Why Are Fitness Influencers DYING? Surgeon Explains | Dr Chris Raynor

In this reaction video orthopedic surgeon Dr Chris Raynor reacts to some of the fitness influencer tragedies that have occurred (Joesthetics and Larissa Borges) this year and discusses some of the medical factors that may have played a role in their deaths. #fitnessinfluencer #joelinder #larissaborges

@Special thanks to the Creative Team:
@RoaryTime and @deejdesign6677.

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[thecourier]

My traditional small gym owner, 30 years experience says this: The guy's physique isnt achievable without steroids simply because the body can't naturally maintain that level of muscle mass, it has limiters that tell the body not to go past a point (with reason, as expected, because the heart works the same for 300lbs of fat as for 300lbs of muscle.)

[alpham]

Because going full on beast mode is not as healthy as one thinks. You are still damaging your body to get these gains, couple that with steroids or supplements like preworkout etc and you are asking a lot from your body. Your heart has to work overtime, your lungs are working overtime, and if you are going hard everyday you are not letting anything heal. I worked a extremely demanding job for years 6 days a week (Unloading meat by hand from a truck) and I was probably at deaths door before I moved into something less demanding. I was so dehydrated despite drinking 2 gallons of water daily. We are not machines yet lol.

[huntrj]

Some of these influencers are caffeinated 24/7, pushing their body to the extreme every workout, no rest days, getting shredded and trying to stay at a body fat percentage that is below what’s healthy, and likely PEDs on top of that for many. I feel like social media has really made people feel like they have to go down these paths to a degree

[arthur-zhuk]

My 28 year old brother died a day before you posted this who followed a similar program as these fitness type of guys. Glad you're getting this message out there because there seems to be confusion about people thinking muscles and intense training being correlated with good health.

[kyt-nhef]

"To improve your health, improve your tolerance for complexity". Well said, Doc!

[Reckoning]

I have ADHD and I am a long distance runner. Whenever it is race day or I do really hard tempo runs, I skip the meds because (thanks to my watch that measures my heartbeat 24/7) I know that the meds, which are basically stimulants, elevate my heart rate. It’s only minimal, like 5-10 bpm, but it is enough to not take any risks when I know that my heart is about to suffer because the sport is really hard on the cardio-vascular system, especially the (ultra)marathon distances. As an active athlete you MUST go to get blood work and you ABSOLUTELY MUST get your heart and blood pressure checked regularly.
How so many people just ignore their health like that is beyond me.

[Elysian]

Friend of mine began a women's gym- first one in the US and it went nationwide. She spent hours- up into her 40's- working out. Super health conscious. She dropped dead of a heart attack at 'peak fitness'. This was well over 20 years ago and she did no drugs, ever.

[olikah]

Hey, Dr. I’ve recently started my fitness journey and I’ve decided NO pre workout and NO unrealistic goals. I appreciate this video and I hope more doctors and health professionals talk about this. A lot of fitness influencers don’t know the science behind their lifestyles. Subscribed ❤

[mancubius]

Fitness is about leading a healthy life, staying healthy both physically and mentally. Most people however think fitness is about looks. Sure is nice to have a hot looking body but if this your only goal it could lead to some disastrous results. I truly dislike those YouTube influencers. Most of them are not even natural but even if they were, people trying to become like them end up being unhealthy! Please understand this and stay healthy and happy

[jasond]

This was a very thorough, very well thought out video. As soon as you mentioned heavy metal poisoning, I strongly suspected it was his use of underground lab steroids. I'm impressed you mentioned this as a source, because everyone talks about the other risks of steroid abuse, and no one really talks about this.

RIP to both parties, absolutely tragic.

[xjp]

I noticed something, and it's something I have seen in a lot of younger people these days. When did they have time to rest, as in getting a deep sleep so their bodies could recover. I lost a coworker about 5 years ago do to she never slept, and this happened to her where her body just said enough were done. She went home, sat down, and bang, gone. She died from an aneurysm in the brain she was 40 years old. This looks like as Joe pushing the body past its limits but not letting the body rest or recover along with all that other stuff.

[yiselba]

This movement has become so toxic. People can’t even workout without setting up their camera at the gym. They also shame people who choose to just live without restrictions. I might not go to the gym for 2 hours a day, but I’m active all day. I don’t push my body anymore. I did for a while and it wrecked havoc on my body.

[Hathur]

Thanks Dr. Raynor. Yes, people very falsely believe looking physically fit on the outside means you are healthy - I know this all too well. I am highly active, outwardly "fit", fairly low percentage body fat (but NOT too low / "cut" as some fat is needed for healing the body), I look strong for a woman my height. However, I am also a diabetic and have 5 other serious medical conditions (including being a cancer survivor) I constantly have to have treated / monitored, all of which could put me in an early grave. I am physically active / fit BECAUSE of those medical conditions, by strengthening my body and keeping it healthy as posible I try to offset the fact my body is constantly on the brink of falling apart on me. So when I hear other people tell me "you look great" I struggle to keep my mouth shut because on the inside my body is a disaster, narrowly being held together by the hard physical work I do to keep my body as healthy as I possibly can... I am NOT healthy, no matter how "fit" I look.

[TonyTeegarden]

A car isn’t meant to be driven cross country using nitrous the entire time. Neither is the human body…roids = nitrous

[DavidTaylor-esbt]

You are so rare. I have a lot of respect for those who face the complexity of life rather than becoming a comfortable knucklehead.
Thank you.

[gregoryfilin]

So a combo of drug use, hormonal and muscular stress in excess of what is normal, and too little rest? I'm not suprised of this Doc. Seems moderation and good habits go a LOOONG way to keep you healthy

[JasenJohns]

Notions of what it is to be physically fit do seem to be trending towards unhealthy extremes, but this trend also appears to be an over-reaction to the normalization of physical un-fitness. I guess we should start asking ourselves to what end(s) do we seek to be fit? Longevity? Labor? Attractiveness? Socialization? Sport? Emergency? Crisis Response? Less stress? Better sleep? The goals of influencers promoting physical fitness seem hyperbolic, extreme... But, they are racing to chase clicks. Influencers heavily edit their experience of this race, too.
Lookin' forward to your insights, Dr. Raynor.

[ScottyCadet]

As a PhD scientist in cancer and stem cell biology, I enjoyed listening to this video. Your explanations were unbiased, scientifically based, and insightful. 👍🏽

[ReyOfLight]

Is it maybe time to consider these fitness influencers as people with an eating disorder or similar condition? Considering how unhealthy such a lifestyle often is, and the compulsive nature of their lifestyle, I for one, as a layman, would call it a disorder and definitely not something to look up to. In my eyes, this level of fitness is just as harmful as something like anorexia or morbid obesity.

[Kordon]

Diuretic use poses the greatest acute risk to bodybuilders and fitness influencer people. Most don't know what they are doing or just trust some gym bro or "guru".