Weight isn't everything !!!

Steven Morris
2 days ago
4 min read

I saw this picture a few weeks ago and it really bugged me, that because of the rise in popularity of diet injections and GLP-1 for weight loss purposes like Ozempic & Mounjaro we seem to be slowly creeping back to the dark ages of the 90's where only skinny will do..

Below is a current picture of Kelly, Sharon & Jack Osbourne who admittedly regularly use Ozempic GLP-1 to lose weight.

BUUUUUUUT let me tell you... Weight doesn't equal Health !!!!

AND just because people we see on TV take these types of weight loss drugs, it does not mean they are the best way for the rest of us to lose weight.

Not only for the health implications of the medicine on your organs, hormones and mental health side but also because your body weight DOES NOT define your health.

The scales DO lie to you.

Or bend the truth.

Two people can weigh exactly the same… but live completely different lives.

At 85kg, one person is weak, tired, fragile, and slowly losing independence.

At 85kg, another person is strong, capable, energetic, and living life on their own terms.

The number on the scale tells you almost nothing about the quality of your body.

And yet every single day people destroy their health chasing a smaller number.

Below is a picture that i shared this week on Insta of me showing 4 different body types..

1) Too fat, - too much stored energy (fat)

2) slightly plump but healthy,

3) good shape (amount of body fat to muscle ratio / body composition but healthy,

4) body fat too low (stored energy)

Below I have put together a story of two different futures for myself - Version 1 - where I share the same view as the Osbournes (weight obsessed) or version 2 - a future where I continue my current path where I believe health is more than just a number on a scale.

Version One — The Man Who Only Chased Weight Loss

I became obsessed with being lighter.

Every morning started the same:Step on the scales.Good mood if the number dropped.Bad mood if it didn’t.

Nothing else mattered.

Not strength.Not fitness.Not energy.Not muscle.Just weight loss.

Eventually I found the shortcut.

Ozempic.

And it worked.

The weight dropped quickly.People told me I looked “healthier.”My clothes fit smaller.The scales finally gave me validation.

But something else disappeared too.

My muscle.

The strength I’d spent years building slowly faded away.My shoulders shrank.My legs got weaker.My metabolism slowed.I looked thinner… but not stronger.

Underneath the smaller body was a weaker human being.

And I ignored it because the scales kept rewarding me.

Fast forward 20 years.

Now getting off the sofa hurts.My knees ache walking upstairs.My back tightens tying my shoes.I avoid carrying shopping bags because my grip strength has gone.

Then one day it happens.

A fall.

A broken hip.

Three months in hospital.

Muscle disappears even faster lying in a bed.Independence vanishes almost overnight.

Now my children become my carers instead of simply being my children.

Their weekends revolve around visits, appointments, and stress.Their finances get drained paying for care.And I spend my final years existing rather than living.

All because I spent decades trying to become smaller instead of stronger.

Version Two — The Man Who Chased Performance

This version of me stopped worshipping the scales.

Instead, I asked different questions.

How strong am I?

How well can I move?

How much energy do I have?

Can I still run?Can I still climb?Can I still get down to the floor and back up again?

I focused on performance.

I trained my squat instead of starving myself.I cared more about my mobility than my waistline.I tracked my steps, my sleep, my strength, and my consistency.

I stopped trying to eat as little as possible and started eating to fuel my body properly.

Protein.Movement.Strength training.Recovery.Daily accountability.

I respected muscle because muscle is youth.

Years passed.

And instead of becoming fragile, I became capable.

At 60+, I can still do burpees.I can still squat my bodyweight.I can climb mountains in Scotland without fear.I can run a half marathon if I choose to.I can carry my own shopping.I can get up off the floor without using my hands.

Most importantly…

I still own my independence.

My children get to live their lives.Build their families.Travel.Enjoy freedom.

They don’t need to sacrifice their future to look after me because I spent decades looking after myself.

The Real Goal

Picture on the left above is what I could look like if I only chased the scale weight, vs picture on the right where I chase health, performance and body composition.

Your goal should never be simply to lose weight.

Your goal should be to build a body that still works 20 years from now.

A body with: