The Media is Ruining Fitness

By Kelly Turner on August 4th, 2009

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We are fat. This nation is fat, and we know it. Everyone knows it. Every time you turn on your computer or the news we hear how fat we are, and how we are dying of heart disease and diabetes.  We hear about diets that don’t work, new exercise equipment to try and stupid tips and tricks to lose weight. 

Those of us that have always lived a healthy lifestyle know to listen to magazines, tv shows, the news and infomercials with a grain of salt.  But for those that don’t know how to start a healthy lifestyle, run in the opposite direction. Why?

Intimidation and confusion.

Guess what America? I have the answer.

Stop listening to the media.

Everything is too calculated. When you pick up a magazine everything is broken down into minutes, heart rates, incline, reps, sets, calories, ad naseum. The fitness community is too elitist. Those that are knowledgeable and have that information to offer to those that want it seem to be more interested in showing the reader that working out is HARD, and COMPLICATED. Be intimidated by me because if all of this information is confusing to you, you do not deserve to be fit or healthy.

Of course this information is confusing- its all about how your body works, grows, processes, and functions. But guess what? You don’t need to know that crap.

Our job as professionals and experts is to take this information that admittedly is a bit confusing and involves a lot of variables, and break it down into just what the average person needs to know. In order to lose weight or gain the health benefits of exercise, you dont need to know your maximum training heart rate, your VO2max, or your “fat burning zone.”

All you need to know is this:

 I feel this is why people don’t work out. They hear all of this information floating around, get confused and intimidated, and think they cant ever do it. This is what leads them to quick fixes and easy tricks. The terms quick and easy insinuates that weight loss and fitness without gimmicks is hard, if not impossible, without them. I don’t think we in the fitness industry are making an effort to bridge this gap.

I have clients that are 50 pounds overweight come in and ask me if they should be eating more antioxidants. You’re joking, right? How about we try and eliminate the toxic fat that is encasing your vital organs and strangling your heart. Let’s deal with the big, obvious stuff first. The odds of dying because you ate HFCS? Next to nil. The odds of dying of a disease caused by a sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy diet? As an American- pretty freakin’ likely.

The only people that need to worry about these tiny, minute things are those that eat practically perfect already. If that’s you, cool, more power to you for trying to improve your diet. If it’s not, lets work on the unhealthiest behaviors first.

Let’s play a game. Pick any nutrition or fitness topic you’ve heard about in the past week, and I bet you anything it will be covered in the health habits I bulleted above.

Antioxidants? Covered by eating your fruits and veggies.
Cortisol causing weight gain? Covered by getting enough sleep.
Fat burning zone vs. cardio zone?Covered by that 30 minutes of cardio at a moderate intensity
Improving your metabolism? Covered by all of the above.

The reason these “rules” have been around forever is because they work. Don’t worry about all that other crap- it doesn’t matter. Most of it is true information, most of it is relevant to your health, but most of it is also confusing, and isn’t necessary for you to know. If you do what you are supposed to do, it will all be taken care of.

And, besides, you’ll probably get hit by a bus tomorrow anyway.