It’s become trendy to be healthy, which is great at a glance, but it’s no surprise that social media is distorting what “healthy” really is and what it looks like.
Gym content has taken over my feed and though it has motivated me to start going to the gym myself, I have also started noticing how confusing and borderline toxic it is.
Whether it’s “what I eat in a day” videos or the aesthetic of going to the gym for hours, there are some unrealistic expectations being pushed onto those who follow gym trends.
Let’s start with the good
Gym content on social media does have a few perks.
For one, it reassures new gym-goers that the gym is a space for everyone, especially women. There should be no fear when it comes to taking up space or hitting that intimidating weight section, and don’t worry about feeling silly or awkward because plenty of influencers have shared their embarrassing gym moments. In doing this, going to the gym no longer becomes an obstacle.
But once new gym-goers get into the gym, where do they start?
This is where gym influencers come into the picture. Influencers share their routines and give advice on how to split workouts throughout the week, finding balance between cardio and strength training, or how to have proper form to avoid injuries.
From motivation to community building to training tips, gym content on social media has its benefits.
So, what’s so bad about it?
Though there’s a lot of good gym content on social media, there’s also a lot of bad.
When I first started going to the gym, I relied heavily on the newest workout routines everyone else was doing. I sought guidance everywhere because I didn’t know where to start. Almost every video started with hooks like “This is how I lost 20 pounds in a month” or “Do this and lose stubborn belly fat.” It was all unrealistic… but easy to fall for.
It’s tempting to rely on social media for guidance, but these platforms should be one of the last places to look for healthy ways to lose weight.
There’s conflicting information on every aspect of the fitness industry—especially food. One side tells us that we need to restrict what we eat, which means cutting out a lot of our favorite foods, but the other side tells us that it’s okay to eat what we want, so which is it?
Though there has been more inclusivity to promote all body types, the pressure for women to conform to one body type is still there. It comes in the comments left on female fitness influencers’ videos and in the men who rate women’s videos for no reason other than to berate them and their choices.
What I found pretty shocking to see was how women revealed how heavily edited photos and videos can be. I gasped when I saw a video of one influencer revealing how easy—and convincing—it is to edit videos. Social media can easily deceive us, and the fitness industry is fully aware of this. Editing videos to fit a certain look distorts the reality of how women can look despite all of the exercise they might be doing. There is no one way women can look; everyone is different.
Gym content on social media has its pros and cons, but it seems that the cons are outweighing the pros. It can be motivational to see women on their fitness journey, but not differentiating reality from what we see on social media can lead us in the opposite direction.