#47 Gill & Andrew. The Body Image Industry

It's one of the questions we're asked most often, especially around our strength courses. Will I lose weight? Will I tone up? Will this change my body?In this episode, Andrew and I go for a walk and talk through the many reasons why we deliberately avoid making those promises.We talk about growing up in the 90s and the era of Heat magazine, celebrity "circle of shame" features and the diet culture, before exploring how today's fitness industry continues to market health through insecurity, before-and-after photos and unrealistic body ideals.Drawing on Andrew'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. We ramble around a few bit and touch on bodybuilding, social media, steroids, GLP-1 drugs, optimisation culture, AI-generated fitness content.Rather than asking "How can I change my body?", perhaps a better question is:"What do I want my body to help me do?"In this episodeWhy WildStrong doesn't use before-and-after photosGrowing up with 1990s diet culture and celebrity magazinesHow commercial gyms are taught to market through people's insecuritiesPain points versus opportunity: what behaviour change research actually saysThe illusion of control in modern fitness cultureOrthorexia, optimisation and the "spreadsheetification" of healthWhy today's physique standards are so different from previous generationsSteroids, bodybuilding and changing expectationsHugh Jackman, Hollywood and social media physiquesGLP-1 drugs, AI influencers and the future of body imageWhat people really mean when they ask if a programme will "tone" themWhy capability may be a more meaningful goal than aestheticsMentioned in this episodeHeat magazine's "Circle of Shame"Kate Winslet and media coverage following TitanicJoe WicksEugene SandowMr Universe and Mr OlympiaHugh JackmanGLP-1 medications (including Ozempic)OrthorexiaCOM-B behaviour change modelSocial determinants of healthKill All Normies by Angela NagleIf you enjoyed this episode, we'd love it if you subscribed, left a review or shared it with someone who might find it useful.Thank you!