Joshua Weissman is an American chef who wrote his first cookbook, The Slim Palate Paleo Cookbook, at the age of 17. The California native states that he was born with a passion for food and cooking. His mom gave him the platform to succeed as a chef and Joshua took full advantage of it.
He currently runs a self-titled YouTube cooking channel with 2.53 million subscribers. Weissman teaches people how to create healthy meals in the comfort of their homes. He also replicates various recipes from established brands such as KFC, and shows his followers how to make them at home.
Joshua lost over 100 pounds in a few months after discovering paleo diets
In his early teens, Joshua developed negative eating habits that left him dangerously overweight. He grew tired of the constant ridicule from his peers, which sometimes included physical harassment, and decided to lose weight. After a simple google search, he landed on paleo diets. He writes on his blog:
“Eventually I came to a point where I simply had dealt with it enough. I was tired of feeling sick, and unattractive. Thus I took my first steps in learning more about health and started re-exploring my love for food. I suppose it turns out you can be a food lover and still eat mindfully and healthfully. After a grueling and back breaking year and a half I managed to lose over 100 pounds at age 16.”
Unfortunately, Joshua went from being dangerously overweight to being dangerously underweight. He was so concerned about not consuming carbs that it became unhealthy.
He changed his strict diet after realizing that he was suffering from body dysmorphia
Joshua’s obsession with losing weight became a disease. He developed body dysmorphia by struggling to get rid of all the visible fat in his body. Joshua realized that he had a problem and decided to gain muscle mass. However, he objected to the fact that that he needed to consume calories to gain muscle.
He continued to partake in his low-calorie diets, but he soon realized that he couldn’t gain the muscle he wanted without ingesting carbs. With the help of an expert, he increased his carb diet and incorporated a workout regimen that helped him gain over 70 pounds of muscle.
Joshua has learned how to balance his diets with the right amount of exercise to maintain peak fitness and to enjoy life. He told That’s So Primal:
“For me it involves a good amount of functional movement, keeping your joints in use, not too much sitting. Of course eating real food in a fashion that works well for you and makes you feel your best and most energetic. All the while making sure to treat yourself every once in a while and not feeling bad about it.”
Joshua quit his job at a major restaurant to pursue YouTube full-time
Joshua’s focus and driven mindset has helped him a lot in terms of his career. He started his blog to help people cook healthy meals at home, and within seven months, he landed a cookbook deal. Therefore, it was a bit surprising when he accepted a chef job at a major restaurant.
Unsurprisingly, and true to his character, Joshua quit his restaurant job to pursue self-employment. He did so after earning valuable cooking experience and gaining the respect of his fellow chefs. Joshua detailed the joy of self-employment in a YouTube video posted on 3rd September 2019:
“I operate my best when I am working. I am happier when I am working than when I am not. That just who I am. I know myself pretty well and I think that’s kind of the key. There is no other feeling in the world that is comparable to quitting your job to build something that you can call your own, that sustains you, that you love to do… You never know what’s going to happen. You’ve just got to put yourself out there and put in all the work.”
Joshua is happy as a YouTube chef, but he previously admitted to wanting to delve into the entertainment industry. “I have many goals,” he told That’s So Primal. “Movies, TV, music, and other things that follow that.”