Magic Pills and Outcomes

Too good to be true?

I enjoyed this conversation about weight loss drugs.

I found it interesting because the guy being interviewed has written a book about Ozempic after taking it himself.

It’s a nuanced, thoughtful discussion. Worth checking out if you are interested in it (and it seems like these drugs are going to be the cause of significant changes in society).

One part in particular struck me, because of what I am doing at the moment.

Two ways to lose weight

Johann Hari paid $400-$1200 a month for Ozempic. This helped him to go from eating 3,200 calories a day to eating 1,800.

He lost 20kg and will likely keep it off as long as he keeps taking the drug. He ate the same diet, just less of it so experienced lean muscle mass loss as well as total weight loss. He also had nausea at the beginning and ran the risk of other serious side effects.

All he had to do was inject himself once a week.

---

In January this year I paid 400,000 yen for 12 months of fitness coaching. With weekly guidance and accountability sessions I started tracking calories and macros. My aim was to eat 1,800 calories a day with a focus on eating a lot of protein. I increased the amount of activity I do (walking and cycling), and started going to the gym and working out at home.

Since January I have lost 10kg and put on a visible amount of lean muscle mass. I aim to lose another 10kg this year. This has been expensive and time consuming (to buy and prepare food, go to the gym, etc.). It has been hard and uncomfortable at times, but very worth it. I feel much better and have acquired knowledge and habits that will serve me for life.

Apples and oranges

To be fair, we were not in the exact same situation. Johann was obese with a family history of heart disease. I was overweight with some health issues but nothing as pressing. So the stakes were different.

These drugs seem like they will help a lot of people who need them to improve their health.

But for people who don’t need them for medical purposes, they seem like a bad deal. Yes, they make it easy to lose weight, but there is a steep price to pay for that convenience.

Magic money pills

Personal finance has similar magic money pills.

Getting someone to do it for you. Best possible outcome: you will pay them (quite a lot) for similar results. Worst possible outcome: you will lose money, either in total or compared to what you could have done.

Chasing quick gains. Trading cryptocurrency, stock picking, ‘exclusive’ opportunities. Most of the time you will lose money with these things.

Trying to avoid taxes. Investing offshore, buying real estate to reduce inheritance tax, trying to structure your assets. Much of the time you will underperform and still have to pay tax on your reduced gains.

Boring old-school finance

For most normal people, doing personal finance the boring old-school way is going to give them the best eventual outcome.

Don’t spend all your money.

Save and invest the money you don’t spend.

Put it in low-cost index funds, preferably in tax-free accounts like NISA.

Leave it there for as long as possible.

Yes, it’s tough at first. Choosing not to spend all your money is kind of strange these days. You have to be able to not eat the marshmallow.

It takes ages to see results. Like, years. There is nothing to fiddle with. No stock tips to share. It’s not very exciting.

But you will be able to set it up then leave it on autopilot. Giving you the time and energy to focus on the things that really matter in your life. Your work. Your family and friends. Your interests.

And you will acquire knowledge and habits that will serve you for life.

---

If you need some help you might be interested in our publications.

Or our introductory courses.

Or coaching.

---

If you were forwarded the email you can sign up to our weekly or monthly list here.

Or you can subscribe through WordPress below if you want to get each post the moment it is published:

Check out the RetireJapan website for more information, the Forum for discussions about personal finance and investing in Japan, and our coaching page if you need more help.