A couple weeks back I posted a blog including a couple great articles by Anthony Colpo on hormones in response to training and not getting duped in the fitness industry.  Then, just over a week ago, a new post by Anthony came up in my RSS Reader where he basically tells those who are overweight to “get off their fat lazy ass” and do something about it.  He then procedes to tell those with obesity to “Harden the F*ck Up”.

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To be honest, I was going to leave this alone because I figured people would just read it and create their own opinions, but after a concerned email from a reader of my blog (a trainer himself I believe) I felt that I had to say my piece.  Mainly, I just want to state that Anthony is obviously a very bright guy in terms of his ability to understand research and apply it in those who are simply to follow the key cardinal rules for fat loss of eating less and exercising more.  Unfortunately, I feel that Anthony has largely ignored a huge segment of the amount of research done on obesity that suggests that, while this is PART of the solution, there are likely many other factors playing into excess body weight.

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Those with obesity and excess body weight often face off against genetics, epigenetic programming (changes in utero as a result of maternal diet), lack of access to exercise facilities, mental health issues, history of physical and/or sexual abuse, and various other barriers.  This is NOT to say that these should serve as excuses, but that they need to be addressed to facilite long term lifestyle change.  Other methods of simply addressing dietary and exercise habits are addressing the symptoms and not the cause which has obviously not worked in North America and around the world.

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In short, I do agree to some extent that people have to harden up to some degree and become personally accountable for their health.  A lot of people are making a LOT of excuses and this needs to stop.  However, I think that simply telling them to “get off their lazy ass” probably isn’t going to do much good in terms of actually affecting a global change.  I think that even those with  smaller amounts of weight to lose are facing many of the same issues as those who are very obese, but on a smaller scale.  I believe that it isn’t a fat versus lean scenario, but that it is a spectrum and that it would be wise for ANYONE involved in fat loss to educate themselves on obesity despite their own personal beliefs on the subject.

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In terms of resources, I have said numerous times that those dealing with weight/fat loss are doing themselves a disservice if they are not reading Dr. Sharma’s blog as I feel this is one of the most comprehensive sites for gaining insight into evidence based weight management.  Also, The Journal of Obesity (which is FREE by the way) is a great place to stay on top of some of the literature.

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My hope is that Anthony’s remarks won’t turn anyone off from reading the great content he does have, but that perhaps he (and others bright folks like him), will open up their eyes to the realm of possibilities if they were to take in research coming from a difference perspective.  I also don’t mean to belittle Anthony as I think he’s a really smart dude.  Before studying Dr. Sharma’s blog over a year ago I might’ve written the same thing.  I just wanted to share my thoughts in the hopes that people could be more open to the world of obesity research and how it ties in to fat loss in every day people.

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Am I way off base here?  What do you think?

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Last week I had a guest blog posted on the blog of Bret Contreras talking about the growth hormone myth only to find out that my friend Anoop Balachandran had already review this HERE.  More to the point research hound Anthony Colpo takes us to school reviewing the phenomenon extensively in a two part article HERE and HERE.

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However, the point of this blog isn’t to rehash the same point over and over (although this might be of benefit if didn’t hit home the first time), but to let you know if an incredible article the I discovered on Anthony Colpo’s site that I think is a MUST READ for any fitness professional. 

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How to Become an Easily-Brainwashed Sucker in 5 Easy Steps summarizes several very important points I think that we all need to understand when learning and sharing information.  If you read nothing else today, make sure you check out Anthony’s great article HERE.

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