One of the best parts about CrossFit Actus is the people, there’s no doubt in my mind. The magic is in the conversations that come from simply paying attention.
It’s story time. Recently I had one of those moments with a father and son who train together regularly. It’s a great pairing. I think a father leading by example is the best gift a can give. They show up, they work hard, and they hold each other accountable. Earlier this week the dad pulled me aside with a concern about his son.
Like most 16-year-olds, he’s starting to care about how he looks. He wanted to lean out. That’s completely normal. He’s lost about 20lbs since trying to lean out.
The problem? He thought the way to get there was by barely eating.
We’re talking two eggs and some hummus for an entire day of eating.
Yes, he lost a lot of weight, but that’s not the win it seems like.
Because here’s the truth that a lot of people get wrong from simply a lack of education:
Starving your body might make the scale go down, but it won’t make you look, feel, or perform your best.
When I spoke to him, I kept things as simple as can be.
I asked him, “Do you want to build muscle?”
Of course he said yes. I expected that answer to be universal and it would have been no different for me at 16 years old.
And that’s when I explained the disconnect.
You can’t expect your body to build muscle, recover from workouts, have energy in the gym, and feel good day-to-day… if you’re not giving it enough fuel.
It just doesn’t work like that.
Your body isn’t a machine you can run on empty—it’s a system that adapts based on what you give it. If you underfuel it, it doesn’t just lose fat… it sacrifices performance, recovery, mood, and muscle along the way.
So instead of overcomplicating things, I gave him a simple framework he could actually follow:
- Make one quarter of your plate protein at every meal. I asked him what his choice would be and he said beef and chicken.
- Fill the other three quarters with fruits and vegetables. I asked him what his preference would be so I could double check he would be making good choices.
- Eat enough to support your training—not just your appearance
There’s also a lot of confusion around food choices, especially fruit.
Somewhere along the way, people started fearing it because of sugar. But the reality is, fruit is one of the most nutrient-dense, filling, and performance-supporting foods you can eat. It’s incredibly difficult to overconsume, and it provides the energy your body actually needs to train hard and recover properly.
The bigger issue isn’t eating “too much fruit.”
It’s not eating enough food which was my main concern.
At Actus, we’re not chasing quick fixes. We’re building people who:
- Have energy when they walk into the gym
- Can push themselves during workouts
- Recover properly afterward
- And feel good outside the gym, not just look good in the mirror
Because looking good is great. But it’s a byproduct, it’s not the goal.
The goal is to build a body that performs, lasts, and supports the life you want to live.
And that only happens when you fuel it properly.
Not when you starve it.
If you take one thing from this, let it be this:
Eat to perform. Eat to recover. Eat to feel good.
The physique will follow. Want to find out more? Click here