Why So Many Gym Bros Continue Feeling Sad - David Laid 

Hello you beauties. Access all episodes 10 hours earlier than RU-vid by Subscribing on Spotify - spoti.fi/2LSimPn. Here’s the timestamps: 00:00 Intro 00:27 David’s Young Entry into Viral Content 06:12 Going Through a Period of Introspection 13:48 Role Models for the Modern Male 22:56 How to Overcome Ego with Self Awareness 30:28 The Extremes of Self Development 34:42 David’s Humbling Back Injury 43:51 Challenges in Modern Dating 52:16 How to Become Great in a Fragile World 1:02:36 What David Values the Most 1:08:26 Where to Find David

Rich people telling people that wealth wont make you happy, shredded people telling you that the ripped body wont make you happy, accomplished people telling you that external accomplishments wont make you happy.. To me it’s obvious that you first have to pursue and accomplish that thing you initially want before you can find out that you need something else in life as well. It’s a necessary process you have to go through to eventually get to a deeper understanding of what makes you happy and fulfilled.

Never in a million years did I think Mr Laid would be on this podcast

I’m 46 and learn so much from young people. I wish this level of conversation was available when I was younger. We had nothing. Great podcast!

Very wise for 25 years old. Further proof that taking periods of time alone to reflect and read and listen to other wise men is necessary for us. Bravo 👏

David has ascended in a supernatural way.I love it.He's grown so much both spiritually and mentally

David did well in the interview. It's not easy being interviewed for an audience and being able to easily collate your thoughts. Props to him!

Man. I have been following David for years and he has been grown a lot in mental and spiritual aspects. love for both.

Dave finally found a platform to literally, metaphorically, more or less,express his highest level of being in the form of sinusoidal sound waves projecting through our phones. Literally.

David... what a man He has inspired so many kids to start lifting weights and to keep chasing their dreams (including me). Thx Chris for a wonderful podcast!

Man's just killing it with the guests lately. Can't wait to watch this tonight.

41:53. Chris nailed it so hard here. "All that you're going to be left with is the power of your thoughts." Wow, that was powerful. Dark and powerful!

The bit at the end Chris, where you are going through the things that mean most, being truthful in all things etc…that was lovely to see. What a great encouragement to end on 🙌

this episode was so enlightening. The fact that whenever we start doing something new or get obsessed with something new that is beneficial to us we tend to start feel that we are superior than others hence we fail to learn from that activity. As David said that its just a check box which we have to tick in order to get the dopamine rush in our brain. Amazing episode!

One of my favourite podcasts to listen to recently. There is genuinely something you can get out of every episode if you are into self improvement.❤❤

Chris this podcast you have is incredible. Each episode gives knowledge. I appreciate these more than you will ever know. Hope we can get a lift in one day you have some great insights. Keep grinding!

Even though he talks with more awareness and wisdom than most of his age, there's still a lot of processing and introspection to occur for him in the next 5-10 years, and it'll be interesting to see where his thoughts lie at that point.

Chris deserves everything coming his way. Extremely likable guy with great questions. He does so well at articulating and communicating with who he's interviewing and the audience.

Shredded won't but being in shape and muscular in a tshirt will make you feel confident and energetic. Atleast that's what I find. Love that feeling.

28:15 this happened to me exactly. 19 now, been working out since I was 14. Reached a phenomenal physique as a highschooler, and it was the coolest thing in the world for me. However, looking back I neglected a lot of other “mountains” like emotional work, relationship work, etc as fitness took the spot and gave me the validation I needed. Now I’m at the bottom again and I’m climbing up other mountains while still maintaining my physique but not obsessing. I don’t even track cals or protein anymore.

I started off with self improvement just to get into shape because I’m shy, introverted and pull no girls. But now I have a taken a much more wholistic approach to improvement, not just improving the physical, but the metaphysical and mental side of things as well. I’ve built a relationship with God and started reading the Bible, I’m getting into shape and building an aesthetic physique, I’m reading books expanding my knowledge, I’m putting work in to improve my uni grades and I’m discovering myself, who I truely am and what I want. I have clear goals which are much deeper than what was originally just improving myself to pull girls. I want to build myself into a man deserving of a beautiful wife and family and I want to be able to provide them with an excellent life. What keeps me going is this quote from Socrates; ‘’It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.’’. I apply it to not just the gym but to all parts of my life. I’m only here for a finite amount amount of time so why not reach my full potential?

Absolutely love your content, Chris! I feel like my knowledge grows every time I watch a podcast.

Wow, the way David Laid explains his experience and his vocabulary expression is great 👍

Amazing to me how fine this kid’s mind works. Wonderful to watch two articulate men in a conversation.

Thank you David, for putting my thoughts into articulated order. This type of conversation is very difficult to have with people who are on board to have it anyway, like Chris, let alone with kids my age (19), a lot of which are addicted to impusivity, meaning they select a dopamine hit (in their little situational win over me), as opposed to calmly correcting me, and building onto the point. David is probably the one famous person I genuinely resonate with, I like to solve Rubiks cubes, sincerely enjoy the beauty of cinematic photography and/or videography, speaking Russian, heavy deadlifts in the gym, being aesthetic, and crushing ego, with the goal of following the true path of improving. To the point of the correlation of Jordan Peterson and Zyzz, both of which are great idols for myself, I think the way in which they are similar can be abstractly identified as resembling a fraction of what is God; As the ultimate being to admire, like that of a father, as was mentioned. Would be a dream come true to be able to surround myself with such proactive people, enthusiastic about spending their time alive wisely, planning everything together, to work hard at something we both love to do, so that, via acclamating competency, we can obtain financial freedom, enough to learn and enjoy the finer things of life, most of which I'm yet to discover, but for instance learning Piano, Climbing, Wildlife, and other activities that I can't even begin to abstract because I haven't experienced most things. I am most terrified of forever being the person whose drive to try new things and explore the unknown has died. To me this represents the death of hope, which in a localised environment like the mind may aswell be labelled hell. Regardless of the result that my comment ensues, I am eternally grateful that the universe has given me this podcast conversation to listen to, and thank both of Chris and David for becoming who they have, which inevitably brought this gift to me today. Thank you!

Chris - I am honestly impressed by the amount of work you have done on yourself, to improve yourself, understand yourself and ultimately better yourself. Thankyou for sharing your journey with us.

This was great. The book “Awareness” by Anthony De Mello sums up a large majority of what this conversation is about. Tim Ferriss recommended it and it’s now the holy grail of “self-help” books for me. Highly recommend

I haven’t finished this episode but for anyone out there who lifts and feels the presence of doom and gloom throughout their lives hear me out. I’ve been in the same boat as David, pretty lean used to be super skinny. I put on a lot of size and now appear to be super shredded with muscle. I played college baseball and lost my scholarship to injury. For years I put my identity and purpose into the gym and it honestly because soul crushing at times. Lifts and prs became a drag and motivation was always fluctuating. I’d go lift simply because it became habitual and I was also a slave to my diet. One of my life long dreams was to achieve the job I have now. It does require physicality but it gives me a purpose and allows me to be in an environment with other exceptional men. It was hard to commit and start despite this job being my dream because In the back of my mind all I thought about was my gains and how I was unable to micro manage my life to the degree I was prior. After a couple of weeks of adjusting and getting through the shock factor of something new it dawned on me I felt happier. My body was adjusting in ways I never expected and I overall have achieved a new level of health. My cardiovascular system is quadruple what it was along with my mental health. I have access to gym equipment at work, but hardly ever use it. When I do I work hard but it’s mainly to keep myself fit for work not “chasing a pump.” I do a lot more calisthenics and my eating habits are also healthier. I still stay strict but I allow myself to have pleasure foods at times. Overall I feel ten fold what I did as your average gym bro. If I could give any young guy advice It would be to remember that the gym and “training” is meant to help you improve yourself. Get stronger put on some size but don’t become a slave to the routine. Train for something not for the soul purpose of being “aesthetic” as possible. I still look great I feel great and I have almost completely lost my body dysmorphia. All because I stuck to my plan and joined a profession that allows me to be a part of something bigger than myself. Best wishes for all the guys out there trying to make it in this messed up world we live in.

Damnn!!!! It was unexpected to have david on your podcast thanks for it chris

I'm fascinated by this guest. I'm also 25, and it's just interesting how similar our thought processes are. The introspection that comes from introversion, of sitting in our feelings and determining what it's telling you.. very fascinated

Excellent conversation. They both are great at exploring farther and farther into topics in a way that’s both easy to comprehend and deeply illuminating.

Loved this one, felt like a big brother young brother conversation.

Much wisdom through experience, self-awareness and abilities to communicate, young enough. Really interesting. I would've loved access content like this in my 20's. Great podcast again. Merci beaucoup🙏

Yes! Talking about the back injuries. I got mine from ego lifting on a jobsite... OMG, I was crushed. I loved my tremendous strength so much. Then, all at once it was gone! In it's place is terrible and constant pain. I slowly did my own rehab to get about half of my power back, but could never solve the pain. Had to build my ego a different way after that. For a long time, I was just sad about it... Luckily, a few years after my injury, my wife found me. In a way, she saved me. She gave me a real purpose. She needed a hero more than anyone I have ever met. I decided to be her hero, and my life got a lot better. Now I have a family I love! And still... A lot of pain. So I try to live life in a way where I am so gratified by what I do that I don't mind the pain as much. That is quite a challenge. Some days I am really happy, and aside from a limp, you would never know I was so badly injured. But sometimes, it can be downright depressing. My whole life up to age 23, my mammoth power was my favorite thing about myself. At 40, I can say with certainty that I cannot get my power back. It is not going to happen. Add to that neverending pain that has a strange proclivity to only ever get worse and well, that can be a bit overwhelming. That is, in essence, why I am here. Chris is a stellar role model and quite similar to myself. He is younger, stronger, smarter, richer, and more respectable than me. Still he tries to be humble and I find his experiences to be quite relatable. He is just as human to me as I am. But, he is certainly wiser. So, I listen carefully when he speaks. He tends to invite incredible minds to be on his show, so I listen to them carefully as well. It has been quite the learning experience. It has been helping me find ways to improve myself. I really like this podcast and have been a dedicated watcher since his first Peterson interview popped up in my feed about a year ago, maybe a little longer. I will continue to watch and learn, and try to find more ways to improve myself. TL:DR Thank you Chris, what you are doing here is helping me, and likely countless others. Keep up the good work! And thanks for reading 😊 "Fuck! Who am I now?" -Chris Wow, that, exactly that. That is exactly how I felt. I was always the strongest of my friends. Then, poof!

This young man has a great energy. His voyage of discovery will help many

Good evening Chris and David Thankyou for the sensemaking brain gym. A good few of you guys here podcasting on RU-vid have helped upgrade my evidence base of life. Think we all Listen, Just don't feel we all Hear, Everything all of the TIME! Thankyou for sharing. Appreciate you both. 💜

Once you squat deep and think deeper, you go from a gym bro to a philosopher.

As a 24 year old. Finding myself In the same headspace. I needed to hear this.

2018 David laid was peak times, used to get hyped up before sessions with his videos. Crazy he's now with gymshark

A great podcast and good hearing people talk about the other side of body image. Hearing the word 'like' every sentence almost did my head in but it was good quality all the same. 😄 Props.

I've never watched Davids content and I'm genuinely impressed by how well spoken he is

Will Tennyson on this podcast would be a joy to watch

Best Podcast I have listened to this year. Thank you.

This was such an eye opening podcast in terms of comprehending and taming our self inflated ego, I really have to re think some of my values and ways of viewing life. Thank you

Chris saying that almost all high-performers are driven by a deep insecurity of not feeling worthy enough by someone or something is extremely factual. I’ve gone through something like this, luckily at an early age. The high-performer attaches their sense of worth to something else and in doing so destroys themselves inside emotionally. I found my way out of this by directly confronting the source of my insecurity. It is extremely painful to let go of someone or something that you love and is a source of self worth. In order to do this and confront this insecurity, the high-performer must and unequivocally self-recognize their own self-worth. This is the most painful and yet beautiful thing a person can experience.

Wow. This does not seem like the average shredded young fitness influencer I saw a few times on the internet five years ago. This is kick ass. To the dude's struggling the way David did in the past - the way he has changed and his mindset now is the sort of stuff you can learn from therapy or psychiatry. It is worth trying.

I remember watching David Laid motivationals when I was a kid. And I've lived through my own body image issues in similar fashion as him. It's good to see him make his arc complete.

Id never imagine this level of self awareness and insight from someone like David Laid. Truly impressive and inspiring 👏🏾

I really like when chris does IRL podcast and he changes the buidling he doing the podcast looks very nice and cinematic

Chris Williamson and Andrew huberman's podcasts are just on a whole other level

I really enjoyed this podcast and the introspections that it dived into and made me reflect one, David although seen as this person with a great physique is also extremely smart and relatable on the inside

This podcast was f'ing amazing bro, it's my first time watching David Laid and the language he uses is very interesting and precise.

David Laid on Chris Williamson's podcast has got to be one of the best crossovers in the world.

I've known David Laid for years but have never heard him speak. I am truly impressed by how well-spoken and self-aware he is, truly a role model for us young men. Did not expect to listen to the entire episode and I must say that I was very pleased to do so.

This dudes explaining everything I've been feeling

Damn when he said about former thought patterns arising and recognising them in a broader mindset it really hit me because that's exactly what happened to me after my breakup and a few talks with my friends about understanding mindsets and growth. I noticed myself getting into mindsets of feeling self pity and longing for my ex and still do sometimes but I can dismiss it very easily now with my thought patterns of what was wrong with the relationship and how good of a place I am in working on myself how much extra time I am and how much more freedom I have without pressure to make mistakes and go through the journey of self discovery

After looking at some of the comments from people saying “ one it’s David, he’s so hot, he’s my inspiration, I want to be like him”. I think what people are missing is that he is letting you know that this life you admire and want is not going to given you what you think it gave him. You still have issues and insecurities and how the life can take your focus away to only being focused on what the people wanted and not what he initially wanted or needed. We think people ask money and fame well some do and they do not find happiness nor satisfaction but some people do things just for themselves and it turns into something else about others. People listen to David In what he is warning you about. Instead of being glazed by his fame and looks which neither can last forever nor get you what you really want and need. I hear you David loud and clear.

At 39:50 Chris asks “who am I now when all of my places that I took my self worth from are gone?” and the light in the background came on. That was a moment that I felt the need to write that down and reflect about how I am operating right now. Light beckons from the darkness.

I can 100% relate to this young man. I saw some comments about how he speaks and I think he basically said it himself. he admires the intellectually spoken people and I think that's dope and he's in practice mode to become that. I understood him perfectly. proud of him for his effort and it's dope and crazy that at that age he's on a great trajectory of gaining a deeper sense of self. and fitness for sure has been his biggest teacher to that road.

What a beautiful episode! David has an amazing spiritual and physical balance. Thanks Chris!

I watch a lot of podcast.. like alot.. and Chris is one of the best host by far

It’s actually interesting how much more human Laid looks here in a tshirt without a pump versus his Instagram pics in perfect lighting, shredded with a pump etc. Completely different look

The information here in unbelivable, its like you guys are speaking out my mind, great podcast

What an amazing interview! We need more if this vs the hustle mindset. 🎉

I am 28 years i never had a girlfriend i love you guys because you unterstand us its realy therapeutic

The age of the gym bro bodybuilders is definitely coming to an end. The new meta for peak masculine fitness is the athletic warrior archetype - someone who has high levels of fitness in every area and optimises his body for being strong yes, but also being able to move through life quickly and smoothly. Knowing how to balance strength and power with flexibility and endurance is much more conducive to the fast paced modern world than simply being a big ball of muscle If you resonate with the strong mindset then I think you'll enjoy my exploration of the tradeoff between comfort and growth - let me know what you think of it I'm curious to hear your thoughts

Thank you, this message truly found me at the right time in my life

Great job Dave. nice to see how far you have come! your ideas could sometimes be executed in a more precise manner to make your points are bit more clear and straightforward-similar to how Chris articulates his ideas. Your speech is also quite pressured. Take a breath, slow down, you have the audience's attention. Keep up the good work!

Dave is one of the best people you could ever meet. Honored to call him a friend and a brother.

His combover is absolutely epic.

What is simple is beautiful, Less is more! Ambition is good ,but in moderation! It’s like it’s okay to be confident but it’s also okay to be insecure sometimes! Vanity is ugly because a person becomes obsessed with one’s self so at that point your mind really only takes from someone whether it’s through emotion ,physically , or even spiritually and when that person isn’t receiving they shut down. But when we choose to serve each other and surrounding ourselves around people who also do the same we don’t just take from others but we also give! And giving will always feel better than receiving! Fitness is amazing I love it and social media is really cool too. The problem I have with it is like David said materialistic vanity and ego is one of the biggest ways society is severely damaged because it makes people feel as if they aren’t enough because that might not have a certain status or materialistic things. I strongly feel that just simply connecting with each other as human beings and smiling and laughing and being Childlike but not childish like the Bible speaks about is what makes life humbly beautiful! Think about when you were a kid and I hope you weren’t abused and if you were Im so sorry! But most people when they were kids could run around outside and have the time of their lives! Spreading God and Love is goal not just though words but through our daily lives and actions! And when we get burnt out someone else will then return the favor! ❤Shalom Everybody! Please add some of your own thoughts on this I would love to hear about your mind!

Getting shredded didn’t make me happy, but it definitely gave me more of a drive. Now that I’m peak bulk I definitely notice a difference in my motivation since we tend to pacify ourselves with food and being overstuffed.

I know David speaks English but I can never understand what he's saying. LOL He is very well-spoken but in my opinion, he tries too hard to express himself intelligently that it practically becomes gibberish.

It's funny I'm 26 and I always tell people once I turned 24-25 is when I could tell there was a paradigm shift in my thinking and awareness about everything both externally and internally, David's perspective is very very high vibrational stuff love it!

9 minutes in is so deep he's trying to articulate what he's going through and his journey and you can tell it's so perfect in his head but when he's saying words it's just not coming out The way that he wants to express it

With the modern world of tiktok, reels and fast paced information David has just become this "concept" of aesthetics and fitness. Its very unique and interesting to see someone trying to understand whats behind Dave and how has he changed, because hes not the same as he was 4-5 years ago

I remember after years of working out, i finally ended up muscular, then leaned out and had abs, striations, etc...nothing crazy, but strong and lean. I was really impressed with my reflection in the mirror, but was very quickly like, "so...now what?" Felt like something I'd been chasing for a decade was just plopped in my lap, yet I was still insecure and could mostly see flaws. Very anticlimactic. It's great to feel fit and healthy, but there's definitely a vain dysmorphia and insecurities that don't go away just by obsessing over your physique.

the idea of getting shredded gives you motivation, but once you get there, it won't really be the thing that makes you happy, just like most things in life that you try to achieve, once you achieve, its never as good as it seems

I love that he doesn´t hold eye contact while formulating his thoughts. We are similar in that way.

What can a 48-year-old woman learn from a 25-year-old young man? More than she thought! Once again, Chris, your guest surprises me and challenges my preconceptions. Hadn't heard of David before this vid, truth be told, but I'm impressed by him, too. Onward and upward, lad! (You, too, Chris. ;)

I was really surprised by how well spoken David was. Very wise and experienced for his age

Young men spending too much time in the gyn for the sake of getting females is a waste. Do the gym for your overall health amd enjoyment. Don't forget to Invest in your character, spiritual well being, and other longer term goals.

I personally pursue body building and working on an aesthetic physique because to me it's leaning into the fact that humans, and all creatures, are most subject to progress. Laziness and the extreme--not taking care of yourself is the easier option that leads to a shorter life. Being fit and maintaining good nutrition prolongs it. The aesthetic aspect is just the bonus and it improves self esteem.

He should apply his philosophy to his insecurity of going bald.

enlightened gym bro ✨

Wow. Was not expecting this type of depth. Honestly blown away

Damn, that's one exciting guest to see in the thumbnail! Cant wait to hear this!

David Laid is a level of handsome that makes even Chris Williamson look like an average Joe.

Brilliant my friend ❤ All we have in the end is our Integrity & Spirit 🙏🏻

One of the best podcasts I’ve ever listened to

The collab we didnt know we needed

As an introvert who workouts and achieved his dream body and achieved other things he always thought would make him happy, although it had its harsh times, the pandemic was a great gift. I listened to way too many podcasts, read more books than ever, learned many things and ended up naturally going monk mode for a while.

Never even took into consideration that laid is such a smart guy

I never could put in words this one habit I had... Organic Introspection. Thanks for that one, David I have a question, is this common? I always had this curiosity, because sometimes it feels kinda like a superpower that helps you overgrow challenging moments of your life. This is great for the individual

Such a good and useful conversation

David Laid’s mental transformation has been more impressive than his physical one. He seems so much wiser now

Didnt expect him to be this articulate. Inspiring ❤

great episode thank you Chris and David

I've known about David laid for years but this is the first time I've ever heard him speak, and it's not what I thought he'd sound like

Exceptional guest