I've recently been spending a lot more time on social media...

Some of you might have noticed. A few clients have joked, I'm seeing you nonstop in my Instagram feed.

Yes, it's true I've been posting a lot more.

Mostly, in an effort to educate, motivate, and inspire. But more than that, to get more ethical, credible, science-backed info out there that actually works in the real world.

However, I've got to say... I get it now.

The confusion, the fear, the overwhelming insanity of it all.

It often seems like you're boxing Mike Tyson with one hand tied behind your back. So, when I saw this... I knew I had to write this email.

Let's dive in. 🚀

⛔️ High Step Counts Slow Down Your Metabolism

That was the text I got from one of my clients this week.

Quick context: he's a programmer for a tech company, spends long hours at a desk, and trains 4x per week with weights. He wants to lose 25 lbs.

Here's his current plan:

• Logging his macros
• Running a 400-calorie daily deficit
• Cutting alcohol for 30 days to reset
• Walking 8,000 steps a day (which is honestly on the low end)

He attached a screenshot of a Menno Henselman post making the rounds on Instagram:

It's the kind of post that goes viral because it sounds counterintuitive. People love a hot take...

...and creators love nothing more than a battle in the comments section for driving more "engagement" from the algorithm.

I get it. After 9 hours of staring at code walking 8K steps feels like one more thing on a list that's already too long.

But here's the truth: my client is going to keep walking. And if you're trying to lose weight, reduce body fat, or keep it off — you should too.

Let me show you why Menno's post is clickbait B.S. dressed up as science so you can continue your steps.

But more importantly avoid making stupid decisions after reading clickbait headlines like these in the future...

🧀 Anatomy of a Clickbait Post

To his credit, Menno does post some well-researched content. I'm not saying there isn't truth to what he's saying.

But this post is a perfect example of twisting research to post clickbait B.S. Please excuse my French.

(Actually, I do speak a little French. When visiting Paris with my wife, my bonjour was so good, most people thought I was French! Viva la France 🇫🇷)

This is the game on social media. Take a real study. Strip out the nuance. Slap a fear-based headline on it. Watch the engagement roll in.

I'm passionate about fighting back against this kind of crap because it's designed to confuse, get views, and sell courses. Not to educate or actually help anyone.

Having helped 721 people lose 12,978 lbs over the last 4 years, I can tell you the underlying science here is nothing new.

It just gets packaged in a way that makes you feel like you've been doing it wrong.

What the study actually showed:

The researchers followed 16 sedentary adults with overweight through a 12-week supervised walking program.

Yes. Sixteen people. That's the entire sample.

Here's what they actually found:

• Body composition IMPROVED
• Total daily energy expenditure went UP
• Walking became more efficient
• Resting metabolism dropped slightly
• Weight loss was smaller than predicted

Read that list again.

The two biggest wins are exactly what you want from exercise: better body composition and higher total daily energy burn.

Menno took the resting metabolism finding, slapped a scary headline on it, and posted it. He conveniently left out the part where total daily energy burn went up and body composition got better.

This is the magic trick. Take a real but partial finding. Strip out the context. Watch the engagement roll in.

One more thing the study didn't include: any strength training, any nutrition intervention, or any progression. They tested the least efficient fat-loss tool in isolation. Of course, the scale didn't move much.

Here's my breakdown of what's actually going on.

🧐 When Math Doesn't... Math

Tracking your macros might take you an extra 15-20 minutes a day, but it can easily save you 400 mindless calories.

To burn those same 400 calories from walking, you'd need to cover 4-5 miles, or about 70-85 minutes. Brisk walking at 4 mph cuts that to closer to 60-70 minutes.

The math just doesn't... well, math. It's far easier and faster to skip 400 calories than to burn them off later.

Exercise is not a great tool for fat loss. It's a great tool for building muscle, getting strong, increasing your metabolism, and burning some extra calories.

But nutrition combined with training is the real key to fat loss. I've been preaching this for years. See below.

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(This is the kind of thing that happens when your training and nutrition work together. My client Scott lost 18 lbs, 7.9% body fat, and gained 4.3 lbs of muscle in just 16 weeks.)

This is why I never tell clients "just walk more" as their primary fat-loss strategy.

The 8K steps is supportive. The 400-calorie deficit and the macro tracking are doing the heavy lifting.

But supportive isn't the same as worthless. Hold that thought...

💪🏻 Workouts Don't Get Easier; You Get Stronger

Yes, the body adapts. That's the goal.

The body gets more efficient at anything you do repeatedly. The 100th time you walk 30 minutes, you'll burn fewer calories than the first time.

Menno frames this as a problem. I see it as the entire point.

Adaptation means your body is getting stronger, more capable, and more efficient. That's literally what we want from exercise. We celebrate this.

It's also why progressive overload is the key to long-term results. Over time, you stack additional habits on top of walking:

• Zone 2 cardio
• Strength training
• Higher intensity training
• VO₂ max threshold workouts

The base layer doesn't go away. You build on top of it.

🥱 The NEAT trap nobody talks about

NEAT stands for Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis.

It's all the unconscious movement you do that burns calories. Fidgeting. Tapping your foot. Pacing while on a phone call.

When you're in a calorie deficit for an extended period, your body compensates by reducing NEAT. You unconsciously move less.

I've experienced this firsthand.

Before fitness photoshoots, I'd eat around 800 calories a day for 1-2 weeks while still training 60-90 minutes a day.

My body would compensate by dramatically reducing my activity. At home, I literally couldn't do much except lie around. No amount of caffeine could fix it.

Here's what Menno conveniently leaves out: this is exactly why structured step goals matter.

If your body is unconsciously trying to reduce your movement during a deficit, a daily step target keeps you accountable. It forces you to move when your body would rather you didn't.

For my desk-bound client, hitting 8K steps means parking farther away, taking the stairs, walking after dinner. Without that target, his sedentary job plus a calorie deficit would drop his daily activity to dangerously low levels.

The step goal isn't fighting his metabolism. It's protecting it.

🍔 There Are No Free Lunches

Everything in life is a trade-off. I wrote a whole article about this a few weeks ago.

But here's where Menno's post really falls apart.

The biggest reason walking matters isn't the calories you burn today. It's what happens after the diet ends.

According to research published in Obesity, roughly 66% of lost weight is regained within 2 years, and 95% within 5 years.

Read that again. 95%.

If you lose 25 lbs and gain 24 of them back over 5 years, you didn't actually solve anything. You just rented a temporary version of yourself.

Walking is one of the most sustainable, low-impact habits you can build.

It's the kind of thing you can do for the next 40 years. That makes it perfect for the maintenance phase, which is where most people fail.

Plus, walking has benefits that go way beyond calorie burn:

• Better mental health (especially outdoors)
• Lower post-meal blood sugar spikes
• Lower blood pressure
• Improved digestion
• Stronger relationships when you walk with your spouse or a friend

So here's what I told my client.

Yes, keep hitting your step goal, especially because you sit all day.

Walking won't be the thing that burns the weight off, but it's part of the system that keeps it off.

Don't fall for clickbait designed to make you feel smart for doing less.

Strength train 3-4x per week. Eat in a calorie deficit. Track your macros. Cut the alcohol when you're trying to reset. And keep walking.