Social media opens a lot of windows and doors for us. Often it’s a great source to get inspiration from. Whether it’s work week lunch ideas, room design, or funny puppy videos to get through the day, there’s a lot of variety to spur ideas and creativity. Quick check in — don’t forget to remind yourself not to compare your looks to social media post. Here a few quick reminders to tell yourself as your scrolling through your feed.
Lights, Camera, Action!
There are many components that make the “perfect” social media post. Light, a quality camera, and flexing are just a few things that get thrown into the mix. We don’t all stand perfectly flexed every minute of the day. There’s not a ring light following us around giving every human on the planet perfect skin. Our shorts ride up, our high rise leggings drop down. Our butts can stick out or seem tucked under. What makes it to social media is a one-of-many shots taken on a given day, and the photo is meant to highlight all the lovely qualities of a person or object. The same folks who are posting pictures of their six pack can have rolls when they sit hunched over, but they aren’t posting that! Don’t get lost in that deep hole of comparison and judgment. No one is perfect. But they definitely can pretend things are by choosing to only show the good angles!
But what happens later in the day?
A collage of pictures can really convince the world that a person’s life or body is perfect. A lot of influencers do try harder to allow followers to see that they are humans with flaws, but there’s no possible way to see how someone looks at any given time of the day. Even with a trend of untouched photos and opting to show “flaws,” there’s still a high likelihood that the best photo is being chosen. Prime example, our fitness friends who show us their muscles and slim waist; this is a photo that was probably taken in the morning. That chiseled six pack can get lost during the day once we start drinking water and eating food. The important thing to remember is that even a fitness influencer can have days where they’re more bloated, because it’s normal!
How much time has lapsed?
Another trend besides fitness gurus, is accounts designated towards showing extreme weight loss progress. Power to those out there who are brave enough to broadcast their progress, because that takes a lot of work! But the important thing to remind yourself as you’re going through your own health journey is that there is quite a bit of time that has elapsed between those before and after photos! A lot of blood, sweat and tears to make their progress look noticeable. Even if someone has put the dates of the before and afters we, as followers, forget to take notice of that time frame. Again, as you find yourself scrolling for inspiration, remember these photos didn’t happen overnight, but rather with dedication, good and bad days, and patience!
Social media allows us to highlight the good days in our lives. Very rarely do we see people post a bad angle of themselves or even about a bad day. Why? Because that makes for putting themselves in a very vulnerable situation, especially if these posts are being shared with the world! However, just because these other aspects of health and fitness aren’t always shared, that doesn’t mean they don’t happen. Using social media for new ideas, inspiration, and even starting a new lifestyle change is great, but don’t get fixated on comparing yourself, because this journey is yours and yours only!