Modern WisdomWhat Is The Fitness Menopause? | Modern Wisdom Podcast 173
CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 1:13
Gym culture in-jokes: bodybuilding dreams vs lifting reality
The episode opens with banter about gym culture and the gap between wanting a bodybuilder physique and the unglamorous work required. They riff on hyper-specific lifting obsessions and the online fitness rabbit holes many lifters fall into.
- •“Everybody wants to be a bodybuilder…” mentality
- •Nostalgic references to old-school online lifting culture
- •How tiny training tweaks can become identity-level obsessions
- •Humor as a gateway into the deeper topic
- 1:13 – 2:48
Defining the “Fitness Menopause”: losing the spark for bro-lifting
Chris introduces the central concept: a phase (often late 20s) where aesthetics-only training stops feeling fulfilling. He links it to boredom, diminished motivation, and a dawning awareness of mortality and real-world fitness gaps.
- •Chris’s definition and personal origin story
- •Aesthetic training starts to feel repetitive and empty
- •Noticing poor cardio/real-life capacity despite looking fit
- •The idea as a common lifecycle stage for longtime gym-goers
- 2:48 – 5:26
Why Millennials got funneled into bodybuilding first
Yusef and Jonny explain how a specific internet era shaped training paths: T Nation, bodybuilding.com, and “shredded” culture. For many young men, weights became the main (or only) physical outlet besides casual sports.
- •Fitness media surge and the bodybuilding funnel
- •Bodybuilding as default training option for young men
- •“Entry requirement”: years of pec deck/leg press culture
- •Zyzz as the generational signal of that era
- 5:26 – 7:36
Bodybuilding’s low barrier to entry (and why that matters)
Chris argues bodybuilding is accessible because it’s low-skill and low-friction compared to technical sports like Olympic lifting. That accessibility provides quick external rewards, but can leave mobility, conditioning, and resilience behind.
- •Low mechanical skill requirement vs sports like the snatch
- •Fast external validation and visible progress
- •Avoiding activities that make you feel incompetent
- •Hidden costs: stiffness, aches, poor athleticism
- 7:36 – 12:09
Powerlifting: “sport for non-athletes” vs elite athletic reality
They roast the beginner-level culture around powerlifting (and the diet/lifestyle stereotypes), then defend high-level powerlifters as real athletes. The discussion highlights how standards and athleticism change dramatically at the top end.
- •Beginner powerlifting stereotypes and lifestyle loopholes
- •Why judging athleticism depends on level of competition
- •National/international lifters look and move differently
- •The steep jump from participation to elite performance
- 12:09 – 23:27
Do you like bodybuilding—or do you just like exercising (and outcomes)?
Chris reframes the listener’s motivation: many people like what training promises rather than the act itself. Jonny describes chasing milestones (abs, 300kg deadlift), achieving them, and realizing the satisfaction is fleeting—fueling the “menopause.”
- •Outcomes vs process: liking results more than training
- •Milestone chasing and the ‘now what?’ feeling
- •The value of “ticking the box” on physique goals
- •Diminishing returns and shifting priorities over time
- 23:27 – 26:21
Why switching sports often reignites progress (compliance + novelty)
Chris explains that when people pivot to a sport they genuinely enjoy—CrossFit, BJJ, fighting, yoga variants—consistency rises. More compliance usually means more training volume and better results, even for physique goals, as long as loading/progression remain.
- •Novelty effect and renewed intrinsic motivation
- •Compliance increases training volume and results
- •You can improve physique by quitting the program you hate
- •Caveats: need loading, intensity, and progression
- 26:21 – 32:14
You still need a base: strength, awareness, and basic competencies
Yusef and Jonny argue the ‘pivot’ works best after building foundational strength and body awareness. They describe how prior barbell/machine experience makes complex environments like CrossFit safer and more approachable.
- •Most untrained problems improve with basic strength
- •Bodyweight squat/pushup as foundational targets
- •Barbell familiarity reduces skill barriers in new sports
- •Proprioception and athletic history matter more than people think
- 32:14 – 37:39
Jonny’s fitness arc: from bullied kid to Worlds—and then burnout
Jonny walks through his journey from early weight loss attempts to bodybuilding, then powerlifting success culminating in competing at Worlds. Injuries, business demands, and reduced novelty eventually deprioritize training and trigger his ‘fitness menopause.’
- •Origin story: bullying → running → Men’s Health lifting
- •Switch from getting lean to getting strong (531 era)
- •Rapid competitive rise: regional records → Nationals → Euros → Worlds
- •Weight class move, big numbers, then injury and motivation drop
- 37:39 – 46:07
Yusef’s fitness arc: extreme bulks/cuts, competition, and serious injury
Yusef recounts a highly experimental training history: countless programs, extreme bulking tactics, aggressive dieting, and eventually coached success and being very lean. He details health consequences and a major disc issue that drove a rethink of bravado-based training.
- •StrongLifts, ‘squats and milk,’ and improvised school-gym setups
- •Extreme weight gain strategies (cream/olive oil/mass gainer)
- •Getting ‘silly lean’ with coaching and the health fallout
- •Disc issues, loss of function, and rejecting ‘train through pain’ culture
- 46:07 – 49:54
Supplement nostalgia and the reckless era of pre-workouts
They reminisce about old supplement marketing, DIY mixes, and stimulant-heavy pre-workouts like Jack3d/NO Xplode. The stories underline how fitness identity can drift into extremes and how marketing shaped behavior.
- •T Nation-style marketing exaggerations and ‘black ops’ programs
- •Amphetamine-like stimulants, itchy face, tunnel vision, crashes
- •DIY pre-workout mixing from bulk ingredient bags
- •How hype cycles fed obsessive training decisions
- 49:54 – 53:42
The real pattern behind the fitness menopause: injuries, mortality, integration
Chris synthesizes the common triggers across their stories: injuries, stalled progress, fading novelty, and slower recovery with age. He frames the goal as integrating training into life rather than making it one’s entire identity, alongside broader self-development shifts.
- •Injury as an inflection point and reality check
- •Aging: reduced recovery and increased ‘mortality awareness’
- •Training becomes supportive of life, not the center of it
- •Fitness change coinciding with wider habit and identity changes
- 53:42 – 1:03:11
Objective vs subjective progress: why sports can beat aesthetics
They contrast bodybuilding’s subjective judging and self-evaluation with sports that offer clear metrics (weight lifted, times, reps). CrossFit is highlighted as mentally easier for progress because there are many dimensions to improve, reducing stall frustration.
- •Aesthetics are hard to measure and fuel anxiety
- •Bodybuilding judged by preferences; strength is measurable
- •CrossFit offers many levers for progress vs narrow strength metrics
- •Slacklining as an example of play-driven, non-aesthetic skill practice
- 1:03:11 – 1:12:32
Practical wrap-up: who’s eligible, why grip strength matters, and ‘club rules’
They close with guidance: beginners haven’t ‘earned’ the menopause yet and still benefit massively from basic strength training. The conversation ends with grip strength as a longevity marker, plus humorous ‘minimum requirements’ (years of splits/531 anxiety) before graduating to something new.
- •Don’t confuse early inconsistency with ‘fitness menopause’
- •Strength/muscle/grip strength linked to health and mortality risk
- •Jonny’s new curiosity project: grip training (Rolling Thunder, Captains of Crush)
- •“Eligibility rules”: years of bro splits or 531-style obsession before switching
