#47 Gill & Andrew. The Body Image Industry

<p>It&#39;s one of the questions we&#39;re asked most often, especially around our strength courses. Will I lose weight? Will I tone up? Will this change my body?</p><p>In this episode, Andrew and I go for a walk and talk through the many reasons why we deliberately avoid making those promises.</p><p>We talk about growing up in the 90s and the era of <em>Heat</em> magazine, celebrity &quot;circle of shame&quot; features and the diet culture, before exploring how today&#39;s fitness industry continues to market health through insecurity, before-and-after photos and unrealistic body ideals.</p><p>Drawing on Andrew&#39;s experience working in commercial gyms and then moving into public health, we discuss the difference between pain-point marketing and what the evidence tells us about lasting behaviour change. </p><p>We ramble around a few bit and touch on bodybuilding, social media, steroids, GLP-1 drugs, optimisation culture, AI-generated fitness content.</p><p>Rather than asking <em>&quot;How can I change my body?&quot;</em>, perhaps a better question is:</p><p>&quot;What do I want my body to help me do?&quot;</p><p>In this episode</p><ul><li><p>Why WildStrong doesn&#39;t use before-and-after photos</p></li><li><p>Growing up with 1990s diet culture and celebrity magazines</p></li><li><p>How commercial gyms are taught to market through people&#39;s insecurities</p></li><li><p>Pain points versus opportunity: what behaviour change research actually says</p></li><li><p>The illusion of control in modern fitness culture</p></li><li><p>Orthorexia, optimisation and the &quot;spreadsheetification&quot; of health</p></li><li><p>Why today&#39;s physique standards are so different from previous generations</p></li><li><p>Steroids, bodybuilding and changing expectations</p></li><li><p>Hugh Jackman, Hollywood and social media physiques</p></li><li><p>GLP-1 drugs, AI influencers and the future of body image</p></li><li><p>What people really mean when they ask if a programme will &quot;tone&quot; them</p></li><li><p>Why capability may be a more meaningful goal than aesthetics</p></li></ul><p>Mentioned in this episode</p><ul><li><p><em>Heat</em> magazine&#39;s &quot;Circle of Shame&quot;</p></li><li><p>Kate Winslet and media coverage following <em>Titanic</em></p></li><li><p>Joe Wicks</p></li><li><p>Eugene Sandow</p></li><li><p>Mr Universe and Mr Olympia</p></li><li><p>Hugh Jackman</p></li><li><p>GLP-1 medications (including Ozempic)</p></li><li><p>Orthorexia</p></li><li><p