September 2024 Newsletter Transcript

TLDR

Key Takeaways from the Video

• Respect for Personal Trainers: Personal trainers are valuable for building strength and endurance but may not always have the best advice for weight loss.
• Different Goals Require Different Strategies: The principles for building muscle and losing fat are not interchangeable; they require different approaches.
• Pre- and Post-Workout Drinks: Many of these drinks are loaded with sugar and caffeine, which can hinder fat loss by raising glucose and insulin levels.
• Limited Nutrition Training for Trainers: Personal trainers often have limited formal education in nutrition, leading them to provide general advice that might not suit everyone, especially those focused on weight loss.
• Comprehensive Approach Needed: Effective weight loss involves a holistic approach that includes understanding nutrition, behavior, medical interventions, and exercise.
• The Importance of Tailored Advice: Each person’s weight loss journey is unique, and strategies should be tailored to individual needs, particularly for women with unique physiological factors.
• Link to monthly video by Dr. Younglove: YouTube September 2024 Doctor Note

Transcript

As someone who has been in the Obesity Medicine space for over ten years, I’ve spent a lot of time helping people understand what truly drives weight loss, and just as importantly, what doesn’t. Today, I want to talk about where we often get things wrong, particularly when we look to personal trainers for advice about weight loss.

First, let me be clear—I have enormous respect for personal trainers as a whole. They are often incredible at what they do. When it comes to understanding exercise, they’re the experts. And exercise is one of the four critical pillars of treatment in the world of Obesity Medicine, alongside nutrition, behavior, and medical interventions/medicines. Personal trainers absolutely shine in that activity pillar, typically far better than obesity medicine specialists. Their expertise is vital, and we need them.

However, here’s where things start to get complicated. In my experience, there’s often a disconnect between what trainers are trained to do—help people build strength and endurance, and improve athletic performance—and what’s required for healthy, effective, sustainable weight loss. All too often, trainers use the same principles for building muscle to guide weight loss, as if these two goals are interchangeable. But they’re not. Building muscle mass and losing fat mass are not the same physiological processes. And when we treat them as if they are, we set people up for frustration and failure.

One common piece of advice that illustrates this disconnect involves pre-workout and post-workout drinks. You’ve probably heard trainers say that these drinks are essential for maximizing your workout. And it’s easy to see why this advice is so prevalent. The fitness industry is flooded with colorful, enticing products that promise to boost energy, enhance performance, and speed up recovery. But let’s break this down for a moment. Many of these pre-workout and post-workout drinks are loaded with caffeine, sugar, and marketing. They might provide a temporary energy boost, but they also raise glucose and insulin levels – the exact opposite of what we want the body to do. For someone focused on fat loss, this is counterproductive.

Most personal trainers receive limited formal education in nutrition – far less than what we receive in Obesity Medicine.  And it’s typically general advice centered around macros – again, designed primarily around the concept of bulking.  They often end up recommending approaches that work for them personally, but the strategies used to help a metabolically healthy body lose a few pounds (what they call cutting) prior to bulking is a whole different process than what it takes to get a body with excess weight to lose fat mass. This is where the comprehensive approach to obesity medicine becomes so crucial. 

As I’m sure you have heard me say, nutrition is about more than just how much you eat—it’s about understanding how different foods impact your hormones, your metabolism, and your overall health. It’s about learning to navigate eating behaviors that are often deeply ingrained and influenced by emotional and psychological factors.

I’m not saying trainers shouldn’t be involved in the journey to better health. Quite the opposite—trainers are essential. They play a critical role in keeping us active, motivated, and engaged in regular physical exercise, which is crucial for maintaining muscle mass during weight loss and for keeping the weight off once it’s lost.  Exercise alone isn’t a magic solution, but it is vital for overall health, for muscle maintenance, and for long-term weight maintenance. Let’s not overstate its role, but let’s not underestimate it either. And let’s stop looking for quick fixes, like pre-workout and post-workout drinks, to solve complex health issues. Instead, let’s invest in evidence-based, comprehensive approaches that address all aspects of obesity.

It takes a village.  Which is great, because we live in a world where people from all villages are accessible now!  We need to use the expertise of those of us highly trained in all four pillars of Obesity Medicine to treat this nuanced disease. Those of us at Heartland Weight Loss are highly trained in the medical interventions pillar.  And although that’s often the starting point, there’s way more to it than just that!