SubscribeShould You Listen to a Fitness Model?
A fitness model is someone who models an "athletic and healthy physique". They have low levels of body fat, and less muscle volume than a bodybuilder. Most of the folks you see on infomercials are fitness models. They probably never touched that gadget until the photo shoot...
Fitness models obviously know a thing or two about how to lose fat and yet maintain (or grow) muscle).
How can idolizing a fitness model help or hinder you?
Comparing yourself to someone can be both inspiring and depressing. Never underestimate the power of emulating a good role model. However - it must be coupled with an acceptance of yourself - "warts and all".
Somewhere there is a healthy middle-ground - a point where you can turn to a fit-looking role model for training and diet inspiration - but then look in the mirror - and accept that you are not just your body.
Six pack abs might look great - but they don't make you a better person.
Fitness models work hard. That is a fact. They workout with great diligence and intensity. They often exhibit incredible discipline when it comes to diet.
Reality Check
- A fitness model has made a career out of their looks - so their priorities are likely to be different to yours.
- The photos you see of the models are professionally done - with makeup and tan.
- They may have had Cosmetic enhancements: Dental work. Breast augmentation: At the levels of body fat required to see muscle tone - there will also be breast shrinkage as the breast consists of significant amounts of adipose tissue (subcutaneous fat). Most female fitness models have augmented breasts.
- There are things you can't change: bone structure, the way your muscles are fused to your bones, and the way your body distributes fat.
- You cannot guarantee that this person looks like this year round. Photos are taken at a point of peak physical condition.
Learn what you can, and let them inspire you - but remember that physical beauty is fleeting - and that health and strength cannot always be measured by appearance.
Amen on the boobies.
I never had big ones (36B) but as I lost weight (currently at 119lbs 23% body fat) they got even smaller. Now I'm a 34A. I don't mind at all, but it is a bit of a bummer that you never see fitness showing that you can be in great health with small boobs and look fantastic :D
ReplyAhhh yes - a great example of the breast augmentation are the trainers on Biggest Loser. Kim is super fit and skinny yet has pretty huge boobs (I assume they're not real) while Jillian is still super fit but obviously hasn't had any type of plastic surgery. Kim can be found on all kinds of fitness magazines, but do you see Jillian on any of them? I haven't!
ReplyBreast augmentation = precious time off from training while healing from surgery. I couldn't do it. :( (Though I have no problem with people who do get plastic surgeries.)
ReplyDoes that make me an addict? :D
Maybe, but you could be addicted to something far worse. Anything for that high, right?
ReplyI live in San Diego and there are several fitness models at the gym I go to. They only look like that for about five minutes before and during the photo shoot. They do look fitter and leaner than your average person all of the time, but they can't maintain 9% body fat all of the time, for God's sake.
ReplyFitness models also employ chemicals to burn that fat and look more sculpted - steroids. They're not just for bulk building and huge male pro wrestlers. Different types do different things. Cytomel, Deca durabolin, Stanozolol and HGH (human growth hormone) can all be used to speed metabolism and burn fat without massive muscles.
So, what I am saying is not only are the boobs (and hair and eyelashed and nails and skin color) fake...they might not be working as hard as you think they are.
ReplyI actually have a physique similar to a fitness model...lean body, toned muscles, and small boobs. I never had huge boobs either...I think at my heaviest I was a 38C but when I lost weight, I lost weight there too. I am now a 32A, but I'm happy with my small boobs. Most fitness models do indeed have implants because yeah, breasts are fat and when you have a low level of body fat, you have hardly any fat in your breasts either.
I do think aspiring to look like a fitness model is a bit more realistic than aspiring to look like a runway model. Most fitness models at least have meat on their bones and aren't usually underweight. I remember when I worked at a fitness equipment store and a lot of customers actually thought I WAS a fitness model. But in a way, it helped my sales. Lots of women who came in asked me if I used the equipment that I sold and I said "Yeah, I work out a lot...want me to show you how you can get started too?" and BOOM! I'd sell a treadmill or an elliptical machine or a set of weights. So I wasn't just selling the equipment, I was selling my physique in a way as well.
ReplyAs an appreciator of the feminine figure, I have two opinions to add to this discussion:
1. Women are at their best around 20% body fat.
2. Fake boobs are freakish, and nothing like the real thing.
ReplyNo you should not, they have special trainers,, diets etc. The lighting is just perfect also in thier pics etc.
ReplyI think comparing yourself to fitness models is just about as unproductive and soul-sucking as comparing yourself to runway models. Both are manufactured images of women's bodies that have very little to do with how real women's bodies look.
ReplyI know a lot of female athletes, and incredibly fit women that exercise and take care of their bodies and could probably kick my ass from now until Tuesday and not one of them looks like a fitness model.
How can you compare fitness models with runway models? Runway models don't exercise and stay in shape! I say we should strive to look like fitness models the natural way.
ReplyI agree and disagree, but i agree more. Sounds like a spam comment. lol. But seriously, I take what i can from "fit" people and try to adjust my fat lifestyle accordingly.
ReplyNo, this is the real world...the way fitness models look is not.
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