The Downfall of Modern Fitness 

In short, there's a difference between just "muscle building" and "physical fitness" . Just pumping more muscles isn't fitness. It's a goal. Physical fitness is holistic, a process, and a life long habit with balance.

One of the worst parts of the fitness industry is that it’s become a sphere of self absorbed idolatry. Everyone’s trying to make a guide and become a self help guru. Just tell me how to get full range of motion on my rear delt rows bro I don’t need your unqualified advice on how to approach women and “become my best self” since when were chronically online 20yr olds knowledgeable on how to tell others how to live their life.

A few of these hit for me. Especially using the gym as an escape, it can be escapism dressed as productivity while you don’t address the actual source of an anxiety or stress. And you’re right- I don’t think I’ve heard this being articulated before but it hit for me! Love the honest insights and reflections. Something we don’t get enough of in the fitness space!

Sure, but I don't see how you (Wanhee) are different from than these examples you share... the healthy fitness is another "image" of youtube media...

This is why we love you, Wanhee! Keeping it real. Talking about all the stuff others don't. Plus a lot of these guys are not natural. Also, not afraid to show that everything is not as it appears when not flexing and without perfect lighting. Best overall fitness content out there! And I've seen a lot of it.

Great video! Finally some fresh perspective

Thank you very much for this great summary!

Amazing video! Keep it up this is what we need in the fitness industry: authenticity

Real good video. Liked everything you said in this video. Your content is real good.

Great page 🎉

this was a very well made video. your point #4 about functional training resonated very deeply with me as I am a tae kwon do sparring athlete, and I keep putting off my conditioning and technique training for just heavy leg days in the gym.

Dam Wanhee, keeping it straight up and real. Another banger of an insight.

Great content, thanks.

Wanhee always has got solid content that’s a lot deeper and meaningful than what most would expect when they first click on the video. Great stuff man.

RU-vid needs more videos like this one which offer a counterpoint against the gym-body obsession

This was one of the best fitness videos I’ve ever watched. Thanks!

Excellent video man

Great video. The only thing I'd like to point out is that, like you said, each person is unique which is why they exercise or go to the gym for different reasons. Some would like to be part of having the "standard" body and some would like to just simply be physically active. In addition, u also mentioned how video tutorials are like "do this and do that" when in fact what you're doing in this video is the same, just in a different context. So just a tip, put some kind of a disclaimer at the start or end of the video. Other than these, awesome and informative video.

Dude you are so amazing thank you for this video

Genuinely impressive insights. You've nailed a few points that nobody else talks about in this space.

I really enjoyed your view sat here with my morning coffee here in the English countryside.My local new gym is JD sports like a spin off from the sports store.Its pretty big.You ticked so many boxes with this and it's great to see coverage from somewhere else than the states.good job .

First comment🙏🏾 love your videos mannn!

This has got me right off my cycle off need to do more to be more. Its so easy to get sucked in to. Thank you

good content. please keep it up.

You make a valid point about the unrealistic pursuit of an ideal body, prioritizing enjoyment and practicality. However, my muscular physique attracts attention, and my unconventional drive pushes me to excel. By aiming high, I've achieved more than I ever imagined.

Here in Brazil is more balanced. We have REAALLY good influencers that are honest about everything in the process of training. It's not about rushing everything to look good.

thank you for this video 😢

Another Sunday, another Wahee video ❤

Social media can be really helpful for newbies at the gym, but it’s also really toxic. I have been bulking for around 8 months and I’m constantly feeling like I haven’t made enough progress in comparison to all the influencers i see… Most of the time they exaggerate how fast the progressed, how much they go to gym and what they eat…

love how your feed looks almost like mine, minus the magic the gathering content and plus the wanhee content ;D

I don’t see anything wrong with the gym being an escape. Its a fantastic break from reality and it makes you feel good emotions, because you are doing something healthy and beneficial. Great for de stressing after a long hard day.

good points

Damn you got me on the addiction element

this really hit home! Especially that ideas that food can't just be a protein source and that the gym can be an escape

Well done

in right time ❤❤❤

Good video man. I’ve been watching RU-vid fitness for the past 10 years and I gotta say I feel like it’s never been in a worse spot. I’m not sure what’s happened exactly, but it used to be a mostly positive movement. Now I’m not so sure.

Great video. Being a calisthenics athlete, thankfully I don’t appeal as much to these body ideals and dysfunctional training, however it is true that the gym is a form of escapism for me.

i used to do that being obsessed to hit my protein intake. after watching your daily protein intake I reduced it to 80 - 100. I still made progress in my strength I am still making progress. at least there's no constipation now😶. its been over 6 months now I aim to get 80g or more daily!

You are one smart fellow 😊

Damn bro you just hit every single issue I’ve been noticing for years now

Damn! I've just been called out. Multiple times! Time to think about stuff :)

4:36 This used to be me before I talked to someone and sought help other than just working out. What starts out as something healthy and beneficial, you can end up putting all your eggs in one basket and using it to avoid your real issues. Nowadays I enjoy the process of training, dieting, manipulating the variables, all without getting emotionally wrapped up in it. It’s easier to exercise sensibly, and plan ahead with programming, dieting etc because I’m not just throwing myself into workouts like a lunatic with a chip on my shoulder anymore.

Your one of my favorite channels. Thanks for the honest perspective.

Goku's training style was the correct one all along. We're just overthinking it.

I was getting caught up in my routine. People saw me and said I look nice and I had to take a look again to notice that yeah, I am looking nice. This was a nice reminder to take it easy. It's a life long thing anyways, no need to hurry to develop a muscle right this moment and be frustrated if I can't fast enough

Agree with you completely. Today’s fitness isn’t even about fitness it’s more about looks. The worst thing is that the typical gymmed look is actually real bad. Over lateral raised V tapered bench pressed aesthetic is horrible😂😂 You can find so many athletes that never do lateral raises and lat pull down yet they actually look better than all these bodybuilders. So many football players, ufc boxing athletes, American football players have amazing physique that is a byproduct of their capabilities. Your body should be a reflection of your physical capability not abnormally worked to look “good”. This is why I’ve been following your channel for the better part of a year. Your advice actually works and aligns with my goals

Love this video! What annoys me at the gym are the guys who think my goals should be the same as theirs (they're body builders). So, they come over and try to "help" me from time to time. The truth is, I just want to be fit, and have a bit of muscle as I age. I'm 54, just let me do my thing- I know what I'm doing! And stamina for longer cycling trips. Exercise makes me feel good.

I love this guy

always good

Great points here. Modern fitness, and indeed much of the online space, is about appearing a certain way and not actually being that way. Don't get distracted by the fakeness of the world. Be a warrior and focus on yourself 💪 💪

Definitely connect with thinking too much about protein, now trying to enjoy life and more variety, life's too short 🍖🐟🍜😊

Getting fit for combat

I've worked out consistently for almost a year now and this video just described what my first 6 months look like. Im so bored of the protein and creatine shit that i just went off it for a while and im still seeing consistent growth and results

I see fitness as the olympics, so many body types oriented around different goals, not JUST getting big. So the time and equipment investment should then be oriented around what kind of life you want to live. I workout mainly because of chronic back pain and a general healthy lifestyle after covid. The nice part is a bigger more functional body, but I don’t have to be as big as other jacked up people cuz I know they spend more days, more load, and more time planning than the most for their channels or personal sport. My sport tho is drawing. Drawing needs some wrist, back, core, also eyes and focus strengthening. Anything to help with excessive sitting and extended wrist pain by stretching and strength tests. It isn’t to be JACKED but aimed for this lifestyle.

I didn’t realize how much I needed to see this video

Very good again

It resonated so much I went to the gym

Stop using social media :) Solves pretty much all your problems in this video

I follow selected fitness “influencers” not to emulate them, but to understand proper form when doing exercises. I have no aspirations of competing in body building competitions; rather, I am a guy who enjoys sculpting my body. When I look in a posing mirror at my gym, I see myself as a lump of clay who, through food maintenance and exercise, can add muscle here and lose body fat there to achieve my particular look. Each year, my goal is simple: to look good in a sleeveless shirt on the first day of each summer.

Very true. Most of them just tell you to do this one exercise every day...and there's a long list of those. But also: limit your exercise to 40-60 mins. Well, it's not possible. Then when they confuse you enough they offer a program that's supposed to get you less confused. They offer success stories, but no statistics. How many got successful? Were they retired or from home no kids workers? Are they well off and can afford more time off and better meals and equipment? Finally! Are they assisted? 😂

what about useing the gym as an escape from an addiction?

To be honest your physique is what most men should go for. And it's okay if you want to build muscle mass and be big, go ahead, but it seems like everyone tries to do that now and so many fail so we end with people who suddenly are really into powerlifting (I am guilty of that) and being overweight with loads of extra body fat (while also having some above normal strength) and then they think they'll eventually cut and do more body building oriented training.

sensei, lead the way

wanhee is an ultimate sleeper build fr

I definitely felt called out at the 'stressing about protein' thing. I found out that a recent study showed we don't need as much protein as the fitness industry had recommended, i.e. that 1g per lb bodyweight might actually not be necessary for optimal muscle growth. I felt super relieved hearing this because I don't have to stress about not getting enough protein anymore, because the new numbers are much more achievable and realistic!

Industry is about standardised mass production to make money. Never ideal for the individual. The term fitness roots from biogoly. It describes how much the properties of an individual meets the requirements of his enviroment to succseed in his life. Building muscle just for show is in fact not actually fit, if you ruin your health and ability to use your body properly. You are the first youtuber that resonate with me.

Bless! Someone has a brain here !

that's why Leon Edwards has the most aesthetic body in the solar system

Years ago, I came across the saying...I workout to live, I don't live to workout. 90% of what do in the gym revolves around helping me perform better in my day to day life. Functional Fitness!

The dark side of "fitness industry" is "industry"....

For me I learned early on through watching sam sulek. You when you are pumped after a workout isn't really you. The real you is what you look like without a pump. Keeping this in mind helps me curb any body dysmorphia I might develop later on. I started working out with the goal of hitting 200 lbs. In December last year I started lifting weights for the first time in about a decade and my body weight was 162 lbs. After working out nearly every day, today my weight is 178 lbs. For some people, fitness influencers are a detriment because they have unattainable physiques. For me I didn't get jealous, I was inspired and worked on my own goals rather than copy someone else. In then end, you should try to improve yourself somehow through consistent discipline, and it doesn't have to be about your physique.

to add, you'll never actually meet any of these people and if you do i promise you'll be disappointed unless they want something from you.

I’ve been working out for years just to stay average! Watched friends and non friends blow up on steroids and then lose their hair and gains as we grew older! I’ve always had poor body image but I decided years ago I was in it for the long haul. I try to stay consistent and get to the gym as part of my daily routine. I see these amazing physiques that I’m assuming are the result of peds, and suspect it’s only getting worse now that AI is getting involved.

bro but u r my idol tho. body goals foh reeeeal

A much needed video, deconstructing the myth

Achieving the best physique won't fulfill your inner hunger. It should be a tool to attain health and wellness in both mentally and physically. Some people like to be jacked and others want to be more functional, they all have different purpose. For m case, I am trying to build a holistic fitness approach developed and refined through functional training not just lifting but also running, meditation, yoga, and any kind of activities that sweat me out. As long as you enjoy a certain activity, you are all good.

Get the book, "Power to the People", by Pavel Tsatsouline who trained the old Soviet athletes and special forces. The USSR spent billions of rubles finding at what works, NOT what sells. There are things you can do to increase strength, metabolically. He has other great books too. Rogan interviewed him.

7:02 damn you really got my ass

Well i am using gym as an escape, as an excuse to be productive but the protein part although i do make sure the ingredients i use contain a lot of protein i just make whatever that is tasty to me 😂😂

Shout out to Mario and Martin Rios

I love your content and I thank you for it but how can you say that the world is « Mellow »?

👏🏻

There is a lot of truth here. For example, water polo players are really fit. They have incredible strength and stamina, but they are not "shredded". They do not have "six packs", but are in excellent shape. Special forces guys (police, or military) are also in great physical shape, but have a lot of fat. Despite that, they run 20-30 km per day, and exercise for hours each day. As one of them told a friend of mine, who applied for special forces (and failed after just one week): "We are not photo models. We need energy, strength and stamina, and you can't get that if you don't have any fat." Considering marshal arts, my former krav maga instructor told me that he never had a six pack, but I personally saw him, and one of his friends, beat the hell out of five guys at once. He is fast, flexible, strong and dangerous, but he doesn't look shredded at all.

Even someone that promotes healthy eating, the best way to lift, not taking steroids like Mario Rios has to be toxic in order to do it. I feel so mixed since he’s the only big fitness RU-vidr it seems that understands most people see someone who is lean and athletic looking as aesthetic, and he gets that macros isn’t what equates to healthy. Plus he’s right about his type of training being the best for being healthy and athletic and gaining mobility and functionality. But good god I hate the way he goes about it.

Those damn rios twins made it, athletic bodybuilding is starting to become adopted by more people

We haven't become idol chasers, we always have been, always will be. inherent human nature to look for a higher being to seek after and idolize.

6:07 speaking from a country where men could be thrown to a frontline or in jail at any time - i can assure you, people are making gymbro selfies none the less, they having fun till they dead. Life is too short to be taken seriously, bro

Unrealistic goals bad bla bla I've never been happier or trained harder than now that I want to be like Baki

In short, juice is common and inflated egos and insecurity

Whats wrong with Nippard?

I don't think there's anything unhealthy about using exercise as an escape, in fact the stress reducing, meditative outcome of hard workouts is beneficial to the human mind, body, and spirit. Bodybuilding as a hobby is far better than playing video games, watching pr0n, engaging in social media doom scrolling, using drugs/alcohol or any number of other ways humans escape the drudgery of their mundane, meaningless existences.

Check out Mario Rios

STOP GASLIGHTING ME BRO!

Been lifting for 7 years. The only 2 RU-vid influencers I follow are Chris Bumstead and SquatUniversity. One to plan workouts and other one to prevent/treat injuries. All these other "science-based" fitness influencers are total BS and would never allow you to explore the full potential of your body.

People need to find whats best for them by experimenting , you wont look like an influencer who trained for 5 years by only training for 6 months lol. Be smart.

tbh theres no downfall at all the real athletes always knew and will continue to know how to apply the tried and true training methods towards their specific sport tailoring it specifically for their position. olympic and compound lifts and plyos will never go out of style its the casuals and general hobbyist gymgoers getting fleeced for their money and being taken advantage of.

And your next video is how to get abs fast. Listen, you still have a bit more room to grow some muscles. The good think about bodybuilding is that it shows if you know or if you don’t. Learning means new tissues, visible, not big or something, but visible.

I watch various channels, to get back some functional muscle mass at 59 . I don't want to rain on peoples parade, but many are just how to get biggest muscles ASAP . TBF many don't make judgements, how to use this machine , or get that first pull up . How to exercise safely. I think many of these channels underestimate people like myself , that just want to increase muscle mass for health, lose some fat , Get functional muscles for everyday life . Just increase the activities you do , swimming , hiking, badminton . climbing , yoga/pilates, dancing etc . Even channels not even about huge muscles . as 50 year old you need to join hand over shoulder and lower back ( no you FN don't ) , you need to be able to swing on monkey bars with one arm ( no you don't ) , you need to shoulder press x kgs , like why throwing a bag on top of a 3rd world bus ?, when you could climb the ladder up. You just need to functional strength , mobility and some flexibility- so at least sitting down cross legged and standing up again with no hands does all three ( ie you need flexibility in hips to get your weight over feet ) , but even if you can improve to one hand great You need to build up some extra strength for when you are 70. 80 and 90 If you want to be attractive , just being toned is enough . Functional strength is sexier than big muscles for most people Again I don't like raining on peoples parade , if you love building huge muscles . competing go for it . But if for health reasons branch out to other stuff as well

I totally agree. In the old days of bodybuilding, there are diffrent ways of sculpting the body. Serge Nubret wouyld use a a relatively light weiht for his workout and do no cario. He would do ate least 2000 situps instead. Yet heas has a body that would rival all the top bodybuilders ever. Frank Zane would have a different workout and looks different because of that. My point is there more thatn one way to a arrive at a destination.