What caught my attention:
“Those who are in shape have discipline. It’s as simple as that.
They don’t eat whatever they want.
They don’t workout only when they feel like it.
They don’t give into every craving they have.
Want to get in shape? Get disciplined.”
— Dr. James DiNicolantonio
What I see:
I read a lot from Dr. DiNicolantonio—including his books, which are excellent. His work has contributed a great deal to the fields of mineral balance, metabolic repair, and functional nutrition.
But this kind of messaging?It’s not just incomplete—it’s wrong.And honestly, with the level of influence he has, it’s irresponsible.
Not because discipline doesn’t matter—but because this framing ignores biology entirely, and shames the very people who are trying their hardest to rebuild.
There’s a missing piece here—and it’s why so many people struggle to “get disciplined.”
It’s not because they don’t want to.Most people do want to feel strong, consistent, grounded in rhythm.But when the internal system is still depleted or dysregulated, “discipline” in the form of daily workouts doesn’t build—it breaks.
When he posts this kind of thing, he is speaking from a body that’s already adapted.But people read it as:“If I’m not ‘disciplined’ with all this stuff, then I must be lazy or broken.”So they push harder. They try to keep up.
But when someone’s system is still in recovery, pushing hard every day doesn’t make them stronger—it burns them out.They don’t quit because they’re weak.They quit because their biology couldn’t sustain the load yet.
Discipline isn’t one-size-fits-all.Real discipline can mean showing up twice a week and recovering well.It can mean saying, “not today—tomorrow I’ll lift.”It can mean staying with the rhythm that builds capacity, not just proving you can override yourself.
Most people aren’t undisciplined.They’re just so flooded with shame about “rest” that they never learn how to structure it.
Most people want to feel strong.Most people want to train.Most people want to rebuild.
But when they try to follow the discipline-only model and it breaks them, they blame themselves—instead of recognizing the model itself is flawed.
And this is why people are so damn frustrated with health.Not because health is hard.But because they’ve been handed strategies that ignore biology—and then shamed when those strategies don’t work.