{"id":37,"date":"2013-12-09T04:31:38","date_gmt":"2013-12-09T12:31:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/?p=37"},"modified":"2014-03-09T13:03:33","modified_gmt":"2014-03-09T20:03:33","slug":"the-moment-that-changes-everything","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/2013\/12\/09\/the-moment-that-changes-everything\/","title":{"rendered":"The Moment That Changes Everything"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jay Diamond<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

\"JD<\/a><\/p>\n

It was a chilly December\u00a0 afternoon. London, 2008. I was late for the tube \u2013 so I bundled up, walked swiftly around the corner, through the turnstile, when I heard the train arriving. That meant I had about one minute \u2013 let the dash begin. I leaped up several flights of stairs to make it onto the train by a whisker\u2026 and then my life changed.<\/p>\n

I realized that I couldn\u2019t catch my breath.\u00a0 I\u2019d been in London 2 months, sampling loads of British culture (i.e. pubs \u2013 in which they have beer and any vegetable you want, as long as its potatoes, chipped, and fried).\u00a0 I was in the worst shape of my life. But this was bad\u2026 I was hyperventilating and starting to panic.<\/p>\n

Most people have a moment when they turn a significant corner in life, and for me it was on that subway train in London.\u00a0 I recovered from my perceived near-death experience and vowed not to let it happen again. I joined a gym at age 43 for the first time in my life and began wading through the labyrinth of extraordinary health claims, myriads of supplements, and wads of get-ripped-quick routines. In the last 5 years, I\u2019ve gone from the worst shape of my life to the best \u2013 vastly exceeding what I thought was possible and resetting my \u201cupper limit\u201d too many times to count. I\u2019ve gone from the stereotypical computer geek to being ripped \u2013 and I\u2019m just getting started.<\/p>\n

And that brings me to this blog \u2013 an exploration of bodybuilding under the magnifying glass of scientific skepticism. By \u201cbodybuilding\u201d I\u2019m not necessarily talking about competition level. I\u2019m talking about building your body methodically with science and a lot of hard work – pushing yourself to the limit with every workout. Some examples of \u201caverage\u201d people who fall into this definition of bodybuilding \u2013 many of which you\u2019d never know by looking at them:<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I had lunch with a woman at TAM who was told by her doctor that she\u2019d soon be in a wheelchair. She decided to alter her trajectory. Although still heavy-set, she\u2019d lost a significant amount of weight in the last 2 years with routine and progressively increasing physical activity, diet, and tenacity. The doctor was correct \u2013 had she maintained her previous trajectory, she\u2019d be in trouble. Instead, she decided to methodically improve her health a fitness level.
\nAnd she was just getting started.
\nThis woman is a BODYBUILDER.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Several friends in their 50s and 60s are CrossFit<\/a> junkies. When they describe their workouts, even lifelong athletes find their achievements remarkable. The lifelong non-athletes simply can\u2019t believe what they can achieve with basic equipment and hard work.
\nAnd they are just getting started.
\nThese people are BODYBUILDERS.<\/p>\n

My purely anecdotal account of most people at the gym:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. <5%: Genetically gifted. These people go into the gym and pretend to work out. A combination of lucky genes and youth allows them to put on a show for themselves or others, but they aren\u2019t really pushing themselves. Often seen carrying 5lb. weights and occasionally grimacing under the strain.<\/li>\n
  2. ~10%: Methodical bodybuilders. Usually carrying a log book, they can be at any age, body-type, or level of activity and push themselves to their limits throughout the workout. They keep track of activity levels, various aspects of dietary intake, and often consult with experts on improvements.<\/li>\n
  3. >85%: Civilians. Think they are in groups 1 or 2 \u2013 mostly group 1 (as demonstrated by the 5lb. weights and occasional grimace). It\u2019s great to keep moving throughout your life, but gains and change come from mixing it up and pushing limits. This group does none of that \u2013 or at least they wouldn\u2019t know it if they were. Often seen on phones while on a treadmill, occasionally doing what group 2 would call a \u201clight day\u201d, this is at best maintaining status quo and at worst self-deluding themselves into believing that they are fit and improving. I was in this group for years (believing that I was in group 2). While often seeing personal trainers, you can spot them being \u201cworked out\u201d by their trainers\u2026 as a kind of crutch to taking responsibility for their health.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This introductory blog entry contains several anecdotes \u2013 but future blogs will rely heavily on references, research, and evidence (with the occasional anecdote). My personal anecdotes usually mean that there MAY<\/i> be something there \u2013 but please don\u2019t take them as evidence.\u00a0 Please take evidence as evidence. Expect regular articles on supplements, workouts, psychology, and my favorite \u2013 debunking bodybuilding scams\u2026<\/p>\n

    Disclaimer:<\/strong> I\u2019m not a doctor, nor do I pretend to be one. Before you attempt any physical exercise routine, check with a doctor. Not a naturopath, not a homeopath, not a chiropractor, not your feng shui consultant, not a Reiki master, not your neighbor, but your GP with a real medical degree from a real accredited institution of medicine.\u00a0 Dietary supplements will affect people differently \u2013 my comments will generally be related to MOST people in MOST situations unless otherwise stated, and you should consult a doctor before trying anything discussed in the blog.<\/p>\n

    And don\u2019t take my word for it\u2026 please do your own research, be skeptical, and tell me what you\u2019ve learned.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    \n

    \"JD<\/a><\/p>\n

    Jay Diamond<\/strong> is the founder of Reason4Reason<\/a> \u2013 a skeptical activist group based in the San Francisco bay area. He holds dual masters degrees in engineering and business and has managed both startup companies and hundred-million-dollar programs for Fortune 50 companies. Growing up in Canada, he performed magic, studied science, and became aware of the skeptical movement. Jay has lectured around the world on science & technology, business, and skepticism.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    It was a chilly December afternoon. London, 2008. I was late for the tube \u2013 so I bundled up, walked swiftly around the corner, through the turnstile, when I heard the train arriving. That meant I had about one minute \u2013 let the dash begin. I leaped up several flights of stairs to make it onto the train by a whisker\u2026 and then my life changed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,5,30,26],"tags":[55],"class_list":["post-37","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-featured","category-fitness","category-jay-diamond","category-skepticism","tag-vitaminj"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skepticink.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}