Over the past decade, there has been a noticeable shift in fitness culture. Much of this change feels tied to social media and the rise of fitness influencers. This trend is most pronounced with Gen Z, where working out is mostly about appearance, aesthetics and perception rather than health. I would argue that we’re seeing a renewed rise in substance use to achieve unnatural aesthetics.
None of this should be normalized.
We are constantly consuming content made by some of the most physically fit influencers and professional bodybuilders in the world. This introduces a “gold standard” of being highly muscular while extremely lean to the masses. This standard, however, is actually quite medically unsustainable and can only be maintained for short periods of time.
For many of these people, fitness and looking good are their full-time jobs. They have direct access to coaches, nutritionists, funding and years of structured training that the average person simply doesn’t — let alone a college student.
Most college students don’t have the time, money or lifestyle to replicate this. It’s not realistic for the average Joe.
Additionally, what we’re seeing online from these influencers isn’t even the full picture. It’s the best angles, the best lighting, the best posing and their best moments. It is their peak condition, and it isn’t even their everyday reality. Our brains aren’t meant to process constant exposure to the most physically fit 1%. We’re being exposed to this and then subconsciously deeming it as the general standard because it’s in video after video.
It’s easy for these 15-second highlight reels to distort someone’s perception of themselves. I’ve noticed that instead of putting effort into being consistent, some individuals will turn to anabolic steroids without proper bloodwork, medical supervision or a full understanding of what these substances actually do.
Others turn to newer trends like peptides. While some peptides are FDA approved, many others are not. These unapproved peptides are often significantly cheaper, making them a more appealing option despite the lack of regulation.
Peptides exist as short chains of amino acids that naturally occur in our bodies. This allows for them to be framed online as “safer” alternatives, even though this isn’t always the case. Some peptides are used medically for specific conditions regarding deficiencies and disorders. However, this is a very controlled context involving regulated dosing and physician oversight.
Scarily, unregulated peptides labeled “for research purposes only” and “not for human consumption” are being bought and carelessly injected. At times, it brings to my mind the movie “The Substance” — more specifically, the aspect of one injecting oneself with, well, substances to reach unrealistic societal expectations, regardless of the consequences. Short-term validation will never outweigh long-term health.
It seems that fitness stopped being about health and started being about aesthetics.
None of this means that wanting to look good is a bad thing. It is a very human desire. The issue is how people go about doing this. When appearance becomes the only goal, everything else gets pushed aside. Mental health, physical health and sustainability are disregarded.
Aside from this, there are still a multitude of ways to look and feel good in healthy, natural ways. If a better physique is the goal, creatine is a well-studied, natural option supported by decades of research. The fundamentals of strength training haven’t changed. A simple workout split, balanced nutrition and consistency are what truly work. It might not be flashy, and it might not give instant results, but shortcuts come with a cost.
Fitness is supposed to support your life, and make you feel good. It isn’t supposed to make you feel so bad about yourself that you contradict the entire point of fitness as a whole: being healthy. It isn’t supposed to jeopardize your well-being. It isn’t supposed to control your life.
Right now, it feels like a lot of people are chasing an image instead of building a lifestyle. We should work out to feel better, not to look like someone else.
Jeanne Warren is a 20-year-old mass communications major from Baton Rouge, La.
