Are Weight Loss Progress Pictures Harmful or Helpful for Health?
Weight loss pictures: part of toxic fitness culture? Diet culture?
Or are they ACTUALLY helpful for reaching health goals?
Taking before and after photos, or weight loss progress pics, is a common practice among women and men, looking to motivate themselves for weight loss.
For those selling weight loss support, weight loss progress photos are used as a motivational tool for those embarking on a weight loss journey.
How motivational are they? I guess it depends on how you look at it.
I posted this Instagram reel after seeing an Instagram post showing before and after pictures to sell a weight loss program to over 50 women.
The person posting, was showing her own personal health and weight loss journey. This sparked her to become a weight loss coach.
I love a good rags to riches story, don’t you? There are some of these stories that are moving, inspiring and tear jerking.
This is why I’m going to explain exactly why the before and after pictures irked me.
I took some time to reflect on what I was feeling before I recorded this episode, so I could break this down.
And I get the appeal of the before and after photos.
I have friends that have been working at maintaining weight loss, that share their progress pics, or before and after weight loss pics, regularly.
They’re so very proud of themselves. So are their friends and families.
I get it, I feel it, I understand it.
Many have had years of struggling with weight loss, comments about their bodies, and even being ridiculed by others for their body size.
I have worked with individuals that have less access to things like sitting in certain chairs, or airplane seats. They have been singled out and bullied by their own families.
A mom, who worked through the Fullness Method with me, wanted to lose weight to be able to sit in certain areas with her young kids.
To be clear, I do not go through weight loss behaviour with others in The Fullness Method. I help women learn Mindful Eating, and see their food patterns, so that they can incorporate whole health habits, without the struggle with body hate and diets.
I understand the feelings that come with weight loss, but not from a marginalized body perspective.
I personally know what it is like to be able to access the praise, acceptance, and the seats, that society offers to those in smaller bodies.
I also want to be clear that I understand that reducing your blood pressure, change your blood sugar, or maybe getting off Type 2 diabetes meds are things to celebrate, and that may also be paired with weight loss.
I’m not talking about these personal journeys in this post.
That could be a whole other topic, that is OH so multi layered.
I’m talking about the before and after pics to sell weight loss, AND the ones that are already showcasing a small sized body.
I’m talking about the pic that pushed me to record this podcast episode and write this post.
I’m talking about the pics of those in smaller bodies, that:
Have never struggled with sitting in seats.
Don’t understand or acknowledge marginalized bodies.
Are posting 3 separate “after” pics, showing small amounts of weight changes.
Showcase a decrease of minor belly bloat, in a small body.
Centre the aesthetics of weight loss transformation.
I’m talking about the pics of those who are not in marginalized bodies, who are small sized, selling programs and shakes, while trying to get themselves as small as possible, or as shredded as possible.
I even understand these people, to some degree, as I used to pursue the shred. I have a before pic on my laptop of myself in a bikini.
It took it as I was on the mend from reactivated Epstein Barre Virus.
I was regaining some weight.
My body was keeping me safe by helping me get to a weight that was right for me. But my mind was terrified of going back to the body I had.
So I took a pic. You can see the bones of my shoulders poking out.
But I used to eat those before and after pics up like vanilla buttercream.
They inspired me, or so I thought. What they really did was create unrealistic comparisons, and defeat.
Why did I still focus on them?
I’d like to tell you that I thought it was health I was pursuing.
That would be a lie. I wanted the feeling of thinness. The praise.
It was also way easier running, with less weight on me. I loved running. That’s another discussion on weight and fitness culture. I identified with fitness culture, and the look of it.
If before and after pictures can create feelings of defeat in those with smaller bodies,
imagine the rollercoaster that a larger bodied individual goes through?
I’ve heard the roller coaster from clients.
Which leads me to my next thought.
Are all before and after pictures harmful?
Both the personal ones, and the professional ones selling weight loss?
That’s a huge question, don’t you think?
The biggest peeve I had, about that before and after picture selling weight loss, is that it focused on aesthetics only.
It only focused on the LOOK of the person.
Even though the caption talked about health, pictures speak louder than words. Say all you want about whatever your health philosophy is, when you showcase your smaller body getting smaller, you’re selling toxic diet culture and inaccessibility.
Before and afters draw us in, just like fitness magazines. I talk about my fitness magazine obsession on the podcast episode.
We take these pictures as “benchmarks” as a way to be.
No matter how irrelevant they are to us.
Instead of focusing on the aesthetics of the before and after pictures, what would it feel like to focus on Joy and Vitality your benchmark.
What would it look like to surround yourself with the things, and people that celebrate you for you, whether you’re two pant sizes up or down.
This could 100 percent be your family and friends, who celebrate who you are outside of your size.
What if a health program could also do that too?
I never thought of these things in my fourties, when I was focused on the shred.
Questions to ask yourself if triggered by the B & A’s!
If you are triggered by pictures like the ones I described, here are some self coaching questions to look at the WHY behind the body angst.
The first question I one I asked MYSELF before I even entertained this topic as a podcast episode.
What is so uncomfortable about these photos right now?
If you encounter pictures like this, no matter their type, or purpose, see if you can identify the feelings they trigger in YOU.
Not about the person who is posting them: YOU.
Loss, anger at self, defeat, desire, purpose, drive, or jealousy. There is no wrong answer. These are YOUR feelings.Where do I feel this in my body? It may sound weird, but identifying where a feeling IS in your body is a great way learn to tune into that body mind connection.
You may feel the feeling you choose, in your stomach, throat or heart.
Thoughts create body sensations, and even stress.Why am I looking at pictures like this?
They may populate your social media feeds, these pictures. You may not know that your social media feed is based on what you follow or like. So if you follow #fitspo people, or weight loss stuff, well you’re going to get some comparison pics. Start to curate your social media feed to have things in it that make you feel positive. This episode talks about just that.If I use this type of picture or content as inspiration, is it based on my core values?
Do you know your core values? If you don’t, that’s ok. I have a Free Core Value Toolkit for all of you who join my email community. Sign up for my Beginner Guide to Non Diet Health in Menopause, and it will come to your inbox within 4 emails.Will this type of information help me with the established goals around my health AND wellbeing?
Are you comparing your own body type to the one in the photo? How is this going to move the needle on your health goals? If you have broad goals about your health, like “lose weight” or “be healthy”, this may be the place to hone in on, NOT before and after pictures as inspiration. Need help with that?What else, BESIDES AESTHETICS are things that I can pursue for health. Are you sleeping, pooping properly, digesting your food, having good lymph flow, and taking care of the stress in your life? Are your blood markers properly managed, and your relationships satisfying?
I know that the act of dieting and calorie counting seems like it isn’t about aesthetics. If your current plan focuses on numbers, a tape measure, sizes and progress pictures, you may be missing key aspects of menopause health that could REALLY optimize longevity.
Health includes series of behaviours that fit to a person’s life and desires. It includes fulfillment and purpose, happiness and feelings.
Weight is an outcome of an action.
The action being cut calories. Or move more. Or both.
While you may seem fulfilled pursuing weight loss, take some time to reflect on other aspects of your well being, including all or nothing thinking or obsessive mirror checking.