The Liver King Sells Ancestral Supplements, but Was He Buying What He Was Actually Selling?

According to the BBC, one of the earliest known advocates of wellness as we know it today was Dr. Edmund Jacobson. Back in the 1930s, he started looking into ways to help folks relax, which is how he came up with progressive muscle relaxation (PMR). If you've laid down and taken a moment to relax each group of muscles, then you've engaged in PMR. Less than 20 years later, the World Health Organization defined health as a "state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being."

In the 1970s, Dr. John Travis created the Wellness Resource Center in, to no one's surprise, California. It was around this time that meditation and yoga really took off in the United States. With the invention of social media came the rise of wellness influencers such as Kayla Itsines, Joe Wicks, and even Goop girl herself, Gwyneth Paltrow. The world of wellness is also riddled with grifters and liars. For example, the Liver King, who has been accused of using steroids. Did he ever admit to it?

In December 2022, fitness influencer Brian Johnson, who goes by the moniker Liver King, posted a confession to his YouTube channel. He began by babbling about social media and anonymity by saying he used to be rich and under the radar, but now he's just rich. It's hard to feel sorry for someone who is wealthy and annoyed by something he chose to do himself.

He went on to say that he "never expected this kind of exposure," despite the fact that the words "social media" suggest a certain amount of exposure. Johnson admitted to navigating his fame badly but was setting the record straight. "Yes, I've done steroids," he admits while sighing, "and yes, I am on steroids, monitored and managed by a trained hormone clinician." This is where things get stranger.

Johnson claims that he started ancestral living messaging in order to help young men stop taking their own lives. In order to do this successfully, the fitness influencer decided to use steroids. Someone in the replies said, "'I lied because people are killing themselves' is a wild take."

The rest of the video involves Johnson claiming he will be better because lying to his fans was wrong, but the real gold is in the comments section.

In May 2023, Johnson told ABC News's Matt Gutman that the name comes from his consumption of raw meat. "I used to say that I ate Brian Johnson, I used to say that I killed Brian Johnson," he told Gutman. "I would say Brian Johnson was the corporate guy that didn't live the ancestral life."

So, what exactly is the ancestral life for a guy who lives with his family on a ranch outside of Houston, Texas? Evidently, it is comprised of nine tenants: eat, sleep, move, shield, connect, cold, sun, fight, and bond. There is a specific practice attached to each of these that, in Johnson's opinion, will lead to a better life. By the way, if you can't slaughter animals on your own ranch, you can absolutely buy his Ancestral Supplements.