Full transcript
0:00Joe Wixs and I, we go way back. Welcome
0:02back to The Body Coach TV. My name's Joe
0:04Wixs and this is a 15minute gentle
0:07beginner cardio workout. And yes, he
0:09made more money than me. He was
0:10definitely more famous than me. He was
0:12held in public regard much higher than
0:13me. But some of the things he said just
0:15never really quite added up. And I've
0:16been sent one of his videos. And you
0:18know what? A younger version of myself
0:19would have been like, "This guy's a dead
0:20end." You know, I'm going to try to be
0:22constructive. Try. So, let's get into
0:24it. Right. Time for an update on my
0:26sugar-free challenge, which I've been on
0:27now for 3 weeks. I'm going to start this
0:29from the off and this is going to
0:30trigger people. Sugar is not bad for
0:32you. It's bad for your teeth. It's more
0:34of a concern with the dentist than your
0:36doctor. For instance, what we need
0:37before I've even watched any of this is
0:39context. So, super athletic person that
0:42trains a lot, good body composition,
0:45whether it's having some sugar in the
0:47evenings, whether it's through sweets,
0:49candy, or whether it's having sweets
0:51before playing a game of rugby or
0:53soccer, football, whatever. Within that
0:54context, there's quite literally nothing
0:56better. People seem to conflate the
0:58difference between, hey, being obese,
1:00bad for you. We know that. Being sleepd
1:01deprived for a long time is bad for you.
1:03Sugar can be a contributing factor to
1:05people being overweight, but on its own.
1:07What started out as a 7-day challenge
1:09for myself personally to cut out all
1:11refined sugars and natural sugars just
1:12for 7 days. To cut out all refined
1:14sugars and natural sugars. Straight
1:16away, we come into our first problem.
1:19Now, very, very quickly, there are three
1:20ways we can make people healthier. We
1:22can get them to eat better quality
1:24foods. That's one. We can get them to
1:25eat less if they're overweight. That's
1:27two. And we can improve their levels of
1:29cardiovascular fitness. As a coach and a
1:31part-time YouTuber, I can actually use
1:33any of those levers to improve someone's
1:34diet. So, if you've got like a really
1:36fat auntie, she might just not like
1:38eating healthy foods. But, if we can get
1:40her exercising, going for a jog, and
1:42just eating less, whether it's
1:43intermittent fasting or whatever, we can
1:45drastically improve the quality of her
1:47life and her levels of health without
1:49her having to go nail down five bits of
1:51fruit and veg a day. So, let's just
1:53understand that from the off. Refined
1:54sugar is just a very easy place for us
1:56to go in someone's diet. Because imagine
1:58it this way. Let's just flip everything
1:59in our head. If I said, "Today, I'm
2:01going to give you a US dollar for every
2:03calorie you could consume." You're not
2:05going to reach for a bag of carrots.
2:07You're going to go, "Get the haribo,
2:09brother. Get the [ __ ] Coke.
2:13Get the Coke." What? Now, natural
2:15sugars. This is again why I have a
2:17problem with a lot of fitness plebs
2:19being like, "Yeah, just give up carbs."
2:21You know, if you can give up carbs. Hold
2:23on, brother. There are some carbs that
2:24are great. For instance, fruits, for
2:27instance, vegetables. Quite literally,
2:29if we were going to put a piece of
2:31broccoli into a macronutrient cohort, it
2:34would have to go within carbohydrates,
2:35fiber, starch. Anyway, so natural
2:38sugars, you're taking fruit out of the
2:39equation. And fruit can be a very, very
2:41good thing. For instance, here's one
2:43straight off the top. Those of my
2:44clients over the years that like to eat
2:46had hydonic foods and even in like
2:47chocolate or whatever, I actually
2:49sometimes said, "Cool, you can eat
2:50whatever you want, but you have to have
2:51a piece of fruit before it." So, if they
2:53did tuck into a biscuit or whatever and
2:54they had to have an apple before,
2:56they're getting more nutrition, more
2:58dense foods in more of something that
3:00fills you up and they still get to have
3:01their hobnob rich tea whatever come the
3:04end of it. So, the second someone brings
3:06natural sugars into the fray, you're
3:08like removing fruit from someone's diet,
3:10I'm not sure that makes it better. Has
3:12really changed my life in so many ways.
3:14I'm going to share what I've learned,
3:15the impact it's had on me, and give you
3:17a little update on what's going on
3:18because Why is the top off? Look, Joe,
3:20I've come at you for years for having
3:22some pseudo opinions. I don't know if
3:24you've spent the afternoon with Eddie
3:25Abu or something. And again, your
3:27heart's in the right place. I get it.
3:28But if you were to find the most evil
3:30people in history, guess what? They were
3:32all there thinking they were doing
3:33something good. And by the way, I must
3:35say, you're turning into a bit of a
3:36silver fox. So, let's remove the pseudo
3:38nutritional bollocks out of the
3:40equation. You're looking good, brother.
3:42That little gray bit in the beard, the
3:43hairline looking strong. There's, you
3:46know, an element of me tearing down the
3:48nutritional BS. But maybe there's an
3:49element of jealousy because you're
3:50looking good. I was so dependent on
3:52sugar. I was binging on it. Whether it
3:54was fruit, I was so dependent on sugar.
3:57Your words, not mine. Whether it was
3:58fruit, honey, honey, refined sugars from
4:01things like, you know, refined sugars
4:03from cakes, pastries. Okay. Arguably, if
4:06we look at cakes and pastries and their
4:07macronutrient constituents, we could
4:09probably say they're more fats. But
4:10anyway, you've said and alluded to the
4:12fact that you're addicted to sugar, but
4:14you didn't get it from sugar. So, if you
4:16had an addiction to sugar, why wouldn't
4:18you get it in its purest form? If sugar
4:20is the culprit here, why would you go to
4:22fruit to get it? That makes no sense. If
4:25sugar was truly addictive and had the
4:26properties that you said you would be
4:28flipping, sneaking in the kitchen,
4:30getting the bag of Tate and Ly out, and
4:32going straight to the source because
4:33guess what? When people have a cocaine
4:35problem, they don't go, "Oh, I love a
4:36cocoa leaf." They want cocaine. cakes,
4:39pastries, cookies, donuts. Cookies,
4:41donuts, chocolate. Again, now that's a
4:43realm of carbohydrates and fats. And
4:46keep in mind, if you're going to remove
4:47sugar and carbohydrates from your diet,
4:49you're going to replace them with fats
4:50in the first place, don't you?
4:51Chocolate, ice cream, fizzy drinks, all
4:53these things that I really need to just
4:54get out of my system. And it's it was
4:56difficult at first. The first few days I
4:58had headaches. For a start, I'm no
4:59expert in eating disorders, but this
5:00just sounds like binge and restrict. And
5:02for years, there are people that are on
5:03or off. And the one thing they actually
5:05need is balance and not to feel guilt or
5:07shame for eating these things. And
5:08unfortunately being in a position where
5:10I've given up these things and I feel
5:11amazing. This doesn't make people that
5:13enjoy these foods feel that good. And
5:15also, have you ever noticed that all
5:16your friends in the best shape? Although
5:17genetics plays a big part. They're just
5:19sensible with the amount. They have a
5:20little bit of chocolate. I eat chocolate
5:21almost every day and I'm feeling good.
5:24Probably the testosterone. Granted, one
5:26all a bit grumpy, a bit irritable. But
5:28when you persevere and you push through
5:30that every day, you get a little bit
5:31more clarity. I've now been on holiday.
5:33I've been around ice creams and fizzy
5:35drinks. I've been through the airport,
5:36all the ultrarocessed food. And
5:38ultimately, in in looking back in
5:39hindsight, it it was in my head a
5:40sugar-free challenge. I have a bit of a
5:42problem here with the with the idea of
5:44processed foods being bad and
5:46ultrarocessed foods being bad because
5:48there are some things, let's look at
5:49oats. There are quite a lot of studies
5:51out there about the health benefits of
5:52oats. This has been well studied for a
5:54long period of time. Yet, people just
5:56say oats are bad because oats are cereal
5:58and cereal is made by big food to keep
6:01you fat. But really, it encompasses
6:03everything. It was an ultrarocessed
6:05foodree challenge. And you know, people
6:07say, you know, why can't you just have
6:09it in moderation? It's about choice.
6:10It's about willpower. It's about having
6:11discipline. I wish I could feel like
6:13that and wish I could actually say,
6:14"Yeah, I agree. I can do that." But I
6:16just can't. I really really find it
6:17difficult. I have done since I was a
6:19child growing up in the 80s on a I'm
6:21going to say a 90% ultrarocessed food
6:23diet. And it's it's just been in me from
6:25that age. And so, yeah, I really depend
6:27on it. It helps when I'm feeling
6:29stressed. It helps with my mood. you
6:30know it it basically it's the thing I
6:32turned to it's my addiction if you like.
6:34So what's happened is went through the
6:36seven days was feeling really good and I
6:38thought why go and reward myself and eat
6:39more ultra processed food. So I just
6:41continued it and I feel so much better
6:42for it, you I really really do and I
6:44actually have so much more I suppose
6:46willpower but also ability to like see
6:48the world and see the environment I'm
6:49living in and really analyze it and zoom
6:51out and go wow like I am getting
6:53targeted with sugar from the second I
6:54wake up you know and ultra processed
6:56food from the minute I wake up to the
6:57minute I get home whether you're going
6:59into London on the train whe you're
7:00getting petrol at a petrol station
7:01you're going through an airport
7:03hospitals you know Legoland Chzin fort
7:06park farms soft plays it's like
7:09everywhere you go is there and you know
7:10unless you're prepared we end up eating
7:12it and it ends end up making us feel the
7:14cycle continues and it's really
7:15difficult. I think this can be portrayed
7:17into a more malice light than it really
7:20is. So sugar sits into often a lot of
7:23categories of food that are hydonic. We
7:24derive pleasure from them and we want
7:26pleasure from them, not such nutrition.
7:28You know, the brain gets very excited to
7:29get a dump of calories cuz considering
7:31just to remind you, you and I and him,
7:33we're not broken by design. If anything,
7:35we're the complete opposite. For the
7:36majority of human existence, food has
7:38been scarce. There's not been a lot of
7:39it. So, it only makes sense that when
7:40our pallets get a taste of energy, which
7:43has been so finite throughout all of our
7:45time as existence, our brain gets
7:47excited. Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin,
7:50etc. Don't even know if you get oxytocin
7:52from food, but you do now. So, yes,
7:54people are gaming into that because if
7:55you were to leave apples at the tube
7:57station, people aren't going to eat
7:58them. But if it's a Trek bar or
8:00something else that's going to give you
8:01that hydonic pickme up, it is. Not to
8:03mention shelf life and all the other
8:05things. And this is just basic
8:06capitalism. And the very thing Joe that
8:09you're having to go out here being
8:10capitalism and having products and uh
8:12you know shops wanting to make money so
8:14they need products that people buy so
8:15that shops can pay rent to the landlords
8:17that are there. There was a time you
8:18were making a million pounds a month
8:19selling a PDF to people to get them to
8:21jump around their front room. So the
8:23very same system in which you're trying
8:24to tear down for putting sugar in front
8:26of you is the very same system that you
8:28had to generate millions of pounds
8:30selling people a file. What's happened
8:32is I'm now able to see this from a big
8:34different perspective. The cravings have
8:36stopped. the desire to have pudding
8:37every single day. And this is anecdotal.
8:39So your anecdotal experiences, that's
8:41cool. But you're here saying how
8:42reducing sugar and ultrarocessed foods
8:43in your diet can change your life. And I
8:45agree, but you should empower people
8:47with knowledge and with facts with the
8:49reality of it. And again, going back to
8:50those three ways to improve someone's
8:52life. You get them to eat less, so you
8:53put them in a calorie deficit. You get
8:54them to eat better, which often then
8:55puts them in a calorie deficit as well,
8:57but they can also get more nutrition
8:58from food. And you can improve their
8:59levels of cardiovascular fitness. We
9:01should give people that trifecta of
9:02options so they can make the best
9:04possible choices themselves. Because for
9:06some people, this very part is the
9:08hardest part they struggle with. The
9:09sugar, the processed foods, maybe it's
9:11trauma, maybe it's appetite. The very
9:13thing you're saying of going through all
9:14that in the '90s, guess what? People are
9:16using these foods as coping mechanisms.
9:18So, don't you think it would be better
9:19to empower people and arm them with the
9:21very thing that could help them? Nuance,
9:23knowledge, evidence, not your anecdotes.
9:26Because from your mansion with your
9:28beautiful wife, I may add, and your
9:30beautiful children, it's very easy, I
9:32believe, for you to say these things,
9:34but to come out and demonize fruit,
9:36natural sugars, and even fizzy drinks.
9:38Again, you and maybe the Eddie Abu
9:40cohort at point to your Coke Zeros, the
9:43sweeteners in there are going to, and
9:45I'm pretty sure, again, we've got a lot
9:46of evidence, non-nutritive sweetened
9:48beverages versus water after a 52- week
9:50program. And we see here participants
9:52consuming water maintained a weight loss
9:53of 6.1 kg over a year versus 7.5 kg. So
9:57again when we look back to the trifecta
9:59of ways in which we can make people
10:00healthier and make them feel better and
10:01make them objectively live better. Those
10:04sweetened Coke Zeros, Diet Cokes,
10:06whatever objectively help people lose
10:08weight. So coming here and saying don't
10:10have that, that's bad for you. Don't
10:11have anything processed. Just drink
10:12water is counterintuitive to the entire
10:14thing. Again, with fruit, I can only
10:17guarantee that the more fruit you put
10:18into someone's lives, natural sugars,
10:20the better that the outcome comes cuz
10:22we're now getting them to have more
10:23nutrients, more fiber, more goodness. On
10:26holiday for a couple of days, it was a
10:27breakfast buffet. There was cakes,
10:28donuts, pastries, cussants, all that
10:30stuff, which is the first stuff I always
10:32go to. And I'm always drinking San
10:33Pelro, Lemon Fanta, like cans of Coke.
10:35Like I am that guy. And I've learned
10:38that actually I don't need to have that
10:39stuff. And every time I make a decision
10:41not to, like you just feel a little more
10:42empowered, a bit more in control, and
10:44you feel actually I can get through the
10:45day without eating this stuff. And um
10:48what happens is rather than seeing as a
10:50sacrifice and a something you're giving
10:51up, you when you're not relying on those
10:53foods for energy and you're actually
10:54eating real food, you realize actually
10:56it opens up a whole new world of food
10:58that you can actually enjoy and feel
10:59good from. Because everyone asks me all
11:00the time, what's the best snacks? You
11:02know, I need snacks. I need ideas. And
11:04again, when we look at things like
11:06snacks and again when we look at dairy,
11:08reduce chances of type 2 diabetes, and
11:10there's another plethora of benefits.
11:12The actual lactose within that is sugar.
11:15We got lactose, we got glucose, we got
11:17fructose. I don't even think the
11:18majority of people demonizing sugar
11:20could even name five, six different
11:22variants. Truth is, the best snacks are
11:23no snacks is when you're eating big
11:25meal. The best snacks is no snacks. I'm
11:27sorry, but have you have you ever worked
11:29with normal people before, Joe? And
11:31again, quick story. I had a client back
11:33in the day and I remember she came into
11:35the gym and she said, "James, I think
11:36we're going to get on cuz you swear a
11:37lot." That's why I continue to swear.
11:38She was one of my favorite clients. And
11:40when I was doing my consult with her, I
11:41said to her, "Look, just give me a food
11:42log and be honest." I said, "All I want
11:44for you is to be honest, okay?" So, she
11:45sent me the food log and it was honest.
11:47I remember going, "Jesus Christ." When I
11:48saw this food log, I think it was the
11:50first actual one I'd ever seen that was
11:52honest. And in it, she was going to work
11:53all day as a dog trainer and she only
11:55had one sandwich, which some people out
11:57there could say, "Oh, it's not very
11:58healthy to have a sandwich." And so I'm
12:00looking at the amount of food that she's
12:01eaten when she comes home and binges.
12:02And I didn't say just give up sugar,
12:04babe. I didn't say no snacks are good
12:06snacks. I actually said to her, "Can you
12:07make one more sandwich?" She goes,
12:08"What? I've come here to help myself
12:10lose fat. Not eat more." I said, "Look,
12:12I'm looking at your workday. I'm
12:13spotting a trend. I seem to think you're
12:15undereating at work and you're binging
12:16in the evening." I said, "Making an
12:17extra sandwich isn't going to cost you a
12:18huge amount. It's not going to be that
12:20much more admin. Just try it out." Next
12:22week, food log again. She had a sandwich
12:23at lunchtime, another sandwich at 3:00
12:25p.m. The amount of food she was having
12:26in the evening decreased. We put her in
12:28a deficit through giving her more meals.
12:30Snacks, again, depending on the person,
12:33can be a really important tool to
12:35prevent people from going over hungry,
12:37binging, because all of us have some
12:38good willpower to be on a diet and eat
12:40healthy, but that goes out the window
12:41when you get really hungry. Whole foods
12:43with protein, fats, and carbohydrates.
12:46That's your energy. Okay, so we can have
12:48carbohydrates, but we just can't have
12:49sugar in that. And you might have two
12:51meals a day or three meals a day, but
12:52you don't need this constant obsession
12:54with snacking in between. Same for our
12:56kids, right? It's kind of
12:57counterintuitive and we've seen these
12:58waters muddied before where people say,
13:00"Oh, if you skip breakfast, you eat more
13:02at lunch." Yes, true. But you still
13:04consume less calories through the day
13:05till that point. I get it. But snacking
13:07or meal frequency, considering we now
13:10know that the amount of meals you have
13:11in a day isn't influencing the amount of
13:12fat you lose, it's the amount of
13:13calories in versus calories out. I just
13:15don't agree with that as a sentiment.
13:17You're telling me that maybe having a
13:18few chocolate covered rice cakes from
13:19Rachos in between meals isn't going to
13:22prevent your chances of overeating.
13:23We've been sort of brainwashed. We've
13:24been marketed with offers and deals and
13:26all these incredible products that have
13:28created to sort of satisfy that need of
13:30snacks in between meals and grazing
13:32throughout the day. But as human beings,
13:33we do not need to eat that way. So, it's
13:35been life-changing. It's been eye
13:36opening. Um, and it's really set me on a
13:39path, I think, to actually having a
13:40healthier life, a healthier relationship
13:41with these things. Am I ever going to
13:43eat sugar again? Of course. I had a
13:44couple of cocktails. There's sugar in
13:45there. I'm not like zero sugar. I think
13:48it's impossible. But all I can say to
13:50anyone out there who struggles with
13:51this, who is having a chocolate bar
13:52every single day with their lunch, is
13:53having a pudding after dinner every
13:55single night of their life, and is
13:56filling their lunch boxes with
13:58ultrarocessed foods, is that there is an
13:59option. There is an alternative. But we
14:00cannot wait around for the food system
14:03and the food. Good luck with that. Yeah.
14:04So instead of packing a sandwich in your
14:06kids's lunch box, just put in, you know,
14:07like a ribeye or a sirloin or an A5
14:09Wagu, just put one of those in there a
14:11day. All right. Companies to change what
14:13they're doing. They're going to continue
14:13to produce this stuff. So food companies
14:15aren't going to change what they're
14:16doing because they're they're the food
14:18companies aren't evil tyrants. They're a
14:20product of their audience. Very similar
14:21to Eddie Abu that we've spoken about
14:23before. So Eddie used to be very
14:24moderate and sensible and used to
14:26actually have very good takes on fat
14:28loss. But then he realized that when he
14:29went into a supermarket and started
14:31screaming at bagels and you know wake
14:33that fat out. When he started saying
14:34that everyone was like yeah cheering him
14:36keep going. So Eddie Abu isn't actually
14:38like that in real life. He's just become
14:40the product of what the people want the
14:41same way as these food companies. Do you
14:43know what? There's a tone here of, you
14:45know, well-meaning, getting people to
14:47consume less sugar. Uh, we've got a
14:49person here that is saying, "Oh, I
14:50haven't had sugar at all, but I feel
14:52amazing, but I'm going to go back to
14:53having sugar and I had a few cocktails."
14:55We need systems that are sustainable.
14:56And whether this is a relationship, a
14:58diet, and I suppose a diet is your
14:59relationship to food. You want to look
15:01down the barrel of your protocol and say
15:03to yourself, could I do this forever?
15:05And if the answer to that is no, well,
15:06it's going to be a case of when you give
15:08up, not if you give up. That person's
15:10having a chocolate bar a day every day.
15:11Do you know what I would do? I'd say,
15:12could we have a protein bar instead?
15:14Maybe like a carb killer from Grenade.
15:15Then you get that amount. I've even got
15:17one in there. Not paid price. Every time
15:20I want a chocolate bar, I should have a
15:21Grenade bar. We should be identifying
15:23these issues that people have in their
15:24life and being like, can we make this
15:25better? If you're having a cheese and
15:26ham sandwich, could we turn that into a
15:28chicken sandwich or a tuna sandwich? If
15:30we are eating loads of unhealthy foods
15:32in the evening, could we look to low
15:33calorie ice cream instead of just ice
15:35cream? Could we look to implementing a
15:36piece of fruit before you tuck into the
15:37Harry boat? There are so many ways that
15:39we can implement systems that don't mean
15:41people have to banish things. Not to
15:42mention the second you make something
15:44forbidden. Any of you that are watching
15:45this that have got kids, have you ever
15:46noticed that if you have a kid and you
15:47say, "Don't go in there. Don't go in
15:48there. Don't go in there. Don't go in
15:50there." What do you They go in. Whereas
15:51if you went, "Yeah, go in there." Or you
15:53say, "Actually, I would love you to go
15:54in there and they won't." The second you
15:55make something forbidden in life, people
15:57want it more. We can really really take
15:59control right now is which I've been
16:01saying for the past 12 years is to prep
16:03like a boss. To get in the kitchen, to
16:05create your own food, to take control of
16:06the food you're eating. So when you
16:08leave the house, you had a nice big
16:09breakfast or you got your lunch on your
16:10go, like you are going to be less likely
16:12and more resistant to the food system
16:14and the environment we live in. Um, but
16:16you know, I agree with that. I actually
16:17disagree with almost everything you said
16:18up until that point. But I I think do
16:20you know what, Joe? Absolutely. And
16:22although I've had a pop at you over the
16:23years, the fact you got people to cook
16:24more, I must say well done for that
16:27because that is an integral part to it.
16:28And having food on you just makes you
16:30less inclined to give in to the hunger
16:32gremlins. So you can have that. The the
16:34more you try and reduce it and cut it
16:35out, the harder you see it is and the
16:37more challenging you start to get pissed
16:38off. You start to get pissed off by
16:40adverts and billboards and meal deals
16:42and offers. And we're going to stop you
16:43there, Joe. Video is getting a bit
16:45lengthy. But for any of you out there,
16:47sugar isn't the problem. You're the
16:48problem. Because if you're obese, it's
16:50not the sugar's fault. Sure, it's a
16:51contributing factor, but it's your
16:52fault. And could you do with eating less
16:54sugar? Yes, but it's not inherently bad
16:56for you. Put it this way. If I came into
16:57your life, there are many things that I
16:58would change, but I would not put you on
17:00a sugar band. I would not take natural
17:01sugars out of your life. And again, I'd
17:03go back to the trifecta of three things
17:04that you can do in your life. Improve
17:06your cardiovascular health, eat better
17:07quality foods, and reduce the amounts of
17:09calories that you're consuming if you're
17:10obese. Joe, stick to the hit workouts,
17:12please. You're a good-looking silver
17:14fox. But the nutritional advice is
17:16shoddy. For what, nearly 10 years we've
17:18been going at it, mate. Go. The yin to
17:20my yang. I'll leave a link in the
17:22description if you want to try my
17:23training out and another one in case you
17:25want to try a new tonic. If you enjoyed
17:26this video, you're going to love this
17:27one. All right. Bye-bye.