In a candid interview, rising UFC heavyweight star Tom Aspinall shared a surprising revelation about his journey to better health and performance. The 31-year-old Brit, who is set to headline a highly anticipated main event fight on June 27th, credited one key lifestyle change for dramatically improving his chronic neck issues.
“I had a bad neck, going for scans and everything,” Aspinall explained. “Turns out when I left social media, my neck miraculously improved.” The towering 6’5″ fighter revealed he was spending upwards of 6-7 hours per day mindlessly scrolling, which was wreaking havoc on his posture and neck.
“I’d be in the background on my phone when my wife was taking pictures of the kids,” Aspinall recalled. “I was like, ‘What is this? This is not good.'” The mental drain of constantly consuming online content and comments was also taking a toll. “Especially leading up to a fight, that time between training sessions should be for resting, not reading what someone who’s never been close to a fight says about you,” he said.
After making the decision to step away from social media, Aspinall experienced an almost immediate improvement in his neck health. “My neck miraculously improved. I think it was just from constantly looking down at my phone,” he explained.
The gym owner and family man emphasized that social media can be a “massive waste of time” that provides little value, especially for high-level athletes in peak training. “You could be doing so many productive things in that time, like sleeping, rather than just scrolling and seeing what this person is doing, that person is doing. It just doesn’t serve me at all,” Aspinall said.
While social media breaks may not be feasible for everyone, Aspinall’s experience highlights the tangible physical benefits that can come from stepping away, even temporarily. As he prepares for his next octagon appearance, the rising star is laser-focused on his training and recovery – a mindset we could all benefit from adopting.
