In today’s society, a movement has begun to stop stereotyping beauty and combat the spread of unrealistic standards for how a women’s body should look like. However, we haven’t heard much about the impact men’s gym culture has on health, wellness, self-image and relationships.

How the so-called confident male body is portrayed in today’s world, especially on social media, can be destructive. There are many positive benefits to men’s fitness – empowerment, strength, and confidence. However, dysmorphia, the dissatisfaction with body appearance, is on the rise in adults and young people alike. Living up to ideals can be destructive.

In this podcast, we will explore with Dr Colin Robertson the depth of this challenge to understand the benefits and the dark side of today’s gym. Colin has been a gym owner for 12 years, and he has been working with professional athletes, such as Olympians and adventurers climbing mount Everest.

He is a key player in moving the field of performance and rehabilitation forward as a senior researcher at the University of Bolton. Most importantly, Colin has a deep understanding of human psychology and a unique talent for finding the practicality in science and bringing it to the masses in a relevant and down-to-earth way so we can make a real positive change. He is one of FeelGood’s most loved and in-demand experts.

Episode Questions:

1. Is the gym really flawed? Are there any fitness trends that have a negative impact on our health?
2. What is the stereotype in the gym, and why does it persist to this day?
3. Where is the boundary between a healthy fitness pursuit and an unhealthy, psychologically harmful one?
4. What are we trying to gain or avoid by pursuing fitness for unhealthy reasons?
5. With fitness, we’ve said that the main pressure is to get bigger over getting stronger. Do we see such physical stereotypes in other sports, such as those where the ideal is to be slimmer?
6. What needs to be done to decrease the negative impact these body stereotypes have on men?

Quickfire Questions:

1. Can strength be measured in inches?
2. How can you tell the fitness choices you make are for yourself or others?
3. What else gives confidence rather than how we look?
4. How can you tell whether you have a predisposition for body dysmorphia and what can you do about this?
5. Are there any books or resources that address this challenge?