After some serious 'like-age' on my recent Instagram post I thought i'd share with you the motivation behind the post and also a bit of truth when it comes to transformations.
"Check out my transformation! It took me 15 minutes. Wanna know my secret? Well firstly I ditched the phonewallet (fwallet) cause that thing is lame, swapped my bather bottoms to black (cause they're a size bigger & black is slimming), Smothered on some fake tan, clipped in my hair extensions, stood up a bit taller, sucked in my guts, popped my hip- threw in a skinny arm, stood a bit wider #boxgap, pulled my shoulders back and added a bit of a cheeky/Im so proud of my results smile. Zoomed in on the before pic- zoomed out on the after & added a filter. Cos' filters make everything awesome. What's my point? Don't be deceived by what you see in magazines & on Instagram.. You never see the dozens of other pics they took that wernt as flattering. Photoshop can make a pig look hotter than Beyonce."
My original inspiration for trying to do this came from this post Seduced by the Illusion: The Truth About Transformation Photos. After reading his post (which is brilliant- read it after mine.. not now.. after haha) I thought I would try to replicate it. So after a big breakfast one morning I chucked on my bather bottoms (that are a bit on the snug side), I stood with my feet together, pushed out my stomach, pulled out my hip phat (yes with a ph), hunched my shoulders forward, looked sad and took a few snaps. Then I underwent my transformation- Using these fat loss supplements.
I opened the curtains, ditched my fwallet (threw them next to my crocs), stood taller, adjusted my posture to added a dash of self confidence and snapped the after.. pfft, who am i kidding.. I snapped about 25 afters.
And after adding a filter and playing around with the zoom, I double checked with a friend that it was believable- I then posted my efforts on Insta.. and I've been VERY overwhelmed with the response.
I believe my image illustrates my point, that images can be deceiving. But i really want to touch on another point.. that i feel is the bigger concern when it comes to before and after photos. The fact that most of them happen within a ridiculously short amount of time. I'm not saying that big changes don't happen fast (because they can, I have client pictures to prove it)- but I feel like these '2 week progress' pictures set people up with unrealistic expectations of how fast they should be getting results.
What a before and after shot doesn’t tell you how the person achieved it. It doesn’t tell you if they did it a healthy way or if they starved themselves for weeks on end to get there. It also doesn’t show you the persons mental state, their self worth, how many hours of exercise they did, the lifestyle changes, the early mornings, the skipped lunches, how they handled social situations or how many skinny mini teas they chugged.
What a before and after shot doesn’t tell you how the person achieved it. It doesn’t tell you if they did it a healthy way or if they starved themselves for weeks on end to get there. It also doesn’t show you the persons mental state, their self worth, how many hours of exercise they did, the lifestyle changes, the early mornings, the skipped lunches, how they handled social situations or how many skinny mini teas they chugged.
To illustrate this, let me give you the very honest low down on my own real life transformation photo. That took a whole lot more effort then a few hair extensions and some fake tan.. Although, a certainly utilized some fancy lighting in my after shot.
This first one was taken in 2010 on a family holiday shortly after I had returned from exchange in America. Whilst there I gained around 7-8kg because I had THE GREATEST TIME OF MY LIFE! I went to Vegas twice, I tried all the food, I enjoyed a drink or two, I went out dancing, I had desserts, and really had the most amazing time. Although i remember feeling unhyappy about my body in that photo, to be honest i didn’t really care that much- I knew I would lose the weight eventually. I had lots of friends, I was confident, I went out all the time and people just gathered around me to soak up my awesomeness.. haha ok ok, maybe not, but I was pretty carefree!
The second one was taken last year around this time, (so 3 years later), during that time I had become obsessed with fitness, I was fitness instructor taking upwards of 8 classes a week and had recently become a personal trainer. I decided that I could get a six pack in eight weeks and do to that, I had to completely over-haul my life. I stuck to a very strict diet plan, I socially isolated myself, I avoided certain restaurants, I stopped drinking on the weekends, I went out- but I drove and usually left early, I avoided my Nonnas house so i didnt have to eat her AMAZING food, and at the same time I also had some other medical things going on that I ignored to pursue this goal of a six pack. I become totally obsessed with my progress, I had my skin folds done weekly, I trained like a dog and rescheduled my photo shoot 2 times so that I would have ‘more time’ to get leaner. By the time the photo shoot finally happened It was almost 6 months later, I was exhausted, Yeah i looked good on the outside- but I was a mess on the inside. I was tired, moody, i'd tainted good friendships and I actually really hated the person I had become.
The second one was taken last year around this time, (so 3 years later), during that time I had become obsessed with fitness, I was fitness instructor taking upwards of 8 classes a week and had recently become a personal trainer. I decided that I could get a six pack in eight weeks and do to that, I had to completely over-haul my life. I stuck to a very strict diet plan, I socially isolated myself, I avoided certain restaurants, I stopped drinking on the weekends, I went out- but I drove and usually left early, I avoided my Nonnas house so i didnt have to eat her AMAZING food, and at the same time I also had some other medical things going on that I ignored to pursue this goal of a six pack. I become totally obsessed with my progress, I had my skin folds done weekly, I trained like a dog and rescheduled my photo shoot 2 times so that I would have ‘more time’ to get leaner. By the time the photo shoot finally happened It was almost 6 months later, I was exhausted, Yeah i looked good on the outside- but I was a mess on the inside. I was tired, moody, i'd tainted good friendships and I actually really hated the person I had become.
It is now almost a full year later, and I can now say I have a much healthier relationship with myself and with food. I still train 4-5 times a week, and I still eat a very healthy, but I am much more relaxed about my meals. I keep going to events that I went to last year and thinking ‘this time last year I brought brown rice, veggies and chicken in a container’. Now dont get me wrong, Im all about having a big goal and achieving it, and doing what I did has taught me so much about food, exercise and myself, but was it all worth it? I'm honestly not sure it was.
I can safely say, I finally feel like the old, bubbly, self confident, smart ass me is back and although my booty has grown, and my jeans are a little tighter Im actually living again. Thanks to some amazing work by Layne Norton, I am now addressing the metabolic damage that prolonged under eating and overtraining has done to my body. It is going to take me a lot of trial and error to get my body working for me again, but I no longer look at food as being ‘clean or dirty’ or ‘good and bad’ I have a much more sustainable/ lifelong plan. Im happy with who i am (heck! i posted a semi naked selfy on social media) and I’m finally comfortable in my own skin.. once again oozing with awesomeness.. haha i'm kidding.. but not really.
So my advice to you if you want to change your physique, is to make small changes towards your goals. Stop wanting results in a week, or a month, make changes you can sustain- be patient and consistent. Dont stop going out with your friends, don’t carry rice and veggies around in your backpack. Learn about food, come up with an achievable plan for you and most importantly enjoy how you exercise and live your life.
Oh and transformation shots are great, but let it be clear- that being thinner doesnt always mean youll be happier, transformations take time, and good lighting can make buddah have a 6 pack.
Oh and transformation shots are great, but let it be clear- that being thinner doesnt always mean youll be happier, transformations take time, and good lighting can make buddah have a 6 pack.
Mel xx
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