Love Your Body, Own Your Health: Discussing Type II Diabetes with Kelvin Davis

Major Pain Podcast guest Kelvin Davis, who talks about having Type 2 diabetes.

What does “body positivity” mean to you? To Kelvin Davis, it began as a gap in the market. Women’s clothing advertising was leaning, more and more, into diversity in their models, while menswear seemed content to maintain the status quo of ultra-ripped or ultra-thin. Kelvin launched his body-positive menswear blog, Notoriously Dapper, to address this lack in the fashion industry. Since then, he has published two books and modeled for big names, including Lululemon and Gap. When his Type II Diabetes diagnosis came in 2021, Kelvin had a new crossroads to face: the intersection between loving his body and initiating positive changes for the sake of his health.

In this episode of Major Pain, Jesse and Kelvin discuss the mechanisms and symptoms of this challenging disease and the medication and lifestyle change approaches that can improve its outcomes. Since enrolling in a diabetes education course, Kelvin has a strong grasp of what his symptoms—like high A1C levels and nerve pain in his hands and feet—mean for his well-being and longevity. Today, he manages his condition with movement and nutrition habits, but the process wasn’t easy. Particularly in Black communities, where access to health care, food, and education is all too often scarce, recognizing and acting on the healthier choices can be daunting and expensive.

With a heartfelt combination of tough love and empathy, Kelvin discusses the importance of “choosing hard now and easy later” rather than “easy now and hard later,” and how this tradeoff plays into his new book, “Be a Good Man, Not a Nice Guy.” Body positivity must go beyond just accepting and showcasing larger bodies. Kelvin calls for taking accountability for your shortcomings and ownership in the pursuit of long-term health. For the sake of the future—his own and that of his two young daughters—he’s living that journey every day.

Learn more about Kelvin and Notoriously Dapper: https://notoriouslydapper.com/

Buy Kelvin’s book, Be a Good Man, Not a Nice Guy: https://bookshop.org/p/books/be-a-good-man-not-a-nice-guy-a-guide-to-true-masculinity-kelvin-davis/923e9e4fd6fcc492