You Shouldn't Have to 'EARN' Your Physique

[neB]

"I wish I had peak muscle mass". Genie with a catch - "yes, but you'd manually blink for the rest of your life"
Me AF:

[jacksongodwin]

I love his consistency on the idea that more healthy people is an unambiguous good thing. And we should strive for it in whatever way. It very nicely avoids being gatekeep-y or elitist.

[wb]

So what you’re saying is I should add brain day to my split?

[hoodwiser]

There’s a lot of people working long hours for little money, I think it’s idyllic to expect those people to be hitting the gym, reading widely, supporting themselves (and possibly others), finding the time to make social connections with others, etc etc. These issues are not inherently medical but social, the medical downsides of long working hours/little pay are very significant because of the symptoms it often causes (from comfort eating to lack of motivation to lack of money to stress to alcohol or drug coping mechanisms), but to attempt to solve those problems ignores the real elephant in the room. I am certain that if the vast majority of the population had more time and a more comfortable/less dicey financial situation you would see far more people at gyms, far more people with book, far more people engaging with their hobbies. Lack of motivation has a lot of causes, and there will always be a subset of people who simply don’t want to do it, but I think a high proportion of the population would given the right circumstances.

[michaelmirecki]

I’m an anomaly then. I spend 10 plus hours a week exercising, yet I do absolutely nothing else to challenge myself.

[benflyt]

Working out…made me want to live Better. Sleep better, have better relationships & overal try for better.

[erebusaeon]

This is why I listen to audiobooks in the gym.

That's right, when you hear me grunting under the heft of my own body weight in the squat rack I'm listening to Gandalf unsuccessfully wrangle far too many dwarves.

[AlexSanchez-gdwb]

Hardworking activity is good for character and tension release, however as he said healthy lifestyles and bodies is just something you need however you'll get there, easy or hard.

[bradseidl]

What Mike says at the end is key. The people who take the easy way out in life aren't the ones in the gym.

[veritorossi]

I have a chronic illness, I spent so much time and energy trying to not unalive myself and trying to survive that I have no energy left for anything else.

[donmac]

For me personally I enjoy the feeling I get from working out. It's my addiction. But I don't need a gym to get the same effect. I think just being physically active through adventure or even helping a friend move is the type of exercise I truly enjoy.

[DevoutRahl]

From comments and even from the debate itself moderation seems like the key issue. For a healthy body and mind, working out can be extremely cathartic and self esteem boosting. For an impressive physique working out can quickly get extremely time consuming and detrimentally mentally draining, even causing or leading psychological issues like addiction and body dysmorphia. Anything that can aide a person to achieve their goals in a safe and healthy manner, whilst also freeing up time for other pursuits is never a bad thing. But to think for one second that people will not abuse this is almost certainly idyllic thinking. For every upside there is almost always a downside.

[IamWanderwoman]

I like this guy's honestly so much. He's a very open and genuine person.

[Thunderfro]

It’s the “I struggled so you have to struggle” mindset.

[mbdoucet]

I agree with challenging myself in the gym has made me have the mentality to be able to challenge myself in other aspects of my life.

[arnoldfreeman]

Dr. Mike makes a great point here and I personally believe this is a big reason why the other “Dr.” Mike, Mike Mentzer, was so popular. He understood what a life outside the gym looked like and he did his damndest to try to promote that life.

[XenonPrimeSBSV]

People with healthy bodies are already going to be in a better mental state.

If you can ensure people are in a physically fit state yheir entire lives, with all the energy and hormonal oomph that brings, you'll probably cultivate more people who want to challenge themselves anyway.

[yem.caribe]

The trade off is not worthy.. as right now. Gym is as well therapy for a break for other task and I get a better version of me .

[SwoffBass]

I really enjoy hearing the conversations these guys have. The ‘Mike & Mike’ Show should be a thing.

[HenriqueVieira]

This is why many people who don't exercise think that those who do must be superhuman to be able to work out and also take on intellectual pursuits.

It's not that gym goers have superpowers. It's just that taking care of your health enables your body to do more than you think you're capable.