Simplicity sells

There will never be a simple solution to your complex problem.

Simplicity sells. It’s much easier to package up a quick fix or an easy story. As professionals we love to point to headlines that support our bias while ignoring ones that don’t. We want to wrap up complexity in 140 characters. But nothing exists in isolation.

We are overweight and getting worse. It’s not from lack of knowledge. It’s not from lack of money. It’s not from lack of exercise or diets. It’s all of these and none of them.

As a professional I know that people look to me and my colleagues to answer their questions. If we can move you into a metabolic ward and control all variables we still can’t be sure of the outcome. So in free living society where data is far from accurate we really aren’t suited. However, we can provide you with idealized situations and point you towards that. Knock down pins.

While this sounds pessimistic I believe that the reality of life can be freeing. It forces us to start thinking more critically and examine what we are doing and what we are spending our money on. And as fitness professionals I can hope that we are more judicious in the things we share.

Life is complicated. Nutritional interventions are complicated. Behaviors around weight are complicated. Simple sells and it’s cheap. But remember, everything has a cost. And that cost could be your health.