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Contemporary consumer culture has experienced a shift from bodies-producing commodities to commodities-producing bodies. Men feel the pressure to get bigger and stronger. Women feel the need to get smaller and thinner. Individuals consistently disregard their physical and mental health to achieve their ideal body image. As these idealizations have become more of a priority in our lives, the fitness industry has continued to grow. The industry uses these aspirations to spark consumerism. According to a 2018 IHRSA report, total fitness industry revenue was an estimated $94 billion in 2018, which increased from $87.2 billion in 2017. The growth rate globally was 8.7%. In response to this report, Wellness Creative Co estimated, 'if it continues on this trajectory, then it should reach $99.9 billion in 2019 and $106 billion in 2020' (Wellness Creative Co, 2019, P.4). While the fitness industry is experiencing growth, obesity rates are as well. According to the lecture, the prevalence of obesity among US adults aged 20 to 74 is growing rapidly. This growth in obesity follows the same upward spiral as the growth in the fitness industry (Andrews, 2019).
The fitness industry prides itself on bringing health and happiness. If so, one may wonder why the popularization of the fitness industry has coincided with the growth in obesity rates. The answer is simple. The contemporary fitness industry isn't designed to promote health. Instead, it is commercially and culturally engineered to stimulate consumption, and hence profit.
The fitness industry makes its money off products and services that are said to get consumers fit and healthy. Every time an individual becomes satisfied with their body image, the fitness and weight loss industries lose a customer. To combat this, companies use marketing and advertisements to create aspirations and desires that keep the industry going.
A commercial used by the 'Anti-Chubby Gym' is one example of a fitness company sacrificing a consumer's health and well-being in an attempt to increase profit. The advertisement utters phrases like 'You're never going to have a hubby if you're chubby' and 'pathetic, no chubbies' (The Anti-Chubby Gym, 2017, 0:24). They use these phrases to make viewers feel upset with their body image. The emotions generated by this commercial show that it is a definite money grab. Its primary purpose is to make people feel so bad about themselves that they go out and purchase a gym membership.
The Anti-Chubby Gym isn't the world's most renowned fitness company. One may assume that this tactic is only used by the part of the industry that can afford to be less concerned with their public image. But, one may be surprised at the following example of a 2007 advertisement from corporate superpower Nike. The commercial is centered around Nike's new exercise-tracking technology and comes from the perspective of a man who is not a fan of running. He makes this apparent through statements like 'I am not a runner' and 'I don't enjoy breathing heavier than a pregnant walrus' (Nike, 2007, 0:01 & 0:07). In the commercial's final line, the same man states, 'running sucks, but you know what sucks more? Man boobs' (Nike, 2007, 0:16). This commercial is focused on people who don’t have the ideal physique. Nike is trying to get consumers to go out and buy their new technology, and they do this by undermining people who are out of shape. By stating that man boobs suck, they are scaring overweight consumers into fitting the ideal body type.
The rise of social media has brought this issue to a whole other level. Elise Rose Carrotte, Ivanka Prichard, and Megan Su Cheng Lim conducted a study titled 'Fitspiration on Social Media: A Content Analysis of Gendered Images.' It studied the impact of 'Fitspiration' on social media. They described 'Fitspiration' as something that 'aims to inspire individuals to exercise and be healthy' (Carrotte, Prichard, & Su Cheng Lim, 2017, P.1). Social media is a way for people to connect with individuals across the globe with the click of a button. It is easy to see why a person with an ideal physique would use social media to show off their body, gain followers, and get subsidized by fitness companies. The authors of the study wanted to identify how fitspiration content posted across social media affects the people who view it.
After conducting their research, the authors noticed that while 'Fitspiration' had a different impact on men and women, it negatively affected both genders. According to their study,
'Experimental research has demonstrated negative effects from acute exposure to fitspiration among women, including increased negative mood and body dissatisfaction. Acute exposure to fitspiration-style athletic ideal images (which depict a thin yet toned or muscular female body and exposure to 'thinspiration '-style thin-ideal images predict body dissatisfaction and compulsive exercising among women at similar rates.' (Charlotte, Prichard, & Su Cheng Lim, 2017, P.7)
The results only slightly differed with men, as the study stated,
'Contemporary men also commonly experience body dissatisfaction, particularly muscle dissatisfaction. Exposure to traditional media (e.g., print or magazine) and ideal muscular images are associated with increased drive for muscularity and depression and lowered muscle satisfaction among men. Furthermore, exposure to images of male models actively engaging in sport has been shown to decrease men's satisfaction with their fitness levels and overall appearance.' (Charlotte, Prichard, & Su Cheng Lim, 2017, P.8)
The adverse effects of “Fitspiration” are clear. The fit bodies we see on social media don’t encourage people to be fit and healthy. They drive people to conform their bodies to the ideal figure. For a lot of people, this can negatively impact their mental and physical health. I, unfortunately, was a victim of the fitness industry’s lies.
As someone who has struggled with body image, this issue hits home. Growing up, I was proud of the way I looked. My football training regimen allowed me to put on a substantial amount of muscle. When football ended, I started to notice all the pringles I was eating were beginning to take a toll on my body. So when I saw what my bad diet was doing to my physique, I decided that I must regain my football figure.
I started eating right and lifting hard. I used the internet to search for diet and workout plans to implement into my regimen. When surfing YouTube, I found myself returning to a few fitness vloggers who each had hundreds of thousands of followers. Christian Guzman is the most popular, coming in at over 950,000 subscribers. I also watched guys like Rob Lipsett and Brandon Harding, who each have over 400,000 subscribers. As I listened to their fitness tips and pitches, I found myself becoming envious of their physiques. They represented something sturdy, durable, and superior. I was a victim of these influencer’s body capital. In his study titled, 'Your body is your business card': Bodily capital and health authority in the fitness industry,” DJ Huston (2013, P.1) describes body capital as “the value generated from appearance, attractiveness, and physical ability.” Their body capital drove me to eat everything they ate, do every exercise they did, and wear everything they wore. When I watched Brandon Harding state, 'The protein I [Harding] use is Whey HD by BPI Sports' (Harding 8:04), I went out and bought Whey HD by BPI Sports. Christian Guzman told me he 'knew I was going to love his Alphalete Performance Shirts' (Guzman 23:03), so I went online and bought three different colors.
When June finally came, and it was time for prom, I was in the best shape of my life. I weighed a slender 155 pounds and was able to retain all my muscles and get rid of all the fat. I had finally reached my goal of getting ripped. At that point, I thought I would be proud of my body. But, I had gone to such great lengths to reach it, that it started to take a toll on my mental and physical health.
I developed an eating disorder. I had extreme dietary restrictions. It was egg whites and oatmeal every breakfast, grilled chicken and brown rice for lunch, and salmon, sweet potato, and veggies for dinner. I weighed out all my food, counted all my calories and macronutrients, and logged my weight at the beginning and end of each day. These restrictions caused me to develop a habit of binge eating. Binge-eating is not over-eating. The Mayo Clinic describes it as a serious eating disorder in which you frequently consume unusually large amounts of food and feel unable to stop eating (Mayo Clinic, 2018, P.1). They also mention that 'almost everyone overeats on occasion, such as having seconds or thirds of a holiday meal. But for some people, excessive overeating that feels out of control and becomes a regular occurrence crosses the line to binge-eating disorder' (Mayo Clinic, 2018, P.1).
I once weighed ten pounds more one night than I had in the morning. All I thought about was food, and I'd sit in bed all day waiting for my next meal. This isolation made me fall into a deep depression. I lost interest in anything but my body image.
I always knew these problems stemmed from my extreme routine, but it became an obsession. I cared too much about my physique. At a certain point, I valued it over my mental and physical health. Eventually, I realized that the people I was following had also experienced physical and mental issues associated with acquiring their bodies. Rob Lipsett mentioned in a video that 'I [Lipsett] was placing such focus on my diet, that I could not control myself. I had a full-blown binge-eating disorder' (Lipsett, 2018, 5:01). Brandon Harding once admitted that his use of steroids 'makes me [Harding] feel like I'm going to have a heart attack every single day. I'm holding my steering wheel, and I'm shaking. My body just won't stop shaking' (Harding, 2019, 11:06).
The depression took its toll for about a year before I decided to address the actual problem. I realized these YouTubers weren't out for my health and happiness; they were more interested in my emotions, wallet, and clicks. I stopped putting so many restrictions on my diet and released the pressure I put on myself to look a certain way. I began to notice as my stress decreased, so did my depression and binge eating.
It has been a slow and meticulous process, but I can finally say I have overcome my depression and eating disorder. There are still good days and bad days, but I feel that I have reached the happiness I had before starting to chase those broad shoulders and chiseled abs. Moreover, I am the healthiest, and most fit I have ever been. I found the perfect balance between looking good and feeling good.
Reflecting upon all my experiences and struggles, it is clear to me that today's fitness industry doesn't care about our health. Instead, it is driven to create capital. Advertisements from companies like the Anti-Chubby Gym and Nike, along with the study on “Fitspiration,” show that the fitness industry promotes dissonance between the reality of one’s body image and the one purported to be ideal. The negative emotions possessed by consumers spark desires that the fitness industry has used to grow exponentially. Fitness companies are driven by a man’s desire to get bigger and stronger, and a woman’s need to get smaller and thinner. All in all, the contemporary fitness industry is commercially and culturally engineered to increase our aspirations to attain the ideal physique, which increases their profit. While the fitness industry prides itself on bringing health and happiness, its money-hungry attitude shows a complete disregard for both.
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