Professor EXPOSES The Big Myth Around LOSING WEIGHT! | Herman Pontzer

[@alinagoncharova1887]

After reading some of the comments, sounds like a lot might be wondering how to make this information actionable. My action items from reading his book and listening to this video: - Continue regular exercise to keep my mind and body healthy. Let my body prioritize calorie expenditure on exercise over other unnecessary/unwanted tasks (inflammation, anxiety, etc). - Watch my energy intake (calories) for successful weight loss and management. - Be mindful of overtraining and under eating. If I go into too much of a deficit, my body will push back. - Consider sustainability of any diet changes. Goal is to make healthy choices for life. Not one month.

[@annakatrina448]

The message that we cannot use exercise alone to lose significant amounts of weight, or to control our weight in the presence of poor diet or overeating is spot-on. It works when it works, but eventually something happens to all of us that prevents us from getting that regular exercise - life changes, illnesses, injuries, caring for sick parents, etc. Without getting the food part nailed down first, exercise is just buying time until something happens. No one here, or anywhere really, is saying exercise isn't great for us in a myriad of ways, or that it doesn't improve our health. Just don't expect it to be the magic bullet for weight loss and maintenance.

[@foxxysoul9502]

iVE BEEN WALKING 10KMS FOR A MONTH (EVERYDAY!!!!) HOPING TO LOSE WEIGHT. I IMMEDIATELY STOPPED TODAY WHEN I HEARD ABOUT THIS RESEARCH AND THOUGHT ABOUT IT ALL DAY! THIS IS THE ONLY VIDEO THAT MADE IT CLEAR FOR ME!!! THANKS SO MUCH DR!!!

[@scotto7924]

You made a mistake. Exercise has huge benefits in other areas.

[@whytemancanjump]

This guy is just another part of the problem of pushing people further away from exercise.

[@PracticalInspiration]

As I'm in the process of getting healthier, this couldn't have come at a better time

[@CerealSnob]

I hope a year later you're healthier and happier.

[@Madmarsha]

When an explanation finally makes so much sense about a long-term question, my mind is blown. I understood that you CAN'T outrun a box of donuts, but I finally understand WHY! Thank you!

[@uelude]

You've obviously never ran a marathon in your life

[@Madmarsha]

@@uelude, you're right. I don't do unhealthy things anymore.

[@robmizell]

This is a great interview and Dr. Pontzer's book, "Burn" goes even further in-depth. The first half of the book on our metabolic evolution is eye-opening. Highly recommended.

[@jimatsydney]

Thanks, what a great interview. It just reinforces to me the importance of being active. After this talk I am going to start viewing exercise, not as a drudgery but what I evolved to do. Exercise is not something I just do but what I am designed for. What I am!

[@Nadege949]

Dr Chatterjee has the best guests!

[@andygriffiths9916]

I saw this too. I worked with guys who loaded trucks all day and they all had a gut and some looked really unfit despite massive physical activity.

[@johnlee5423]

Sounds as if they eat tons of garbage

[@andygriffiths9916]

@@johnlee5423 Yes sugar and alcohol for sure

[@mooster47]

The episode in the book that amazed me more than anything else was the gathering of honey and that in spite of the ancient skills that were involved, the man used a plastic jar. That they made a meal of honey also amazed me.

[@sarahickmott6499]

I absolutely love this interview. As a marathoner and someone with a nutrition qualification, I've often wondered what on earth was going on with the whole 'energy in / energy out' equation. My question is, if reducing calorific intake / using diet to lose weight is true, how come 'set point' steps in and stops us losing weight when we reduce food intake, as it puts the body into fat storage mode to protect us? In other words, it's very very difficult to lose weight at all, and keep it off, because the body doesn't want us to. That's why we're now realising that diets don't work! I should also add, I put on a stone (approx 7.5kg) during marathon training. Was I just super unlucky, or did my body really not need all the extra food I thought it did? Probably the latter. Also, exercise makes you hungry (or at least it does me!), so that's hard to ignore too. Imagine going on a 3 hr run then to eating enough food to fuel that run. you wouldn't be able to do it!

[@KJB0001]

same here sara. ultra marathoning made me gain body fat. i guess my body thought there was a constant threat of saber tooth tigers AND drought (running and not enough calories) and kept cortisol up (fat storing hormone). I've had better luck with LONG calm walks (no panting) and no more carb loading. ugh.

[@uelude]

@@KJB0001 blame culture. It's what you're putting in your mouth that's making you fat, not "marathoning". The statement "marathoning made me fat" is exactly what's wrong with this entitlement culture where people refuse to take responsibility for their actions or what they put in their mouth. Running doesn't make people fat, negligent eating through training and recovery does. There are thousands of marathon runners who do it correctly and stay trim year after year, including those who run the longest marathons on earth

[@joot78]

Great. Exercise doesn’t work, diet doesn’t work. No wonder 80% of the population is overweight/obese. It’s a discouraging message.

[@sarahickmott6499]

@@joot78 isn't it funny that we have so much science to tell us what NOT to do, yet no-one has a credible answer as to what we should do to lose fat. Apart from maybe weight training perhaps?

[@melamek1]

@@sarahickmott6499 fasting works

[@dcamnc1]

I’ve personally found what he says is true. Even when I was a semi-pro cyclist, I had to diet pretty hard to lose weight despite riding hundreds of miles a week, if not per day. It’s mostly in the calorie count I’ve found, in the real world.

[@aaminahasan6270]

Please can you do something about gaining weight for people coming from EDs or just gaining weight in general?

[@Regulus1999]

Great scientific evidence discussed here and as an engineer I completely understood this and found it absolutely fascinating. The human body is an 'amazing' piece of technology in its own right that most of us totally disrespect and then moan about it, just like the way we treat our World also. The people commenting negatively here clearly haven't got a clue on how to learn, listen, hear or understand clear data and information being solidly presented to them, let alone have respect. This is not about promoting books! If you are all so clever and know all this to be wrong then why are you not the ones doing the same type of expert research work and writing successful books to show us all? Keep broadcasting Ragan!!

[@bettyboo1927]

I don’t understand this ( sorry if I’m missing the point). I put on a stone during lock down and have lost it since exercising/stopping drinking and eating better.

[@Prophezora]

Its bs. You need to workout and eat right to lose weight.

[@Prophezora]

@Lawrence Newman calories in calories out can't argue with that.

[@whytemancanjump]

Thats called a diet, not a healthy lifestyle. @lawrencenewman9941

[@Marathon5151]

I can attest to exercising more not leading to weight loss. There were some weeks this year that I ran more than 150 miles and I didn’t lose a single pound. I always thought that I can just move more to make up for any poor eating mistakes, but nope, doesn’t work that way.

[@BartBVanBockstaele]

Lovely and interesting discussion. The anecdote about zebra meat seems to confirm a position I have held for a very long time i.e., that food does not have to taste good, it should just not taste bad, which would mean I don't want to eat it.

[@seanbyrne127]

The dialogue at the start sounds quite misleading, and almost deliberately so. The fact someone with a more sedentary lifestyle might burn more calories than someone with a more active lifestyle isn't proof that more activity means more calories burned isn't true. The distinction should have been made that the same person, if living an active lifestyle would burn more calories than the same individual if they lived a more sedentary lifestyle.

[@akhusal]

He's trying to make his results more dramatic to get more attention, but it's put me off watching the video.

[@rawlsrules]

​@@akhusal Well, it is not merely misleading it is a very strange remark and suggests that this person has an odd focus.

[@TheExpeditionUK]

it's just a balancing act, more activity means fewer calories burned elsewhere, eg brain, liver, immune system, etc. the total amount is due to how many trillion cells in someone's body (not including fat) I think "the myth" is that exercise equals weight loss, but it's so much more about diet than exercise, if you tell someone to exercise to lose weight you're basically setting them up for failure

[@joot78]

“the same person, if living an active lifestyle would burn more calories” The point you MISSED is that this ISN’T TRUE. That’s the POINT.

[@alixevans5504]

I found this quite an interesting podcast, in an anthropological kind of way, but I don't really understand the take home message? I think it's: don't use exercise as the main way to lose weight? I'm also not convinced analysing one group of people, the Hadza, is relevant to the general population? We don't look to the Inuit, who evolved to eat food from a very limited range of sources with high levels of fat and few vegetables, or the Southern African peoples whose diet revolves(d) pretty much solely around cattle. Many Asians have difficulty digesting milk and milk products while most indigenous Westerners tolerate it fine because we evolved to do so. Personally, I'm more interested in the research being done by ZOE in the UK/US on tailoring nutritional needs to the individual. I'm also a bit tired of most, if not all, these podcasts being linked to newly published books, so basically they're just PR for the author...

[@mrdeurknopp]

I'm halfway through the book and he corroborates his findings with plenty of other studies examining the the same issue, it turns out that hunter gatherers and subsistence farmers around the world do not expend more energy daily than their counterparts living sedentary lives in developed countries. Weird stuff.

[@macsmiffy2197]

They all have something to sell.

[@2adamast]

@@mrdeurknopp But 30 years ago anthropologists were already saying that hunter-gatherers don't work 40 hours a week. Compared to our sedentary obese people on super foods they consume of course less. No need to go to Tanzania to see that happen.

[@chuckleezodiac24]

Zoe? they're a tracking app scam. they'll charge you excessively to probe you and then tell you to eat Vegan salads.

[@thomasbogardus148]

I dont know about calories or weight loss but I do know as a diabetic if i ate a donut and walked i wouldnt have the bloodsugar issues I have if I eat same food and do nothing? So I know the extra activity matters to me even if it doesnt effect so called metablism or weight loss

[@gloriasaliba3395]

True !! Walking after eating is optimum for everyone

[@claresmith9261]

Great chat ... we need to move and be active but if we want to loose weight look at our food 🥘

[@chazwyman8951]

Every morning, no matter what you ate yesterday, the body gears you up with blood sugar and cortisol. You can use this knowledge to maximise your metabolic burn and extend your fast. 1) So in other words do not eat until you absolutely need to. I have not eaten breakfast for 7 months. It is great. 2) The next thing to do is do not eat in the evening when you are relaxing - you will only store that food as fat. 3) To help with hunger, try to avoid all carbohydrates except green vegetables. Make up the difference with natural fats and protein foods. Carbs drive hunger and cause fat storage. and 4) When you are ready reduce your eating to one meal a day.

[@tenzindolma6266]

Absolutely agreeing with all. And even practice 3 of these points. I am still vulnerable related to not eating late in the evening, thoigh i know perfectly the theory behind "Don't"... But working on that. Maybe because of the evening meal i can fast the following easily so that my first meal in the day is never before 4-5 pm... but after that i still eat something later...

[@kathya1956]

How much protein can you get in

[@healthyteddy]

Excellent interview. I am halfway through the book. Love it?

[@rawlsrules]

If someone becomes more active, what is the relevance of how many calories somebody else burns? I don't understand the premise.

[@jponcecarolina]

Maybe is to people in the process to loose weight

[@rawlsrules]

@@jponcecarolina The title would suggest it would have information that might help …

[@bettybray5366]

Because there isn’t a direct link between putting on weight and calories. Putting on weight is controlled by hormones like leptin and insulin. Sure, you need the calories to be able to do it, but calories are not the driver.

[@rawlsrules]

​@@bettybray5366 Not my question.

[@joot78]

The comparison to another person is to try to make you understand: if YOU start trotting through the woods all day just like a hunter-gatherer, you will ultimately spend about the SAME number of calories as if you were a couch potato, because 1) MOST calories are not spent on exercise, but background processes, and 2) your metabolism seeking homeostasis will dial down to compensate for any amount that you dial up.

[@gail651]

Interesting and Id be watching more of your podcasts if not for the overload of adverts all the way through

[@bettyboo1927]

Same!

[@AngelaVullo]

I listen to them on Apple podcasts and he only does a couple sponsor ads. He does this for free, so he need a little.

[@jenb7415]

Yes really hard to follow the conversation with so many interruptions.

[@aidagibbons1045]

Fascinating Interview! Thank you.

[@yourenough3]

Thanks for these insightful videos . Great channel.

[@sueanncrawford6217]

When will the book be available in the US?

[@Primetime_dads]

Can someone clarify from him if the hadza diet was fatty meat or real lean meat. So was their diet low fat high carb or hight fat lower carb

[@saloualoulwa7245]

Thank you very much from Morocco 🇲🇦

[@BigO161107]

Thank you for this, it has finally opened my eyes to the truth.

[@janeabbotts]

I don't understand why exercise wouldn't be much help withy losing weight, but does help for maintaining weight.

[@ZombieJohn]

Great show, as always, but just CONSTANT commercials-FAR more ads than any other KZbin channel I’ve ever seen :(

[@gailselkirksmith]

Very confusing folks. I have increased my movement and walking much more. I sleep well meditate a bit and follow an eating plan of maki g all my own foods from scratch and I am so much thinner and narrower. I am sure I have lost weight but never want to weigh myself again. Thinner is king for me and it can happen.

[@denasharpe2393]

Please tell me why?? I need to burn off more weight and thought keto would do it but still really slow...

[@akhusal]

He's talking about two different people, a skinny fit African uses very few calories when active. But a obese metabolically unhealthy person will burn more calories, just to digest the huge meals he's eating.

[@T1an1s]

There is no quick way to lose weight... at least not if you want to keep it off. As he said, your metabolism adjusts to your new lifestyle. I suggest reading "Interval Weight Loss For Life" by Dr Nick Fuller as it helped me to understand a lot of the principles.

[@SharkFishSF]

Keto works. Don't think.

[@dharmapunk777]

Tell me you've never worked construction without telling me you've never worked construction.

[@2adamast]

Why go to Tanzania to 'discover' basic metabolism and being a surprised expert(1:05)? And no I won't spend an hour about this and not this

[@rawlsrules]

It's no wonder science is getting a bad name. Do they ever stop comparing apples to oranges to pineapples?

[@akhusal]

There is still something to learn, one would be that as you exercise regularly and you become lighter and fitter, so you need fewer calories for the same workout. I found as my running improved I could run faster effortlessly. Also you can eat alot of calories, but not put on the equivalent amount of weight. This doesn't necessarily mean your burning more, but maybe feeding the gut bacteria more and shitting more.

[@jimmy7434]

This doesn’t ring true. I know what you eat is important but each time I’ve marathon trained I’ve lost a ton and I was drinking most nights. Exercise if you want to lose weight.

[@upendasana7857]

I agree,exercise has always played the most important role in me losing weight..maybe it does not burn calories as such but it sure as hell regulates my mood,increases my feeling good factors and boost mood,keeps me busy of course so I can't eat,builds muscle which I think burns more calories..there are so many benefits and I could never lose weight based on diet alone.I do find this podcast very confusing,I think it would be good if Dr Chatterjee explained more on a practical level and not scientific findings

[@johnschlesinger2009]

The reason you lost weight marathon training is that you used up pretty much all the glycogen stored in your muscles, and glycogen binds to water. The loss of weight is the weight of lost water. Similarly, when people go onto ultra low carbohydrate diets, they pass a lot of urine, and lose weight. Then, when they start feeling rough, and start eating carbs, the weight comes back within hours. One can live without carbohydrate, provided one eats enough protein, because the liver can convert protein into glucose by a process known as gluconeogenesis.

[@bluesbattle]

Same here, I have been training for a swimming marathon for the past 3 months and despite eating more, I've lost some weights too.

[@joot78]

That’s why we have science … so you don’t have to “believe” what just sounds good, and disregard what you “feel” doesn’t jive with your existing bias. We can objectively measure things.

[@whytemancanjump]

100% fact. Boring, boring, boring. Doesn't touch the common man or woman. Interview is too long. And misleading BS right from the start. Here is another person simply selling books. His book doesn't even cover anything to do with weight loss yet scares people away from exercise...i mean whats the point right if an overweight person is about the same as a Tanzanian in terms of energy expenditure. He fails to talk about at least one critical component. Can he explain how a 1950's housewife looks every different than a common 2024 housewife? Oh he forgot to tell you about enzymes that mop up blood fats during movement etc etc. Hey Mr Pontzer and Dr - it's a really lovely interview but try explaining this to the millions of people worldwide and the thousands upon thousands of fitness specialists worldwide who have successfully trained people to lose weight ( or i should say fat)and keep it off....a large percentage with exercise alone, no dietary restrictions or major detail. How many people have you actually trained Mr Pontzer? Have you actually taken individuals under your wing and seen them exercise in front of you every week over many weeks. I didn't think so, because what you would find is the same results we experience at our health retreat for 11 years and as a trainer over 25 years - that EVERY person loses weight when movement is introduced.

[@evanhadkins5532]

Hunter-gatherers had a more diverse diet than we who eat the results of mechanised agriculture - over the longer term not day to day.

[@anatgolan3973]

I still wonder, if your body adjusts then how can you possibly ever loss weight? Much less keep it off? Clearly the mechanism where you over eat you store the access as fat and then if you under eat your metabolic rate slows dawn. That is why I am doomed.

[@oolala53]

Doomed to what? You can still live a very vibrant life without getting thin. They are a very good reasons besides losing weight to eat mostly unprocessed food and get in regular exercise, including hard resistance exercise to improve strength. Do the basics and you may find that your body is changing its composition anyway. Also, if you eat about 40% of your calories from protein, and don’t eat foods with flour or seed oils, you may find that you are satisfied with less, especially if you eat most of your food at meals, not snacking. You can affect your set point though you may not get it to media thin. Still worth it!

[@elmutchos6726]

I’d recommend watching Dr Jason Fung. Fasting is probably the best way to lose weight.

[@joot78]

Their research is suggesting caloric intake (eating less) is more effective than expending more (exercise).

[@elmutchos6726]

@@joot78 it’s more than just that, it’s that exercise has to be ever increasing in intensity and duration to be effective at weight loss as your body becomes more efficient and reduces energy expenditure elsewhere. IE weight loss plateaus happen as your body becomes accustomed to exercise.

[@chuckleezodiac24]

@@elmutchos6726 love the Fungster. IF is great for weight loss -- and also for muscle loss, decreased metabolism, increased lethargy, sleep disruption and curtailment of auto-erotic activities.

[@pennyrapp7372]

No mention what movement does to the brain for aging or what it does for mood and circulation. Not much taken from this besides a group eating disgusting food.

[@probablypondering1657]

I couldn’t be more skeptical of this research. As a personal trainer I have seen this anecdotally disproven time and time again. Moderate inclusion of cardio inserted into someones routine without a change in diet or any other parameters results in at least some weight loss in 100% of my clients.

[@joot78]

Mostly water weight lost when carbs are expended. Readily lost - and readily gained back.

[@eddoctora]

I love all your videos but this one was my least favorite. The research is very Interesting but the dialogue is muddled and did not deliver a consistent strong message in favor of movement and exercise

[@Neil2022]

So Dr what your saying is don’t exercise?

[@joot78]

He didn’t say that at all - he says it’s not an effective way to lose weight. There are many other health benefits of exercise.

[@joot78]

He explicitly refers to benefits of exercise such as decreased inflammation and stress response.

[@dailydoseofmedicinee]

👏👏

[@j8r8v8]

Wow! Such positive comments from a podcast that failed to tell why I can't lose weight. Can someone tell me why I can't lose weight? Maybe I just eat too much?

[@benhallo1553]

Too many calories simple as that

[@chuckleezodiac24]

you eat too much.

[@thisismylife-i5t]

Movement makes energy. By moving you make your food to energy. There is one man, that says he has not eaten in many years. He lives only with sunlight. We don’t know how true that is, but the sunlight is the source to energy, plants only need water to make the growth happen. Perhaps we need more sunlight and movement.

[@rharnevious]

#colormecurious

[@themadcoachman]

Dont eat loose weight

[@jameelsaazer]

Does the body recognise that it's extracting calories and burning calories? I think not. The concept of calories is borrowed in medicine from physics. All the body sees is nutritional ingredients. If there is extra, it converts it into fat. If there is need it either makes that fat into use or wants you to eat food because it prefers fast supply of nutrients, mostly as glucose. Body wants to save. If you want it to lose, it will fight with you. Don't give the body that you want, give it that it's really wants. Simple as that.

[@wesoz1950]

This is a very long podcast and the take home message could have been delivered within 5 minutes. Too much irrelevant information re the Hadza. Basically exercise is healthy and might help you lose 2kgs of weight but that's it. I'm assuming than that the only way to lose more weight is by food restriction. This was never even touched on unfortunately.

[@johnjustice8478]

1:00:00 Humanity sharing meals After I go to work emptying garbage bins, I see bludgers everwhere living off my work, from the politicians down - immigrants, politicians, bludgers. I'm sick of it. I don't mean people working or down on their luck. I mean people like this presenter

[@whytemancanjump]

Boring, boring, boring. Doesn't touch the common man or woman. Interview is too long. And misleading BS right from the start. Here is another person simply selling books. His book doesn't even cover anything to do with weight loss yet scares people away from exercise...i mean whats the point right if an overweight person is about the same as a Tanzanian in terms of energy expenditure. He fails to talk about at least one critical component. Can he explain how a 1950's housewife looks every different than a common 2024 housewife? Oh he forgot to tell you about enzymes that mop up blood fats during movement etc etc. Hey Mr Pontzer and Dr - it's a really lovely interview but try explaining this to the millions of people worldwide and the thousands upon thousands of fitness specialists worldwide who have successfully trained people to lose weight ( or i should say fat)and keep it off....a large percentage with exercise alone, no dietary restrictions or major detail. How many people have you actually trained Mr Pontzer? Have you actually taken individuals under your wing and seen them exercise in front of you every week over many weeks. I didn't think so, because what you would find is the same results we experience at our health retreat for 11 years and as a trainer over 25 years - that EVERY person loses weight when movement is introduced.

[@DieKellerei]

Nothing but clickbait. The "big myth around losing weight" isn't exposed here. Waste of time. All those "new" findings are pretty old news. This helps nobody. Especially not those of us who are not metabollically healthy. Thank you for nothing, Dr. Pontzer.

[@chelok7805]

What a bullcrap coming from a Professor. What this Professor is not saying is, that he took as comparison African hunters and they do live in a total different enviroment and have a different lifestyle so different metabolism. They don't sit on a sofa all day and order a pizza over phone. They hunt every day. For weight loss it is a simple math. Exercise burn engery, so calories. You burn more calories than you take in, you will lose weight. As simple as that and proven over time by many people including me. This professor is talking BS. You can not take and compare an African bushhunter with an average guy from a modern industrialized country.

[@whytemancanjump]

Thankyou for not being hoodwinked . I am starting a not for profit organisation in an effort to get people to move more, because people have been moving away from exercise and movement . And here is my own response to this vid. Boring, boring, boring. Doesn't touch the common man or woman. Interview is too long. And misleading BS right from the start. Here is another person simply selling books. His book doesn't even cover anything to do with weight loss yet scares people away from exercise...i mean what's the point right if an overweight person is about the same as a Tanzanian in terms of energy expenditure. He fails to talk about at least one critical component. Can he explain how a 1950's housewife looks every different than a common 2024 housewife? Oh he forgot to tell you about enzymes that mop up blood fats during movement etc etc. Hey Mr Pontzer and Dr - it's a really lovely interview but try explaining this to the millions of people worldwide and the thousands upon thousands of fitness specialists worldwide who have successfully trained people to lose weight ( or i should say fat)and keep it off....a large percentage with exercise alone, no dietary restrictions or major detail. How many people have you actually trained Mr Pontzer? Have you actually taken individuals under your wing and seen them exercise in front of you every week over many weeks. I didn't think so, because what you would find is the same results we experience at our health retreat for 11 years and as a trainer over 25 years - that EVERY person loses weight when movement is introduced.