"Exercise can feel boring: going out running for the same 5k or heading to the gym to the same equipment and space. This is true also for yoga, which can feel slow and lack excitement. The idea of trying something new is appealing, plus there is a constant push by certain fitness influencers implying that they know something we don't."
"Those don't seem good enough any more, so now we have Zercher squats (holding a barbell in your elbow crease like a metal baby), squats on vibration plates, squats while throwing a heavy ball and on and on. Some of these exercises may in fact be good, some useless, but because influencers can't be seen to be doing the same thing every day, the key thing is that they're novel."
"The marketing is that being around snakes in yoga can help overcome a fear of snakes while also building flexibility. Cross two things off your to-do list at once! Here's my public health take: fear of snakes is rational. About 5.4 million people are bitten by snakes each year. Evolution spent thousands of years instilling that fear in us for good reason."
Fitness influencers continuously promote bizarre exercise variations and gimmicks to maintain audience engagement and differentiate themselves. Examples include Zercher squats, vibration plate squats, and snake yoga. While some variations may offer benefits, many lack scientific validation. The appeal of these trends stems from exercise monotony, desire for novelty, and FOMO. Influencers often imply exclusive knowledge of superior methods. Snake yoga exemplifies trend absurdity—combining yoga with snakes under the premise of overcoming snake phobia while building flexibility. However, snake fear is evolutionarily rational given 5.4 million annual snake bites worldwide. Ultimately, viral fitness trends exploit psychological needs for excitement and social validation rather than delivering superior health outcomes.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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