Let's Fix Fitness

What does health mean to you? When we think of healthy people, we think of their bodies, how they can do things with their bodies that the average person can only aspire to do. They can get in great shape and influence those around them to become much healthier. All great things that the fitness industry should be all about, right?

WRONG!!!

Well, what I see happening is the healthy look is no longer good enough, the very low bodyfat or lean look often referred to as “the shredded” look has become the norm for what people are expecting to turn themselves into, without the true understanding of how much work and sacrifice this takes to achieve. The daily grind of dieting and hard work, cardio and weights, is becoming what the new gym goer is striving toward. The desire to basically step on stage and compete in a bodybuilding/physique show, which honestly isn’t in anyway healthy for the body. For your body weight to regularly fluctuate drastically while prepping for a bodybuilding show, takes a crazy toll on one’s body, as it never gets accustomed to living in one natural state. It is either always bulking or cutting, and we get so blinded by this, that even the most educated people, including health professionals, are accepting this as the norm. What are the repercussions?

The one becoming the most apparent to me is the very negative mental impact. People with physiques that anyone would be more than happy to attain, have a mindset that they aren’t good enough because of a placing, or gaining a few pounds after their competition. They go from what a Michelangelo statue looked like, to a still very impressive human being, that can still do amazing things by what the average standards of a human frame typically looks like, but they don’t view themselves that way because of what they are being shown and compared to everyday on social media. Females striving to be less than 10% bodyfat, males needing to have veins popping out 24/7 and an 8 pack, to being accepted as good enough for a placing or a medal in a sport where being fit and capable isn’t even good enough anymore. When the definition of a look has nothing to do with actually being strong or extremely fit.

I see it all the time on social media and have been guilty of it myself; calling myself fluffy when I still have abs showing. Females saying they’re not shredded anymore but still clearly have abs showing. How are we ever going to establish this as just not being right? How can we seriously expect to live life in that manner? What problems will it cost us in our future? We have our throwback Thursdays, our flashback Fridays, the transformation Tuesdays, which I see as a means for comparing themselves to a look they once had, or a competition they had once won. Constantly reminding themselves of a time they encompassed the ideal look, taking away from the true fact that they still look good. It’s a continuous reminder that we aren’t as good as we once were, a reminder that we can always be better than we are in this very moment. Which I think is complete bullshit!! We can all be great at something for a period of time, it doesn’t mean we need to be that great everyday. The fitness industry for some reason doesn’t compare itself to other main stream sports in that way (yes, I understand that the super serious competitor vying for a pro card treats things differently) the average fitness enthusiast compares themselves to the pros, the famous Instagram models. Well I’m a hockey fan, I used to play hockey, I was pretty decent at some point, but I never compared myself to Gretzky, Crosby or Lemeiux. They were all on another level than I was, and I accepted that. In fitness it seems and we hear it all the time. If you just work hard enough, eat properly, do your cardio, you can be just as great as the best. Well the fact that this just isn’t true, is reality.

Genetics play a vital role in all this, you see it all the time in main stream sports; the NBA is completely based on genetics, your odds are greater to be a basketball player if you are over 6’5”, bottom line. Yes, there are shorter players just like genetic outliers in every sport, basketball is no different, and to think fitness is any different, then you are completely fooling yourself. I’m 6’4” and I will never be Mr. Olympia based on that fact alone. Not because of my work ethic, not because I didn’t put in the time, it’s because of genetics. I think if we listened to ourselves and realized there is a very big difference in being our greatest self, then just being the greatest, a lot of our problems that stem from this, would be solved.

What I would love to see is the support for general fitness and those who are just trying to be fit; to lose weight, to gain muscle, who have their goals set in front of them to be just as centre stage as those who are actually on stage. People congratulating those for their hard work and willingness to be in great shape everyday of their lives, and not be compared to those who are always going to the extremes. Don’t get me wrong; hard work is key. I’m not siding with those that give credit for merely participating. It’s the ability to see greatness in yourself. I see no difference in how those should feel or be treated who are doing it to be fit and live a happy everyday life, then those who step on that glorious stage and call themselves a competitor. Should we not all be congratulated for being our greatest self? Both work hard, and all successes should be celebrated. Adopting this mindset will be key in removing a lot of the negativity in the future of our healthy men and woman in the world of fitness.