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Send us Fan Mail Gut health is everywhere right now. From probiotics and prebiotics to microbiome diversity, fibre supplements and the gut-brain connection, it can be difficult to separate genuinely useful advice from marketing hype. So we sat down with Dr Karan Rajan to answer some of the biggest questions about gut health and what you can actually do to improve it. We discuss: - What does having a healthy gut really mean? - What are the biggest factors influencing your gut health? - Why is fibre so important, and are most of us eating enough? - What's the difference between soluble and insoluble fibre? - Can you eat too much fibre? - What does the research tell us about fibre and colorectal cancer? - What is the gut microbiome, and why does its diversity matter? - Can your gut bacteria influence your mood and mental health? - What's the difference between prebiotics and probiotics? - Do probiotic supplements work, and does the specific bacterial strain matter? - What are the biggest gut health myths people should stop believing? We also discuss flatulence, the science behind some of the most popular gut health claims, and the practical steps that can make a meaningful difference to your digestive health. If you've ever wondered whether you need a probiotic supplement, whether you're eating enough fibre, or what all the fuss about your microbiome is actually about, this episode is for you. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Do diets actually make you fatter? Does yo-yo dieting permanently damage your metabolism, make you store fat more efficiently, or leave you heavier than if you'd never tried to lose weight in the first place? The idea that dieting makes you fatter might sound absurd at first, but there are genuine scientific reasons why researchers have investigated this possibility for decades. From early experiments in rats to long-term human studies examining weight regain, body composition and metabolic rate, the evidence is more interesting than you might expect. In this episode of the All or Something Podcast, we explore the science of weight cycling to separate what the research actually shows from some of the more exaggerated claims surrounding yo-yo dieting. We discuss: - Why scientists first hypothesised that repeated dieting could make the body more efficient at storing energy. - What early experiments in rats revealed about repeated cycles of weight loss and regain. - Why people who diet often end up heavier years later, and why this doesn't necessarily mean dieting caused the additional weight gain. - Whether repeated weight loss and regain permanently damages your metabolism. - What the research says about weight cycling, body fat, lean mass and metabolic rate. - Why observational studies linking weight fluctuations to poorer health cannot necessarily establish cause and effect. - How restrictive diets can affect hunger, food cravings and your relationship with food. - Why repeatedly losing and regaining the same 20 pounds can be emotionally exhausting, regardless of what the science says about your metabolism. We'll also discuss a crucial distinction: dieting and weight cycling are not the same thing as dieting causing you to become progressively fatter. The fact that people who diet sometimes end up heavier years later doesn't prove that dieting itself caused their weight gain. And while weight cycling has been associated with certain health risks in observational research, that doesn't automatically mean the weight fluctuations themselves are responsible. As always, we're looking beyond the headlines, examining the evidence and trying to make the science understandable without losing the nuance. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail What happens when the sport you love becomes your whole livelihood? What happens when that is taken away from you because of injuries or you need to take a break during pregnancy? In this episode of the All or Something Podcast, we sit down with elite CrossFit athlete Bethany Flores to talk about the realities of competing at the highest level, navigating injury and pregnancy, and learning to separate your self-worth from your performance. Bethany has spent years pushing her body to its limits in pursuit of competitive success. But behind the training, competition, and results is a more complicated story about body image, food, sponsorships, and the pressure to keep improving even when life demands something different. After a back injury kept her out for the entire 2022 season, Bethany faced questions about who she was outside the gym. Then, competing during early pregnancy and navigating postpartum recovery brought a new set of challenges, forcing her to reconsider what it means to be an athlete when you can't always train, compete, or perform the way you used to. We discuss what elite CrossFit training actually looks like, the pressures of making a living as an athlete, and the support competitors can realistically expect from their sport and sponsors when injury or pregnancy changes everything. We also get into Bethany's longstanding struggles with body image, her relationship with food, and how becoming a mother has influenced the way she thinks about health, exercise, and the example she wants to set for her son. In this episode, we discuss: * What CrossFit is and what it takes to compete at an elite level * The impact of injury on athletic identity and self-worth * The pressures of competing around pregnancy and navigating postpartum recovery * Why being at your fittest doesn't always mean feeling good enough * The financial and emotional realities of being a professional athlete * Sponsorships, pregnancy, and the support athletes need but may not receive * Body image struggles, food, and fueling performance * The pressure to return to competition while other athletes keep progressing * Motherhood, body image, and breaking unhealthy patterns * How to know when you're ready to return to sport — and when to wait * Learning to value yourself beyond what you achieve This isn't just a conversation about CrossFit. It's about what happens when the thing that gives you purpose also becomes the thing that makes you question your worth — and how to find a healthier balance without losing the ambition that made you successful in the first place. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail The carnivore diet exploded in popularity, with claims that eating nothing but meat could help you lose weight, reduce inflammation, heal your gut, and even reverse chronic disease. But what does the science actually say about the carnivore diet, and why has the hype started to fade? In this episode of All or Something, we explore the rise and fall of the carnivore diet, tracing how an extreme animal-based diet became one of the most controversial nutrition trends on social media. We examine some of the biggest carnivore diet health claims, some of the biggest carnivore diet proponents and how some of the hype has already started to fizzle out. From the rise of the carnivore movement and its most influential advocates to concerns about cholesterol, saturated fat, fiber, and long-term health, we separate what we know from what is still uncertain. In this episode, we discuss: - What is the carnivore diet, and what can you eat on it? - How and why the carnivore diet became so popular - The biggest carnivore diet benefits claimed by influencers - Can the carnivore diet help with weight loss and body composition? - Are the health benefits from a carnivore diet actually about what you eat or rather what you avoid? - Why anecdotes and personal success stories aren't the same as scientific evidence - Why many people on the carnivore diet actually do not care what the research says - Why some prominent carnivore advocates have reconsidered their positions The carnivore diet raises important questions about how we evaluate nutrition advice. People may experience real improvements when they change their diets, but that doesn't automatically mean the diet itself is responsible for every reported benefit, or that the same results apply to everyone. Our goal is to look beyond the headlines, examine the available evidence, and ask whether the claims made about the carnivore diet stand up to scientific scrutiny. If you're interested in evidence-based nutrition, diet trends, weight loss, gut health, metabolic health, and the science behind popular diets, this episode is for you. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Is Health at Every Size actually healthy? In this episode, someone specifically asked us for our hot takes on Health at Every Size (HAES), and weight-centric vs health-centric care. Health at Every Size (HAES) has become one of the most debated ideas in nutrition, fitness and healthcare. Supporters argue that health should not be reduced to body size or weight, while critics have raised questions about some of the theory's claims, assumptions and practical implications. This is a very sensitive topic and it is actually one a lot of people don't understand properly, so we are approaching this a little bit differently and doing this in a debate format. Rather than just telling you our opinions, we are going to discuss some common claims and criticisms with rebuttals. That way you can see where some thought processes stem from, where some of their criticisms stem from, and perhaps where some ideas fall short. In this episode of All or Something, we wanted to have that conversation without turning it into a simple “HAES is good” versus “HAES is bad” argument. Rather than presenting one side as obviously correct, we work through the disagreements and try to figure out where the strongest arguments actually lie. We discuss: - Why Health at Every Size (HAES) is NOT THE SAME THING as people claiming you are always healthy at every size. - Are there risks associated with body weight? - Are those risks simply correlations or does your body weight cause those risks? - Can focusing less on weight improve health outcomes? - What role does weight discrimination play when it comes to poor health? - Do some people go too far to criticise the role that body composition can play in your health? This isn't intended to be a takedown of Health at Every Size, nor is it an attempt to dismiss the concerns that led to the movement in the first place. It's an attempt to have a more nuanced conversation about a topic that is often discussed in extremes. If you've ever wondered whether the criticisms of HAES are fair, whether the responses to those criticisms hold up, or where the truth lies somewhere between the two sides, this episode is for you. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail When does healthy eating become disordered eating, and how can you tell when your relationship with food has started to become unhealthy? In this episode of the All or Something Podcast, we sit down with Registered Dietitian and coach Rachel Hobbs to have a nuanced conversation about dieting, eating disorders, disordered eating, binge eating, fitness culture, and what it actually means to have a healthy relationship with food. Rachel describes her philosophy as “anti-diet culture, but not anti-diet, a distinction that opens up a much bigger conversation about where healthy nutrition ends and problematic behaviors begin. We talk about the difference between an eating disorder and disordered eating, whether dieting actually causes eating disorders, and the warning signs that someone's relationship with food may be becoming problematic. We also discuss binge eating, including some of the common misconceptions surrounding it and why simply telling someone to “have more willpower” completely misses the bigger picture. The conversation then moves into the fitness world, where behaviors like calorie tracking, following meal plans, getting lean, cutting weight and pursuing a certain physique can be completely normalised.  We explore what happens when someone genuinely wants to improve their health but doesn't want food and dieting to consume their life.  What can you do if you're constantly thinking about food? What if you struggle to adhere to a calorie target or meal plan? And does failing to follow a diet mean you've failed, or could the approach itself be part of the problem? We also discuss how parents can help children develop a healthy relationship with food without unintentionally creating fear, guilt or unnecessary food rules. In this episode, we discuss: - What “anti-diet culture, but not anti-diet” actually means - The difference between eating disorders and disordered eating - Whether dieting causes eating disorders - Warning signs of a problematic relationship with food - Why binge eating is often misunderstood - Calorie tracking and meal plans - Why struggling with adherence doesn't necessarily mean you've failed - Food obsession and constantly thinking about eating - When healthy fitness behaviors become unhealthy - Disordered eating in athletes and strength sports - Why losing your period shouldn't simply be dismissed as part of being lean - How to help children develop a healthy relationship with food - Whether you can improve your health without traditional dieting The goal isn't to stop caring about nutrition or to imply that nutritious diets are not health promoting. It's to make sure nutrition doesn't become the thing controlling your life. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Liam Layton, better known online as The Plant Slant, joins us to unpack and defend his hottest health and nutrition takes. Liam has built a huge audience with his unique comedic style, allowing him to deliver health and nutrition information to the masses. So, with such a large audience, if he had to pick a handful of the most important lessons that he could communicate to everyone, what would they be? We discuss the concept of “good” and “bad” foods, whether there are specific foods you should or shouldn’t eat, why the perfect diet doesn’t exist, and why Liam prefers to focus on foods to add into your diet rather than what you should take out of it. Of course, we also discuss beans, because he is known as “the bean guy”. We also discuss his social media ethos, why he decided to lean towards comedy and away from strict education content, what topics on social media really annoy him, and what frustrates him about health and fitness influencers specifically. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail What are we getting wrong about mental health? Mental health is talked about more openly than ever, but more conversation doesn't necessarily mean better understanding. In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Mike Banna to unpack some of the biggest misconceptions around mental health, mental illness, lifestyle, and modern medicine. We discuss where the line is between normal emotions like sadness, stress and anxiety and a diagnosable mental health disorder. We talk about the warning signs that someone may not be coping as well as they think, how to approach someone you're worried about, and whether efforts to “remove the stigma” can sometimes blur the distinction between struggling with life and having a mental illness. We also explore the role of lifestyle. How much can sleep, exercise and nutrition actually influence mental health? When can lifestyle changes genuinely help and when do they become an inadequate substitute for professional treatment? Mike also opens up about losing roughly a third of his body weight and how experiencing that transformation himself changed the way he thinks about health, prevention and the advice he gives to patients. And we challenge some common criticisms of modern medicine: - Do doctors focus too much on treating disease rather than preventing it? - Is the idea that doctors simply “push pills” fair? - How much do doctors actually learn about nutrition and lifestyle? - What are legitimate criticisms of the medical system? - And can we really trust social media for health and fitness information? This isn't an argument that lifestyle changes can replace therapy or medication, or that modern medicine has all the answers. It's a conversation about understanding the difference between them and being more careful about how we talk about mental health in the first place. If you've ever struggled with your own mental health, worried about someone close to you, or wondered where lifestyle fits into the bigger picture, this episode is for you. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Intermittent fasting was supposed to change the way we think about eating. For years, fasting was one of the biggest trends in nutrition and health.  The idea was simple, when you eat might be as important or more important than what you eat. Timing your meals properly could help you lose weight, improve your metabolic health, reduce your risk of disease, and perhaps even live longer. 16:8 became a household term. The 5:2 diet exploded in popularity. Alternate-day fasting attracted serious scientific attention. Books, podcasts and social media turned intermittent fasting into one of the most talked-about approaches to nutrition. But over time, this hype seems to have started dying down. Intermittent fasting (and time restricted feeding) are still very popular, but they don't seem as dominant as they once were. In this episode of the All or Something Podcast, we take a step back and look at the rise and fall of intermittent fasting.  - Why did fasting become so popular in the first place?  - What did the early research actually show?  - How much of the excitement was supported by good evidence? We break down the different forms of intermittent fasting, including time-restricted eating, 16:8, the 5:2 diet and alternate-day fasting, and explain how they actually compare with conventional calorie restriction. We also look at one of the biggest questions surrounding fasting: does fasting have unique benefits, or does most of the benefit come from the fact that people simply end up eating fewer calories? As always, people misinterpret these videos as us saying intermittent fasting doesn't work, but that isn't what we are saying at all. We are saying that maybe it doesn't work as well as what many people claimed, and maybe it works for a different reason as well. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Sohee opens up about something she hasn’t talked about publicly before (or privately, really). This is her experience with postpartum depression and the mental health challenges she has faced since becoming a mum. We talk honestly about what postpartum depression can actually look and feel like, why it doesn’t always look like the stereotypical picture of depression, and the feelings that can be difficult to admit. We also discuss postpartum rage, anxiety, intrusive thoughts, the enormous transition into parenthood, and why new mothers can struggle even when they desperately love their baby. This is a deeply personal conversation, but it’s also an important one. If you’re a new parent, know someone who is, or simply want to understand more about postpartum mental health, we hope this episode helps you feel a little less alone. If you’re struggling with your mental health after having a baby, please speak to someone you trust and seek professional support. You do not have to deal with it alone. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Cheat meals are one of the most common strategies in the fitness and dieting world. The idea is simple: eat “clean” all week, stick to your diet, and then give yourself permission to eat whatever you want for one meal—or even an entire day. But do cheat meals actually help with fat loss? Do they boost your metabolism, prevent metabolic adaptation, make dieting easier to stick to, or provide some other physiological benefit? Or are we giving them far more credit than the evidence deserves? In this episode, we take a closer look at the science behind cheat meals and the claims that have made them so popular. We discuss what research tells us about planned indulgences, calorie restriction, adherence, hunger, and overeating. But we also think there's a bigger issue worth discussing: why do we call certain foods a “cheat” in the first place? For some people, a cheat meal approach to eating can be completely harmless. But for others, the concept of cheat meals can reinforce a cycle of restriction, food rules, guilt, overeating, and compensation.  When you spend the week being “good” and then feel like you've earned the right to eat everything you've been restricting, is that really helping you build a healthier relationship with food? We talk about where we think the line can start to blur between dieting behaviours that resemble disordered eating and why eating a pizza or having dessert doesn't need to be considered cheating. In this episode, we discuss: - Where the idea of cheat meals came from - Whether cheat meals actually provide any metabolic advantage - Whether they improve adherence to a diet - The difference between a planned indulgence and a binge - Why labeling foods as “good,” “bad,” or “cheats” can be problematic - Restriction, overeating, guilt, and compensatory behaviors - Whether cheat days are different from cheat meals - What the science actually says—and what comes from fitness culture rather than research Obviously, we don't think there's anything wrong with eating foods that you enjoy. That is not the question at all. The question is whether calling them a “cheat” actually makes your relationship with food worse. If you've ever wondered whether cheat meals are a useful dieting strategy or just another fitness industry rule we accepted without questioning, this episode is for you. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail How should you actually train if your goal is to build muscle and get stronger? In this episode, we break down the latest American College Sports Medicine (ACSM) resistance training guidelines and turn them into practical advice you can actually use in the gym. Also, how do the new guidelines compare to what we thought was true before? Many of our beliefs have changed, especially if we rewind to when we first started in the fitness industry (over 20 years ago for Ben). - How many sets should you do? - How often should you train each muscle? - How many reps should you perform? - Do you need to train to failure? - How important is exercise selection? - Does the order of your exercises matter? - How much volume is actually necessary for muscle growth? - And how much flexibility do you really have when designing your workout program? Which common resistance training rules are genuinely useful, which are oversimplifications and which ones should be thrown in the fire? The good news is that effective resistance training doesn't have to be complicated, so here we tell you the most important things you need to know, and also tell you what you have more flexibility on. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Most of us have heard of “starvation mode”, the idea that if you eat too little for too long, your body eventually stops losing weight and holds onto every calorie. But is that actually what happens? In this episode, we unpack what really happens to your metabolism during prolonged calorie restriction and why the popular idea of “starvation mode” gets metabolic adaptation wrong. We look at two of the most famous (and frequently misunderstood and misrepresented) examples in the history of weight loss research: the Minnesota Starvation Experiment and The Biggest Loser. The Minnesota study showed just how dramatically the body can respond to prolonged energy restriction, while The Biggest Loser became famous for findings suggesting that some participants experienced substantial metabolic adaptation after losing large amounts of weight. In this episode we discuss: What exactly is starvation mode?What is the strongest research we have in support of starvation mode?Why do people misrepresent this research to support an argument that is factually incorrect?What actually happens to your metabolism when you lose weight?How much can metabolic adaptation really explain? We separate what the science actually shows from the common claims you see online about starvation mode, metabolic damage, and “damaged” metabolisms. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail This week, a huge debate sparked after someone suggested that adding bananas to blueberry smoothies could reduce some of the health benefits of the berries. The internet quickly responded, with many accusing her of spreading misinformation and unnecessary fear. So... who's right? In this episode, we break down the actual research behind the controversy. We explain what the famous banana smoothie study found, what it didn't find, and why the conversation online became so polarized. We discuss: - The human study that started the controversy - What polyphenol oxidase (PPO) actually does - Whether bananas really "destroy" the nutrients in blueberries - The difference between changes in nutrient absorption and meaningful health outcomes - How social media can exaggerate scientific findings - What this debate teaches us about interpreting nutrition research As always, our goal isn't to defend or attack anyone—it's to look at the evidence, discuss its strengths and limitations, and help you understand what the science actually says. If you enjoy evidence-based nutrition, exercise science, and myth-busting, don't forget to subscribe and let us know what topic you'd like us to tackle next. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss

Send us Fan Mail Jordan Feigenbaum of Barbell Medicine joins us to separate evidence from internet myths. We discuss testosterone, cortisol, menopause, lifting injuries, GLP-1 medications, artificial sweeteners, blood pressure, resistance training, and what the latest research actually says about building muscle and improving health. Along the way we unpack why bodybuilding may be safer than many people think, whether cortisol is really the "stress hormone" social media makes it out to be, how much menopause actually affects muscle gain, whether testosterone levels predict training results, and what happens to muscle while taking GLP-1 medications. If you're tired of fitness advice based on anecdotes and algorithms, this episode is for you. P.S., If you want to support us and would like monthly lifting workouts, you can join the Momentum by Sohee fitness app. http://momentumbysohee.com If you are interested in fat loss science, you can purchase Ben's best-selling comprehensive fat loss book, Everything Fat Loss. http://geni.us/EverythingFatLoss Timestamps 0:00 Introduction 9:09 Has health optimization become an unhealthy obsession? 16:18 Is cortisol getting an unfair reputation? 24:46 Are we focusing on the wrong health markers for longevity? What actually matters?  33:52 Is heavy lifting inherently dangerous?  40:57 Does lifting weights cause more injuries than other forms of exercise like running?  47:02 How much does lifting technique actually matter?  57:38 “You don’t need cardio if your goal is to lose fat.” What is the truth?  1:03:40 Do women gain muscle at the same rate as men?  1:06:47 Does menopause change the rate of muscle growth?  1:13:25 People seem to be more afraid of diet soda than alcohol. Why do you think that is?  1:22:05 Do you think people are focusing too much on the weight loss aspect of GLP-1 medications?  1:27:26 Would there ever be reasons for people to take GLP-1 medications without a desire for weight loss?  1:30:58 Do GLP-1 medications make you lose muscle?  1:41:20 What is something you’ve changed your mind on?  1:44:55 What is a hill you’re willing to die on?