Personal trainer James Smith reveals why he isn’t afraid to tell people they’re fat

It’s a word feared by many, but James Smith – a Bondi-based personal trainer – has built a career off giving his clients a brutal wake-up call.

He’s the Bondi-based British personal trainer who has built a career on his outspoken – and at times controversial – approach to diet and exercise.

James Smith is also more commonly known as “the Gordon Ramsay of the fitness world”, a title he’s earned taking down Instagram influencers he believes take advantage of people who are often desperate to lose weight.

On the back of his reputation, built on a no-nonsense approach, Smith has ironically become a social media star, one who boasts 590,000 followers.

He is now also a best-selling author of Not A Diet Book, explaining he isn’t out to “disrupt” the weight-loss industry for the sake of it – more his mission is to help ordinary people much like himself.

“I’m flattered to be likened to him (Gordon Ramsay). He is obviously very accomplished,” Smith told news.com.au.

James Smith (pictured) is a Bondi-based British personal trainer known for his lacerating take-downs of Instagrammers spruiking dodgy diets. Picture: Instagram/jamessmithpt

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“Sure, it’s easy to cut together all his f***ing and blinding and think he’s a pr**k but his motives are to help people.

“And it’s the same for me. I swear and carry on but I’m calling out charlatans and educate the people that need it.

“The way I see it is that I’m passionate without compromise.”

Smith revealed he had always had an interest in diet and health and even from an early age as a “bit of an overweight kid” he was looking for answers.

“I remember asking the dinner ladies in the canteen at school what foods were fattening, but it seemed no one could give me a definitive answer,” he said.

As a teenager, Smith played rugby, although he said the sport was focused on performance with fitness a secondary consideration.

His preoccupation with athleticism wouldn’t hit until his 20s, around the same time Facebook and Instagram became a platform for the health conscious and body obsessed.

“That’s when I decided I wanted to be a personal trainer because I had taken it upon myself to look the best I possibly could,” Smith said.

“The problem was I got so caught up in it. Probably a bit too much. And it dawned on me I was giving up most of the things that were making me happy in pursuit of the ideal body

Smith revealed he splits his time between his home in Bondi and London ‘chasing the summer’. Picture: Instagram/jamessmithpt

His obsession with perfection led him down a path where he would jump at the chance to try a new diet, eating plan or exercise program – regardless of the science.

“I have tried them all. I tried juicing, low carb, meal replacement shakes, detox teas, all the things I have a pop at now, I tried when I was younger,” he said.

However, once he started to carve out a name for himself as a personal trainer and delve more deeply into the practice of evidence-based nutrition, Smith started looking at how he could stem the flow of misinformation.

“I imagined myself or people in the same position as me, what they would want to hear and how they need to hear it,” he said.

His willingness to actively disrupt the industry, something he has been doing for the past three years, has also meant he makes no apologies for using the word fat.

In January, an appearance on Good Morning Britain put him under the spotlight for saying the word can be motivating when used in the right context.

“There are mainstream television discussions about fat-shaming, but what we can do to help people is put aside,” he told news.com.au.

Smith believes that in the right context using the word fat can work as an incentive. Picture: Instagram/jamessmithpt

“There is a problem because people are fatter than ever, they are more sedentary than ever and they are overconsuming calories.

“In a bid to save someone’s feelings, people might say things like it is genetics, but I think we are getting too far removed from it.”

According to Smith, neither the word “diet” or “fat” should be feared.

However, he is quick to add neither should be used unless they precede a conversation that is focused on the solution.

“I don’t chat sh*t. I say this is the problem, this is how it has come about, this is your solution, this is how you can go about it,” Smith said.

The Instagram-famous PT acknowledges it can be tough being on the end of a brutal wake-up call, but it can also be a powerful catalyst for change.

“We should never shame someone because statistically speaking it doesn’t help a person’s situation, but at the same time, it doesn’t work to beat around the bush,” he said.

Smith is the first to acknowledge he doesn’t use the word fat to shame people, more it’s to help them see there is a solution. Picture: Instagram/jamessmithpt

When it comes to weight loss and fitness, Smith stands by the tried and true equation of eating less and moving more – a formula he said was guaranteed to bring change.

“We’re having so many discussions over which method of losing fat is best, but no one is saying all the methods on offer work the same way,” he said.

“Some say intermittent fasting is the best way, while others say keto is the best way, someone else says no eating after 6pm.

“But all of these (methods) work the same way, they simply create a calorie deficit. I think rather than pushing one over the other, we should be encouraging people to choose a way that works best for them.”

Smith urged anyone starting a weight-loss journey to embrace the concept of tracking their food because people tend to “massively underestimate the amount they eat and overestimate the amount they move”.

“Something as simple as tracking intake and monitoring outtake and then making a small decrease on the intake and making a small improvement on movement will have results,” he said.

‘IT IS NEVER ABOUT A NEW DIET’

“We don’t burn as many calories in the gym as we would like to believe. Walking everywhere and taking the stairs will burn significantly more calories than going to the gym.”

Smith takes the view anyone can embark on a fitness journey at any point – and a fancy gym membership isn’t required.

“Increasing your activity is something you can do tomorrow. Doesn’t require a gym membership and doesn’t require a fancy pair of trainers,” he said.

By opting to take the stairs or walk every day you instil a new identity, Smith said, one of being an active, healthy and fit person.

“It is never about a new diet, it is about a new identity,” he said.