my name is john, or obese beast, beast, and so with that name I think it's, you know, pretty clear. I used to be big. So for me, like I mean, I could do the whole story, but I'll save like the whole how I gained weight, unless, obviously, if you guys ask any questions but I got up to being like 400 pounds at my heaviest and that was when I was like 20 years old and you know, obviously, as with anyone, a lot of things led to me being that size. But for the sake of time I won't go into all of that again unless there's any questions. But I started losing weight and as I was losing weight, I didn't really know what I was doing. I was just kind of winging it, just kind of doing what I could, and that had its own set of good things and bad things that came from that as far as, like, I'm curious how you started.
Speaker 1:So, like, what did you start with? Just like, oh, eat more foods that I'm supposed to eat, or less of the foods that I'm not supposed to like. That's what were you doing.
Speaker 3:Basically, yeah. So what I call it, what I did, I call it the common sense diet. And so when I first started losing weight, so like a little bit of like, I had what I call the click moment. I have a lot of things that I call certain things, but like I call it the click moment, right where I was like OK, I need to do this. And it was when I was 20 years old, I had gone to a wedding for a friend of mine. I was, I lived in San Diego and it was in Utah and we drove there with my best friend and his family. It's a 13 hour drive, no-transcript. I was afraid to be alone because I was like, if I have a heart attack, who's gonna be here? Like that was just, and it was just like normal thoughts. I wasn't like it's not like I wanted to, but it was just like it was.
Speaker 3:but clearly, that's what's gonna happen at some point, um, and so like these were all fears. So when that happened, it was like, oh, that's what's happening right now, like something serious, and so I was like super scared, but I obviously I didn't really want to tell people that. And so they're like, oh, are you okay? And I was like, oh, yeah, I think just I'm lightheaded and I didn't drink enough water and the elevation change and whatever, I just need some like motrin, right, so they that.
Speaker 3:But again, we're at this wedding and the whole time, like I remember the guys all went out to play basketball and I was like I'm not going to do that. So I ended up like I don't even remember what I did, I just didn't, I just was like alone, maybe, or I maybe I hung out with the women, um, for like at that period. But we ended up like the wedding happens and I remember I mean I had a pretty good time. But then we came back and a few weeks later the photos come out, right, and I remember I at that point I was really good at avoiding mirrors and so, like when these pictures came out, I was like wow, because at the time I was wearing a size 56 inch waist, pants and a 5XL shirt, and it was just like I saw the photos and I thought I looked great.
Speaker 3:But then I saw the pictures and I was like, oh, that's what I look like, you know. Um, and that wasn't even honestly like the click moment, but it was. That was a really important thing. That happened to me a few weeks before I started losing weight, because I think that that that had to put me in the mindset of, okay, this has to happen, right and, and I really want to make this happen. And so the click moment was I was actually this was back when netflix first came out with like streaming, so I was dvds for you.
Speaker 3:No, no, no, I still remember that shit, I'm, I'm that old no, no, I remember that too that's I was like yeah, I'm 33, I remember that I watched de Dexter with all the DVDs and you have to wait like a couple of days and you're like no, I think.
Speaker 1:I was lost with it.
Speaker 3:Anyway, go ahead, yeah, yeah, so, but it was when the streaming was relatively new.
Speaker 3:So I was, you know, using it quite a bit and I was watching Miami Inc and I had I have these tattoos on my forearms Were they only tattoos that I had one to? And I remember I would always think, like man, I would love to get tattoos on my upper arms and like other places on my body, but like I just can't because I'm so big right, that's at least in my head how I felt. And there was this guy that came on the show that had lost a lot of weight and he was getting like a cheeseburger tattoo to kind of commemorate his weight loss. And they started talking to him and asking him like how did you, you know, lose the weight? And I don't even remember exactly what he said, but he's, it was something about choices.
Speaker 3:He was just like I had to make different choices. And I remember thinking to myself because at that point, you know, up until then I it was very easy for me to say well, you know, I don't really have the option to eat whatever I want, because I have to eat like the rest of my family.
Speaker 3:And you know, we grew up very poor and, like you know, we grew up very poor and, like you, know there was, you know, a period of time where I was taken away from my mom and like it was. You know it was a tumultuous upbringing and then we ended up getting put back with her, thankfully, but we were also very low income, section eight, housing, all that stuff, right, I'm sure we all heard that story, but, like it, it definitely made it more difficult and I think it made it to where I was. Like that's, that's the reason, right, it's not, it's not me, but now I was 20 and I I felt like I couldn't really use that as an excuse, not that I really did, but like, I think, subconsciously, it was something that helped me cope with the fact that I was as large as I was Right, and I think I started to realize I just I need to make different decisions. The decisions that I have made have led me to this point, regardless of if it's my fault, right, there was this video from Will Smith that was super viral, like I don't know, it was like eight years ago, maybe, at this point before the slapping right, and I remember I really liked it because he talked about fault versus responsibility and like, just because something isn't your fault does not mean it's not your responsibility to change it right. And I was like I think again. Obviously this video hadn't come out when.
Speaker 3:When this happened but I think that that's a thought that was going through my head was like, okay, I could say, oh, it's my mom's fault, it's my parents fault or whatever, but that doesn't change the fact that I need to lose weight. Or in my head I was like I'm going to die before I'm 30. Right, thankfully that didn't happen, but like I felt that way, right, and so when I started losing weight, I literally just did what I call the common sense diet. So that day I remember I was eating. I was watching Miami Inc, I was eating a double entree plate of orange chicken from um, from Panda Express, with, like fried rice or chow mein, one of the two, and a large drink. And their drinks are humongous, right, and I would drink.
Speaker 1:I drink so much soda and so I was like, okay, can you just talk like the sodas that we have. When you have like a 48 ounces, a 60, 64 ounce, when you get to the point where your soda has a handle, you have like I've seen that where, like the plastic ones have a handle.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, dude ones have a handle oh yeah dude, the super gold.
Speaker 1:This is what I think things have gotten out of hand here, like even for someone who likes diet soda, like myself, as much as I do. I don't, I don't, I don't even know about that, and yet if you have a regular, so with that, that's what a thousand calories worth of soda the amount.
Speaker 3:Dude, I used to drink so much soda, like I would drink a 64 ounce with just some chips in a like a candy bar, and it was just some chips in it, like a candy bar, and it was just a snack and it's like, brother, that is like 4,000 calories, like like it was just crazy Maybe not 4,000, but like an insane amount of calories just for a snack, right. But so I remember I was eating that and I but I remember being like I'm going to make different choices, choices tomorrow, like, and that's going to be the start, and I don't know how to explain it. But it was like I was like I'm going to do this this time Cause I had tried to lose weight a ton of times and I wasn't one of those people that had that would lose like a good amount and then gain it back. I would lose nothing Cause I had literally no willpower. I just would lose maybe five pounds and like basically all waterway, and then I would just be like I'm done with this and I would gain it back right?
Speaker 3:well, I think you, I think you described it perfectly at the start, where something clicked yeah, honestly, and that's that's why I call it that, because I don't, I wish I could bottle it and give it to people. Right, because when it comes to losing weight because I I like do coaching and stuff like that now, like the biggest thing is like I could give someone the best information in the world, if they're not ready and they're not like willing to do this, it's impossible, right, like it's impossible, no matter how much the person tries to help you, right? And so that's why I call it the click moment. But I remember I I woke up the next day and I felt like this weight had lifted off my shoulders, because I was like I'm going to do this. I ended up, I finished the you know the food, because I'm not going to waste it. But I remember I like woke up the next day.
Speaker 1:I like to just mention that Like well, of course I ate the food, though Like I didn't throw it away, I just think that I don't know.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I just think it's funny because I didn't want to waste it, I don't know and. But I just felt like like I was like this is happening, right, and I I went and I got a haircut and then I cause I was I don't know, I was like new, new do new me.
Speaker 1:I know I kind of like that idea of just be like I'm going to do this new thing. Yeah, it was like haircut wardrobe, something just different, I don't know.
Speaker 3:Whatever it is, it was likeons, which was a grocery store near where I lived, and luckily I lived very close to a grocery store where I was able to walk to it, which made things a lot easier for me, which is something I didn't realize until I've learned a lot about other things that make it harder for people to lose weight. But luckily I was not in a food desert, so I was able to just walk to the grocery store and I didn't know what was healthy. So I was able to just walk to the grocery store and I didn't know what was healthy. So I just bought like sandwich stuff, and I think I actually bought pre-made sandwiches because, again, like I, I was like so I just knew nothing about nutrition, right, and so I remember I would.
Speaker 3:When I started and I bought a bunch of water too when I started, my mom used to like, again, she had the best engine, she always wanted to help me me, but I would eat like two sandwiches for lunch and she's like that's a lot of bread, isn't brad bread bad for weight loss? And I was just like, well, it's better than what I was eating before and one sandwich isn't enough, and so, like that's like how I started was like the common sense diet, and so what that entailed for me was no more soda, because, like I said, I drank a lot of soda, like over a, over a two liter every day easily.
Speaker 3:Just doing that alone would definitely oh yeah, a hundred percent like liquid calories is one thing I always anyone that I'm working with or just in general. It's like if you can cut them out or cut them down as much as possible, because I'm yeah you know, I I definitely indulge in liquid calories, especially when it comes to, like my coffee drinks.
Speaker 2:You know I definitely use creamer oh yeah, I've got several cans in front of me right now yeah, like.
Speaker 3:But if you can cut it down, right, like, like in like. I'm not saying you have to drink like regular water if that's gross, okay, this is crystal light, okay I love it and it helps me drink water, right, but like so.
Speaker 3:But cutting, cutting out liquid calories basically, which for me was mainly just cutting out soda, right, and then cutting out fast food, which was obviously a huge like. That was a lot of the food that I ate at the time, um, like you know, a normal mcdonald's order for me at the time. Now, when I say this, I'm like damn, you must have been rich, but it wasn't as expensive then. But I would get two mcdoubles to make chickens, a large fry, a large drink and maybe some chicken nuggets, right that would be lunch.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah it was like because one wasn't enough and so two. You know, that's kind of how my mind worked.
Speaker 1:So you're like, you're 2 000 calories in for one.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah and I I lived in, you know, I was born and raised in san diego. I just moved to massachusetts, like a few months ago, right, but mexican food is really popular there and it's very good, but it's not the healthiest, um, especially the food that I would get. And so, like I would get, like a california burrito, which is a carne asada burrito with french fries in it.
Speaker 1:Okay, um, and then also I would get it depends it's on a spectrum right, like, I mean like mexican, lots of beans. That's great, but you can definitely up the calories a lot, yeah, exactly, yeah.
Speaker 3:So I would do that, and then I would get a quesadilla on the side or maybe some rolled tacos, because of course, the burrito wasn't enough, right. So, like, that was something that I would do. And then I cut out what I called like snacks, because I would eat, I would, I was, I would snack a lot like, and just like on chips and candy bars and just all of that stuff. Right, when I was bored, I had also added 7-Eleven. That was really close to me, so I would walk there and my head I'm like, wow, you know, I'm doing a good job, and then I would eat like a thousand calories of just random crap, you know. And that was kind of the start of me losing weight. It was just starting out the common sense diet and slowly figuring things out over time, and I'm really glad that I was able to figure that out for myself because through that I learned a lot about nutrition. And then, eventually, I started to learn more and more and I started to obviously like lose weight. Now this was before social media was what it is now. It was around because I lost my weight around. Like 2013 was when I, like lost the weight.
Speaker 3:And then 2014 was when I started obese to beast. I guess you'd call it, but it's not like. I was like I'm gonna like. Now people are like I'm going to start a page and be an influencer, right, I'm going to be this, and like that's not. It just didn't. It wasn't like that. Then, right, I started the page obese to beast, literally because I was posting so much on my regular Instagram that I felt bad, and so I was like let me just make an Instagram that's only about losing weight. And I was like trying to think of a name and I was like, oh, that sounds kind of cool, you know. So I was just like, went with it. It's funny because I like I've had people like oh, you're not even a beast. And I'm like when I made it, I wasn't calling myself a beast, it was like aspirational. You know, I'm like, I'm going to be a beast and.
Speaker 2:I was 20 years old, the amount of what's even the word I'm looking for, how we view muscle these days. You have to be out here.
Speaker 3:Yeah, exactly, so it's funny looking back, but I don't think I'd ever changed like the name. Just because it's, you know, it's big, it's become such a big part of, like my identity at this point which and it's a great play on words yeah, yeah, I, you know I it's good and bad, because because I think, like there's been, you know, I've been doing it for so long it's it is hard for me to separate, like who's john and then who's obese beast, I. That's like something I work on a lot like. That's why I have these drums behind me, because I drummed before, I lost weight and I've been. I think I was like searching for something that was me before. I was obese beast and I think that's why I got back into them.
Speaker 3:That's a whole nother story.
Speaker 2:You're getting recruited for the band, just to let you know.
Speaker 3:It sounds good, I'm down, um, but yeah, so, like that was. That was the start. And then, you know, with like making, I didn't make the obese to beast thing until I had lost like the majority of my weight. So losing the weight was its own whole thing. That, like I, you know I dealt with like binge eating. There were some, there were some mistakes that I made because, again I I started with the common sense diet, which I feel was genuinely pretty healthy, with the decisions I was making, but then it went to the extreme of, oh, if I eat this many calories, I lose this much weight. Well, what if I eat less and then less and then less and then less, and then I'm barely eating anything right, yeah, and so, um, I got to a point where it definitely wasn't good.
Speaker 3:I was struggling with binge eating and that was that's this whole other thing. But during that, that was when I kind of made obese to beast and started posting on online again, not because I was trying to be an influencer, because it really wasn't a thing, it was just because I wanted to share what something I was really excited about, because obviously I had wanted to lose weight my entire life, like, and so I was like, actually successful at it and I was just like. I remember thinking like for the longest time I felt like I couldn't lose weight. I had a shirt, shirts that said born to be big. I loved big black. He was my favorite person in the world. I love the BB logo, like it me. It just felt like I'm just a big guy. That's just who I am and like. So when I actually started losing weight, I realized how wrong I was and I realized how simple losing weight is. That doesn't mean it's easy.
Speaker 3:Two very different things simple and easy it's not the same thing, but, like I realized I thought I had done everything to lose weight but I hadn't done the thing that mattered the most, which was eating in a deficit for an extended period of time, like because I was like, oh, I've tried slim fast, I've tried this. I literally do Some classes. A funny thing my mom used to like she would bring it home. I would just be like, okay, I would drink that, but then continue eating all the same food and I'm like I'm drinking Slip.
Speaker 3:Fast, you know granted, I was like 10, right, so I obviously didn't know what I was doing, but like I had tried in my head for so long and I did genuinely try, but I was just trying the wrong stuff and like that became like once I realized that I was like I just need to share this with other people Because there's nothing special about me. I don't like I don't have any sort of degree about this stuff. I don't. I don't have any more knowledge than anyone else and I was able to do it. And I just remember how, when I was at my biggest, how trapped I felt and frustrated I felt, and I was like I can help people not feel this way anymore if they want to, Right, and that kind of what made me want to start posting about stuff. So yeah.
Speaker 1:So I mean how long? So you said it took so how long from kind of like start to where you're at now. Like you know, you said you are your largest. What? 400 pounds. So how long did it take? Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:I mean, the largest number I saw was 316. And so I I I try not to say I was I almost paused and my mom's, like you're definitely over that, but I'm like I don't know, I don't want to be like I was 500 pounds actually, um, but yeah. So I was 20 years old and when I started losing weight I'm 32 now, so it's been 12 years and I've thankfully never really had a like significant weight gain, um, or anything like that. I've been able to maintain the weight, which is like I'm much more proud of that because it's incredibly difficult and, like you know, that's not me trying to say, if you haven't, there's anything wrong with you, it's, it's.
Speaker 3:It's very hard and I've been very lucky in, like the. The opportunities that I've gotten from being obese to beast have certainly made it easier for me to maintain the weight loss, because this is my job, right, and so I don't have I'm not working a nine to five. I don't have I'm not working a nine to five. I don't have any kids, um, I literally have. The only responsibility is filming these videos and playing those drums. You know what I mean.
Speaker 3:So, like, I get it, and so that's not me trying to be like if you've gained the weight, then you're a bad person. It's hard, right, it's really hard, but it is something that I am very proud of and and something that I try. I talk a lot more about maintaining weight loss now, I think, because it's been 12 years.
Speaker 2:Like it's.
Speaker 3:It's been a long time since I lost the weight. So it is there. There is that struggle of me to even relate to how I felt when I was first losing weight, because I've been living this life of a healthy, you know lifestyle for so long now that it is hard for me to completely understand or not understand, but you know it, it definitely requires a lot more work for me to think back on that than it does for me to think back. How did I, what did I do yesterday, you know, like that, you've spent more time in this form than in that form at this point yeah, oh well, almost like at my head by that form I mean the actual losing part.
Speaker 3:Oh, okay yeah, yeah, the losing weight was was relatively short, like um, I definitely think I could have. It would have been better if it was a little bit longer. But again, I just didn't know what I was doing.
Speaker 1:And I have, I have adhd so you're talking about like you dropped your calorie. Did you do start doing like calorie counting and that sort of thing?
Speaker 3:yeah, at some point, yeah, so I started kind of like calorie counting and like. That's when, like I think, like the hyper fixation came in, because I realized, yeah, I, I just it became a game.
Speaker 1:It kind of became a game for me where I can. Just, I just dropped a little bit lower, but if I just drop it here I'll lose this much more, and then you kind of just keep going with that yeah, and that's when.
Speaker 3:that's why I like I really like to talk about this stuff, because people ask me all the time, oh, have you ever felt like, are you ever scared of going back to where you were?
Speaker 3:And now, no, there's, like it's not even a thought, because I understand what it would require Like I would have to basically change everything that I genuinely enjoy doing now to get to that size. But there was a time when I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to maintain the weight, and that was when I was in the middle of binge eating, because at the time I had I felt out of control. I had cut so much out because I had this mindset which I know we were kind of talking about before, like this idea of being able to maintain right. I had this mindset and it was. It made a lot of sense at the time. When I look back on it now, in my opinion, it's a recipe for disaster, and so I would have this mantra in my head where, if you can do it for one day, why can't you do it for a month, you know?
Speaker 3:And so what that looked like was if you can eat 700 calories for one day, why can't you always eat 700 calories Like like if, if, if you can do it for one day, you should always be able to do it and the only reason that you're not able to do it is because you're not dedicated enough, right? Like that was the mindset that I would have and it just didn't work because I would. At the time, I was working two jobs right at a shoe store. It was actually it's funny I worked at the vans shoe store and vons the grocery store. So vans and vons and um, but when I what I did at Vons was I was I worked in the meat department where you are lifting very heavy frozen blocks of like well, they're boxes of just meat, right, that are 50 pounds at the lightest Right.
Speaker 3:And I remember when I would I would work, I would like during work it would be okay, but like when I would go on my break and sit down and eat, like they would have these lip, I would eat this little tiny pre-packaged salad and an apple right for lunch. And when I would stand up every time from lunch I was so lightheaded and I felt like I was going to pass out, right, and like that became super normal, that like feeling of like I needed to pass out and so the binge eating would start happening where I would. I would be able to do the 700 to like 1200 calories for three, four days. But then the way that I explain it is that like eventually I knew I wasn't going to be able to do it. So it was like the way that I explain it is like it felt like there was this like reaper behind me right that I could kind of keep him at bay for a couple of days. I'd like stay back there, I don't need anything.
Speaker 3:But then eventually, after a couple of days he would just walk up and touch my shoulder Right and like I would feel that sounds strange. I would feel that touch earlier in the day and in my head I'm like I know I'm binging tonight. It was just like I had accepted that tonight I'm going to eat all of this food. It's not like I would. It's not like I would make a plan Like I would never actually go out and get a bunch of food, but like whatever was at home I would eat extreme amounts, right, like the best example I have was. I remember at the time I was like getting really into bodybuilding and I was like, oh, refeed meals Like you're supposed to only really eat carbs. You're not supposed to have that much fat.
Speaker 1:So I remember one time I was like, okay, I do a refeed right, and what that meant was for me was I got a box of checks cereal and I ate it dry because just like, with my hand, dump it into the okay, both like I and I would.
Speaker 3:I was just in my head, I was like it was a refeed, but then I ended up eating more after that and then I don't know. I've actually talked to a few people and a few people have had similar experience where they have a certain food that that's their stop food when they're binging, and for me it would be oats, and so I would make oatmeal with, like peanut butter and like it was high calories, right, but that would be like my meal. That would stop me from eating anything else. And I remember like that was a cycle that went on for not too long, maybe about a year and I remember I was really terrified because I just felt out of control. And I remember I actually ended up doing a bodybuilding show while this was happening.
Speaker 3:Um, but the bodybuilding show I, I I hesitate to say this because I don't want people to get the wrong impression because I I think a lot of times doing physique shows and bodybuilding shows, if you're someone that's lost a lot of weight, can be very harmful Um, but for me it helped because I really became I became very focused on tracking everything and making sure I was eating enough during the week, even when I was cutting, I started eating more and then but I remember being terrified of like what am I going to do after I'm done? Right, because, like you see, plenty of people that aren't someone that has ever struggled with their weight gained 30 pounds after like a week or two from a show, and I was like I was already obese to beast at this point and I was like I can't do that, like I don't, I can't, right. Like I felt I was terrified of how people would respond if I gained a ton of weight randomly, right. And so I remember I was like really scared, but at the same time I was like I can, I can, I I've always like I think tracking is great and it's very useful, but I hate doing it Like it's just too.
Speaker 2:It's like it gets very annoying to me.
Speaker 3:And so I was like super looking forward to not, cause I was tracking literally everything right, Like every gram of everything, as as accurately as I could Right. There's always a level of inaccuracy when it comes to track.
Speaker 2:This piece of gum has two calories, okay.
Speaker 3:Yeah, dude, yes, exactly, and like so I was. You know I was looking forward to not doing that anymore but at the same time I was terrified of gaining a ton of weight and I think that I think the way that I handled it definitely wasn't the healthiest. I was still very I wasn't tracking, but I was still very careful. But luckily I didn't have a crazy rebound. But that really helped me. I don't know. It just helped me kind of realize that what I was doing I didn't want to do that and like tracking is not something I wanted to do forever. And it helped me realize that like I need to eat more and I need to be able to eat in a way that I don't feel like I have to track and I'm not gaining an absorbent amount of weight. And with tracking, the reason that I'm a fan of it to an extent is that it taught me a lot about nutrition and about what is in the foods that I eat.
Speaker 2:And the things that I learned.
Speaker 3:Yeah yeah, the things that I learned through tracking I still implement, and so what I do now is, um, the term intuitive eating is kind of dirty now I think, uh, but I like the, I like the term. Um, what is it? What does that call? I used to, I had a word for it. I haven't used this term in a while, but mindful eating, that's what I call it Because, like I'm, I'm still mindful of the things that I'm still focused on. I try to focus on nutrition. You know if I'm like, if like with any of my clients I talk to them about, like, trying to focus on the protein every meal, like try and have that be the center of the meal and build it around. No, you know, but because it's become how I eat now, right, um, yeah that's that.
Speaker 1:So that seemed to kind of help you with the binge eating. Did anything else kind of help you along the way? Deal with that, because I know a lot of people just struggle with and obviously you can't speak for everyone, but just like, what kind of helped you?
Speaker 3:yeah, no, I appreciate that. Yeah, the one thing I always say with binge eating is everyone is different, and especially with binge eating, everyone, everyone's story of how they get there is different, and the way that they can fix it or I don't even like that term but the way that they can get out of it is going to look different for everyone. But for me, a really big part was the bodybuilding show, because I realized that I had to eat more. I was not eating enough, and thankfully, I had a really good friend. He's still my good friend. His name's Brian Um. He had a YouTube channel. He still does, but at the time he was doing like a lot of bodybuilding shows. Now he's he's at.
Speaker 3:He's still a bodybuilder, but he's a. He focuses on veganism. He's a vegan bodybuilder now and but at the time he really helped me be like you have to eat more, like you're not eating enough, because I was telling him about like these binges and you know, and he, he really helped me realize that I needed to eat a little bit more, and so, and then, on top of that, just lifting, like going to the gym and working out, I was just hungrier as well, and so I was like I want to eat more, and so that really helped me as well was just basically lifting more and realizing lifting more and eating more and realizing that, okay, I am gaining a little bit of weight, but it doesn't, it's not bad, you know, it's not like, it's not like, oh, I'm not. The thing that's really common I've noticed with people that are losing an extreme amount of weight is that we get so focused, hyper fixated on lowest weight, lowest weight, lowest weight.
Speaker 3:And you know it's. It's good to have a goal I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with that but it's important to understand, like, at what point is your goal? Uh, dictating your life too much, right? And so, like, the way that I say is like when I competed, I was 180 pounds, right, I'm five, eight, and uh, now I weigh two, 10. And 210.
Speaker 3:And so if I always felt like I needed to be 180 pounds, I would constantly feel like I'm a failure, right? So it was about shifting that mindset of, like, low weight doesn't equal good, always for me anymore, right, for a long time. And it's hard to make that shift because when you're losing weight, it could be taking a year, two years time. And it's hard to make that shift because when you're losing weight, it could be taking a year, two years, three years. However long your journey is right. You're constantly thinking low weigh-in equals good, low weigh-in is better, low weigh-in is good. And then it's really really really hard to switch from that mindset to there might be a time when you're not losing weight for months, and that's also good, you know. Not losing weight for months, and that's also good, you know. Or you're gaining weight, and that's also good right.
Speaker 1:I heard another podcast say pounds for a purpose and I always like that, like yeah like that.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm gaining weight.
Speaker 1:But like there's a reason for it, it's better for me. You know I need it at the moment. I remember when I got into my like I'm six foot three ish I got down to like 172 oh wow, I was like yeah, I was like real lean. I like a decent amount enough to look like good in the picture and then I got kind of fixated on like keeping that yeah and like gaining weight.
Speaker 3:I was like, oh no, no, I gotta get back down there and like I just kind of got used to being like hungry all the time yeah, like in order to maintain that I kind of had to be you just get used to like I said like oh yeah, I stood up and now I'm lightheaded.
Speaker 1:That's totally normal oh man, like I always ate the uh like the kirkland protein bars and stuff like that because I was like oh, protein, fiber. What if I eat two of them?
Speaker 1:then that's, you know like that's a meal, that's fine that's just two of those and eventually I was like I need to kind of live. I need to live a little bit, you know, so like I can get leaner, but I'm already pretty lean as it is and like I'm happy with it. I'm not like you just get hyper fixated on things and it is kind of tough to break out of that cycle. I think just kind of healing your relationship with food. You're talking to other people, you know, and, like you said, everyone's different.
Speaker 3:It's just gonna it's just gonna depend yeah, and like I'm just, I'm a huge proponent of trying to find what works for you, and I think that's one of the one of the biggest lies the fitness industry tells people is that there's an answer for everyone and it's, it's, it's one answer, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Like there's one size fits all.
Speaker 3:answer for everyone, and I just don't think that that's true.
Speaker 1:I think that you don't have to take the body type quiz to find out what your body type is.
Speaker 3:I'm an ectomorph um, I'm a mighty morphin power ranger, but, um, like, I think, like, but you know, when it comes to like, because, like, when I first started, it was when keto was first becoming popular, right, so that was the thing that so many people now it's like carnivore, I guess, but like I'm not. I don't have a problem with that. Whenever, whenever I say this, people get mad at me. If it works for you, that's great, but I have seen it not work for so many people. And the problem is is that these things, they do work.
Speaker 3:I'm not going to sit here and say they don't help you lose weight. They do, absolutely without a shadow of a doubt. But a lot of people really struggle with what? Now you lose the weight, and then what? Now, right. But then the biggest problem for me about these is that people start to feel like I failed keto. No, no, no, keto failed you. All right, it's not, it wasn't going to work like, and so you, you feeling, and then people start they constantly feel like, well, I have to continue doing it because that was the thing that helped me lose that's the only thing that worked.
Speaker 3:and again, if you use keto and it works for you again, again, I'm not talking about you, right? I'm talking about the people that have tried certain diets. It could be Atkins, it could be whatever, whatever insert, whatever you want right, that it worked for a period. They lost 40 pounds, but then they gained it back and then they're like I have to continue, I have to do it again, I have to try it again. And it's like at some point you have to understand, you know, continuing to do the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, right? People say that's insanity. Apparently, that's been debunked.
Speaker 1:that's not actually the definition but it's like heard, that's like the definition of sanity. But people are like, no, that's not the definition. Yeah, it sounds like it could.
Speaker 3:It sounds good you know, but like but, like you know, if, if something isn't working, you have to like, yeah, be like, oh, I'm not trying hard enough, but also it's okay to look and be like maybe that's not for me, you know. And it's like it's about finding what works for you, the kinds of foods that you enjoy. Not what Joe Schmo over here is saying, not what this person is selling, not what this thing is. Find what works for you, and I think that's really what has been helpful for me, because I I have. I don't rely on anyone else's knowledge to make the choices for myself. I have found all of this knowledge for myself and then implemented it and I've seen what works for me, what doesn't, and then I've just continued, you know, logically, through that and finding what works.
Speaker 2:You found a breakfast that works for you, that's for sure.
Speaker 3:Dude, I literally just ate it. This morning I've basically eaten. Somebody's talking about basically eating the same thing for breakfast for like 10 years um, and so, like I really like, so it's protein oatmeal. So it's, it's oatmeal, protein powder, peanut butter. Um, recently, because my girlfriend was like brother, you need to have more fruits in your diet, so I, I cut up like fruit on top of it, and then she also got me on putting like greek yogurt on top, which it does sound very weird, but it's a nice kind of mixture I like I think, yeah, it's good, especially like a sweetened yogurt, like they have all the flavors and stuff.
Speaker 1:Now, like you can, you can mix it up. I mean that's the thing. It's like you find something that you like and you just go with it. I know some people get like real bored easily. It kind of again, it just depends on the person but like, yeah, I'll find a breakfast and I'll just, I'll just go with it for I'll just until I mean a long ass time honestly yeah, man, I'm not even that hungry in the morning, so normally I'm just like, okay, I need protein and fiber.
Speaker 1:So I like the like oikos pro uh drinkable yogurts like 23 grams of protein and like a piece of fruit, I grab that, I'm out the door, I do my workout. On the way back from my workout I have like uh almonds in my car and like snack on those, cause I know if I don't eat that and I go home and be like super hungry and I'll just start smashing things. So like that kind of ties me over until I get home and actually make some make an actual cohesive meal, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:And like. The thing that is important to me is that, yes, that works for me, but I'm also not going to be like let me make a plan for everyone and they should eat exactly this like, let me make a plan for everyone and they should eat exactly this. You know it's like, no like, but the people that I work with, the clients or whatever you know, I, I don't, I don't tell them you should eat this. I'm like, I understand that I'm crazy, okay, and I don't expect you to do exactly what I do, and I think, like with the, the fitness industry, it's, it's very easy to want to prescribe that to everyone, I think it's an easy way to kind of make money yeah, and it will work, and it will work it will work.
Speaker 3:And I think, like it's also easy for other people. They they want to see something that is proven that it works, but for me it's just. I understand that like, yes, this works for me, but I understand that everyone's different right, and so, like, what would work for you wouldn't necessarily be that, and so I just just, I always try and I think you definitely hit the nail on the head with the easy money, though, because it's copy, cut paste, copy, copy.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's a whole thing. I mean, like I've obviously, like I've been, it feels weird. I've been doing this for a long time now, though, right, so I'm kind of like an old man in this industry, right, but like I, right, but like I've, I've seen that so much, right, and it works, but it's like, usually like a you know, it's like a supernova, right, it burns bright but then it burns out, right, and so when people like they, they kind of come on the scene and it's, it can be very exciting and they end up, like making all these claims and I just try. I just try to encourage people that it's about making lifestyle changes that are sustainable my favorite word is sustainability Like, I try to encourage people to find something that works for you, like any diet, like if you're doing something and you're just constantly like, oh my God, this sucks, that's a red flag.
Speaker 3:You need to look at that. I'm not saying that everything you're doing is wrong, but you need to start to realize, okay, I need to find it to where it doesn't at least feel horrible every time I'm doing it Right, like, of course, with losing weight, it's going to be hard. Like you're in a deficit. Yes, I'm not going to say it's going to be easy, but like if it feels like pulling teeth every day. You might be able to do that for maybe even a year, but eventually you're going to hit a wall and then you're going to be like I'm done, right, and that's what I want people to avoid.
Speaker 1:Yeah, cause that's definitely what I wanted to get into a little bit. It's just kind of the sustainability. So you talk about that. You know I've got a curious like what have you done or maybe even the clients that you work with that you find the like, what helps create that sustainability?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think like it's kind of a lot of the stuff that we've obviously already been talking about is really like the, the kind of building blocks of it. Um, when it comes to like my advice for anyone that wants to lose weight, and like the, I swear I'm not trying. I I'm not trying to advertise my coaching.
Speaker 3:I'm full, I don't need, I don't want any more clients Like I'm good, uh, but like it's just like uh, it's really, it's the best way that I've, cause I've only been doing it for a little bit of time, but I've been able to really, you know, have more conversations with people right through it and, like I started the reason I called it. So what I call it is foundations and, like, what I try to encourage people to do, that I'm working with is to build a strong foundation to start up from there, right. And so it's like, a lot of times, when it comes to losing weight, a lot of people get focused. Like, when I think of foundation, I think of a pyramid, right, um, it's not a pyramid scheme, I promise Um, but like, um, a lot of people end up focusing oh, what are the supplements I need? What are the, like, the protein and nutrient timing?
Speaker 3:And I'm like, dude, that doesn't like how many calories did you eat today? Let's focus on that first. You know, like just the simple things. And like, oh, you don't know how many calories you ate today. Ok, let's figure that out, let's figure out how to track that Right, and I'm not saying you have to be perfect with your calories, but like, at least get an idea.
Speaker 3:Right, it's like starting with stuff like that, because the more you understand, like knowledge is power Right, and so the more that you understand, it's much harder to put your head in the sand. If you understand, like OK, if I eat this meal, this is at least 1500 calories, you know, versus I don't know. I mean, it's a saebol, it's healthy, it's like is it, you know? Like is it. And so it's just like all of those things and like really pursuing understanding the things, and I don't think it has to take a ton of your time. It doesn't have to become your whole identity figuring this stuff out. I think I get really frustrated and like when I talk about the fitness industry, because there are so many people saying, oh, I have the answer, this is what you need to do, this is what you need to do, and it really does confuse people, like luckily, we're in a position where there's so much information that if, if you have any questions, you can find answer, but also you can find someone that's saying they have the answer, you know, yeah.
Speaker 1:I think because I like what you're saying there. It's just understanding the basics, because I think a lot of people they lose weight, they gain it back, right, and a lot of the ways they lose it is by doing something, doing something sort of extreme. You remove all carbs, you only eat, uh, cookies. That was my favorite fad diet was the cookie diet. Remember that, john. Do you have the cookie diet? Yeah, you, you would eat these cookies and you'd have a drink and there's something in the cookies that would expand, so it would fill your stomach and so like, yeah, you lose a bunch of weight, unlike the cookie diet, but the moment you stop you gain the weight back and you you never really learned anything besides that diet Well, not only that, but a lot of these fad diets made by companies Beachbody, Atkins, all those they're actually set up so that they know you will fail in about three months, Because in about three months that is the time it takes for you to not associate that failure with them.
Speaker 2:You put the failure on yourself and you look at them and be like, okay, it worked, so I'm going to go back to that. It's very predatory, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and it's it's just like. I think I get so many messages of people that like I mean I've been doing this for a long time, right that I've said I've tried everything, and it's just like it just doesn't work, and I get frustrated because obviously, yes, there's going to be some personal agency you have to put in the work. Yes, of course. But when you are also starting with, it's like starting a race and it's like there's a bunch of people on the sidelines that say, oh, we have your best interests at heart, we're going to give you this thing to help you run further and faster and just drink this, just drink this. And then you drink it halfway through the race, you're freaking, dying on the side of the road and you're like, oh man, what did I do wrong? You didn't do anything wrong.
Speaker 3:That person that gave you that drink did the thing that was wrong. Like you can't blame yourself for that right. Again, to an extent, there's like, of course, you know if you're not trying, all of that stuff matters, but I feel like a lot of times we just focus on you're not trying hard enough. You're not trying hard enough, which is important. You have to try. It's hard. It is hard, obviously, but like there's more to it than just that, yeah.
Speaker 1:I think a lot of you, because and man, this is something I see I'll talk in a video about like, oh you know, losing weight, it comes down to a calorie calorie balance. Right, losing or gaining weight comes down to calorie balance. Losing weight requires a calorie deficit and a lot of the times when people hear others who look like me say that they're also saying you're fat and lazy, and just stop being stupid, and I'm like that's not what I'm saying at all. I'm just I'm trying to teach you just the the, the fundamentals and also acknowledge that it can be incredibly difficult for various reasons. It's pretty easy for me to lose weight. For some people it can be like pulling teeth. It can be incredibly difficult. They're hungry all the time, they have medical conditions, they're in a food desert, whatever it is. It can be really difficult and I think it's important that we try and acknowledge that but also not also acknowledge reality, like this is thermodynamics. You, we have to figure out somehow how we can get you into a calorie deficit without you losing your mind.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, and it's, there's so many. There's just so many things that you have to contend with, right? Because I remember I don't feel like I see this as much. I'm curious what you guys think, but I remember 10 years ago, eight years ago, I would hear all the time oh, I actually don't eat enough, that's why I can't lose weight, and I'm just like I don't see that as much anymore, but occasionally it'll pop up.
Speaker 3:And I'm always like OK, I understand where you're coming from and I'm not going to say you're wrong, but usually from my experience, three to four days out of the week, right, so they they do well on their diet, for you know three days, right, where they're eating 1200, 1100 calories, but then for even, maybe it's even only two days where they're overeating.
Speaker 3:But they don't realize. We as humans, I think we just in general struggle with being like oh, this, this, about this many calories, when in reality it's you know three times as much, right, I think that's a really common thing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there was a weight loss coach I forget his name on TikTok. He did a great video on it. It's like you're not losing weight because you're not eating enough. And then he went on talking about how, like for breakfast, you have like two eggs because you've told that's good, and then you have a salad, and then you have basically nothing by the time nine o'clock rolls around.
Speaker 1:You're just famished and you just eat anything you can to not feel hungry and yeah, that can happen. But the idea that, like I think, the idea that you need to like fuel your metabolism with more meals and stuff I think that's mostly died out. Occasionally people will try and revamp it because it didn't work for a while. Right, like people bought into that. So, like, occasionally, I think it's a lot of, you know, people are trying to make it on on social media with that sort of thing like let's pull one of the old ones in the fucking closet out, let's try that again.
Speaker 1:Maybe people will fall for it maybe they forgot. It's been long enough people forgot that it doesn't work. So like eat nine small meals instead and that's better, uh yeah, but you know, just finding the sustainability it's. It's something that's just like so many people struggle with, because what percentage of people just gain the weight back like? I don't know the exact numbers, but it's such a large percentage it's huge, yeah, you know.
Speaker 1:So, like finding those things that you, you feel comfortable with. Like you can eat oatmeal every day for 10 years, like, and you'd be fine, you're fine with that, like, or you know whatever, like you know little thing, you know one of those things that work for you, and and that's what I always I kind of struggle with, like on a podcast. This was like what do I do now? Do I just give? You a bunch of things like what about this, this, that that try all these things?
Speaker 3:and that won't be overwhelming at all that's what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:So, like what? Every week maybe I just give like five. Hey, here's these five things that you could try. Maybe you'll hate them or maybe you'll be like, oh, this is the secret, like this is what's helped, this is what's actually helped me. I don't know, it's it's. It's a tough thing to figure out.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I again. A lot of times it comes from people having the best intentions and like. Another really common thing with people that are trying to lose weight is the you're very excited at the start, and so you make these grandiose plans. I'm only going to eat this many calories, or I'm going to. You know, I'm going to eat the chicken, broccoli and rice diet. I'm going to do what bodybuilders do, right, and it's like, dude, you might be able to do that for a little bit, but eventually you're just going to be sick of it.
Speaker 3:And it's again. It's not like, like, yeah, maybe you ran out of willpower for that, but it's like, dude, you didn't need to do all that anyways. You know least resistance, right. Like. Where it doesn't feel as hard, again, it's always good. It's never going to feel like you're running downhill because, like, that's just, you know it's not like that, but like you don't have to make it incredibly hard for yourself, right, like. Like. When I think about, like Sisyphus, you know, pushing the boulder up the hill, that's obviously. That's already hard enough, right, that's weight loss.
Speaker 3:But then when you add all these other things, it's like okay, now I'm going to add ice on the ground, um, and then the boulder is actually shaped like a square and it's covered in oil yeah, and so it's like you're making something that's already difficult, which is losing weight, especially a significant amount of weight, even more difficult by adding all of these extra things that you're like I'm going to do all this, or like and like it again. It's things that are usually best intentions and like. One of the things I'm mentioning is working out.
Speaker 2:Oh, I'm gonna work out six days a week, brother yeah, we see that every single new year's yeah, every, it's these people who don't work out, suddenly go to the gym and they think they're gonna do it six days a week and they're gonna do the chicken broccoli rice thing this is the time yeah, and it's just like and then, and then the workouts they do and again, I hate saying they because it feels accusatory, I don't mean in a negative way, right, but like the workouts that are done are way too much to where they can barely move the next day.
Speaker 3:you don't need to feel that way like, and I hate when people like oh yeah, I'm gonna, I'm gonna barely be able to walk tomorrow, good workout, yeah they kind of wear it as a pride thing. You don't need to feel that way to have a good workout. You don't need to not be able to walk the next day for a leg day to count, and I'm sure there are people who are like brother. You're just not committed enough. Whatever, man.
Speaker 1:Like I think that, again, if you're just getting started in the followers, oh man, that's a whole nother story where this adding instead of restricting mentality helps a lot for for people, for the sustainable aspect of it, because it's kind of weird, I don't know like it's kind of weird when you talk, when you come at people with that a lot of times they've never heard that before kind of like to add these foods in and you're like, oh, okay. So they're like, oh, I, I hate these things. So like I can't do it. I'm like, oh, what do you like? Like I don't know, I fucking love asparagus. I'm like, oh, dope, you should totally eat that, that's great. You're like, no, I thought we had to eat broccoli. Like, uh, no, that's yeah, not necessary at all. Whatever you, you, I don't, I don't care if you're like one of those weirdos like love zucchini, I'm telling you, man, it just doesn't have much flavor to it. You know like I'm just underwhelmed by zucchini. I really feel there's better vegetables in my opinion. But hey, if you like zucchini, that's the thing. You know.
Speaker 1:Like, find those things that you like and you can afford and you can work into your diet and sort of build around that just like oh, okay, I like this. You know the classic one. Like Costco's rotisserie chickens are over there, five dollars, okay, so you can start a meal around that. That's already a protein source, perfect. How can you build around that? I always I'm posting a video today about like, uh, edamame, like that's one of my favorite things. I eat it all the time. It's protein, it's fiber. It just makes it easy for me. You know how can you build around something that you like and so that you can do it long term instead of just restricting and then eating only?
Speaker 3:cookies or the fuck it is. Yeah, and it's like with the whole chicken broccoli ricing. That's fine. If you want to do that and it works for you, that's great, but what's frustrating is it's the people that like oh no, it's not just, it works, it's the only thing that works.
Speaker 1:It's like here's everything, it's perfect. No, like, if it works for you, that's great.
Speaker 3:But like if someone else is like saying it's the only thing that works, it's the panacea, it cures everything, it's perfect. No, like if it works for you, that's great. But like if someone else is like saying it's not working for them and they're searching for something that will work for them, let them find that, instead of just like you just need to try harder, you just need to like I don't know, like again, there's a certain person that works for and that's great, but that's not everyone. And I think, like understanding that that's not everyone, and trying to help, like meet that person where they are, because, you know, losing weight for them is something that they maybe they desperately need to do. It Right, maybe they're. You know, there's plenty of people that, like weight loss for them is like it's something that has to happen and so instead, of just being like before surgeries and stuff like that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, like before they, you know, before they are exploring those other options which, again, maybe those options are the things that they need, and that's fine, right, I think that's a whole another story, man. I mean, I talk about that a lot but, like you know, trying not to shame the person, but I also think it's important to like try everything that you can before you go that route. Again, that's a whole nother thing. But like, yeah, it's about finding what works for you and not worrying about what other people are saying is good, like if the chicken, broccoli and rice brother is like, you know, shaming, you just understand that. You know his frame of reference and probably where he's coming from is very different from where you came from, and just, you guys will probably never completely agree and it is what it is.
Speaker 2:If anybody's shaming you, you don't need them in your life. Yeah, exactly, yeah, agree, and it is what it is.
Speaker 3:if anybody's shaming you, you don't need them in your life. Yeah, exactly, yeah yeah, man.
Speaker 1:And then on top of that you have all the people that you know. It's become a trend over the past few years to shame people for eating any sort of processed food or any artificial sweetener, any of this. I mean, how many fucking times like? That's the one of the reasons I had to kind of switch up my content style a little bit, because I was just so tired of just like everything. This is killing you, that's killing you. Stop using your fucking air fryer. It's full of pfas, you know. You know how little I give a shit. Do you have any idea how little, how few shits I give about that?
Speaker 2:I don't care I I have to say it's hilarious that a lot of those people that were complaining about the PFAS and stuff air fryers probably voted for Trump, who, just you know, he changed the regulation on PFAS. He increased the limit of PFAS that you're allowed.
Speaker 1:I didn't know this, I did not know this, so you guys are going to have more PFAS in your water. You know, at this point, give me the microplastics, Give me the fucking artificial, just give me all the stuff. I'm not, I can't, Even as someone who makes content about being healthy and shit. I'm not going to do everything perfect, because, fuck that man, exactly, it's just so exhausting.
Speaker 3:It's just that when you place place that I just feel like placing that expectation on yourself is just so unnecessary. Like, again, it's about for me it's about finding the that strong foundation and building from there, and not like, if you're someone that enjoy, there are plenty of people that really enjoy like optimizing as much as possible and that's fine, awesome dope but like don't expect everyone to have, like you know, especially don't expect the single mom of like three kids that, like you, know, what I mean.
Speaker 3:It's just like we're all on the same 24 hours.
Speaker 1:I'm like we're not all brian johnson trying to fucking reverse our age. Here I'm just trying to live my fucking life oh, that brian johnson, not the other.
Speaker 2:Yes, that brian johnson last week went over.
Speaker 1:This liver king is brian johnson with an I and then brian johnson with a y is the reverse aging guy. They're both brian johnson.
Speaker 3:And then they can do like the fusion and they turn in the one between powers.
Speaker 1:Activate brian johnson he, he reversed his age so much he went back to our ancestors.
Speaker 1:Yes, he's a caveman now the never aging caveman coming to you on fox thursdays at seven fuck yeah, that's how you oh, before we go, I want to ask because I always ask coaches this rob knows what I'm asking but, like I like to ask, um, what's a trait that you see amongst the, the people that you work with, that makes them successful, like what's something they all do? They're like the people that do this. They usually, they usually get along pretty well. I find that the people are able to acknowledge this, do this, whatever it is uh, honesty, uh, with me and then with themselves.
Speaker 3:I think that's really, really important, um, because, like, if you're, if you're honest with yourself and like your expectations and like the mistakes that maybe you've made, I think it's much easier to like mitigate those and make different choices. I think a lot of times when people are not very honest with themselves and then it's obviously me as a coach If you're not telling me what's actually going on, there's not much I can really do for you. But I think, honesty, telling me what's actually going on, there's not much I can really do for you, but I think honesty. And then I would say another one that I guess maybe I'm cheating, but it would be like tightly connected, would be like the like being able to forgive yourself, um, and like not beat yourself up over something, be like, hey, I did this thing, that was not in my best intention or that's not for what.
Speaker 1:I'm like the goal goal that I'm trying to get to. It kind of goes back to your like responsibility, not your fault. Like I guess maybe it's like whether it's your fault or not, like it's now my responsibility to be like okay, so this happened and now I'm going to do this instead.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so I'm going to like be honest about this mistake that I made, but I'm also not going to beat myself up for two weeks just because it makes me feel better. You know which? Again, I say that experience. Yeah, I say that as someone who you know I beat myself up, like so I'm not saying I'm perfect, you know, but it's like, you know, it's about like, okay, I understand that this was not the best thing for me, but also I understand that if I'm beating myself up, like, I always talk about like the, I like the wagon, I like to talk about the wagon. Right, we always talk about oh, I fell off the wagon. Yeah, you're the one that's driving the wagon, right, and so if you fall off the wagon, don't be like oh no, I fell off the wagon, I'm gonna run three miles backwards because I'm so mad. It's like the wagons right there. Just get back on the wagon, like it's not leaving just get back on, you know.
Speaker 3:But like a lot of times you're like oh no, where is it? I'm gonna, I'm closing my eyes and I'm sprinting backwards like it's like, don't do that, just be like oh man, I made a mistake.
Speaker 2:Okay, cool, let me just get. Let me hop back on it's right next to you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's fine yeah, didn't leave you're driving, you make a mistake, you get like have like my daughter just constantly falling over, hurting herself. She's one and a half, she's just like she's all over the place and then she gets back up. She keeps going. It's fine. She cried for a second big deal. We keep going, you're good, it's not no reason, you know, just keep moving. Oh, that kid, I'm telling you, like when they're learning to walk they got no idea.
Speaker 1:Like she just walks straight into things. She's like bam, I'm like what did you not see that? Right in front of you like no, she didn't like.
Speaker 3:My favorite is like the wobble. You're like oh, they're definitely gonna fall and they don't. You're like how did you save that one?
Speaker 1:I don't know like she'll, yeah, her arms go up back and forth, back and forth. Okay, I'm good and then immediately trips and falls over again anyway it's fine.
Speaker 3:And then they sneeze and fall on the ground.
Speaker 2:Yeah, oh man actually, I do have one more thing, even though liam said his was one more thing. I have one more thing, um, which is every once in a while I get asked by people about loose skin, while they're losing weight. That's a good one, and every single time somebody asked me about it, because I don't have any experience with that. I literally tell them go look up obese to beast. If you have any advice for people as they're losing weight and dealing with the loose skin, oh, yeah.
Speaker 3:So, first off, don't trust anyone that says they can get rid of it for you. That's the biggest one, the only way to get rid of significant right, because I lost 200-ish pounds. I still have my loose skin. I haven't gotten any surgeries, but that's the way you get rid of it. Is surgery right, not the? You know autophagy, not this thing, not this. You know pill, not this cream, this like roller derma roller thing. I'm not saying you can try all that stuff if you want to. The reason that I'm I I talk about this so much is because, again, I hate when people have false expectations and so like, just understand, if you're losing a significant amount of weight, loose skin happens and no, you didn't do anything wrong and that you, oh, you lost it too fast, you lost it too slow, you didn't drink enough water, you didn't do this.
Speaker 1:No, it's not your fault.
Speaker 3:It just is what it is.
Speaker 1:Your skin. It's just genetic, right yeah.
Speaker 3:A lot of it, how much of into it. You know how? How old were you when you lost the weight? How?
Speaker 1:old were you?
Speaker 3:how long did you have the weight on you? How like one thing that people voice? Oh, you lost it too fast. That's why I have it's just annoying.
Speaker 2:Yes, losing weight too fast caused the skin damage. Yeah, not the fact that I was lost of elasticity.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah it, and so like it there's. There's so many things that people will say and and a lot of them come down to kind of blaming the person for why you have loose skin and then selling you a solution to get rid of it the solution to get rid of it.
Speaker 3:If you, if you really hate it and again, if you want to get rid of your skin by all means, I understand it can be very annoying, right, and it can cause pain, problems, rashes, there's a lot of things. Luckily, I haven't experienced any of that, um, but, like, if you want to do it, there is surgery, the you know it's very expensive and then it's very painful, right. So I understand if you can't afford it. I the reason I talk about loose skin. So I don't know if you know this liam, but I had a video that went viral. That that's what kind of that's what made me be able to do this, right? So that was that was in 2014, I think, um, and so this video went viral where I was showing my loose skin. It was the first time I had ever done that and I was pretty nervous. But, again, I had been getting so many questions from people online asking about it, right, and this was when Instagram didn't have video, and so I I had posted some pictures, but it doesn't really. It just didn't. It doesn't really show it, right? So I filmed this video and I just showed my loose skin, and that video went viral, which really changed genuinely.
Speaker 3:It did change my life, and so, um, you know, it's something that I get asked about a lot and it's, you know, it's still something that I have. I don't I don't really struggle with it anymore. It's just, it's just become part of who I am, um, of who I am. You know, as far as, like, do I want to get rid of it? I still don't really have any plans to I, you know, again, it doesn't really affect me, but again, everyone is different and you know, you like you might have it to where you're just like I can't look in a mirror and it's like really affecting my mental health. You know, then, by all means, obviously, go go for it, like, do what you need to do for yourself. But I just I like to talk about it because I don't want people to feel like their journey isn't over until they get the loose skin right, I can see that yeah, because I've had people say like, oh you're, you're almost you're, it's like you're almost good, you just need the one thing you're almost fixed.
Speaker 3:I'm fine, like you know, and I think a lot of that came down to like media when, when I was growing up, like the extreme makeover, where they go, guys, guys, before we go, I'm sorry to cut you off, but I talked to my wife the other day.
Speaker 1:It's the crazy. I just like one day remembered the swan do y'all remember the fucking swan yeah, rob, do you remember the swan?
Speaker 3:dude, it's gnarly looking back on it, that's the most fucking buck wild.
Speaker 1:It's crazy anyone who hasn't it. They would take someone who's conventionally unattractive, yeah, and they were like, okay, we're going to break your face seven ways from Sunday and put it back together Liposuction.
Speaker 3:Liposuction, anything, any surgery you can think of they would oh, rhinoplasty, it didn't matter, like all.
Speaker 1:They were like, oh you're, your nose is ugly as shit, we're definitely gonna fix that. And they would give them like all these different, you know surgeries and everything, and then they would just parade them out on stage and I'm like, finally, you're beautiful, you're acceptable by society, and just like like at the time, I don't know, like I was younger, I don't know how old I was when that came out.
Speaker 2:But I was younger, you know. It's like oh yeah, they look pretty now like that, yeah, but I don't know. 2004 2004.
Speaker 1:Okay, so I was born in 91, so like I was 13. When this came out over, it was like yeah, okay. But like, looking back on it now I'm like that's the fuck, that's just a wild show to be like.
Speaker 2:Yeah that's right now. You're not such an american reality.
Speaker 1:it's such an American reality I remember they would always have.
Speaker 3:Well, not always, but a lot of times they would have like this like oh, yeah, there's this girl at work that I like, and then, like you know, like, oh, she doesn't like me. And then they'd like you know, because they bring like everyone they knew to this reveal, and then, during the reveal, they'd be like filming her, like oh, she like him now. And I'm like, when I think back on, I'm like that's just horrible man, like because, even if she doesn't like like him now, now you're just like, you're just shallow and it's like. And if you don't, it's like well, you did it for no reason, it's just like it's not good.
Speaker 1:No, matter what yeah dude and I felt so like looking back. You feel so bad because like it's not like you just get a surgery and then you wake up the next day and like you know it's done like you have. Like it's a shot of inflammation and just pain and everything, and they're just suffering through all of this and they're like I'm so happy, I'm so happy now that I will be accepted by society, like holy, it's just so awful.
Speaker 3:And look up the swan and and ruin your day like I don't know, it's still I'm almost positive I'm probably tonight going to watch a three-hour youtube video about this, because I'm just like I'm remembering I'm like.
Speaker 2:I'm sure someone's made a very now I'm going to be like, after, when I'm editing this, I'll have to watch this part again and I'll be like, oh crap, I'm gonna watch the swan while I'm sitting, I feel like I'm gonna see a video from Rob about the swan on TikTok soon.
Speaker 1:I need to talk about this in a video or something, because it's just the most fucking wild thing and I I don't. Just one day I was like, oh yeah, that was a, that was a thing.
Speaker 3:Like.
Speaker 1:I just totally, it just escaped my memory completely until just one day I was like you all remember this.
Speaker 3:I don't know I'm, until just one day I was like you all remembered this. I, I don't know, I'm not, no, I'm. I appreciate you bringing that up, because now I'm a hundred percent going to be watching a video.
Speaker 1:The worst like just the fucking worst. The gutter like the absolute gutter is like. The gutter fell into the gutter.
Speaker 2:That's that fucking show that would be the era I was watching canada's worst handyman, canada's worst driver, which you know is the like it was. Like it was a show where we we put bad handyman or bad drivers on and they got liposuction. Yes, they got liposuction. It was a nose job.
Speaker 2:No, like unlike American game shows, where it's like you know you go on or you're trying to beat everybody and win money. There was no money to win. You were there just because you sucked at driving or being a handyman, and they were there to actually help you.
Speaker 3:Oh, okay, I thought maybe they were just there to make fun of you. That's Canadian.
Speaker 2:That's what I grew up with, not the swan.
Speaker 1:John, do you have your computer right now? Do you have your computer anywhere in front of you? Yeah, computer right now. Do you have your computer like anywhere in front of you? Yeah, can you look? We need to show him the show. We need to show up rob, we need to show him. Have him look up the show, because we're just talking about shows. I need you to look up heil honey, I'm home. What can you just google that for me real quick?
Speaker 1:I love just introducing people to heil honey, I'm home oh my god okay, so it ran for an episode and before it got fucking canceled because, yes, it was was about hitler living next door to a jewish family, with neil mccall as adolf, is crazy to see it's yes, he would come home and say, hi, honey, I'm home, and it was just about hitler's life living with ava braun living next, a Jewish family, and they I want to know the other episodes. They only aired one before. They were like what the fuck? Who?
Speaker 3:I'm home. It's a British show with his Jew neighbors. Heil honey, I'm home is a British sitcom written by John Jeff Atkinson.
Speaker 1:Shout out to Jeff, I guess that's crazy, it's wild, and you just like I need to just introduce that to people so that they know it existed not to like.
Speaker 3:You have to go watch it really, but like you, I just think people need to know.
Speaker 2:That was a thing incredible, I think we need to have a live viewing on the patreon.
Speaker 1:We'll get. Yes, we'll get john, we'll get kevin in here we need to get people and just watch the only episode of heil honey, I'm home, because people sat around, came up with that idea, agreed on the idea, got actors, shot it and produced it and put it on air.
Speaker 3:I mean, let's be real. I mean, I think the best thing we can do right now is normalize Hitler, you know? I think that that's we're already halfway there let's go. I know, have you seen Elon? I mean, he's already getting it started. We're good.
Speaker 1:There's no way else to end it. But this don't be your worst. And go look up the swan and Heil honey, I'm home and go look up a beast to beast. Oh and yes, give your pluggables to worry.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Just obese to be some pretty much everything. Any any social media platform type that in I should pop up.
Speaker 2:Yes, it was great Cause, like my I've said this a couple times the three people that influenced me most when I started getting into fitness one was John Meadows, which he's not with us anymore. I won't we won't ever get to have him on the show, but there was Kevin Meyer, who's been on a couple times.
Speaker 3:And now we have you so well. Thank you. No, I I appreciate that, man, because I think what you're doing is awesome, so the fact that I was any part of that makes me really happy, and also, I know kevin very well and he's a great dude.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, yeah, that's awesome yeah, we'll get you on one of our uh, that would be fun round tables I would love that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that'd be fun oh yeah, that'd be great.
Speaker 1:That'd be great.
