The Reembody blog, up to this point, has been a thoughtful exploration of human movement, a subject about which I am extremely passionate.
Today, however, I’m mad and I’m going to tell you why.
I have been planning a blog post for a while on fitness misinformation, and it was originally going to be the same kind of thoughtful deconstruction found in my other installments. But then I read this and it was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever found in my newsfeed: so beautiful, in fact, that the rest of the health and fitness propaganda floating around Facebook like turds in a pool started to really, really piss me off.
So thoughtful deconstruction has been postponed for another day. Instead, we’re going to take a good look at a few of those turds and get pissed off together because, when someone preys upon your insecurities in an effort to manipulate or even harm you, “fuck straight off” is a totally appropriate response.
Join me now, as we stare in shocked incredulity at the worst of the worst:
#1. Your Body is the Enemy
What They Think They’re Saying:
“Don’t give up! You may think you’ve given all you have, but you have so much more! You can make it if you just grit your teeth and push!”
Why It’s Bullshit:
Getting mad at your own limbs sounds less like the behavior of an Olympian and more like the crazy-eyed hobo who lives behind my building’s dumpster.
It is absolutely true that, if your muscles finally reach the point of failure, an emotional response like fear or anger triggers the release of adrenaline, which can keep you going. It’s called the fight-or-flight response, and it’s been attributed to everything from moms lifting cars off kids to soldiers who refuse to lay down and die.
It’s also not something to fuck around with.
Pushing your body’s limits just because you want bigger biceps is sort of like setting your house on fire because you’re cold.
Central heating is for quitters! FITNESS!!
Routinely stressing your body’s physical capacity is called overtraining, and it’s a massive problem in the fitness industry. It is linked to everything from joint degeneration, ligament tears and bone spurs to depression and—no joke—post-traumatic stress disorder.
The fight-or-flight response only kicks in during moments of impending danger precisely because the response itself is potentially dangerous. It’s a calculated risk on the part of your own biochemistry: turn it up to 11 and risk the joint damage or become food for a cave bear. When invoking that kind of biochemical gambit becomes less of a do-or-die, last-ditch effort to survive and more of a Tuesday-at-the-gym-is-chest-day scenario, you’re inviting in a whole mess of future problems.
#2. You Should be Ashamed
What They Think They’re Saying:
“Aren’t you tired of not being as pretty as you deserve? Well all it takes is perseverance to be everything you’ve ever wanted to be!”
Why It’s Bullshit:
First of all, speaking as the father of a little girl, fuck whoever made this.
This is an expertly lit, no doubt digitally enhanced image of a girl in her mid-twenties presented here as the definition of what a woman is allowed to be proud of; “until you are proud” seems to mean “until you have six-pack abs, perky, squeezable breasts and the terrible burden of finding size 0 jeans with a 34 inch inseam”. If there were a male equivalent of this photo, it would have to be Iron Man to really capture the shocking lack of realism. It’s the “don’t stop” part, however, that earns this photo its place on my shit list. The message here is that it’s excusable, nay, it is advisable that the ladies in the audience disregard whatever else they were doing, you know, like having some self-esteem, and do whatever it takes to be fuckable. If it was explicit that “don’t stop” meant “hire a professional lighting crew and a makeup artist and maybe a wizard” it would be one thing, but it’s not. “Don’t stop” just ends up meaning “nope, you’re not up to these heinously unrealistic standards yet; keep running, fatty!”
Oh, and speaking of not stopping . . .
#3. Fitness as Socially Acceptable Neurosis
What They Think They’re Saying:
“Commitment is important! People who lack the ability to commit will always try to bring you down.”
Why It’s Bullshit:
So there’s this thing called anorexia nervosa. It’s kind of a big deal. As a matter of fact, it and other eating disorders collectively have the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric illness, killing 5%–10% of those afflicted within 10 years and a bone-chilling 18%-20% within 20 years. Oh, and it affects between 1% and 5% of women in the US … so, like I was saying, kind of a big deal.
But with better public education and awareness, it’s getting harder and harder to starve to death without anyone noticing—and, as it turns out, not wanting to be noticed is a key component in the anorexic’s psychological profile. As a result, with the kind of nuance and ingenuity that is horrifyingly common among the mentally ill, exercise anorexia, or hypergymnasia, was born.
It works just like anorexia and is caused by the same factors, only instead of restricting calories going in, hypergymnasiacs dramatically increase the calories going out. The benefit—if you can look at it from the self-abusive perspective of the afflicted—is that, instead of frequent, attention-grabbing trips to the bathroom, all they have to do is go exercise a lot! Oh man, easy! People LOVE exercise! Friends and family will just think they’re getting in shape, taking care of themselves, self-improving. The culturally accepted language associated with working out is moderately self-abusive anyway, so all the self-deprecation won’t raise any red flags and obsessing over exercise will blend right in to the normal cultural fabric of fitness.
And if someone does start to question the wisdom of a 10k run after CrossFit and two hot yoga classes? Well, the hypergymnasiac can just high five their fellow gym-goers and say, “I’m not obsessed, you’re just lazy!” … and, to a soundtrack of enthusiastic support, go right back to killing themselves.
So, no, obsession is not the same as dedication, and creating a vocabulary that makes it easier for the mentally ill to cloak their illness in normalcy is not doing anyone any favors.
#4. Disregarding Your Limits
What They Think They’re Saying:
“Do what you have to do to get the job done. Don’t be afraid to show your struggle, only be afraid to fail.”
Why It’s Bullshit:
I can’t believe I have to write this next sentence but, here goes: crawling on the floor weeping while you puke all over yourself is not healthy.
Your body has limits. Those limits are there so that daily function—up to and including heavy manual labor—requires a relatively small amount of physical stress and sacrifice. This means that, if you get into a spontaneous bar fight with a group of neo-Nazis and must defeat them to protect the beautiful tattooed bartender with the dark secret—I’m not the only one who has that fantasy, right?—well, it means that you’re not going into action with a bunch of used-up joints. Your back may look like a gunnysack full of angry pythons, but that won’t mean squat (ha!) when you herniate a disk.
The trick is to know your limits. Pain is helpful in this regard. Of course, there’s pain and there’s pain, but part of being healthy is knowing the difference. Training so hard as to induce vomiting and uncontrollable sobbing is to slowly undermine the basic human judgement of what constitutes challenge versus what causes injury; It’s a fundamental component of self-control. Toddlers learn it when they figure out that they don’t need to cry over a stubbed toe, but that a broken arm is a big deal.
Basically what I’m saying is: don’t let your training routine reduce your level of self-awareness to what it was when you still wore footy pajamas.
#5 Strong is the New Buzzword for Manipulating Women’s Body Image
What They Think They’re Saying:
“Beauty used to be about getting thin—but not anymore, ladies! We’re not after waifish waistlines, we’re after strength!”
Why It’s Bullshit:
Quick! What do all three of the women pictured above have in common? If you said, “They’re all skinny,” you’re exactly right!
The fitness industry—from gyms to clothing manufacturers—collectively produces more propaganda than North Korea, a lot of it just as crazy. This particular class of ads is almost comically absurd because what’s written on the picture directly contradicts the picture. It would be like if Oscar Meyer produced an ad saying “vegetables are awesome, eat those instead of hot dogs!” printed over images of freckled Norman Rockwell kids happily stuffing their faces with hot dogs. It shows just how little credit advertisers give the public: they assume that if they tell you what you’re looking at you won’t actually see what you’re looking at.
“But Kevin,” you might argue, “the women in those images have great muscle tone! They’re totally strong!” They certainly are. So is she:
Kristin Rhodes, folks . . .
And you’re not going to find her in a Nike ad, even though she’s a stone-cold badass who probably deadlifts the combined body weight of those other three ladies as a goddamn warm up.
Now, before I get bombarded with angry comments from skinny people, I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with being skinny. I’m also not suggesting that being skinny and strong are mutually exclusive. I’m only pointing out that strength only sells when it’s sexy—and, make no mistake, advertisers want very badly to make you feel like you are currently failing at both.
Strong isn’t really replacing skinny; being skinny is no longer enough. Now, ladies, you need to be skinny and ripped. It’s an additional layer of self-loathing (perfectly suited for hypergymnasiacs), just in case people had started to get desensitized to the omnipresent and psychologically crippling display of corpse-thin women in the media.
And what’s with the Playboy cover poses? The one on the bottom is basically a picture of an ass. The young lady on the top right is either confused about how to wear pants or the ad was meant to double as a promotion for whoever did her impressively thorough bikini wax. According to these photos, all this notable strength that is the new standard of beauty is only useful for the exact same thing being skinny was: sex appeal. Not adventure or longevity, or even ability. Nope, just for sexy times.
So I guess “strong is the new skinny” is, in fact, a totally accurate statement, just not so much in an inspiring way as in “the gears of modern culture crushing young women’s dreams” kinda way.
#6 Fitness Assault!
What They Think They’re Saying:
“The part of you that wants to give up is the weak, lazy part; dominate it with the strong, committed part and work your way to success!”
Why It’s Bullshit:
Please tell me I’m not the only person made terribly uncomfortable by this. I mean, doesn’t that strike anyone else as a little, well…rapey? I think it’s safe to say that, if your inner monologue during a workout even slightly resembles the script from a poorly translated hentai comic (no I will not include a link) there might have been a little mix up somewhere regarding this whole exercise thing.
If your body or your mind says “it hurts” or “I need to stop”—and I’m going to be as clear as I can about this—FOR FUCK’S SAKE, STOP. It isn’t even a joint health thing at this point, it’s just creepy.
I get that lots and lots of people enter a gym wanting to change: weight, BMI, strength, performance, whatever. Change is great. Change is healthy. The desire to change stems from the admirable ability to introspect and to see that, currently, we are limited in ways that we want not to be. If that desire to change, however, becomes a desire to change at all costs, you will be sorely disappointed with what you end up paying. Work out, have fun, get tired, fail occasionally, wake up sore and set your next goal. Whatever you do, just don’t do it like these poor suckers.
Addendum
It has come to my attention that the guy in the first picture is Rich Froning, a three-time CrossFit champion and a generally respected athlete. It’s not clear whether the text is directly attributed to him. I mean no personal offense to Rich, but I stand by my observation that the text is silly. You can line up respected athletes all day long saying that they “get angry when [they’re] tired” and I will still say it’s silly.
I Think My Beast Mode Is Broken | Donovan Manley
[…] #4. Disregarding Your Limits […]
Online Editor’s Choice: ‘Fitspiration’ – I think NOT! | Holistic Therapist Magazine
[…] Click here to see The 6 Most Shockingly Irresponsible “Fitspiration” Photos […]
You should not use exercise to punish your body. | Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing…
[…] You should not use exercise to punish your body. […]
leila
This is amazing. Thank you so much.
F&F Friday Favorites ~ 05.16.14 | Fitness & Feta
[…] What do you think? The 6 most shockingly irresponsible “fitspiration” photos […]
Matt
I disagree with your sentiments.
I’ve been working out for about six months aggressively. Running and exercising. Pushing myself to push myself. The greatest thing I’ve ever experienced in my life is knowing my body can do things it couldn’t do before.
These images aren’t intended to make people feel fat or insecure. They do, however, speak directly and accurately to people like me and the people I train with. We aren’t trying to impress you or anyone else. We’re competing with ourselves; and yes, saying things like what these memes say, is helpful. It pushes me. And I love it. I don’t feel obligated to be skinny or in shape bc of society. But I do LOVE the battle with myself. I love the feeling of thinking I can’t continue, continuing anyway, and finding out I can in fact do more than I thought.
If these memes offend you, ignore them, and learn to be happy with you for you, not bc the internet tells you to do something. For me, these things speak directly to me, and is like pulling words straight from my own head. If you don’t get that, they aren’t for you, but it doesn’t mean their intention was to embarrass or belittle you. It just means there’s a niche group they will make sense to. And yes, it’s a mindset of after I work hard, I want to work even harder. Not for everyone. But don’t put words in their digital mouths.
KevinMoore
It’s wonderful that you’ve found a consistent source of motivation, Matt, and I’m glad you’re enjoying your body.
These images contribute to a very broad cultural perspective that is, without question, damaging: namely, that health can be gained by maximising one arbitrary physical attribute at the expense of all others.
It can’t.
Obsession is real, self-loathing is real—shockingly, sickeningly real—and eating disorder-spectrum behaviour is becoming so common that it can barely be distinguished from socially/medically accepted dieting practices. Individuals are of course free to live how they choose, but I won’t stand by and say nothing while illnesses are packaged and sold like cures.
Best of luck in your continued efforts.
Dan
http://thechive.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/drunkspiration-01.jpg?w=500&h=667
Christine
Thank you for this. While I need to w
Erin
#5 is very accurate. Being active online in fitness communities I notice that most people there think success from fitness endeavors looks one way- very thin. And actually even had some folks tell me that until I was sufficiently thin I must not know anything about fitness because those who work out and lift regularly all look the same. Except of course that that is a lie. Everyone conveniently ignores the women olympians and women who lift competitively who are strong and fit but not thin.
flewddurflam
Good response – helpful to those of us who, even if we were as fit as we could be, will never be thin. Ever. Not healthily, anyway.
John
I don’t know, all these ‘fitspiration’ photos you see (and there are thousands doing the rounds)… they all blend in to one after a while, not least because they all seem to want to use the same grunge style fonts! I don’t think a day goes by when I don’t see someone posting one on Facebook. Does anyone really pay attention to them anymore? Most of us with half a brain understand the reality and won’t be affected by them… and those that don’t… well, I hardly think they’re the cause of the problem, rather society in general and the entire media industry… and that includes many so called fitness magazines! Images like the ones you have posted in the article are just the tip of the iceberg.
Ultimately though, I think it all comes down to lack of education. The vast majority of people I encounter who actually WANT to do something about their health/physical appearance have no clue about nutrition (or completely the wrong idea based on false information they’ve read from supposedly reputable sources), and a completely backwards approach to fitness, equally clueless about what they should be doing in order to get the results they want! The images you’ve posted certainly speak to that of course, but again, there’s a far bigger problem here.
I Think My Beast Mode Is Broken - Stalwart Tactical Fitness
[…] #4. Disregarding Your Limits […]
9 Bold Blog Posts You Need to Read + Magic Bullet Winner - Diary of a Semi-Health Nut
[…] 5. The 6 Most Shockingly Irresponsible Fitspiration Photos via Reembody […]
Brooke
Just thank you
Knock It Off | Iron Pumping Dancer
[…] Perhaps this was not as bitter as I thought it would be. Well, if you crave more bitterness, read this guy. Very revealing. I have struggled with these messages since I started training and I am so happy to […]
How to relieve sports injuries using mobility training | Pencils and Pancakes
[…] Check out more on this awesome article […]
Maria
It’s going to be finish of mine day, but before finish
I am reading this impressive piece of writing to increase my knowledge.
22 Wisdoms for 22 Years | Sweet yet Unrefined
[…] I’m not the biggest fan of fitspo, I just love this little gem: I’ve found this true when I’m 4 miles into a run an […]
Oansvarig #fitspo — vad de tror de säger och varför det är skitsnack (av Kevin Moore) | Johanna Arogén
[…] SÅ viktig. (Kortade ner en del och tog bort lite svordomar…) Läs originalet på engelska här. Så allt nedanför här är skrivet av […]
martharunssf
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU so much for this!!! I like to look for inspirational pictures and whenever I see ones with skinny model-types I pass them by. That will never, ever inspire me to do anything positive. I know they’re designed by men for men, obviously. If they want to inspire me, have regular people in them. I so love this blog, I’m following you, you rock.
peacefulplanteater
Wow — this post is AWESOME. I’m a fairly skinny, fit girl AND I totally agree with your comments. You do have to push yourself in workouts, but not to the point of puking and crawling across the floor and not to look like someone in some ridiculous photo! I workout an hour every day, eat super clean, laugh a lot, do yoga and love my body (can I really say that as a woman in America?). Thanks for the insight!
Heidi
Yes, you can say that! Please say it often. So many of us who are on the other end of the spectrum need to hear that other people love their bodies.
flewddurflam
Yes, you can say it! Please say it often. Those of us on the other side of the coin need to hear that other people love their bodies… that it’s possible to love your body!
Friday’s Favourites: Anti-Fitspo, Pretty Reckless, and Salad Dressing | laurenbersaglio.com
[…] So thoughtful deconstruction has been postponed for another day. Instead, we’re going to take a good look at a few of those turds and get pissed off together because, when someone preys upon your insecurities in an effort to manipulate or even harm you, “f*ck straight off” is a totally appropriate response… Read here […]
Erin Leonardson
How did a male get so cool (Are you Canadian)? Society certainly stacked the odds against you. Great post, and congratulations on being yourself.
KevinMoore
Thanks for your comment, Erin!
I’m American, actually, but I live in Hong Kong with my wife and daughter.
Fitspiration Brouhaha | Feminist Figure Girl's Blog
[…] Kevin Moore offers a convincing critique of Fitspiration posters. See his blog at http://reembody.wpengine.com/2013/09/10/the-6-most-shockingly-irresponsible-fitspiration-photos/. […]
Jasmine Herrick
Thank you, God. My hopes for humanity are restored.
skyeravy
This is actually kinda insulting as the wife of a trainer, and as a woman who works out. Working out is hard, so is everything else worth having. You do have to push yourself beyond normal limits. If you never push yourself you will stay the same. I never thought I could run 5 miles, deadlift 200lbs, I grit my teeth and curse and listen to dubstep lol. Im not much of a yogi. I like to work out aggressively, and I love the results. You are in total, 100% control of what you look like, don’t make excuses, don’t blame society’s standards.
KevinMoore
It’s a question of goals, Sky. Working hard is not unhealthy; the body is perfectly capable of working hard. Aggressive physical activity is not my concern. I’m a long-time competitive martial artist—I fully appreciate the value of physical aggression.
However, working hard for a specious goal that stems from a superimposed dissatisfaction with one’s body is a net loss. “If you never push yourself you will stay the same” is not exactly true. I have nearly a decade of experience teaching everyone from crippled octogenarians to elite triathletes and I can safely say that non-harming use of the body in a positive, non-judgemental environment yields significantly more profound results than “what’s your excuse” type “encouragement.”
I’m sorry for any insult you felt was levelled against you. I hope you can appreciate that my goal, first and foremost, is to lift people up, not tear them down.
Wonka
I totally agree with you! I also feel as if this page is advocating excuses, and is in favor of imposing limits and therefore impeding yourself to reach new heights; and eventually hindering your improvement in whatever you’re working towards.. tell me anyone that’s truly successful that was in favor of imposing limits on themselves??? Nobody!
Wonka
Reach for the stars! and if you don’t make it, at least you’ll fall on top of the world!
Amy
You can impose limits and still grow and set goals…I have a knee problem that prevents me from running very far, but if I work at it slowly I improve. But if I don’t set limits on myself, I end up hurting my knee and being out of commission. I don’t think the author’s issue is with trained/well informed athletes pushing themselves; it’s that, when these photos are popularized, they inspire people for the wrong reasons and are incredibly easy to use to justify and hide EDs and other problems. And quite frankly preventing those problems is more important to me than the idea that someone might not reach their full workout “potential”.
Courtney
So let me get this straight, you’re saying that the very first deadlift you ever pulled was 200lbs? and the very first time you ran you went for 5 miles straight? Or did you set realistic goals and impose safe limits while you worked you’re way up to a 200lbs deadlift and a 5 mile run? Cause something tells me it was the second one.
Fernanda
Most of society’s standards about being “healthy” being “fit” yea it’s all good especially for those who need the help and just make a change I do agree about being healthy is good and working out it’s great don’t get me wrong but most of qoutes like this are really triggering I have suffered from anoerixca nervousa & Orthorexic I got a eating disorder. I am recovered now but I do Rember I would follows all those “healthy,fit,” pages and everytime i saw a quote related to stop like this it would stay in my mind. When I wouldn’t go to the gym . Like this One qoute “don’t stop when your tired stop when it’s over ” I would get so tired at times and thanks to that little qoute I actually listen to it , anyways I’m not Trynna affended you I’m just saying I agree with this article it’s so true and there’s nothing bad about working out but just don’t overdo it thanks bad don’t push yourself to much you can damaged yourself take it all over control softly