The Bitter Truth

Making sure our insides looks as good as our outsides.

By Kris Gethin

 

Nearly 18 years ago I embarked upon what has become a life-changing journey—one that’s been filled with amazing experiences. Bodybuilding has taken me all over the world; I’ve lived on several continents and in many cities, which has allowed me to forge some incredible relationships. I’ll always owe this to the bodybuilding discipline that you and I love. However, behind the scenes there hides a lot of bitter truths that haunt many who choose to participate in this “game.” Things that can mold you into a new person can also cause health issues that will detract from your quality of life. I want to bring your attention to the dark side of this world—one that shouldn’t put you off this amazing lifestyle, but instead create awareness to its pitfalls.

 

Toxicity

Unfortunately, too many people place vanity before health. I see thousands of people doing things that detract from their health and well-being in order to look better in the short term. Everything you put into your body should encourage a healthy state and not disrupt the vitality of your blood and organs. Many supplements can be full of heavy metal contaminants, which can possibly increase the risk of cancer. The ingredients used in many products are from synthetic derivatives, which can also increase the risk of cancer. If they’re not cancerous initially, they are toxic, which places your liver and kidneys under excess stress and over time can grind them down until they become infected by illness.

You don’t even have to go as far as supplements either. In many states, tap water can contain the same heavy metal contaminates. Some of the food you’re eating can contain inferior, harmful ingredients that are usually a result of mass production and farming that encourages use of hormones and antibiotics.

If you’re putting all of this shit into your body, what cost are you paying? Every piece of food you eat, all the water you consume, and every supplement you take should be adding to your life. Don’t expect any hierarchy or power structure to tell you what’s best. It should be on you to learn what is and isn’t good for you.

Are the supplements you take Prop 65 Act registered? Are they BSCG certified so you know that they are free of harmful drugs? Are you filtering your water so that it’s purified and free from all the nasty things that will otherwise line your insides with toxins? Are you aware how your food has been grown/raised and what’s gone into it? These are questions you need to ask and understand yourself, because your health is your responsibility.

All of my Kaged Muscle supplements are put through vigorous testing to make sure they are the cleanest in the world. I spend most of my margin on creating supplements that outperform any other when it comes to transparency, quality, purity, and potency.

 

 

Mental Health

Switching from the physical stressors to the mental, how is your regimen impacting your mental health? A lot of people in the fitness community fly under the radar with eating disorders of which they may not even be aware. This derives from a relationship with their food that starts off on the wrong foot and diminishes with time. Usually you’ll find that people who cannot learn to enjoy a healthy diet will occasionally binge out on large volumes of junk food. It only takes two minutes on Instagram on a Friday night to see people doing this.

The purpose behind your fitness endeavors should always be health, which means internally as well as externally. If your mind is unhappy and in a place of darkness, which is being exacerbated by a terrible relationship with food, then you’re failing to serve yourself.

 

Personal Proof

When you look at me, you might think I’m all about looking jacked and crushing weight in the gym. For sure those things matter to me and give me great pleasure, but they’ll never come at the expense of my health. To prove this, I recently had blood work done at one of the country’s top clinics. The results showed that my health markers are in the top-three percentile! This is a reflection of my daily practices to ensure that everything that goes into my body, even down to the soap I clean myself with, is void of all things toxic. Make this journey about your health—the physique you wish to display will follow.