Click image to enlargeWhat’s wrong with this picture? The obvious answer, thanks to my Perez-style arrows (which is why you will never have to worry about me photoshopping anything on this site), is that this “health” segment on Oprah’s website is sponsored by Hersheys. Not that there is anything wrong with a little chocolate indulgence now and then (or, you know, daily.) But calling it health food and stamping it with Bob Greene’s “Best Life” seal of approval seems disingenuous at best. I’ve done Jillian Michael’s diet and exercise routine and let me tell you, chocolate is nowhere on the list of approved foods. All the trainers on The Biggest Loser will tell you that you may eat a bag of m&ms but then you may also get kicked off at the end of that show for not being committed enough to your health.
But I have an issue that goes beyond dubious corporate sponsorship. Read the actual text, taken from an Oprah segment interview with the trainers from The Biggest Loser.
Question: If you could do one exercise for the rest of your life, what would it be? Why?
Jillian Michaels: Running because – although I hate it – it’s most effective at making my butt smaller.
Bob Harper: I love to run so it would be that. It is a great cardiovascular exercise and a great calorie burner.
Both trainers give the same answer – running – and yet for wildly different reasons. The female trainer would run even though she has said time and again that she hates it. With all the exercises out there to chose from, why would she condemn herself to an eternity doing the one that she despises? Because it makes her butt smaller. Apparently hell is treadmills and skinny jeans but no Spanx.
On the other hand, the male trainer not only picks what he loves doing but he does it because primarily it will strengthen his cardiovascular system and enhance his long-term health prospects.
Jillian Michaels is exceptionally dedicated. She has already proven her will to lose weight and her willpower to keep it off at all costs. According to all the statsitics, she is an abberation, albeit the abberation we all wish we were. But what of the rest of America, as in the women who sit in their living rooms and watch The Biggest Loser? What kind of message about exercise does it send to them and to their young daughters, also watching and learning about what it means to be a girl?
To me it says that exercise is to be hated but must be done anyhow because you are nothing if you have a big butt.
The results of my “Why Do You Exercise” survey came in close, with 35% of the nearly 700 respondents answering “Yeah, I say it’s primarily about my health but I love that it makes me look better too.” while 29% of you answered, “It’s mostly about my looks – the health benefits are just an added bonus.” I’m wondering now though how it would have panned out if I had asked people to specify their gender.
I am inclined to posit that the trainers on The Biggest Loser are representative of our society as a whole. That men are more inclined to think of exercise in terms of its salutatory benefits – and thereby are more likely to make it a life-long endeavor – while women are taught to think of it in terms of our, ahem, bottom line. Most men will continue their weekly pick-up games even if their waistline doesn’t shrink because they are having fun reliving high school glory days and smacking each other on the rear (kind of not socially acceptable in the office.) While many women will opt to do a form of exercise they don’t necessarily enjoy (anyone else see in the stepmill a modern-day Sisyphus paralell?) and then give up in frustration when the desired proportions are not achieved. Studies have shown that people who exercise primarily for their looks are more likely to get discouraged quickly and less likely to stick with it over the long term.
In addition to the message perpetuated by Ms. Michaels, women are also treated to the alternate Hollywood view of exercise, courtesy of Alessandra Ambrosio, Victoria’s Secret model and mother of 3-month old Anja. When asked how she regained her world-famous body so quickly after childbirth she replied, “I only do yoga once a week or so, but that’s it for now.” So exercise is to be endured in order to gain a svelte figure. Unless it doesn’t work and then you should sue your parents for losing you the genetic lottery. Now I’m depressed.
Which is probably why Hershey’s sponsored the interview.
Your thoughts? Am I remiss in generalizing the opinions of two individual people to the population as a whole? Is there a gender difference in how the sexes approach physical fitness? Does this approach differ because men & women often see radically different results from the same workout? And who wants to smack Alessandra Ambrosio now??
I think it absolutely goes without saying that men approach fitness differently than women. Men place a higher value on looks in women than women do in men, so there is a wider “range” of “acceptable” attractiveness/looks for men than women, which means that men don’t have that same frenzied, looks-obsessed approach toward fitness that women do.
Plus, we all know that because of genetics, it’s easier for men to lose weight/fat and get “into shape” than it is for women. I know men who will see more results after a week of mild to moderate workouts on a treadmill than I would in two months of intense and dedicated exercise.
Finally a post that is not male bashing. I don’t know if what Jillian said is true, you took only a population of 2 and made that small group the norm and not even a normal group at that. I don’t watch TBL – it isnt reality. If I had all day to workout plus trainers at my fingertips and no kids, no job, no anything else, I would loose weight like crazy.
TGFE is bashing The Biggest Loser?! My world is caving in, because my favorite blog and my favorite TV show are at odds! I can’t take sides…the decision would be harder for me than what Meryl Steep’s character had to go through in Sophie’s Choice!
Ok, back to your question about the differences between men and women workout philosophies and if TBL is perpetuating stereotypes: Speaking only for myself, I enjoy running as well not only as a workout activity but as a sport (I’ve done six marathons, one half and a relay marathon, and even though I’m lousy at it, I still enjoy it), but the reason I got into it was to get in shape. It wasn’t until after I began running for the workout aspect of it did I realize I also enjoy it as an extra curricular activity.
I think Bob and Jillian’s comments about jogging is a good example of how many PEOPLE have about running, and not so much about their gender. I know a lot of women that enjoy running, while others think it’s the most horrendous activity on the planet, and the same goes with my guy friends.
Do guys play hoops for the enjoyment at times and not for the workout? Of course we do! But something that many guys have a problem with as well is not realizing that playing a pick-up game one a week does not equal a fitness routine, and very often become very frustrated when they’re no longer in the same shape as they were in their high school days.
This blog is unique in which many of its readers have a very similar mindset in which we all have frustrations with body image or fitness goals because sometimes the work we put in doesn’t equal the outcome we wish to receive, but their are even more people out there that struggle with boy image and don’t even know where to begin. I think that’s what Jillian’s comment was trying to address, because we all want to enjoy 100% of the workout routine and not have it ever feel like work, but most of the time that’s just not the case. There are times we have to leave our comfort zone and expand what we do to achieve our goals (I’d much rather run than lift weights, but I’m attending Body Pump classes whenever I can because I know that’s what I need). That’s also what I enjoy about The Biggest Loser: Continuing to stay in your comfort zone will prohibit you from achieving your goals (and that’s not just with weight loss, but life in general), but it’s only until you step out of your box will you actually reach your goal.
And as for Ms. Ambrosio, don’t believe for a nano-second that all she does is one yoga session a week. Those quotes are cute for grocery store isle magazine articles, but there’s no way that’s all she does (and if it is either she’s a space alien or she has other issues that are sadly going ignored).
No way! Is that why I’ve got no junk in the trunk? Craikey, but there is no way I’m going to give up running. Though I would love to get me some lovely lady lumps, no matter what Jillian thinks of them. Maybe we just always want what we don’t have.
I’ve noticed a big difference in how the genders approach health issues. When it comes to losing weight, women REALLY focus on what they eat, whereas men usually focus on the exercise portion first. As well, men do seem to put more value in what they can physically do, as opposed to how they look. However, I think this is less true today than in the past. 30 years ago, John Wayne was considered the male ideal. I don’t think so anymore. Still, there is a ying / yang thing here going on.
– Dave
I feel like the looks goal for women and men are different: Generally speaking, women want to lose fat, while men are split between wanting to lose fat and/or gain muscle. An activity like running is relatively ineffective for gaining muscle compared with weight lifting, while the popular misconception is that running is the gold standard for losing fat.
So, there are likely fewer men than women that would run despite hating it–some men would more likely choose to lift weights despite hating it. That is to say, of the people who run, there’s probably a higher percentage of men that enjoy it than despise it.
That being said, I think males are more apt to exercise for the fun of it over the salutary benefits. Yet, there are still plenty of males exercising for looks–most gyms have a bunch of guys doing ridiculous numbers of curls.
Personally, I hate treadmill running, but during the summer love playing sports involving lots of running.
I think a number of men do exercise for the health benefits, but I know plenty of guys that spend hours in the gym for nothing other than pure vanity…and they’re all single.
My married gym friends seem to think more about their future. They want to be around for a while and take their health seriously. For most of the single ones, it’s all about looking good now.
I chalk it up to the giant difference in their personality and not so much their sex. I couldn’t imagine doing something I hated for exercise.
Im actually in with Jillian!
different reason (and I ‘hate’ the butt part) but I agree.
I LOATHE CARDIO. ALL. Seriously. Ive tried it all (running, biking, classes yada yada yada) and nary a cardio endeavor floats my boat.
I lovelove the weights.
Now, where she and I part ways (and I think she’s a terrible role model with that sentence and would love to see the rest of the interview) is that I do cardio.
Pretty much daily.
SOMETHING.
And might pick it as my ‘if I had to pick one thing’ exercise because of what it does for my *insides*
the butt part of her sentence? my eyes rolled back in my head so hard if this comment makes no sense it’s cuz they’re stuck.
Miz.
The Biggest Loser is a loss when it comes to getting fit: the people work too hard for the camera and the scale, and not hard enough for themselves. Combining insane calorie restriction with savage workouts the way the show does is a perfect recipe for the shattered Holocaust metabolisms it frequently turns out, as you will see if you look up the “winners” several months later. Almost all of them look unhealthy; many look even worse (if not fatter) than when they started. I think it is sad that so many of us get our “fitness” fix watching fat people kill themselves.
Alessandra’s a liar. Maybe she figured (correctly) that the question was rude and was just blowing it off. That is *not* a yoga-once-a-week-post-pregnancy belly.
Or maybe she’s just trained herself to do crunches in her sleep…
okay I am the minority here.
I fully admit that I do things I HATE just because of how it will make me look.
Running happens to be one of them….
I love TBL, not because I think it is realistic, but because I think it is entertaining. I would much rather watch people struggle with exercise and end up looking like a million bucks than watch someone go through 8 surgeries and look like a million (plastic) bucks ie Extreme Makeover.
Anyhow, I do tons of things I hate just because I have been told they are good for me – green tea, eating bran, running among them.
Hubby on the other hand, does NOTHING that he dislikes in any way. The difference is that Hubby is 40 pounds overweight and I am not. Then again, he is 1000 times happier with himself than I. *sigh*
Here’s what I wonder. If Jillian had never been overweight but had participated in sports simply because she enjoyed it, would she have given that same answer? Or would her answer align more closely to Bob’s? We all know how she came to be a trainer, and while it’s an admirable story, it has definintely shaped her view of things.
I do think, though, that her answer was pretty close to what most women would say. After all, we hear constantly that we’re supposed to hate working out, but that we’re supposed to do it if we want to be cool/successful/get a mate/insert random thing that has nothing to do with exercise here.
Maybe I produce too much testosterone, but I love running. LOVE running. Love, love, love to run. In general, of course, because there are always bad days. But love it for how it makes me feel, which, perhaps is somewhere in the middle of “cardiovascular benefits” and “a smaller butt.” I also love dark chocolate. For some reason I can eat less dark chocolate and feel satiated–with milk chocolate I just find it hard to stop. Is that because it *isn’t* as good as the mouth-melting milk variety? Should that be the selling point? “Eat dark chocolate because you wont binge on it?” Oh, and I should add, I “meditated” for 3 min and 45 seconds yesterday. All I could muster.
I read it. I’m not sure. Sometimes I work out because I enjoy it and it does good things for me, but when I need motivation, it’s easier to think of how much better I look when working out.
I know so many people of both sexes that fit both categories that I can’t draw any conclusions. I do think that younger folks work out more for looks and older people more with a health motivation.
I think its obvious allessandra doesnt work out. shes super thin with no muscle tone, which means shes just naturally super thin. i dont like how people connect weight and exercise together. “im at a fine weight so i dont need to exercise.” what about your heart? lungs? muscles? bones? diseases? bleh- people get it backwards.
Kelly Turner
http://www.everygymsnightmare.com
You know me and my soap box. As usual, I’d put this down to the way our society sees men as people who act and have a point of view; and women as people who are seen by men, and whose point of view is sublimated to guessing how others view them as desirable objects (or not). Blah blah blah. I think since it’s been this way throughout the history of time I’m probably fighting a losing battle with this one.
What’s interesting to me is that in general, gay guys are just as looks-obsessed as women in the way they approach exercise. Is it because the get some of the same brain-wiring, or is it that wanting to appeal to a male, as opposed to female mate determines the importance of a beautiful body?
I dunno – the guys in my life that exercise DO NOT do it for their health, so either my crew is weird or it’s not normal. Guys get insecure about their looks and if they have a little extra just like us. The only difference is, they can eat more simply because they’re dudes. Let me tell you, it’s frustrating eating with my honey all day, and when I’m done, he still has about 300 calories to eat for him to be at the bottom of his weight loss range.
I think people just blow off the questions a bit too. When people, perhaps at a party, ask me what I’ve done to lose so much weight, the short answer is running and yoga. Of course, the long answer is also calorie counting and tweaking my program each month and DDR and trying to eat more veggies and fruit and and and…so I guess I make it sound easier. I just don’t have the time and energy to talk everyone’s ears off for 3 hours on what I do, and I don’t think they really want to hear it, they’re just being nice.
Just a different perspective!
Oh the age-old question. Shame on Jillian for saying that in an interview – however, she does so much for self-esteem that even though she reinforces running even though she dislikes it, she also does a ton of stuff she DOES like that also makes her butt look bigger.
I think if she had time to think about it, she wouldn’t have said what she said- or at least why she said it. She knows what works, but I can guarantee that she knows it’s diet, not running that makes her butt smaller.
How many times have I said something on the spot that I wish I’d had time to consider later? Lots. I bet she feels the same way!
Or maybe I’m just stubborn and refuse to believe Jillian said something so blatantly weak and woman-like. She’s stronger than that!
I really do think that, in general, women exercise (or at least BEGIN an exercise program) in order to attain the impossible standards that are set for us today. (I also think the standards for men are becoming more and more ridiculous. Like David said, the male celebrities of yesteryear wouldn’t have a chance today. Same for the female stars.)
I also agree with what Kendall says. And that “getting into shape” are often two completely different things: For men, it may be about being able to run around the basketball court the way they used to, while for women, it means losing their hips (even if they’re genetically programmed to have them).
As far as Alessanda, these days, most celebrities seriously downplay how much they work out/how little they eat. Especially post-partum.
(BTW, Anonymous? Do you actually READ this blog, or do you just assume that because Charlotte’s a female blogger she must automatically be a man-hater? ‘Cause, I swear, most of the time there’s NO connection between your posts and her blog.)
Reading the comments on this post is really interesting. Opinions seem to be all over the place.
For myself, I don’t hate to exercise but I do choose workouts that I enjoy. If I was naturally thin would I bother to exercise? I don’t know. I started exercising to manage my weight, but I’ve come to appreciate the fact that I feel better when I’m exercising (less stress, better sleep, etc). On top of that, I haven’t found that exercising has led to weight loss – for me that tends to come down to food. I know I’m not alone in this, which may be why – as one commenter mentioned – many women tend to focus more on what they eat when trying to lose weight.
Hmmm…well, I definitely think women are more motivated to workout by their looks. I always think of women as doing more cardio, and men as doing more strength training. I guess I always attribute this to cardio burning more calories, and how many women are coooonstantly saying they need to lose weight? But I am pretty shocked that Jillian said that. I mean – really? Love her, but you’d think she’d be careful with her words on tv.
I thought I read Alessandra had to work out everyday for like 2 hours a day to get in shape? It was in People magazine – but it could have been another supermodel that we all want to slap across the face. đ
While I incorporate a lot of activities into my routine that I do âcause theyâre fun (I play football, practice jiu-jitsu, and am currently doing circus school), I also try to do some things that arenât fun but which improve my health and athletic performance (hill sprints Iâm looking at you).
I guess I think that while you have to have things that you just enjoy doing, you also have to push out of your happy, cozy comfort zone to keep improving your health and performance.
So, I kind of believe in both schools of thoughtâŚ
AHA!!! Great post. This is what I’ve been saying–if I’m going to work really physically hard at something I really dislike, at the end of the day I want something like a brick wall or a dining room with crown molding to show for it.(I actually did put crown molding in my dining room once, and it was haarrrrd. I didn’t even have power tools, just a miter box and a saw.)
I do care way too much about my body, but not enough to work at something I HATE.
I like doing yoga because you get an immediate payback. It feels good while you do it. And I feel kind of glamorous.
Surprisingly enough, I think I would like running (I have dreams about running), but my knees won’t stand for it.
A few thoughts here,
1)When microphones and cameras are trained one single person ready for the next sound bite, those individuals have been known to pay the consequences for remarks that should have been taken as flip. The ex Illinois Governor is saying that exact thing now. Jillian’s line may have been a throw away since we don’t know her feeling in the setting as well as in what context it was taken. I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt here.
For example, Rush Limbaugh (this doesnât matter your feelings toward him for this) was crucified by the press and Congress for saying that âhe hoped President Obama failedâ which was taken to mean his presidency. Thatâs the sound bite and text the press ran with. What he actually said was: Barack Obama is promising to lead this country into socialism, and that Limbaugh hopes Obama fails in that attempt. Two entirely different things, but the first one has much more action to a new popular president. Iâm not a fan, but was leaning toward everyone else until I saw the quote in text.
2) I find that most women make themselves appealing to other women. This isnât in a sexual way, but one of a fashion sense. Having a body that emulates a models body is more desirable since the fashions of the day âhangâ better on that type of body. For women to work out to get their body in a particular shape and they can get there doing an exercise that they hate may be correct.
3) Many men do want to be attractive to women and workout to get there, however, most older married men just want to live longer or at least as long as their wives. It reminds me of Alan Kingâs âwidowâ bit when he read obituaries to show married men left this world much earlier than their spouse.
Sorry for the long reply, it must have it a cord. ď
GREAT post.
Can I just say “What Crabby said?” Is that enough of a comment? đ
I do think there’s a gender line, although it’s interesting to read other comments theorizing that there is also an AGE line. I wonder if the gender difference persists among people over say, 50. Or 60. Or whatever.
On the other hand, I LOVE running. LOVE. IT. But I hate the elliptical with a fiery passion, and I won’t do it. And I’m not sure I would do it even if it were the ONLY way to fitness. I’m not sure I’d be that dedicated.
And it does seem weird to me that Jillian hates ALL exercise. Given her intense workouts, I have to wonder if she might enjoy less intense types of exercise (walking, swimming – though that can be intense, too – yoga, pilates, you get the idea). Granted, her butt might not be as small (dude, I CAN’T BELIEVE SHE SAID THAT), but to say that she hates it ALL? Man, I’d have a wide butt if I hated it ALL. It just wouldn’t be worth it to me to spend an hour every day doing something I hated. (And as someone else pointed out, I wonder how much of her self-hating “fat girl” history colors her perceptions of exercise?)
i run. part of me likes it; part of me hates it.
all i have to say to jillian is, my butt’s not going to shrink to say, some hollywood actress-size even if i run a marathon a day thanks to genetics.
i am a white girl, and i have a booty (and the accompanying hips/thighs). unless i starve myself, it shall always be so.
Very valid assessment here. I’m shocked by that Q and A… that is something that I find unfortunate with Jillian, is that she almost plays up how much she hates exercising.
I do what I love when it comes to exercise. That’s my philosophy because that’s what works for me.
I think Kendall is right that the difference in male/female approaches to fitness are due to the differences in male/female metabolisms and ability to lose weight. My skinny husband can lose weight sitting on the couch. So of course he only has to do exercise he enjoys — walking, hiking, biking. It’s never a chore because he never has had to struggle with the scale.
I, on the other hand, have to sweat my little ass off to lose a fraction of a pound. If I had my druthers, I’d take dance and yoga and never do a session of cardio again.
I suspect that, like Jillian, I hate having a big butt more than I hate cardio. It’s not that I believe I am nothing if my butt is big (and I really think drawing such a conclusion from her statements is a bit of a stretch), but a big butt is inconvenient. I’ve been at the high end of my healthy weight and I’ve been at the low end and I tell you, the low end feels AWESOME. I hit bikram yoga and feel light as a feather. My body moves better. It’s easier to get enough air. I can control it more easily. And yeah, it looks better in a bathing suit.
I think the statements did re-enforce gender stereotypes, but I don’t think it was their intention. Jillian always talks about the benefits of running and has her contestants do it too. And she always talks about how she hates it, but does it because its the best bang for your buck/butt.
btw, ignore the anonymous post-er that left the 2nd comment. Your posts never come across as male bashing, nor do I suspect that they are intended to be so. I look forward to reading your post every morning. đ
I don’t have a problem with gender stereotypes. Hear me roar, you know? People can stereotype me all they want, it doesn’t actually make me any different.
If I looked better w/o exercise, I wouldn’t do it. However, and how sad is this? the older and creakier I get, the more it actually IS about my health! Alas, vanity begins to keep pace with sanity.
Haha, guess that makes me a man, in spite of my beautiful breasts (well, they are!), hips, and bottom. Cause I work out to stay healthy and be strong and wouldn’t (and don’t) do things that I loathe, like running, just to be thinner. (Or go on a diet, for that matter – I just eat healthy foods most of the time, and don’t stress about it.) But I have some real health problems that mean I sometimes can’t work out, and so when I can, I really appreciate it. And I appreciate that it makes me strong and better able to stick out the bad-health days.
(By the way, I do do cardio, when it’s a good health day – but I don’t run. I do jumping jacks and burpees and similar non-boring things, in interval work outs.)
PS. Full revelation, in case it matters – I’m absolutely normal-sized, neither fat nor thin. I’m size 12, with a 28-inch waist (I’m hourglass-shaped), and I weigh myself about every two months. Haven’t weighed myself yet this year. When I last did, it gave me an absurd “borderline obese” BMI, cause I’m really strong and have healthy bones, so I weigh a lot. Well, I’m not obese or anywhere close. In fact, I think I look just fine. Which might, er, make me a man again. (I’m JOKING!) đ
Sorry I’m so behind, but I’ll agree with those who say a lot of this is because of the fast metabolisms of most men.
I didn’t answer your survey, but I have to say I’d be hard pressed to say whether I work out for health or vanity – for me, vanity is always going to be some component because I can’t look the way I want without a really strict exercise regiment, but even if I could know that I would never look the way I wanted, I would probably still exercise. Hope that makes sense!
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