You might recognise the image above from your favourite social media platform. This image went viral and was a demonstration by Melanie Ventura about how easy it is to fake a before and after shot. You can read about how Melanie did this by clicking here.
Also this week a friend of mine (thanks Kelly) wrote an enthusiastic and well constructed rant regarding the (health and) fitness industry.
“Rant: The fitness industry promotes a sort of body fetishism that produces a strategy for narcissistic survival and supposed emancipation, but that is simply bringing about a ‘cultural revolution’ that reproduces the very worst features of the constrained and superficial civilisation that the industry seeks to criticise. Fitness is not about youth and sexiness. It’s about fitness. Stop showing me sexy people who happen to have abs and can lift their foot above their botoxed face without sweating. Show me someone who can do their first triathlon, or who has put off osteoporosis for another 10 years.”
The unfortunate truth is that this argument is one that I find very difficult to refute.