With gyms closed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, many faced physical changes in their bodies around the globe. As many people were quarantining in their homes, social media was a major form of entertainment and to keep up with the news. Now that there has been a decrease in COVID-19 cases, gyms have opened up creating a new form of gym culture with a heavy social media influence. Fitness influencers and bodybuilding champions have since used social media as a way to promote and showcase their physique or body type. 

The pandemic shed light on the many consequences that inactivity can cause. Inactivity brought by the pandemic also caused a growth in the consumption of social media. Fitness content also grew in popularity as a result of the pandemic. These content creators pushed an “ideal” body standard which was consumed by men in the masses. The standards included attributes like extremely broad shoulders, small waist to shoulder ratio, gigantic chest size and full looking arms. Although these types of bodies require extensive training over many years, in most cases, these standards can’t be naturally obtained without the assistance from anabolic steroids or testosterone which ultimately led to men to suffer from some mental health consequences. 

Reaching these types of physiques shouldn’t discourage the average adult male from working out. Exercising has always been shown to improve someone’s physical health along with their mental health. According to the CDC, working out improves aspects in all parts of life. This can include reducing diseases such as lung cancer to managing weight. Exercising is something every person should take part in. With these influencers promoting healthy eating habits along with plans on improving lifestyles, young men typically follow these plans in hopes of becoming as physically fit and muscular as whoever they look up to. 

James Ellis, a professional bodybuilder and personal trainer mentioned that half of the fitness influencers that he works with and trains are often on some sort of performance-enhancing drugs(PED) according to a Business Insider article. Ellis argues that these types of drugs are the ‘norm’ rather than the exception. 

Although young men look up to these influencers, they should be aware of these hidden truths of PED use amongst the fitness community. PEDs can greatly affect the way a person looks while giving the illusion of being naturally achievable. Being on a regular workout plan along with strict dieting will not cause you to gain muscle mass in comparison to famous bodybuilders like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ronnie Coleman, who are open about their steroid use. 

A study published by Health Communication showed that people who were overly exposed to fitness content translated to a dip in self-esteem. Social media gym content should always be taken with a grain of salt regarding its authenticity. There is more behind the screen than we see online.

As an audience, these young men should consider PED use amongst these influencers and establish a base of what’s realistically attainable physically and what’s not. Furthermore, influencers should be highly transparent about their use of PEDs so as to not further the idea that their physiques or body type is most commonly not able to be achieved naturally.