The Health Huns
The Messy Side of Health and Fitness!
Your favourite amateur athletes keeping it real, discussing the messy side of health and fitness
The Health Huns
EP.29 Weight-loss and identity shifts
@joshuahillsnutrition @michaelulloapt
We pull apart the glossy myths of weight loss and talk about identity, confidence, and the way the world treats you when your body changes. Training wins, colder mornings, hair shedding, and loose skin sit alongside practical tools for sustainable habits and gentler self-talk.
• shoutout to Shannon and invite for DMs
• Amber’s 10k plan and strength PBs
• injuries, cold weather pain and recovery
• weight loss versus identity and confidence
• pretty privilege and social treatment shifts
• jealousy, boundaries and support networks
• rewriting self-stories and sustainable habits
• emotional eating, rituals and food neutrality
• loose skin, hair loss, feeling cold and ageing faces
• maintenance anxiety, balance and avoiding extremes
• inclusive spaces and everyday access
• credible creators to follow for better algorithms
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Hello, welcome to the Health Huns.
SPEAKER_01:We are your hosts, Amber Green and Ree Riley Timms, and we're here to talk about the messy side of health and fitness. Where we are gonna call out the bullshit, share our opinions, and have a good gossip.
SPEAKER_00:And probably stumble every time we try and do something with any structure. Exactly. So strap in. Yeah. Yeah. Good luck.
SPEAKER_01:So we wanted to add something to our weekly episodes, and just as a bit of like an appreciation for our loyal fans. Yeah. Listen to every episode and message us and get involved. And this week we're going to do a big shout out to Shannon.
SPEAKER_00:Shannon loves us. She is our biggest fan. Yeah. Maybe one of two. Yeah. When she's listening to us at home, it's like we're with her. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So she is our first ever shout out, and I really hope she listens to this episode this week. You better. We'll know now if she's making this up. Yeah, exactly. Um, so if you want to shout out, all you need to do is get involved, DM us, even just ask for one because we're not quite overrun with requests yet. It won't be hard for you to get a shout out. Anyway, Amber, how's your week been?
SPEAKER_00:You know what? My week has been pretty good. I mean, not a 10 out of 10, but not far off. I've really got back into running. I have signed up, which I think I said last week I'd signed up to the arm of 10k, and I decided I'm gonna actually train for it. Something that I never do. I'm only like a week and a half into it. However, that week and a half into it, I'm still motivated. I ran so basically I'm gonna do one long run a week, one interval run, and then one kind of free run. Um, and my long run, I am adding 500 metres every week. So by the new year, I'll be doing 10k, but then I am gonna go to like 10.5k, 11k, probably no more than 12k, just so that 10k feels a bit easier.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. So you've got more in the tank when you get to 10k?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. Build the engine. And I've been to the gym and I did a 70 kg sumo deadlift today. You did indeed. Um yeah, I've just it's been good, it's been alright.
SPEAKER_01:How has your week been? Quickly though, if you do want to follow Amber's running 10k journey, go follow on the Instagram, uh reluctantly underscore running.
SPEAKER_00:It's underscore reluctantly running underscore. Okay. Well, I'm actually gonna try and document this. Yeah, I feel like if I document it, I have to do it. So yeah, fingers crossed.
SPEAKER_01:Um my week has been um treacherous to say the least. I fell down the stairs at the beginning of the week.
SPEAKER_00:Oh yeah, I forgot to ask you. Are you alright? I it was a shock. Did a Victorian ghost child push you down?
SPEAKER_01:No, it was my cat. You know the one that is always meowing to be let in and out on this podcast? It was him. And I had my basket of washing down the stairs at a good trad wife. I am. I was gonna get the washing done, and I slipped and I my little toe whacked into the wall, and I scraped my bum and my arm. And then Tuesday night at the gym, I was putting the big 25 kilogram weight plates away for the leg press, and I caught my two fingers in between them as I like slammed them down. Oh yeah, very painful, and um I also caught my other two fingers and my other hand with a barbell the other day, and because it's so cold, everything just hurts so much. So, injury prone has been my week. Um, I lifted 120 kilogram deadlift. New PB. That's a lot, it's a lot, and I just thought, fuck it, I'm gonna do it today, and I did. So sometimes it goes to show how much were you lifting before that? So the last time I attempted like a PB or one rep max, I got 105. That's a big difference for two reps. Now the likelihood of me going up in strength by 15 kilograms is unlikely. So I think on that day I could have probably gone for more.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:So I think I sold myself short, and really I'm now much closer to actually what I can lift for one rep. So it's confidence. It's confidence and just feeling good. Like I've been eating a bit more this week, I've just been super hungry, so I had more energy, I think. So yeah, apart from nearly killing myself and falling down the stairs, I've had a really productive week. Things are going well.
SPEAKER_00:That cat is gonna be the death of you.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I think it might be.
SPEAKER_00:It's a good job, he's so handsome.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, he can get away with it. So, what are we talking about today?
SPEAKER_00:Well, we are talking about weight loss and identity change. And some of the we'll talk about some of the positives of weight loss, but also some of the negative things about weight loss. Because I think weight loss is often shown as the answer to all your problems, you'll be happy if you lose weight, blah blah blah. But it's not everything, and you know, there's always two sides to a coin.
SPEAKER_01:Wow, that was so insightful and deep. I know it's that scarf, it's really giving you an edge. So wise. Um, so let's kick it off with you because you've recently gone through a weight loss journey. And how do you think your identity has shifted for better or worse throughout that period of time?
SPEAKER_00:I find it quite hard to know, really. Like, I would say my identity has changed. I'm I'm more confident. Yeah. Um, and I go out and do things, and even like I went out at the weekend with my friend Jonna, and I wore this dress. I brought this dress years ago, and I loved it, and it like literally would barely go over my knees before. Um, and it's like a vampire's wife dress, and it's black and silver, and it's quite jazzy, and I'm always a bit like, oh god, I don't, you know, where am I gonna wear it? And it's just like, why do you need an occasion? Just wear it. So I just wore it to the pub with my Dr. Martins, and it just didn't matter that I was wearing a shiny silver dress, like, and I would never because it would have drawn attention to me, I guess. Um but you know, it didn't draw attention to me because no one looked at me at all. So yeah, that probably was all in my head that people were gonna well. I mean, I couldn't have worn it because it didn't fit, but you know what I mean. Yeah, um, I I guess my biggest identity change is that I do a lot of exercise now. And I never would have thought that this would have been I I just wouldn't have thought that I would have ever enjoyed it. And it's like we always say, it's so annoying that you doing exercise, going for a run, makes you feel better afterwards. Yeah. But deep down inside, I I'm still the same person. I just think I'm the person that I probably always was, but didn't have the confidence to be.
SPEAKER_01:I um when I went through like a weight loss journey like back in the day, I don't think it was necessarily I think yeah, I got more confident and all that kind of stuff, but I think it was more the way the world interacted with me, which was more of a shift. So it was, you know, unfortunately, because people are assholes, like they will show you, give you more time of day when you lose weight and when you're a more acceptable size in society's eyes, and you get life is a bit easier because of that. You do then get a bit more of that kind of pretty privilege for lack of a better term.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and I I think I just shut myself away, so it wasn't I barely went out or done anything, so it wasn't, and I've always had really lovely friends like who have been supportive. So I think because it's not that I didn't experience that, but I did spend a lot of time at home, so I shot myself away from it. Yeah, I think sorry, go on. No, I'm just saying it is true, like you know, I've I've even noticed since like say when I lost the five like the first five stone, and I felt like more confident, and I've noticed the difference between losing that five stone and now losing like almost 11 stone, how differently I'm treated from then to now.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it's it's um and people feel like and that's what people often do want from a weight loss journey. They do want to be treated differently because it's not nice to be treated with such disrespect because of simply how you look, yeah. Um and yeah, like you said, it's not necessarily that at their core people change, it's that the world becomes a much safer place for them to be themselves and to exist outside of the four walls of their house.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, because I mean, I guess essentially, if I'd have been more comfortable, maybe I would have started going to the gym because I was like, when I get to a certain weight, I'm gonna join the gym, but maybe I'd have gone to the gym earlier, maybe I would have enjoyed it more, but I didn't want to go because of what people would think of me.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. Do you think there are any bad sides to your experience? That maybe I know you've mentioned before that there's sometimes a level of jealousy with people who've known you for a long time and people and this goes beyond weight, but when you start to change and grow as a person, you become someone that someone doesn't recognise, they try to keep you in your box to maintain how they feel, you know, in comparison to you.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I definitely think people I think some people liked having the fat friend because I think having people like that makes some people feel better. Um I think I think there's something about being more active that makes people feel bad about themselves, so they want to try and put you down to stop you doing it because it's sort of it's not that you're doing anything to make them feel shame, but like they probably feel something like, oh, I should be doing more, I should be doing this. Because I've definitely not so much now, I think because I've doing it, I've been doing it for quite a long time. I guess people are more used to me doing it, but especially when I started running and going to the gym, people would be like, Well, you are doing a lot, you're doing too much. I hope you're having rest days, I hope you're doing this, and like I have at least two rest days every week, you know. Like, I eat whatever I want pretty much. Like, I don't think I'm overdoing it, but uh if you're somebody who isn't doing anything, that might make you feel a bit bad about yourself. So I think people try and bring you down.
SPEAKER_01:And on the flip side of that, I'm sure when you're not you, but that in general, when you're not maybe doing enough exercise, or if you are bigger or whatever, people are like, oh, you should really be doing more, you know. So you it is like you cannot win, you know, you're either doing too much or you're not doing enough, or you're too small or you're too big. And that's the thing, it's just everyone's got opinions are like arseholes, right? Everyone's got them, yeah. And you're never gonna make everyone happy, and no matter what you do, there's always gonna be someone who has a negative thing to say about it, and the only person that is really important is you, and if you're happy at whatever size, doing whatever you do, yeah, then that's that's fine. Yeah, I think um oh, what was gonna say I think when it comes to making big changes in your lifestyle for whatever outcome, but let's stick to the weight loss one. Um, there is an element of mixing up the stories that you've been telling yourself about yourself. I think there's a lot of this is getting a bit woo-oo, maybe, and a bit deep, and a bit therapized, but yeah, I feel like before you embark on a journey, you're like, I'm not someone who can do this, can exercise. I can't, I'm an emotional eater, or I'm this way because of XYZ. And I think often you retell your story, that becomes your identity and stuff like that. And I do think there is a process of, especially for those who really do make a lifestyle change and it's sustainable and it's healthy and all this stuff, they have to kind of break those old patterns of like thoughts about themselves and decide to become something different. Yeah, a shift in identity, I guess. So it's not about changing who you are at your core, but changing some of the stories that you've repeatedly told yourself about yourself.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I it is because nothing's gonna change if you don't change, yeah. You know, whilst I don't think people should lose weight because anyone else has told them or society, but if somebody genuinely wants to do it for themselves and you know they're doing it in a sensible way, and you know, not having an all or nothing mindset, you have got to think about how you got there in the first place and what it will take to make that change. Yeah. And it actually is not simple because there is nothing about weight loss that is simple or easy, but it is kind of simple, if that makes sense. The principles are people overcomplicate it. Yeah, there's so many like this diet, that diet, calorie deficits. It's confusing because there are so many different ways, and ultimately what worked for me would not work for somebody else, or what worked for them wouldn't work for me. But it's it is just about finding something that works for you that feels easy and sustainable and manageable.
SPEAKER_01:And that doesn't even have to look like actually losing weight, that could just be simply doing things that improve how you feel about yourself.
SPEAKER_00:Because if you feel better about yourself, especially like if you have told yourself you're an emotional eater, um, if you feel better about yourself, you're less likely to go down that path because you feel better. I don't think I was an emotional eater, I was just a binge eater who it was like a habit.
SPEAKER_01:Emotional eating's a funny one because I do believe that eating is emotional. Like when you look at the way food is used in celebrations and rituals and things all across the world in all different cultures, like going out for a birthday meal, you know, all these things are sharing a meal with your friends. There is emotion behind this eating thing, and I think it's um quite reductive to label people as emotional eaters because we're not robots, we are gonna do things because we feel a certain way, and I just think people feel like they fail or they're failing because they believe they are emotional eaters. It's like you can't just not have emotion and you can't not eat. So, do you know what I mean?
SPEAKER_00:It's like well, I guess on I I've had a weird thought realization recently that not that I don't enjoy food, because I do enjoy food, but I don't enjoy food like I used to enjoy food. So I used to take real pleasure in like eating a huge Chinese or like like having a takeaway or something, yeah, and now I don't really want it, and even if I have it, I don't enjoy it like I used to enjoy it.
SPEAKER_01:So I feel like that kind of emotional enjoyment for food has gone a bit, almost like they're taking the power away from it in a sense, and in some ways it makes me feel sad because if I had a Chinese now, I would I'd eat it.
SPEAKER_00:Um I wouldn't eat as much as I used to eat before. But I don't think I'd really like I don't want to say it doesn't taste the same, but it doesn't give me that same satisfied feeling.
SPEAKER_01:Do you think it's maybe because you said you said before you lost the weight you were quite reclusive inside? So you weren't getting loads of dopamine all the time, but now you're feeling that dope, you're you kind of dopamine highs, you know, doing your exercise, seeing friends, going out, having new experiences. Do you think it's maybe something to do with that? Like your cup is filled in other aspects.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and part of me feels sad that that has gone, but also that does not uh what's the right word? That doesn't like that's not what I need anymore. I don't need the food to make like Matt went away. I don't know if I said this the other week, like he went away for a night and I laid in the bath and I was like, I'm gonna order a takeaway, and I was on Uber Eats and I was going through and I was putting things in my basket, and then I was like, no, I don't want that, don't want that. And I ended up like having beans on toast.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, interesting. Food for thought, pardon the pun. Do you think that since you've gone through your own journey, people have certain expectations of you? In what way? To be a role model to make this your life. I don't think so.
SPEAKER_00:No, no, do you know what? Not that many people really even talk to me about it. No, like I have clients, and every time they come in, they're like, it's like seeing your mum, oh, you look tinier than ever, and I'm like, well, I'm literally the same weight um as I was six weeks ago. But yeah, Pete, I I don't think other than on here, I don't really talk about my weight loss that much. I don't I know that people do find it interesting because it's like it is a lot of weight to lose, and like there is a big difference in me, but I don't know. I can't give anyone advice because like you know, the things I've done. I went to Slim in World, and lots of people hate Slimming World, but for me that worked really well because it made me cook home cooked meals, eat vegetables, like you don't have to count or weigh anything, so it wasn't too complicated, and I was much bigger to start with, obviously. So I still wanted to eat a lot of food, and it would it was kind of like volume eating but controlled. Whereas, I mean, I don't follow Swimming World now, but I couldn't recommend that to anyone else because that might not work for them, so yeah. I don't I I just don't really find people even talk about it that much with me, which is weird, but also good because I don't I don't really have that much to say about it.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I think there's always a risk, and um say some people lose like quite a substantial amount of weight, and then they make their whole thing about that, so whether that's you know, their Instagram handles called weight loss with Sue or 100 pounds down with Gary or something like that, and I think fine, you do you, like you're proud of your achievement, you're living your life. But I think when you base all your success on that weight loss, if you put weight back on, which is a normal part of life, you know, we have flight and seasons, nothing inherently wrong with putting weight on, surely then that brings down your whole concept of self.
SPEAKER_00:Well, that is one of the reasons why I never started a weight loss Instagram account, because like it's too much pressure. Like, I started my run in one because actually that is almost more important to me now than losing weight, like is seeing progress in that kind of terms. And yes, I do want to lose a little bit more weight, but it's not my focus. Um, but I remember as somebody that has been trying to lose weight for many, many, many, many years, my whole life. Um, I always used to follow these like accounts on Instagram, and there was this one girl, she was a northern girl, and she was called Emma something, and she'd lost like a hundred pounds on Slim in World, and she had lots of followers, and she I think like she'd met her girlfriend through like having this Instagram account, and like you know, it was you know, it was one of those typical accounts where she'd post what she ate every day, blah blah blah, recipes, her life people really liked her because she was really normal. And then one day, like, she broke up with her girlfriend, and she obviously had like a difficult time mentally, and then she put all of her weight back on. And there was a woman that I used to follow, I can't remember what she was called. She was on Instagram and YouTube, lose it with Lauren, that's what she was called, and she lost loads of weight, she got really tiny, she had like a tummy tuck, like she had weight loss surgery, like you know, skin removal surgery, and then she put all of her weight back on again. So she had this big chunk of time where she wasn't online, and I just think that must be really awful because people could be really horrible to you, and also you've got to face yourself, which is not not that there's anything wrong with facing yourself as a bigger person, but when you've marketed your brand yourself as like this small person that's lost weight, that goes to the gym, that has had like skin removal surgery to put it all on must make you feel worse than if you didn't have to share that online.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, 100%. It's like anyone who shares a particular part of themselves, you know, it you you don't then see the whole person, and it puts so much focus on that one aspect, which is just weight. And at the end of the day, that is probably the the least interesting part about someone.
SPEAKER_00:I don't follow weight loss accounts anymore. Um, I used to always follow them. There's only one that I follow, um, and that is because Terry Bakes. Oh god, Terry Bakes. Yeah, I've got the Monjaro now. I saw. I mean, I follow him just for the topless videos. Um uh joking. Uh no, it's a girl, and I mean she's just really funny, but I'll I'll tell you about her off air. Oh, okay. She makes me laugh. Do we know her? No, no, I don't know where she's from. Birmingham? Okay, Bristol.
SPEAKER_01:Um you mentioned some of the lesser talked about side effects of weight loss, which because we always see weight loss in all its glory and how amazing it is, and blah blah blah. Um, which I don't see it that way, but what are some of the things that happen that we don't know about or aren't publicized?
SPEAKER_00:Well, you're really fucking cold all the time. All the time. I used to love the winter because I'd still it's the one time where I felt a normal temperature, and now can it please be 27 degrees all the time? Because I am constantly freezing. Hair loss. So, I mean, I had my extensions put back in today. This is not my natural hair. Um, it is starting to oh, you can't really see, it is starting to grow back. I I've I've done quite well actually. Like, I didn't lose any hair for the first couple of years, but then last year I had a massive shed, and uh I've got like about two inches of like thick hair, and then it's just these wisps. So that's not that's not very nice, and I guess if I'd have really thought about it, I probably should have taken like biotin supplements because that is good for your hair. Like as a hairdresser, biotin is what really helps your hair, or like those hair skin nail gummies, they all have biotin and stuff in them. Um loose skin, different for everybody. I actually feel quite lucky with my loose skin because it's not that bad at all considering how much weight I've lost. Um, I would never want to have surgery because I don't think I could cope with the recovery.
SPEAKER_01:Really?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Is it in is is it um the extensive recovery? Is it quite a long recovery process?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and at one point I did think, you know, like if my skin is really bad, would I have it? So I joined some Facebook groups of people that had had tummy tucks, and fucking hell, it looks horrendous.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, like a pound like teddy bear.
SPEAKER_00:Awful, so awful. I would not and like to be honest, I've got like another just over a stone to lose, maybe. And my skin's not that bad. Like at the bottom of my tummy under like my belly button, there's a slight puckering of skin, and it will be soft, and there will be skin there, but not to any like absolutely like bad degree, and your skin does tighten up like as time goes on. But I guess I've done it slowly, so maybe that's been helpful. And I think I'm just genetically quite lucky with skin. Um, so yeah, that's but that's a big one for people, and you know, in these Facebook groups, actually, some of the people that having tummy tucks, I'm like, you've got a banging body. Why are you having a tummy tuck? Yeah, it's mad. Um one of the big things for me is I don't want to say I've got body dysmorphia because I don't think I have got body dysmorphia, but it's like not being able to really see where you are.
SPEAKER_01:I think I feel like everyone suffers of that. I and I think because we're always we're exposed to so many images and things of people all the time, more than we ever have been. I do think it's really hard to see who like yourself for like how you are and what you look like, because there's so many comparisons going on in the mind. Yeah, I don't know, and I just think we're never truly happy with ourselves, are we?
SPEAKER_00:Probably not. I mean, I am I'm not 100% happy with myself, but I am like 95% happy, which is actually pretty high.
SPEAKER_01:So what do you mean? Like is it like you look in the mirror and sometimes think there's been no change or not that there's been no change, but I do sometimes look in the mirror and like so I went to Lucy and Lac Yak last week and I brought a new jumpsuit, denim mechanic one.
SPEAKER_00:And I got a size 14 and it fits fine, like there's room in it, like don't get me wrong, I couldn't have got a 12, but like the 14 is fine, it's roomy. And then I look at it's comparison, probably, because I look at other people that I think are a size 14 and I'm like, I'm so much fatter than you, so I don't understand how I'm fitting in these clothes. I think I probably still see myself like two sizes bigger than I am.
SPEAKER_01:I I think when there's so much focus on the body, I'm not saying you are, but I think when you go through any major body change, whatever that is, you can't help but focus on the body.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:And yeah, and it's almost like you know, the more you look at a picture on a wall, the odder it looks, or the more you say a word, it then starts sounding weird. I think it's kind of that kind of concept when you're just always I mean, looking in the mirrors, looking at reflections in windows, and there's all I remember when I lost a lot of weight, I was always checking to make sure I hadn't suddenly like put it all back on. And I do think there's an element of I I mean, I've seen it done a lot, is people will lose a lot of weight and they'll hit their goal weight, and actually that's quite hard to maintain. So maybe they'll then go up like maybe an extra 10 kilograms or something, and then settle and like balance out, and I think that jump can be so much harder than the initial big jump to the bottom, yeah. And I think that's another downside, not downside, but something to to talk about when it comes to weight loss, is it's very hard to do it objectively, if that's the right word, to separate you from the arbitrary numbers of weight loss going down. It's it can be all-encompassing and lead to some not you can almost feel worse about yourself at the other end than you did when you first started.
SPEAKER_00:Well, yeah, and I think for me, I never used to really think about my body when I was bigger because I hated it so much, I just disassociated from it. Yeah. Whereas now, like actually, like, I like all of my body. The only thing is like my tummy, and I know that it will go down, it's just taking a long time, and also I was talking to someone about this the other day. Like, I'm quite a weird shape because I've got for my height, I've got really short legs, and I've got a long torso, but from like my belly button to where like my legs join, what is that called? Like, like I've that bit of meat is really long, like my belly button and below is so long, and that's the bit I hate the most. And I'm like, I wonder if that wasn't so long on me, I probably wouldn't even notice this area. So it's not even so much the fat that's there, it's the fact that it's so long.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, we can't win, can we?
SPEAKER_00:We can't, but you know what? I went out on Saturday night and I wore that dress, and I didn't think about my body shape or size once. I was just wearing a dress that made me feel good, having dinner with my friend, had a couple of wines, and it was great. So that although I do go through these like not liking my body, it isn't the be all and end all. But it is hard to get to that point.
SPEAKER_01:One, I think the overarching message of this of what we've been speaking about is weight loss will only bring you so much in terms of happiness, feeling better, problem solving, and if anything, if you're not careful, it can create more problems and unhappiness and dissatisfaction with your body. So it's something to be done with caution, something to be checking in on yourself with, and don't go into thinking as soon as I hit this weight, it's all gonna be sunshine and rainbows. Because you know, life will happen, you will probably put on weight again, you'll probably lose weight again, like the body changes, it's not a like stationary thing, especially being a woman, exactly. So there's that element to think of, and in a day and age, I mean, not even just now, but for hundred like for the last 150 years, women, men, mainly women, have been told what looks good and what doesn't. And if you don't fit into this category, you're ugly or you're not successful, you're not wanted. And with the barrage of images and opinions and trends that we have on a daily, minute by minute basis, to expect yourself to feel fully aligned, happy, content with not just your body, but your entire life and aspects of yourself is a hard ask. So don't be getting down on yourself because you don't feel happy about your body or this or that every minute of every day. But I think something you can work on is how you let those bad body image days affect you. I think you can get to a point where you can accept, oh, today I don't feel too good about this or that, but I'm not gonna now let that spill into the rest of my life. I'm gonna just kind of take a breath, accept that's how I feel today, and do some things that make me feel good.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, definitely. I think doing things that make you feel good, speaking to people that you like and that support you. If you've got friends that are not very supportive, maybe just kill them. I was gonna say distance yourself from them. Um but maybe kill them. Um because there are people out there that there's people out there that sabotage you from losing weight because they don't want you to lose weight, but there's also people that will say really horrible things to almost make you want to lose weight or take mate like weight loss drugs and when you don't want to take them, like when it's people's personal opinions. So yeah, kill them.
SPEAKER_01:I remember when I was a kid, I was probably like 12, 11, 12, 13. I had this friend and we went to the shop together, and she offered to buy me the slim fast shakes. Wow. Yeah. I was like, no.
SPEAKER_00:I'll have a full fat Coke. Yeah, and uh, what were those thick milkshakes called? Freshers?
SPEAKER_01:Uh fresh fresh fridge fridge, yeah. Freshers are like the weird one that you it's like you dilute it with shake. So we've all had people in our lives that are rude.
SPEAKER_00:So we actually had quite a lot of engagement on our Instagram this week. We did. And uh we had a poll, we were like wondering what people were worried about. Um and the two main ones were loose skin and an aging face. Loose skin and an aging face because of weight loss. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:And they are just things that happen. Yeah, you're g your face is gonna age regardless of whether you lose weight or not.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, it is.
SPEAKER_01:And I think older women are hot, so yeah, you do, so you'll have a fan over here.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I mean it it it is just something that happens, isn't it? And you know, actually, I think there's 18-year-olds out there getting Botox. So as a woman that is in her late 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, if you lose weight and you look a bit older, like you don't have to look like a baby.
SPEAKER_01:And the loose skin thing, I've never looked at someone who has loose skin. Like I've worked with clients who've got loose skin because of weight loss and had a thought about it. I d I don't care. Because it's not I guess I think It's uncomfortable, maybe.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I think that's the thing, isn't it? If it is uncomfortable, and I know a lot of people like if it's bad and it folds, they can get infections and stuff in it. But then I think potentially you might be if you get a lot of infections, you might be able to get a tummy tock on the NHS, even because it's like not cosmetic at that point. But get some spanks, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Just it's really not that bad. Also, no, like when you die, no one's gonna be at your funeral going, oh, do you remember those faggy old bingo wings she had?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, people talk about their bingo wings all the time, don't they? And I don't know, like I never look at anybody and think, oh my god, you've got bingo wings. And also it's normal. What I was gonna say, even if you're somebody that hasn't lost weight, like to have a little bit of baggy skin under there is not abnormal.
SPEAKER_01:And like there'll be uh some point in the past kind of a hundred years, probably like more like 70 years, where bingo wings was said and became a thing for one reason or another, and it's probably to sell some sort of product. I reckon if you went back in history and was like, when did the term bingo wings first be used?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I would imagine the term bingo wings is probably not anything to do particularly with weight loss, it's probably to do with older women going to bingo, going bingo, yeah, and actually, as they've got older, like their skin's just got less elasticity and they're wiggling, so it's probably nothing even to do with weight loss, like shall I tell you what, guys, girls, everyone in between, in this day and age, in this society, you will always find something wrong with you because we're not allowed or given the space to feel good, and for those lucky people who who say they always feel good and they don't have a negative thought about their body, good for you.
SPEAKER_01:I hope you're enjoying it. But I do think there's a level of acceptance where it's like, oh, I don't particularly like this part because of X, Y, and Z, but that is just how it is, and just lean into it, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So, and like just some things that people had noticed really about losing weight, they feel colder, they look older, brain catching up, they're being treated differently. Some people said they had confidence loss losing weight. Um worries about keeping it off. I have spoken to a few people recently, and one of my friends who's lost like four or five stone, I'm she's been going to the gym a lot, and she's like, I'm really worried about putting it back on. And I'm like, You're not gonna put it back on, like have a rest day. Don't worry, like, don't I know you think you're gonna put it all back on, but just chill out because this is not sustainable.
SPEAKER_01:And I I'm a I always say this, but if you're doing something for your health, and it adds more stress to your life, then it's probably not good for your health.
SPEAKER_00:No.
SPEAKER_01:So you probably need some maybe talk to someone about those feelings because then you get into you know, disordered eating behaviours, not eating disorders, but disordered eating behaviours, um body dysmorphia, yeah, um, orthorexia, like that's the other side. It it can it often goes into the extremes for a lot of people, unfortunately.
SPEAKER_00:And it can take over your life, and like I, you know, I I do do a lot of things, but I don't want it to take over my life, like I want balance, and I feel really lucky that I am surrounded by people that do keep me quite balanced, um, and also I am still quite lazy, so doing as much as I do is all I really want to do. Like, there's no way I want to be getting up at six o'clock in the morning and going to the gym. No. Or, you know, things like that. Like, there I have my limits, but a lot of people in the quest for these things lose their limits and will do anything.
SPEAKER_01:Either way, I feel like you're not living your best life. No. So don't let the patriarchy win. Because let's blame the patriarchy.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, it wouldn't be an episode with us if we didn't blame the patriarchy.
SPEAKER_01:We made it so far about mentioning our distaste for men.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, we've done well. We have done well.
SPEAKER_01:Um, was it anything else from the fans?
SPEAKER_00:Um, just yeah, people sort of noticing that um, you know, since like what we talked about earlier, if when they've lost weight, the world is easier. They don't have to worry about sitting in chairs, booths at restaurants, planes, all of that kind of thing, which is a sad thing. Because everyone should be able, I'm not saying make every single, you know, chair, like you wouldn't have every single chair as disabled, like accessible, but just have some bigger chairs, some places with more space that if people want them, they could request it.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. That'd be a nice thing, but I'm not sure that's gonna happen.
SPEAKER_00:No, it's not.
SPEAKER_01:Right. We're gonna round off this episode with recommending to people we think you should be following on social media to clean up your algorithm and give you some positivity and realistic advice on social media. So, Amber, you go because you've got the handles written down.
SPEAKER_00:So we are gonna suggest Michael Yaloa, which is Michael M-I-C-H-A-E-L U L L O A P T. He is a P T who basically just calls out bullshit, calls people out. Um, he had quite a lot of stick himself recently and posted about people being mean to him for like his physique and saying, How could he be a PT when he looks like that? He looks perfectly fine and normal.
SPEAKER_01:Um, and then the other one Joshua Hill's nutrition. We'll put it in the show notes.
SPEAKER_00:What does he do?
SPEAKER_01:Oh, sorry. Um, a qualified nutritionist, he went to university, like this is his job, and he gives really down-to-earth practical advice. He has a really cool academy if you wanted to join it. He is an advocate for or he lobbies or does something for the government to do with eating disorder awareness and social media has on young people. He does a lot of work on that and their bodies. Um, and he calls out toxic fitness influencers and coaches who are preaching really unhealthy things and calls them out. And he's a big fan of beans on toast, so he's my kind of guy. He loves it.
SPEAKER_00:Can I say one more thing about him?
SPEAKER_01:You think he's hot? He's got great thighs. There you go. He's got great thighs, guys. There we go.
SPEAKER_00:There's some videos or pictures of him when he was like playing rugby and stuff. Yeah, great legs.
SPEAKER_01:Amber doesn't listen to any of his nutrition advice. He's she's just there full of legs. So enjoy. Um that was a really good episode. I enjoyed that. Me too. As always, rate, review, it takes two seconds, you don't have to log in. You can do it on Apple, you can do it on Spotify. Tag us if you're listening to us, follow us on Instagram at thehealthhuntspod. Email us thehealthhuntspod at gmail.com. And if you have any suggestions, topics, or questions you want us to cover, or if you want to shout out on the next episode, get in touch. We would love to chat to you.
SPEAKER_00:We would.
SPEAKER_01:Um on that note, we shall go.
SPEAKER_00:It's a goodbye from me.
SPEAKER_01:It's a goodbye from me. Why do you give Bruce Forsyth energy just then? Nice to see you, to see you nice. Right, we're gonna go. Bye. Bye.