Ethics in Fitness Marketing

Oh boy, I mean, are there even ethics in fitness marketing?

Episode 6 on our YouTube and Spotify channels is about tracking progress in fitness.

Tracking progress in fitness can be difficult because, oftentimes, our fitness goals are more ambiguous than the specific goals of a powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, or athlete. 

We don’t have 40 yard dash times to improve or vertical jump heights to beat.

Toning, strength gain, improved movement – how do we even begin to go about measuring these things?

Even something more cut and dry, like fat loss, comes with difficulties. Day-to-day fluctuations in bodyweight make it hard to track acute progress and even weekly averages might not provide a clearer picture of what’s going on.

So I proposed a few things:

• Stay optimistic and remember that the process works, even if you can’t see it working
• Take a long-term approach to health and fitness – you won’t do it all in four weeks
• Look for little wins along the way

But what does this have to do with fitness marketing?

Everything.

Fitness marketing is the direct antagonist to all of those things.

Fitness marketing is sex and fire and pills and powders.

Fitness marketing is an all-night rave at a club.

Fitness marketing is driving the coolest car you could possibly imagine.

It’s having a social media profile laden with shirtless photos and story updates about your latest Mediterranean vacation. 

It’s the latest, hottest fashion and the most popular restaurants in the world. 

It’s fast and aggressive and loud and self-seeking.

Fitness marketing is selling you today at the expense of tomorrow. And they’ll stop at nothing to convince you that their specific solution is the only and last solution you’ll ever need.

But that’s fitness marketing, not fitness. 

See, fitness is different.

Fitness is patience. 

It’s thoughtful and attentive.

It’s leaving your phone at home and going for a long walk on a trail you’ve never hiked before. 

It’s community-driven and selfless. 

So, ethics in fitness marketing? Never heard of him.