Fool me once shame on you. But fool me twice and shame on me.
Deception and deceivers have always been around.
Many folks have been deceived by bogus get rich quick schemes.
There are also folks who were deceived by second rate charlatans selling them inferior products.
In the iron game that I love dearly, the deception is prevalent everywhere.
The past era of the game was littered with gimmick products. Sauna Suits and Shake Weights made big time promises but delivered nothing of value.
In today’s iron game, all you need to do is take a gander at social media to see that the fake hustle is alive and well. You can spot a liar a mile away on Instagram.
I have seen male lifters who are jacked to the gills but their effort in the gym is absolutely blasphemous.
I have seen female lifters with curves that will make men start rubbernecking. But these women do “workouts” that are a complete joke and a mockery of the game.
Your Output Should Be A Result Of Your Input
For the lifters I just mentioned their input does not match their output.
Genetics play a part, but genetics will only take you so far without hard work.
How hard and smart a lifter trains means much more to me than how a lifter looks.
Obviously, these people who look like Batman but play like Alfred have had some help along the way to attain that look.
This means they have done steroids or had surgery or did both.
I have seen lifters who are lean and muscular who bust their rears when they train.
I always respect when the input (training effort) matches the output (physique and performance).
Someone who is all show but no go is only fooling themselves into thinking they are truly in shape.
They look like Tyson but they fight like Glass Joe.
What You See Is Not Real
The vast majority of the pictures you see on social media makes it seem like everyone who is in the gym is a living Adonis.
The reality is that most of them are nowhere near that.
Now, there are folks online who have actually earned their physique through hard work and consistency. I personally know some of them.
When I see them in person there is no drop off from the pictures that they post when compared to their real physique.
There are also folks online who have earned nothing.
They do not train hard, smart, or with a sense of urgency. I know some of them too, and what they do in the gym is an absolute farce.
When I have seen them in person they look nothing like the picture they posted 9 minutes ago while they were in their own doctored version of “beastmode.”
Where did that small waist, big booty, and quads that would make a stallion jealous disappear to?
What about that big chest, massive arms, and cannonball delts? Where are they?
These trainees’ pictures online make it seem as if they have discovered the ultimate training and nutrition plan. They appear like comic book characters but how does this actually happen?
How To Spot A Liar In The Fitness Game
Spotting a liar in the fitness game on social media is actually pretty easy.
Many fitness “influencers” have a tactic they use to make themselves appear superhuman.
Outside of the majority of them using steroids or pro-hormones, almost all of them use high levels of filtering.
Anytime you see pictures like the one I have purposely enhanced, you know you are dealing with a charlatan.
I go from a guy in great shape to a guy in superhuman shape within a couple of clicks.
Filtering is absurdly common in the fitness industry as “influencers” focus on making their physiques appear otherworldly.
This is done so that they can sell their snake oil supplements or products to the masses and get paid.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with making money, but making it in that fashion has no value.
In terms of how to spot a liar in the fitness game you have to know what to look for.
The Approach
Male and female “influencers” will take different approaches.
Most male fitness “influencers” will:
• Filter images to appear bigger, more muscular, and just flat out jacked to the gills.
• Filter images to appear leaner and more ripped.
• Edit images to vastly improve their V-taper.
• Focus primarily on filtering the chest, arms, and abs as they believe it attracts women and drive sales to their “exclusive” 21 day muscle growth guide.
Most female fitness “influencers” will:
• Filter images to appear leaner and curvier beyond human standards (ie 22 inch waists and 40 inch hips on the same body).
• Filter images to erase all traces of cellulite on the thighs, hamstrings, and glutes.
• Edit images to remove all blemishes from their skin.
• Focus on filtering the glutes, quads, and abs as they believe it will drive sales to their fashionable 6 week glute “training” guides.
You can filter images to make yourself look ripped to pieces.
You can filter out all of your blemishes and marks.
People can filter images to look however they want themselves to look.
If that is there prerogative, that is on them. My advice to you is simply to not believe the fake hustle that you see online.
Ladies and gentlemen this applies to online dating too.
Gentlemen, she may look like an angel in her picture. But when you show up to the first date and she actually looks like the Joker what are you going to do?
Ladies, when you see the man online who went from a small punk to a jacked fitness model overnight, you should be very skeptical.
Don’t be surprised if right under his picture is a link to buy his “30 Days To Maximum Muscle” program.
Conclusion
Now that you know how to spot a liar in the fitness game, you will not fall for the tricks.
Wise men have said for centuries to only “believe half of what you see.” I think you could be believe almost none of what you see on social media.
If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it is not a cot dang mongoose. Don’t believe the hype.
I’ll holla at you next time.
The People’s Trainer
Fitman
