<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Women around the world are obsessed with Kayla Itsines, an Instagram-famous fitness trainer from Australia.&#xa0;<p><span>Itsines has managed to c</span><span>ultivate what devoted fans call an "Army" with her lucrative Bikini Body Guide business. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BG8NWbvACLR/?taken-by=kayla_itsines" target="_blank">They will fill a venue,&#xa0;packed tightly like sweaty sardines,</a>&#xa0;to exercise&#xa0;in the presence of their famous trainer.&#xa0;</span></p><p><span>The core of her business is a series of PDFs (and now, a&#xa0;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kayla-itsines-app-subscription-complaints-2016-1" target="_blank">sometimes-criticized app</a>) that come complete with a 12-week workout plan and a</span><span>&#xa0;nutrition manual.&#xa0;</span></p><p>But the real gem of her branding is her viral Instagram account, with over 5 million followers. It's an amalgam&#xa0;of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BG6WYr1ACGn/?taken-by=kayla_itsines" target="_blank">social media-friendly platitudes</a>, photos of her <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BGjaG3RACMC/?taken-by=kayla_itsines" target="_blank">enviable abs</a>, some of her <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BGiGMZrgCKc/?taken-by=kayla_itsines" target="_blank">colorful meals</a>, and - most notably - striking before-and-after photos of her "girls" who have taken on the her workout plan and lived to show the results. <em>It works, </em>the photos say, seducing you with every visible muscle line.<em> Try this. Get sick, sick abs. Come, join the army!</em></p><p><div>    </div></p><p>For a few weeks in my life, I, too was a part of that army...to an extent. If Kayla's army was the most recent&#xa0;<em>Game of Thrones</em> battle, then I wasn't a zealot willing to throw my life into the fray for House Itsines.&#xa0;I was more like an onlooker, grateful to not have to tear my body to shreds in the name of the Seven Kingdoms (or a bikini body).</p><p>I admit it: I'm highly susceptible to fitness trends. I&#xa0;drank the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-i-stopped-going-to-soulcycle-2015-7" target="_blank">SoulCycle</a>&#xa0;kool-aid. I've tried Insanity. I went up and inch and down an inch at barre class.&#xa0;</p><p>So when I stumbled upon Itsines' Instagram account, I thought,&#xa0;<em>why not</em>. I'll try this! It's markedly less expensive than SoulCycle classes, right?</p><p>And the 12-week plan seemed pretty simple:&#xa0;you pay $52 for a PDF of&#xa0;her workout guide or her nutrition guide or scoop up both for about $90&#xa0;(unfortunately for Itsines, it's pretty easy to find the PDFs online, too).</p><p>You do seven minute circuits of burpees, weights, and questionable exercises like "double bench jumps" two to three times a week. Kayla instructs you to do "LISS" (low intensity steady state) three times a week - such as a long walk. She encourages one HIIT (high intensity interval training) in the final month.</p><p>As time goes on, she tells people to amp up the number of workouts. She encourages days for stretching, too.</p><p>I was definitely sore after some of the circuits. But around week eight or nine or so, I stopped doing it.</p><p>Though I truly believe that Itsines is a spectacular business woman who is very good at posting photos on Instagram who has&#xa0;sound advice, I didn't stick to the program.&#xa0;Here's why:&#xa0;</p><h3><strong>1.&#xa0;People report inconsistent results with the program.</strong></h3><h3><strong><div>    </div></strong></h3><p>Are you a sloth who has never stepped foot off your couch, save to the kitchen to grab some mac and cheese? Have you never exercised a day in your life, and consider doing shots of tequila an arm workout? Congratulations, you might lose weight doing the Bikini Body Guide!</p><p>But you also might lose weight doing&#xa0;<em>any</em> workout. (Honestly, I've found that getting a Fitbit has been one of the best things I've done for my health; I'm generally more aware of how much I move throughout the day.)</p><p>These sexy before-and-after photos&#xa0;do not&#xa0;necessarily mean that the Bikini Body Guide is the actual reason people are losing weight; it could be a multitude of factors, from diet&#xa0;to&#xa0;lifestyle changes,&#xa0;and more.</p><p>That said, there's no denying that Itsines has helped many young women feel confident. People on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/comments/27dh38/kayla_itsines_yay_or_nay/">Reddit </a>talk about how they've gotten stronger; that's great! Strength training is important. The photos are pretty obvious and tell a great story - but it's not the whole story, and it's a promise that may or may not be fulfilled.</p><p>I saw negligible results, and moreover,&#xa0;<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/comments/27dh38/kayla_itsines_yay_or_nay/" target="_blank">Redditors</a>&#xa0;have also reported<span>&#xa0;mixed results, with some people saying how since they already ate healthily, much wasn't going to change - but one thing is clear that in order to see any results, you need to do&#xa0;</span><em>everything</em><span> Itsines subscribes, which, unlike the highly-publicized three circuits a week, is time-consuming.&#xa0;</span>There is no short cut to wellness,&#xa0;sure, but I have a lingering suspicion some people latch onto Itsines' ideas because they think that it might be a short cut.&#xa0;</p><h3><strong>2. There's no "one size fits all" approach for weight loss - and the program is&#xa0;innately&#xa0;prescriptive.</strong></h3><p><strong><div>    </div></strong></p><p>"Throughout my industry experience, the more I interviewed my female clients, it became apparent that many girls were aspiring for a specific yet common look," Itsines writes in&#xa0;her guides. "What these girls really wanted was the confidence and positive physical change that came as a result of a healthy lifestyle."</p><p>"I have heard many trainers and individuals say lots of different things about how to get 'results' - such as what IS required, what is not required, shortcuts you can take and things to avoid. In this eBook, I am hoping to clear the confusion for you and focus more on YOUR specific goals," she writes.</p><p>That's a mixed message, isn't it? And Itsines seems to make it seem as though this is tailored to individual women, but it's not: it's entirely prescriptive, even if it's not her intention.</p><p>This is the sad, unfortunate truth of <em>any</em> exercise program, especially ones that sell themselves as miracle workers&#xa0;and promise to rid your body of excess fat and unleash your hidden six pack: every body is made differently and everyone needs to figure out what works best for his or her body. This can make doing a prescribed workout program extremely frustrating, because you could be twelve weeks in - a fiscal quarter! - and realize that your body needs something completely different than what you've been doing.&#xa0;</p><h3>3. The branding didn't resonate with me.</h3><p><strong><div>    </div></strong></p><p>The name of her program alone is troublesome - and even some <a href="http://chelseaeatstreats.com/kayla-itsines-bikini-body-ebooks-review/" target="_blank">bloggers</a> who rave about&#xa0;her guides often confess that they dislike the name "Bikini Body Guide."&#xa0;It's pretty regressive. After all, what&#xa0;<em>is</em> a bikini body? As many people say now, it's a body...in a bikini. It's your best you.</p><p>In&#xa0;her eBook, Itsines appears to be ready for that criticism. She swears that a "bikini body is not a certain body weight, size or look, but rather a state of mind where you are confident and feel good about YOU. I do not believe that a single figure, idealistic individual, or image should be the sole goal for a broad-spectrum audience. I think the end goal should still be the same, but the definition for that goal is happiness through health."</p><p>"I completely understand that there are many women around the world that have different goals or are already comfortable with their body. I don't promote my work in a derogatory or demeaning way to anyone, as we&#xa0;all have different tastes. My work is entirely about making women feel comfortable about their bodies, and assisting the women that specifically seek the outcomes that my advice has proven to achieve," she writes.</p><p><span>But it's impossible to ignore that Itsines' main way of advertising is showing impressive before and after photos, though she also appears to cover her bases by posting Instagram photos that claim "health is not a size. It's a lifestyle." But then, why is there such an emphasis on scintillating, chiseled abs?</span></p><p><span><span>Not everybody's body is meant to be cut like a Victoria's Secret model. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be a better you - I'm not against dramatic weight loss photos - but Itsines' message feels inconsistent to me.</span></span></p><h3><strong>4.&#xa0;I need more guidance than a photo.</strong></h3><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Those without her app are left with something troubling: no guidance other than illustrations. It's not really rocket <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="science">science</keyword> to realize that improperly doing a workout (and for twelve weeks) could be risky, and that's a risk that anyone who signs up for the Bikini Body Guide is taking.</p><p>There are some moves I felt wary about doing on my own.&#xa0;Jumping onto two side-by-side benches typically used for bench presses? No, thanks.</p><p>Celebrity fitness trainer Anna Kaiser has spoken out against the problem with the rise of the Instagram fitness celebrity (though she didn't name names; she just spoke vaguely about the problem with Instagram fitness stars).</p><p><span>"M</span><span>ost of the trainers are personalities," she said to me recently. "T<span>hey're not educated in fitness, and you don't actually get to interact with any of the people. They're just going off of pictures and videos, and ... could end up hurting yourself for years with injuries that will affect you for years down the road."</span></span></p><p>"I would just warn people against following a personality or someone who looks great in a bikini and really seek out someone who knows what they're doing, and that's the general feeling in the fitness community today," she added.&#xa0;</p><p>Personally, I feel safer doing intense exercise with some supervision nearby.&#xa0;</p><h3><strong>5. The schedule is not realistic&#xa0;for everyone.</strong></h3><p><strong><div>    </div></strong></p><p>In her guide, Itsines advises against doing her circuits and "LISS" workouts at the same time, and toward the end of the guide, she's encouraging more workouts than there are days in the week. She doesn't advise that people do resistance training and cardio back-to-back, but suggests training once in the morning and once in the evening.</p><p>Do you know who works out in the morning and at night?<a href="http://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/models/a12816/gigi-hadid-ballet-beautiful-workout/" target="_blank"> Victoria's Secret models</a>. Do you know the audience that's gobbling up Kayla's advice?&#xa0;<em>Young girls</em>. Young girls who are in formative states - mentally, emotionally, and physically - and they're nodding their heads and saying, "yes," and making the gym the center point of their lives.</p><p>There is absolutely nothing wrong with making the gym a priority. But&#xa0;Itsines is subtly advocating that people schedule their lives around multiple workouts a day.&#xa0;<strong>This is not doing a double SoulCycle class for fun on the weekend.</strong> This is subtly telling young women that in order to get this elusive bikini body, they need to make gym trips. Twice. &#xa0;That's just not realistic for most young women, who should be living balanced lives.</p><p>Weirdly, though, Itsines says her goal is to help women lead balanced lives.</p><p>"I want to help educate girls all around the world, and make them understand that exclusionary diets or training styles are not necessarily the best way to go - rather, a well-rounded&#xa0;healthy lifestyle can be far more flexible, beneficial, and enjoyable," she writes. To be fair, her diet doesn't demonize carbs...which is a plus.&#xa0;</p><p>I fully believe that Itsines is out to help young women, but unless you have a very open schedule, this just might not work. That's how I felt, for sure: when would I get in all of these sessions&#xa0;<em>and</em> sleep&#xa0;<em>and</em> have a social life <em>and</em> prep all this healthy food?&#xa0;All of those are very important aspects for being a well rounded, healthy person.</p><h3><strong>6. It's really not that revolutionary&#xa0;for the price.</strong></h3><p><strong><div>    </div></strong></p><p>I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Kayla Itsines is a very smart young business woman. The workout guide is more than $50...for an eBook. It's more for the nutrition manual. The app is $19.99 a month. Itsines swears you don't need anything, but you&#xa0;<em>do</em> need equipment, from medicine balls to weights and more (and <a href="http://www.bikinibodyguides.com/kayla-itsines-review/" target="_blank">reviewers </a>have said how they didn't anticipate the additional expenses, and<a href="http://www.bikinibodyguidereview.com/" target="_blank"> they can really add up</a>).</p><p>And realizing what Itsines is getting people to do - resistance training, fat burning low intensity cardio, and high intensity interval - isn't entirely groundbreaking in the fitness world.</p><p>The only revolutionary thing she's done, in my opinion, is that she's cultivated a community and made women accountable for their wellness. She's made them feel strong and helped them feel like they can do push ups. She's brought millions of women together.&#xa0;<strong>That's great</strong>. And to her credit,&#xa0;she's gotten millions of women interested in exercise, which is hugely important.</p><p>But I think the brilliance ends about there. After all,&#xa0;like with diets, there is no magical mystery cure for getting the body of your dreams. It's a combination of taking care of it, exercising&#xa0;safely<strong>&#xa0;</strong>so that you can keep exercising in the long run, and eating well - doing something that you enjoy and works for you. And sometimes, if you have really specific goals, you might have to seek out an expert - which, yes, costs money, but they'll pay attention to your needs.</p><p>To be fair, Bikini Body Guide may work for some women, but if it doesn't work for you, that's okay. Remember, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/chick-fil-a-weight-loss-success-story-2016-6" target="_blank">this guy lost </a>140 pounds eating Chick-fil-A almost every day, so really, it's all about finding something that's sustainable for you.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/peloton-soulcycle-killer-stationary-bike-online-for-home-review-2015-10">This stationary bike might be a SoulCycle killer</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="8wbG9ieDq9UJmPc4XtN0IC30LUehCM4D" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

I tried an Instagram fitness plan people are going crazy over -&#160;here are 6 reasons it's completely overrated

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Victoria's Secret is known as the beacon of all things sexy.<p>Every year, the company has a What Is Sexy contest, where fans and shoppers can vote for who they think is sexy in a variety of categories. This year, the company expanded to a wide variety of social media stars.</p><p>This might be a way for the company to appeal to young consumers, many of which are obsessed with these stars.&#xa0;</p><p>But perhaps most notably, it suggests that Victoria's Secret might believe that's what's sexiest of all is inspiring young people.</p><p>The winners were announced yesterday, but here's the list of social media nominees in case you missed it, via <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3505154/Move-Angels-Victoria-Secret-launches-award-sexiest-social-media-stars-former-DWTS-contestant-Bethany-Mota-Zoella-earning-nominations.html" target="_blank">The Daily Mail</a>:</p><h3><strong>Sexiest Social Media Star (Beauty)</strong></h3><p><strong>Bethany Mota&#xa0;</strong>is known for her popular <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/Macbarbie07" target="_blank">YouTube channel</a>.</p><p><div></div></p><p><strong>Zoella&#xa0;</strong>vlogs about beauty on&#xa0;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/zoella280390" target="_blank">YouTube</a>.&#xa0;<div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>Ingrid Nilsen</strong>'s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/missglamorazzi" target="_blank">YouTube channel</a>, MissGlamorazzi, has captured the attention of young people.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>&#xa0;Meghan Rienks</strong>'<a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/meghanrosette" target="_blank"> YouTube channel d</a>ishes on beauty advice with a dose of quirk.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><h3 class="embed-spacer">Sexiest social media star (fitness)</h3><p><strong>Kayla Itsines</strong> has risen to ubiquity with her popular <a href="http://www.kaylaitsines.com/collections/guides" target="_blank">Bikini Body Guide workouts</a>.</p><p><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>Hannah Bronfman</strong>'s website&#xa0;<a href="http://hbfit.com/" target="_blank">HBFit</a> shares wellness advice, workouts, and more.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>Cassey Ho&#xa0;</strong>is known for her <a href="http://www.blogilates.com/" target="_blank">website</a> and&#xa0;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/blogilates" target="_blank">YouTube channel</a>, both called Blogilates.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>&#xa0;Natalie Jill</strong> is a<a href="https://www.nataliejillfitness.com/" target="_blank"> fitness guru</a> who shares her workouts with her fans.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><h3 class="embed-spacer">Sexiest social media star (fashion)</h3><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>Sonya Esman</strong> blogs about fashion on her website, <a href="http://classisinternal.com/" target="_blank">Class Is Internal</a>.</p><p class="embed-spacer">&#xa0;<div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>Annabelle Fleur</strong> shares her musings on fashion and beauty on her website, <a href="http://vivaluxury.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Viva Luxury</a>.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>&#xa0;Rocky Barnes&#xa0;</strong>writes about style on her <a href="http://rockybarnesblog.com/blog/" target="_blank">website</a>.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><strong>&#xa0;Negin Mirsalehi&#xa0;</strong>writes about&#xa0;<a href="http://neginmirsalehi.com/" target="_blank">makeup, fashion, and more</a>.</p><p class="embed-spacer"><div></div></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sports-illustrated-models-in-real-life-2015-12">Here's what Sports Illustrated swimsuit models look like in real life</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="1xdThjeDr9rdJ_RuiU9J86ltIF4jL-Qf" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Victoria's Secret is recruiting these Instagram stars to win over young consumers

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><strong>A personal trainer from Australia has smashed the world record for most burpees completed by a woman in one hour.</strong></li><li><strong>Liz Llorente, 37, completed an impressive 1,490 burpees in 60 minutes - beating the previous record by 169 burpees.</strong></li><li><strong>But internet critics aren't convinced by her victory.</strong></li><li><strong>This is because they're claiming the personal trainer wasn't actually doing burpees at all.</strong></li></ul><p>&#xa0;</p><p>Burpees - exercises which combine one squat thrust, one push-up, and one jump - can be done at home, and don't require any equipment. Completed enough times in a row, they can get your heart rate going and make you work up a sweat, making for a great cardio workout.</p><p>However, saying they're unpleasant is an understatement, and most people hate doing them - everyone but Australian personal trainer Liz Llorente, that is.</p><p>Llorente loves them so much she nailed 1,490 of them in 60 minutes - a world record smashing number that toppled the previous women's record of 1,321.</p><p><strong>Watch Llorente beat the record here:</strong></p><p>However, the internet appears to have a problem with Llorente's world record. Facebook users who commented on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/7NewsAdelaide/videos/10156559237914301" target="_blank" rel="noopener">7 News Adelaide</a>'s video argue that Llorente wasn't actually doing burpees at all.</p><p>In a post liked 1,600 times, Facebook user&#xa0;Panos Iatropoulos said: "[I'm] still waiting for the first rep." Another user,&#xa0;William Buschmann, wrote: "I'm no expert but aren't you supposed to stand completely upright as part of a burpee?"</p><p>The Guinness World Records enforces a starting position of hands and feet in a plank position, <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/2018/05/08/personal-trainer-sets-burpee-world-record-but-critics-say-wasnt-doing-burpees.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to Fox News</a>.</p><p>To complete a burpee, it states the exercise must transition into a jump, with hands and feet both removed from the ground. It does not explicity state how far the hands and feet must be removed from the ground, or if you have to stand completely upright.</p><p>However, the standard burpee, as demonstrated here by Instagram fitness star Kayla Itsines, suggests you should.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Llorente, a 37-year-old from Melbourne, trained for three months ahead of the event.</p><p>"I definitely know what a burpee is," <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/05/08/melbourne-woman-claims-burpee-world-record-controversy-erupts-over-technique/?utm_term=.ffe5aed52b18&amp;noredirect=on" target="_blank" rel="noopener">she said in an interview with the Washington Post</a>.</p><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/nba-referee-zach-zarba-explains-difference-between-flopping-selling-call-foul-basketball-2018-4">NBA ref explains the difference between flopping and selling a call</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div></hr>

A personal trainer set a world record for the most burpees done in 60 minutes - but internet critics say she was doing them wrong

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>She's only 23, but&#xa0;<a href="https://instagram.com/kayla_itsines/">Kayla Itsines</a> has already become a household name in the Australian fitness community and she's about to take the U.S. by storm.<p>The personal trainer and health guru has amassed over 2.3 million followers on Instagram where she posts workout moves, recipes, fitness tips, and inspirational messages.</p><p>But unlike competing fit-stagrammers who have built their audiences by posting selfies of their seemingly unattainable bodies, Itsines is all about accessibility. Her message is that anyone can lead a healthier lifestyle and through social media and her online fitness guides, she wants to help them take the first step.</p><p>She's now on an <a href="https://instagram.com/kayla_itsines/p/0EvY9NACGE/">unofficial global fitness world tour</a> that will be culminate in a trip to America this spring.</p>

Meet Australia's Instagram fitness queen who's about to make it big in America

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><strong>80 Day Obsession is a new intense workout and nutrition plan created by fitness instructor Autumn Calabrese.</strong></li><li><strong>It starts at $59 for three months.</strong></li><li><strong>Fanatics are posting their 80 Day Obsession results to Facebook and Instagram.&#xa0;</strong></li></ul><p>&#xa0;</p><p>Facebook fitness fanatics have a new favorite workout.</p><p>This month, <a href="https://www.beachbody.com/">Beachbody</a>, the California-based fitness company that's known for DVD workouts like Insanity and P90X and generates annual gross sales<span>&#xa0;of more than <a href="https://www.beachbody.com/product/about_us/company_overview.do">$1 billion</a>, has l</span>aunched a new workout and nutrition plan called&#xa0;<a href="https://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/on-demand-workout-videos.do?e=80DO15&amp;code=SEMB_BOD_80DO_GOOGLE&amp;utm_campaign=Google_Brand_BOD_80%20Day%20Obsession_Alpha&amp;utm_term=80%20day%20obsession&amp;trackingid=s6ER4inEw&amp;gclid=EAIaIQobChMItPXirrfu2AIVDUsNCh3TrAZbEAAYASAAEgKQTPD_BwE">80 Day Obsession.</a></p><p>This intense regimen was created by the company's fitness instructor Autumn Calabrese and is exclusive&#xa0;to the "On Demand" arm of the business. This means that customers can stream workouts straight from their homes and&#xa0;don't need to wait for DVDs to be mailed to them.</p><p>Customers register online, and membership starts at <a href="https://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/on-demand-workouts-streaming-plan.do?e=80DOGBB15">$59 for three months</a>. For that fee, customers will be enrolled in the&#xa0;80-day plan, which includes a meal plan for each day, plus six different workouts every week focusing on different parts of the body, such as abs or glutes. Members can also stream other classes offered on its on-demand website.</p><p>The company is mimicking other popular fitness trends like Kayla Itsines' 12-week workout, which has attracted 8.4 million followers on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kayla_itsines/?hl=en">Instagram</a>.&#xa0;</p><p>Find out how it works below:</p><p class="tagline"></p><div id="categorypromo" style="border:1px solid silver; min-height:90px; padding:10px;vertical-align:top;"><a href="http://read.bi/retail-2018"></a><strong>EXCLUSIVE FREE SLIDE DECK:</strong><br>The Future of <keyword id="6354851" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Retail">Retail</keyword> 2018 by the BI Intelligence Research Team.<br><strong><a href="http://read.bi/retail-2018">Get the Slide Deck Now »</a></strong></br></br></div></hr>

A new fitness craze called the '80 Day Obsession' is taking over Facebook - here's how it works

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Instagram fitness stars are becoming ubiquitous.<p>Without even needing their own gym, these trainers manage to cultivate enormous followings.</p><p>But that might come at a cost.</p><p>One of New York's most well-known&#xa0;trainers spoke to Business Insider about&#xa0;the possible dangers of jumping on board with an Instagram fitness plan.</p><p>"<span>There's a lot of misinformation," D<span>avid Barton, who famously had his own chain of gyms (though he is no longer associated with them, for reasons he won't&#xa0;disclose) and currently runs the New York City-based TMPL, recently said to Business Insider. "N</span>ow, with social media, there's even more."</span></p><p>"I think it's a great thing&#xa0;and a terrible thing," he said.&#xa0;"It's great that people get inspired. I think if somebody can get inspired to&#xa0;exercise that's fantastic."</p><p>One problem&#xa0;is that Instagram stars can look great in photos for myriad reasons.</p><p>"I think seeing somebody who looks great and looks great because of a million factors - one of which [may be]&#xa0;they may just have looked great before they ever stepped into a gym because of their genetics," he said.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>"''<span style="font-weight: 400;">I may not know what I'm doing teaching you and it works for me [and I] haven't hurt myself','" Barton said, speaking as though he&#xa0;was&#xa0;someone who might be a social media fitness star. "'And I chose the right parents so my shape is dynamite.'" </span>He said that what some of these people on Instagram are doing may not be safe, but it works - as in, some people see results - &#xa0;because they're working out with intensity. (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/too-many-intense-workouts-could-be-bad-2016-7" target="_blank">Too -intense workouts have also been subject to criticism</a>).</p><p>"There are some popular fitness trends people are getting hurt doing," he said. He said that some people doing certain exercise programs and look great doing it, "because they are one in 100 [people] who are not predisposed to injury doing this thing. The<strong>&#xa0;</strong>other people, though, "they're now not exercising because&#xa0;they're home icing their knees."</p><p>Barton's not the only trainer to speak out against the dangers of social media. When <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/anna-kaiser-social-media-fitness-2016-5" target="_blank">Business Insider spoke to Kelly Ripa's trainer, Anna Kaiser</a>, earlier this year, she warned of similar problems, pointing to how some of these trainers do not even have credentials.</p><p><div>    </div></p><p>It's impossible to ignore, though, the positive sides to Instagram fitness: it's gotten people to be inspired about fitness, and as <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-and-the-fitness-world-2016-4" target="_blank">BeachBody CEO Carl Daikeler told Business Insider earlier this year</a>, it makes people accountable. Celebrity trainer&#xa0;Autumn Calabrese of the popular 21 Day Fix diet and workouts also said how it's helped cultivate community, inadvertently making for a savvy and subtle marketing tool.</p><p><span>"Social media&#xa0;has kind&#xa0;of&#xa0;made it easier to come together," she said to Business Insider in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-and-the-fitness-world-2016-4" target="_blank">an April interview</a>. "I think that they say, '</span> <span>misery loves company' and - not that it's&#xa0;miserable to&#xa0;work&#xa0;out and - well, maybe it is for some people - &#xa0;but the fact that they have other people to hold them accountable and to say like, 'great job,' 'did you push play?,' way to get those work outs done!,' and they have other people that they can share those results with and other people cheering them on - it sells the product itself."</span></p><p><span>So, yes: Instagram can be an excellent marketing tool. Look no further than emergence of trainers like <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kayla_itsines/" target="_blank">Kayla Itsines</a>, of the <a href="http://www.kaylaitsines.com/collections/guides" target="_blank">Bikini Body Guides</a> and Sweat with Kayla app, who has well over 5 million followers and<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kayla-itsines-before-and-after-photos-2016-7" target="_blank"> the most profitable fitness app</a>&#xa0;of the past year, and the slew of similar Instagram trainers like her: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/annavictoria/" target="_blank">Anna Victoria </a>and her <a href="http://www.annavictoria.com/guides" target="_blank">Fit Body Guides</a>,&#xa0;Karena Dawn and Katrina &#xa0;Scott of&#xa0;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/toneitup/" target="_blank">Tone It Up</a>.&#xa0;</span></p><p><span><div>    </div></span></p><p>Additionally, Barton is&#xa0;aware that there is a lot of good information out there - it's just that it all gets jumbled together.</p><p>"So the thing about Instagram is it's just not controlled. No one's looking [and asking] 'who is this person?'" He said. "There's some experts out there but it's hard for people to really know a[if they're]&#xa0;listening to somebody with good information, is it based on science?"</p><p>It's easy, though, to fall victim to photos of washboard abs, especially when people are looking for an easy fix to get similarly sculpted stomachs.</p><p>But unfortunately for people looking for a shortcut,&#xa0;he says, "there is not a magic bullet."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/peloton-soulcycle-killer-stationary-bike-online-for-home-review-2015-10">This stationary bike might be a SoulCycle killer</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="8wbG9ieDq9UJmPc4XtN0IC30LUehCM4D" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Instagram fitness stars are creating a new problem

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Log on to Instagram and chances are at least one of your friends has posted&#xa0;a photo of his or her workout regimes or healthy meals. Maybe you're repulsed and disgusted by it.<p>Consider that part of the process.</p><p>A "first reaction [is] to resent how much their friends are posting sweat selfies and ... drinking their shakes," says Carl Daikeler, CEO of at-home workout company Beach Body.</p><p>After all,&#xa0;the constant in-your-face nature of wellness is a sharp detour from how things used to be. It was once easy to ignore the need to have a healthy lifestyle; you could just go about your life without constant reminders that you&#xa0;<em>could</em> be healthy.&#xa0;</p><p>"However, it has been easy to completely ignore ... an active lifestyle and food choices that would enhance your life," said&#xa0;<span>Daikeler, whose company&#xa0;</span>introduced iconic programs such as Insanity, P90X, and 21-Day Fix to the world.</p><p>"It's been so easy to make that optional because it wasn't in your face [before]. Right?" he said. "You go about your life, you've got to do your job, your kids [are] expecting everything of you, but the one thing that was very easy to skip is exercise, and [it was] very easy to justify grabbing pizza because you worked so hard today and your boss yelled at you and you were under so much pressure that you just need a little gratification."</p><p>That's not an option anymore.</p><p>"However, the rise of Instagram ... and now, Facebook, and now seeing people like you are fitting it into their day and they're putting in the effort and they're enjoying their life and doing things they never thought they could do," Daikeler&#xa0;said.</p><p>That could mean sharing a healthy meal that's diet-friendly or sharing post-workout photos.</p><p><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer">Autumn Calabrese, the trainer behind the extremely popular <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/21-day-fix-before-and-after-photos-2016-4" target="_blank">21-Day Fix</a>, also sees the importance of social media.</p><p>"For me, coming from being the trainer, I think that it's huge in the fact that it is all about sharing your success or sharing people's success,"&#xa0;Calabrese, who shares clients' results on her own Instagram page, said to Business Insider.</p><p><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer">It also serves as a new way to show off results - and perhaps more importantly, the process of getting those results, and the process can be the unfortunate part.</p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"And you can look though these hashtags and not only see people's results, but see what they're doing to get them," she said. "You can see the meal prepping, you can see them &#xa0;sweaty at the ends of their workouts, you can see them on days [when they're] tired on the&#xa0; floor and [are] like '[I]&#xa0;don't wanna do it'</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">&#xa0;[but still] push play [on the DVD]."</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">It&#xa0;has helped cultivate fitness communities, too - which is extremely important when people are working out at home, in the absence of a visible community that one might find at a gym or a boutique fitness class.&#xa0;</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div></div></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Social media&#xa0;has kind&#xa0;of&#xa0;made it easier to come together," she said. "I think that they say, '</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">misery loves company' and - not that it's&#xa0;miserable to&#xa0;work&#xa0;out and - well, maybe it is for some people - &#xa0;but the fact that they have other people to hold them accountable and to say like, 'great job,' 'did you push play?,' way to get those work outs done!,' and they have other people that they can share those results with and other people cheering them on - it sells the product itself."</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Further, Calabrese&#xa0;spoke to a positive business implication of social media. "You don't even have to go out and try to market you just have to go and show what it does ... so I've seen amazing things just through like Facebook and through Instagram and [other social media outlets]," she said.</span></p><p>Marketing that comes directly from the customer is arguably more authentic than a commercial.&#xa0;When women see other women share their own journeys (or when a company shares a photo originally posted by someone), it undeniably can intrigue them to want to try that product, too.&#xa0;</p><p><div></div></p><p class="embed-spacer"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Further, Beach Body isn't the only viral workout sensation to take the Internet by storm. </span></p><p class="embed-spacer"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Other brands have profited off of the Instagram community, as well; Kayla Itsines' Bikini Body Guide program, for instance, has cultivated a massive community that goes so far to call itself Kayla's Army, thanks to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kayla-itsines-before-and-after-photos-2016-3" target="_blank">highly shareable photos</a> and recognizable hashtags on Instagram. In fact, Itsines has arguably built her empire using impressive before-and-after photos, which zero in on her fans' respective journeys.</span></p><p class="embed-spacer"><span style="font-weight: 400;">As Daikeler said, it's just that much harder to ignore wellness these days - but perhaps it's&#xa0;<em>that</em> much easier to find motivation and inspiration.</span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/peloton-soulcycle-killer-stationary-bike-online-for-home-review-2015-10">This stationary bike might be a SoulCycle killer</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="8wbG9ieDq9UJmPc4XtN0IC30LUehCM4D" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Instagram is spurring the biggest shift the fitness world has seen in decades

10 best fitness Instagram accounts you must follow in
2017 for some inspiration

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Trainers who've worked with <keyword id="11897658" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fitness" source="Orion">fitness</keyword> <keyword id="11894122" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="influencers" source="Orion">influencers</keyword> say at least half take <keyword id="12745372" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="steroids" source="Orion">steroids</keyword>. Few disclose it.</li><li>Some are making money on workout and diet plans, promising results they got from steroids.</li></ul><p>In 2013, the personal trainer and bodybuilder James Ellis noticed his social-media following was growing — just as his progress in the gym was starting to stall. Ellis, who was 32 at the time, had been training since he was a teen, and he was about to enter his first professional <keyword id="12103437" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="bodybuilding" source="Orion">bodybuilding</keyword> competition.</p><p>Despite having been staunchly anti-doping in his younger years, Ellis needed to bust through his workout plateau. So he turned to the "soft entry point" of an oral anabolic steroid, which felt less extreme than injecting.</p><p>"I went down the dark side, which was a very easy decision," he said. "The more you get entrenched in your industry, the more your appearance counts, you start getting accolades and more followers, and those moral decisions just go out the window."</p><p>Ellis saw improvements instantly, putting on about 6 to 9 pounds of muscle in three months. His Instagram following kept growing, too. (While he couldn't share exact numbers from that period, he now has more than 245,000 followers, well above the 50,000 to 100,000 followers generally considered to mark "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-influencers-use-fitness-cash-in-2019-9">influencer</a>" status.)</p><p>A year and two cycles of oral steroids later, "Pandora's box had opened," Ellis said. He won a bodybuilding competition, which shot him to fame in the industry, bringing followers, sponsors, appearances on magazine covers, and world travel.</p><div type="image" title="James Ellis during and after steroids." height="1447" width="1930" msid="89327311" hostid="261"></div><p>Motivated by his success, Ellis began injecting testosterone, which is allowed in most bodybuilding competitions. But he never spoke about it on social media.</p><p>Everyone in Ellis' social circle, both inside and outside fitness, was taking something, he said, so it seemed normal to him. Besides, it was healthier than taking recreational drugs.</p><p>Ellis knew taking <a href="https://www.insider.com/side-effects-of-steroids">steroids had health risks</a>, including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and possible liver damage. But the benefits outweighed them, he said. "It was easy to justify in my own head," he said.</p><h2>For fitness influencers, steroids are the norm, not the exception, experts say</h2><p>In the world of <a href="https://www.insider.com/red-flags-for-taking-fitness-advice-from-influencers-instagram-tiktok-2021-2">fitness influencers</a>, Ellis' experience is the norm, not the exception, several people told Insider.</p><p>Based on his experience training athletes and bodybuilders, the personal trainer and nutritionist Harry Smith said he estimates about half of fitness influencers take some form of performance-enhancing drug, or PED, whether it's steroids, human growth hormone, or even insulin (which can reduce body fat). Other trainers confirmed that estimate to Insider, and some said it was even a lowball number.</p><p>The personal trainer Tobias Holt, an open steroid user who has coached fitness influencers, says that nearly all of them are on some form of PED. "Anyone that tells you that they're not, they're a fucking liar," he said.</p><p>The consequences of that secrecy go far beyond risks to influencers' <keyword id="11894571" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="health" source="Orion">health</keyword>. By presenting their steroid-induced muscle growth as the result of workout and diet plans that their followers can purchase, influencers are making money based on false claims, steroid researchers and industry experts told Insider. And in the process, they're creating a body ideal that's unattainable for even the most dedicated gymgoers, which could lead to body dysmorphia and eating disorders.</p><p>"This is going on all the time, and most people aren't talking about it," Ellis said.</p><h2>How steroids help influencers reach the 'dizzy heights' of fame</h2><p>Anabolic androgenic steroids are <a href="http://www.secondscount.org/pediatric-center/pediatric-detail-2/performanceenhancing-drugs--heart-do-you-your-teen#.YfltnvXP2qA">the most common performance-enhancing drugs</a>, taken to boost muscle and strength, and speed up recovery. They tend to be human-made compounds that mimic the male sex hormone testosterone or other synthetic androgens that have similar effects.</p><p>While getting results requires training hard and eating well, steroids can help people progress faster in the gym and recover more quickly, the personal trainer Ben Carpenter said.</p><p>That makes them especially alluring for men, who are socialized to prefer large muscles, said Dr. Harrison Pope, a leading researcher in the field of steroid abuse. According to <a href="https://www.karger.com/Article/Fulltext/505978">a 2020 study</a>, Pope and his colleagues at Harvard and McLean Hospital estimated that 98% of steroid users are men and that about 3 million American men (just under 2% of the US's male population) have tried anabolic steroids at one time in their life. Of that group, about a third go on to develop a dependence on them, they estimated.</p><div type="image" title="A muscular man injects himself with steroids." height="1328" width="1770" msid="89327313" hostid="261"></div><p>Ellis said he noticed physique improvements "pretty much instantly" during his first 10-week steroid cycle. After a short break, he did another, longer cycle, which "sharpened up" his physique and helped him win the bodybuilding competition that established his reputation.</p><p>"I really reached the dizzy heights of what we would call fitness-model competitions," he said. "I reached the very highest point of that and really enjoyed it."</p><h2>Steroids have quick benefits but long-term health risks</h2><p>Ellis didn't see any serious physical side effects from his steroid use, other than some temporary <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testicular_atrophy">testicular atrophy</a>. That's typical, Pope said.</p><p>He told Insider that steroid users don't tend to feel any immediate harm — only the quick benefits.</p><p>"Therefore, they are not deterred in the way that they might be if they have a bad experience with drinking too much alcohol or taking too much cocaine," he said. "You could take any amount of steroids, and you're almost certainly won't go to the emergency room. And as a result, there's nothing to sort of scare you off, so to speak."</p><p>But the dangerous side effects of steroids can quietly build up over time, Pope said. When a steroid user takes testosterone, the hypothalamus in the brain tells the pituitary gland to stop secreting it. In turn, the testes stop manufacturing testosterone and sperm cells, causing infertility. For some men, when they stop taking steroids, this infertility can be permanent.</p><p>The most serious consequences, Pope said, are on the heart. In a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5614517/">2017 study</a>, Pope and his colleagues examined 140 experienced male weightlifters who were between 34 and 54 years old. They found that those who had used steroids had higher mean <a href="https://www.insider.com/high-blood-pressure">blood pressure</a> and elevated levels of low-density lipoprotein — otherwise known as "bad" cholesterol. The study also found that steroid use can narrow and harden coronary arteries and make the heart inefficient at expelling and refilling with blood, known as cardiomyopathy. All of these factors increase the risk of a heart attack.</p><p>Three of the steroid users in the study had already suffered heart attacks, at ages 38, 43, and 46, respectively. (<a href="https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/premature-heart-disease">According to Harvard Medical School</a>, the average age for a first heart attack in men is 65.) By contrast, none of the weightlifters who'd avoided steroids had had a heart attack.</p><p>While Pope's study was small, he believes it is a starting point in research on how steroids affect the heart. "This is a significant problem," Pope said. "But if you're an 18-year-old who wants to get big, fast, the possibility that you may have a heart attack at a premature age is not likely to have very much effect on you."</p><h2>Why influencers can't quit steroids, despite the dangers</h2><p>The model Jamie Goldie started taking steroids at 19, when he became obsessed with bodybuilding. Everyone in bodybuilding competitions is taking some kind of steroid, he said, and he learned early on that it was a necessity if he wanted to be a competitive pro at the top level. He knows the health risks, and he gets blood work done every six to eight weeks to "track" himself.</p><p>"A question I always ask is, 'Would you do a math test if everyone had the answers apart from you? Would you want the answers?'" said Goldie, who is a microinfluencer with <a href="https://www.instagram.com/goldie.jamie/?hl=en">13,000 Instagram followers</a> who won first place in his first bodybuilding competition in 2021. "Everyone says, 'Yeah, of course.' And I'm like, 'Well, there you go, then.'"</p><div type="image" title="Model Jamie Goldie shows off his muscular physique at a bodybuilding competition." height="1500" width="2000" msid="89327315" hostid="261"></div><p>After six years of taking steroids, Ellis ultimately decided to quit when he retired from bodybuilding in 2018. In all that time, he never disclosed on social media that he was taking steroids, which he said is the "standard approach" among influencers.</p><p>"It wasn't a conscious decision not to talk about it; I think it's human nature to not want to talk about your advantages," he said. "People with money don't say that their parents are wealthy or they had a lucky break. They say they worked for it."</p><p>Of all the drug cultures Pope has witnessed in his research career, steroid users are by far the most secretive, he told Insider.</p><p>"People would come into my office and talk without hesitation to me about all the cocaine that they used or all the opiates that they took or all the marijuana they smoked," he said. "But then I will have somebody who walks into the door of my office and it is immediately obvious upon even looking at him that he has used large doses of steroids. He'll then deny to my face that he has ever used these drugs."</p><p>While Ellis is now a bodybuilding coach who informs his clients about steroid options, he said he believes the "moral code slips" when influencers are selling workout programs or diet plans promising transformations that they largely owe to PEDs.</p><p>"Social-media accounts are essentially adverts if there is a financial incentive," he said. "And we all know not necessarily to believe advertising."</p><p>Top fitness influencers can earn thousands of dollars for a single post, according to <a href="https://techtalk.currys.co.uk/gadgets/fitness-smart-watches/health-and-fitness-influencers/">research</a> by Currys and the Influencer Marketing Hub. For those whose full-time job is creating social-media content, maintaining and growing a follower count is critical.</p><p>Influencers can often leverage their followings to build successful spin-off businesses, typically centered on workout classes or plans. In July, the leading fitness influencer Kayla Itsines sold her workout platform Sweat for <a href="https://www.insider.com/worlds-top-fitness-influencer-kayla-itsines-sells-empire-sweat-400m-2021-7">a reported $400 million</a>.</p><div type="image" title="A muscular man demonstrates a workout in front of a home camera." height="1414" width="1885" msid="89327316" hostid="261"></div><p>While the body-positivity movement has increased visibility for those who don't fit the industry "norm," aspirational physiques remain a major draw for growing follower counts. Many of the fitness influencers interviewed by Insider said they feel pressure to maintain a shredded physique year-round and that their number of followers and engagement increase when they're in "better" shape.</p><p>That's a challenge for even professional bodybuilders, who <a href="https://www.reference.com/world-view/off-season-bodybuilder-afab150fd4894ed0">typically have an "offseason"</a> in which they take a break from staying in competition shape. As a result, using PEDs to fill the gap can be tempting, influencers told Insider.</p><p>Other factors also contribute to secrecy. Some influencers hide their steroid use because it's illegal in their location or because they know they'll lose their brand deals.</p><h2>The impact on followers: 'I was hard on myself all the time'</h2><p>When Harry Smith first got into training as a teenager, he hoped to achieve the muscular physique of a fitness influencer or A-list actor. Smith said he consistently worked out twice a day and tried to follow a "perfect" diet. But he couldn't get the same results, and his self-esteem suffered.</p><p>"I thought it was because I had the wrong program, the wrong supplements, I didn't work hard enough, or I didn't eat clean enough," he said. "I was hard on myself all the time."</p><div type="image" title="Personal trainer Harry Smith shows his muscular physique." height="960" width="1920" msid="89327318" hostid="261"></div><p>It wasn't until Smith learned more about the industry — and the perspectives of "natural" bodybuilders who don't use steroids — that he realized how his idols could build their physiques so quickly.</p><p>"If natural bodybuilders with decades of research, training, and optimization looked half as good as an actor suddenly did in a blockbuster, what's going on there?" he said.</p><p>For social-media users who aren't aware of the prevalence of steroid use, trying to live up to influencers can cause fitness disenchantment, said Noel Deyzel, a South African fitness influencer and an open steroid user. He told Insider he regularly sees people giving up on <keyword id="11927625" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="exercise" source="Orion">exercise</keyword> because they don't get the results their favorite influencer promised.</p><h2>As men feel they can't measure up to influencers, 'bigorexia' is on the rise</h2><p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3961570/">A 2014 paper by Pope and his Harvard colleagues</a> shows steroid use has been on the rise since the 1980s and is likely to increase over future decades. Pope links this to the growing problem of muscle dysmorphia, or "bigorexia." Men with muscle dysmorphia feel profound insecurity that they are not big or muscular enough, he said, in some cases refusing to be seen in public with their shirt off.</p><p>"We don't even think about it, but we see images every day on television, in movies, in advertising, songs, and cartoons, in magazines of muscular male bodies. They appear everywhere," Pope said.</p><p>Bigorexia causes gymgoers to overexercise, pushing their bodies to the absolute limit day after day. They often go on seriously restricted diets to reduce fat and gain muscle. When left untreated, bigorexia can lead to <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/bigorexia">depression and thoughts of suicide, according to Healthline</a>.</p><p>The problem has only been amplified by social media and the pressures to look perfectly chiseled like many influencers, said Amy Gooding, a psychologist with Eating Recovery Center. Those who struggle might hesitate to reach out for help, "due to shame, secrecy, or the normalization of the behaviors in the community," she said.</p><div type="image" title="Fitness influencer and trainer Noel Deyzel, a steroid user, displays his muscular physique." height="960" width="1920" msid="89327319" hostid="261"></div><p>Ellis said the hardest part of coming off PEDs was the impact on his mental health and body image. Taking steroids is "psychologically addictive," he said, because people get hooked on the results.</p><p>"They decide they want to stop, but then they look in the mirror and go, 'Oh, I don't look the same. I need to start taking it again,'" Ellis said.</p><h2>'It will take years off your life'</h2><p>These days, Ellis is a bodybuilding coach. While he no longer takes steroids himself, he does coach his clients on how to use them "sensibly," stressing the mental-health consequences as well as the physical ones.</p><p>When men come to Ellis to ask his opinion on using PEDs, they've usually already made up their minds, he said. But if someone is still in their 20s or hasn't been training for very long, he advises against it because they haven't even seen what their natural potential is yet.</p><p>If someone is adamant about taking steroids, Ellis said, he ensures they do so in modest doses and with off periods between cycles.</p><p>Goldie, on the other hand, wouldn't recommend steroids to anyone who's not hoping to become a top bodybuilder or elite athlete. He hopes more influencers will follow his lead by being transparent about their PED use and why it isn't worth the risk for the vast majority of people.</p><p>"It will take years off your life," he said. "It will damage you later on."</p>

Steroids are rampant among fitness influencers, trainers and bodybuilders say. Most use in secret, claiming their gains come from workouts and diet plans.

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Instagram is changing the fitness world.&#xa0;<p>Social media gives normal people an outlet to post their exercise routines,&#xa0;healthy meals, and weight loss.&#xa0;</p><p>Many personal trainers have built empires out of their fitness&#xa0;followings&#xa0;- from Hannah Bronfman to Kayla Itsines, the latter of which has built an "Army" thanks to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kayla-itsines-before-and-after-photos-2016-3" target="_blank">highly shareable transformation photos</a>.</p><p>But&#xa0;a top celebrity trainer warned Business Insider&#xa0;that there could be a possible hidden danger of&#xa0;social media fitness: that people are blindly working out without real-life guidance or safety warnings.&#xa0;</p><p>"T<span style="font-weight: 400;">hat'</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">s my only problem on social media - most of the&#xa0;trainers&#xa0;are personalities," star trainer Anna Kaiser, who runs the boutique fitness brand&#xa0;AKT &#xa0;inMotion, has trained top celebrities&#xa0;like Kelly Ripa and Sofia Vergara, appeared on ABC's "My Diet is Better Than yours," and runs a streaming membership for those who can't access her studio. "They're not educated in fitness, and you don't actually get to interact with any of the people. They're just going off of pictures and videos, and ... could end up hurting yourself for years with injuries that will affect you for years down the road."&#xa0;</span></p><p>When Business Insider spoke to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/instagram-and-the-fitness-world-2016-4" target="_blank">BeachBody on Demand CEO Carl Daikeler</a> in April, he stressed how social media&#xa0;is good for the industry.</p><p><span>"However, the rise of Instagram ... and now, Facebook, and now seeing people like you are fitting it into their day and they're putting in the effort and they're enjoying their life and doing things they never thought they could do," Daikeler&#xa0;said.</span>&#xa0;&#xa0;</p><p><div>    </div></p><p>"I&#xa0;would just warn people against following a personality or someone who looks great in a bikini and really seek out someone who knows what they're doing, and that's the general feeling in the fitness community today," Kaiser&#xa0;said.&#xa0;</p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span><span style="font-weight: 400;">She concedes there are some perks to social media, but that people should be wary.&#xa0;</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> "Social media is getting more people interested in fitness, <em>but&#xa0;</em>it's also not fitness," she said. "It's frustrating to see how important a social media following is in the world of fitness and business because people who have bikini shots and, you know, sexy pictures of themselves have a lot more followers on social media than someone who's trying to really do it well and maintain integrity."</span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/peloton-soulcycle-killer-stationary-bike-online-for-home-review-2015-10">This stationary bike might be a SoulCycle killer</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="8wbG9ieDq9UJmPc4XtN0IC30LUehCM4D" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Celebrity trainer says Instagram fitness stars could be putting people in danger

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Undrey/Shutterstock</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><ul class="summary-list"><li><strong>Learning to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-morning-exercise-can-increase-productivity-2018-11">love running</a> is an arduous, but not impossible, task.</strong></li><li><strong>Here, author Sarah Wells details how ditching the treadmill led her to "become someone I never thought I'd be: a happy runner."</strong></li></ul><p> </p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The internet has a million-and-one recommendations for how to exercise, and many of those rely on one key element: cardio. Namely, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-morning-exercise-can-increase-productivity-2018-11">running</a>. For much of my life the very concept of running filled me with dread, until I found a way to make it empowering instead.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A big part of my <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-morning-exercise-can-increase-productivity-2018-11">running anxiety</a> came from the way it was introduced to me in middle and high school through the infamous mile-run test in gym class. While I had always been actively involved in sports, I was never a particularly fast runner and these tests made that abundantly clear. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In case you're unfamiliar, here's how the test works: after learning the alleged correlations between mile times and health standards (e.g. to be considered healthy, a student would have to achieve a certain benchmark depending on their age and sex), an entire middle school gym class would traipse out to the school's track and start to jog. While not </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">meant</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to be a competition, it went without saying that students who finished last had "failed." </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This competitive relationship with running didn't stop after the tests did, and as a college student I struggled with constructing my own exercise regimen without the sports I'd grown up with. As a freshman I was intimidated by the gym's powerful weight lifters and the graceful runners galloping on treadmills like gazelles. Choosing the lesser of two evils, I chose to start with the treadmills.</span></p><p><em><strong>Read more: </strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-morning-exercise-can-increase-productivity-2018-11">I'm convinced exercising in the morning has transformed my productivity</a></em></p><h2><strong>The treadmill, a hamster wheel</strong></h2><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I adjusted the incline, slowly increased the speed from a walk to a jog and contemplated whether I would wipe out badly enough to need the emergency "STOP" cord attached to my t-shirt. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Within minutes, the treadmill began to feel like a hamster wheel and, having raised the speed optimistically too high, I was out of breath and already discouraged before I'd crested the one-mile mark.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As I slowed to a walk, I remember looking around at other machines and trying to sneak a glance at their speeds. My heart sank as I saw them still running with ease at speeds far higher than mine. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As semesters and years progressed, I did become faster and my endurance improved, but I could never shake the feeling of not achieving </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">quite </span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">enough. Not only that, but the boredom that came with my hamster wheel had also continued to eat away at me.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In my opinion, a major flaw with the very concept of treadmills is that any movement you make is essentially an illusion. As opposed to the changing landscape you see when running on a track or even up-and-down a soccer field, there are few distractions on a treadmill aside from watching your mileage increase.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I tried listening to music, but eventually found even my workout playlists repetitive. I tried watching TV on my phone or tablet, or listening to podcasts, but both would inevitably run out of episodes before I ran out of gym days. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I even tried to read and highlight articles for class - which only resulted in neon-yellow slashes through many of my paragraphs. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As undergrad ended and I scrambled to find a constructive way to put my degree to use, I also found my gym routine thrown into chaos again. Starting to work more hours and living further from the gym made my treadmill habit more difficult to sustain, in addition to the fact that I'd never really enjoyed it.</span></p><p><em><strong>Read more: </strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/completed-kayla-itsines-bikini-body-guide-workout-results-2018-12">I completed Kayla Itsines' viral 12-week workout - and I'm thrilled with the results</a></em></p><h2><strong>The beauty of running outdoors</strong></h2><p><strong><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=images&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiK0KHCzaDOAhWGcj4KHdFwAhIQjhwIBQ&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FNeurobiological_effects_of_physical_exercise&amp;bvm=bv.128617741,d.cWw&amp;psig=AFQjCNHHINfDqhbLCLM00ne8Ax-DczZ4hg&amp;ust=1470154240898127">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></strong></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In a fit of inspiration (and stress) one day after work, I found myself lacing up my running shoes and heading out the door in search of a nearby park.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Feeling the sun beating down on my shoulders and the wind in my face as a I propelled myself forward with each step, I felt a sense of exhilaration that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-morning-exercise-can-increase-productivity-2018-11">running on a treadmill</a> had never brought me. Unlike the gym, I had no way to keep track of my pace and no runners to compare myself against. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As I reached the park - my halfway point before returning home - I felt a stitch start to form in my side and the familiar sense of disappointment in my abilities creep back in. But before giving in to the feeling, I made my way to the apex of one of the park's bridges and looked out over the small pond it spanned. The view alone stopped my thoughts in their tracks. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">It still took a while for the lesson from that run to sink in, but I came to realize that running at my own pace - and even stopping! - has no impact on whether I have a successful run. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Instead, I use different metrics: How did it feel to see the world whiz by? How beautiful was the light today? </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Stepping away from expectations I'd placed on myself, and by taking in the outdoors, I've become someone I never thought I'd be: a happy runner. </span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-have-christmas-trees-origin-tradition-origin-2017-12">History of the Christmas tree: Evergreens were sacred to ancient Egyptians. Then people started decorating them.</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

I spent years hating running, until I changed my routine - here's how I learned to love it

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Carlo Allegri/Getty Images</span></p><p class="caption">Supermodels like Gisele Bundchen have been the ideal for beauty for decades.</p></div><p></p></div></div>For decades, leggy supermodels were the ultimate ideal of feminine beauty. </p><p>Designer brands all over the world relied on statuesque characters like Kate Moss, Gisele Bundchen, and Heidi Klum to sell apparel. </p><p>But now, a shift toward "real" beauty is challenging American conventions, and retailers are taking note. </p><p>Consumers are clearly demonstrating that they like seeing people in advertisements who aren't traditional models cast by an agency.</p><p>American Eagle's lingerie brand Aerie has, in particular, been a champion of this idea. The brand has become famous for a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/aerie-ad-photos-are-not-airbrushed-2015-7" target="_blank">Photoshop-free advertising campaign</a> which debuted in<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/aerie-lingerie-ads-without-photoshop-2014-11" target="_blank"> 2014</a>. </p><p>Now, Aerie is taking things a step further. </p><p>In its most recent campaign, Share Your Spark, the company featured numerous women who <em>aren't</em> models. Some models, like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/meet-iskra-lawrence-aerie-role-model-2015-8" target="_blank">Aerie spokes model Iskra Lawrence</a> and popular curvy model Barbie Ferreira are featured, but the campaign also features a bevy of designers, bloggers, and "regular people".</p><p>The idea is that women don't need to be classified as models to be beautiful. </p><p>Consumers are clearly buying into the idea; i<span>n Aerie's most recent quarter, </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/american-eagles-aerie-sales-2016-5" target="_blank">comparable sales soared 32%</a><span>.</span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Aerie</span></p><p class="caption">Aerie's Share Your Spark campaign.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Many other retailers are also capitalizing on a more inclusive version of beauty. </p><p>Even Barbie, the Mattel toy often criticized for its <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/barbie-doll-with-real-womans-measurements-2013-7" target="_blank">unrealistic proportions</a>,  now comes in a more <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/new-barbie-body-types-2016-1" target="_blank">curvy version</a> reminiscent of a "real" woman. </p><p> </p><p>And recently, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/fashion-company-lets-the-internet-choose-models-race-and-body-types-2016-8" target="_blank">Chris Weller of Tech Insider </a>reported that up-and-coming fashion brand Orin announced it would let its customers decide what sorts of models they'd see for two weeks - with variables from race to size and more.</p><p>The company will also crowdsource what sort of products consumers would like to see, what factory workers will get paid during the process, and where the merchandise will be made, too.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Protein World</span></p><p class="caption">This Protein World advertisement got heat from consumers.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>When women are told that they need to look a certain way, they revolt.</p><p>Look no further than <a href="http://www.today.com/style/protein-worlds-are-you-beach-body-ready-ads-spark-backlash-t29671" target="_blank">Protein World's "Are You Beach Body Ready?" campaign</a>. New Yorkers were repelled by the idea that advertisers could think that they wanted to shift the way they looked. The only way their bodies could be prepared to go on a beach would be to simply pack a bag with a towel and a swimsuit. (The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, even had said he wanted to<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/londons-mayor-wants-to-ban-one-popular-type-of-ad-2016-6" target="_blank"> ban these sorts of body-shaming ads</a>.)</p><p>Even Kayla Itsines, the woman behind the viral Instagram workout sensation Bikini Body Guides, told <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-cult-of-kayla/" target="_blank">Bloomberg</a> that she regrets calling her business that exact name. That, she said, is why she named her app Sweat With Kayla. </p><p>"<span>Do I regret calling my guides Bikini Body? My answer is yes," she said to Bloomberg. "<span>That's why when I released the app, I called it Sweat With Kayla. Sweat is so empowering. I love that."</span></span></p><p><span><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Ezra Shaw/Getty</span></p><p class="caption">Simone Biles</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></span></p><p>Further, there's been a shift to prioritize being strong over being skinny. </p><p>US gymnastics Olympian Simone Biles recently gave an interview bringing attention to the trend. The 4'9'' muscular gymnast told <a href="http://nymag.com/thecut/2016/07/simone-biles-gymnastics-rio-olympics.html" target="_blank">The Cut</a> that she used to hide her muscles.</p><p>"<span>I always hid it with a jacket, I was always wearing a jacket," she said to The Cut. "<span>Once I started going to the gym more, I realized that … it wasn't weird. I have these muscles because I do the sport that I do."<br /></span></span></p><p><span><span> "<span>Now people are like 'do you lift? Are you a gymnast? You have a good body,'" she said to the website. "People just appreciate it more."</span></span></span></p><p>Even the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/look-inside-the-life-of-star-ballerina-misty-copeland-2016-2" target="_blank">muscular ballerina and Under Armour spokesmodel Misty Copeland </a>has spoken out about this shift (which is obviously a huge boon to ballerinas, who have long been known for their pin-thin figures - consider Mila Kunis's frail figure in Black Swan, for example). </p><p>"<span>I've struggled with body-image issues and finding a way to fit in and create a new path for the typical body type of a ballerina," Copeland said to The Cut.</span></p><p><span>She also told The Cut:</span></p><p style="padding-left: 30px;" data-editable="text" data-uri="nymag.com/thecut/components/clay-paragraph/instances/cir2cr9bk006cldy6ub6oit3k@published">Over the course of different generations, the ballerina body<a href="http://nymag.com/thecut/swellness/2016/07/kathryn-morgan-tiler-peck-kaitlyn-gilliland-ballerinas-tell-the-truth-about-dancer-wellness.html" target="_blank"> </a>is constantly evolving. In this day and age we do a lot more contemporary and athletic movements that create a more athletic physique. With the conversations that I've opened up, people are more open to expecting the different body types that exist. Also, if you go back to the 1930s and '40s you'll see these ballerinas that had really soft physiques - they didn't have muscles, they weren't six-feet-ten, and had big breasts - but that changed through the '60s and '70s when ballerinas got really thin. Now people are more open to the concept that dancers come in all shapes and<span> </span>sizes.</p><p data-editable="text" data-uri="nymag.com/thecut/components/clay-paragraph/instances/cir2cr9bk006cldy6ub6oit3k@published"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1jTNlOPG6Q&amp;feature=youtu.be">YouTube/Victoria's Secret</a></span></p><p class="caption">Victoria's Secret models show of sports bras.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>And even brands like Victoria's Secret is departing from the typical model ideal. </p><p>The lingerie brand is increasingly marketing its models as athletes, as <span>Megan Garber of </span><a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/12/the-weird-athleticism-of-the-victorias-secret-model/419589/" target="_blank">The Atlantic</a><span> pointed out in December.</span></p><p> </p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/not-airbrushing-models-turned-into-a-movement-2016-6">This lingerie company started a movement by nixing Photoshop  - hear its president say why</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="Q0M3IyNDE6L3WYMRWeoiMtKLMd_EbL6E" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

The 'supermodel' standard is dying as a new mentality takes hold in America

<p class="source"><span>Shutterstock/Dean Drobot</span></p><p>If you want to live a long and healthy life, you should make sure you're getting enough exercise.</p><p>It will keep <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/how-exercise-affects-your-brain-2016-3">your brain healthy</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/running-just-5-minutes-a-day-could-add-years-to-your-life-2014-7">can add years to your life</a>. Researchers have found that many fit older adults have the muscles and bones of people years - <a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/01/older-athletes-have-a-strikingly-young-fitness-age/">even decades</a> - younger.</p><p>And any exercise is good for you, whether you go for a quick swim or jog or even if you are just walking to the store instead of driving.</p><p>If you are doing any or all of that, great.</p><p>But while <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/this-12-minute-workout-plan-will-make-intense-exercise-fun-and-easy-to-do-2015-8">a basic minimum amount of exercise does have huge benefits</a>, there are still potentially even greater benefits from doing more.</p><p>If you really want to stay strong even as you age and your body starts to decline, there are two exercises that are essential, <a href="http://www.drmichaeljoyner.com/">Dr. Michael Joyner</a>, a physician and <a href="http://www.mayo.edu/research/faculty/joyner-michael-j-m-d/bio-00078027">Mayo Clinic researcher</a> who is one of the world's top experts on fitness and human performance, tells Business Insider.</p><p>But these aren't easy: burpees and jumping rope. (He recommends trying a weighted jump rope.)</p><p class="source"><span>Shutterstock/Dragon Images</span></p><h2>Why burpees and jumping rope?</h2><p>No matter what, your body starts to lose strength as you age. Most people <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/science-reveals-when-you-peak-at-everything-2016-7">reach their strength peak around age 25, </a>and some <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/science-reveals-when-you-peak-at-everything-2016-7">research shows</a> marathon runners tend to be fastest at 28, though, of course, this is going to vary from person to person. If you started strength-training after 25 and hadn't before, your peak would come later.</p><p>But if you want to truly stay fit, you're going to need to keep building strength to combat your body's natural loss of muscle mass. It's worth it to do so, and it may be the thing that keeps you young longest. As Joyner <a href="http://www.outsideonline.com/1920191/why-you-need-be-doing-burpees">wrote for Outside Magazine</a>, "study after study is showing that simple tests of physical performance are highly predictive of future mortality." To achieve peak physical performance at any age, you need to go beyond endurance to build strength.</p><p>You can build strength in a lot of ways - lifting weights and adding intervals to endurance workouts both work. But these two workouts will build both your endurance and your strength, all at once.</p><p>"On hard days, I'll sometimes alternate a minute of burpees with sets using a weighted jump rope," Joyner tells us.</p><p>Ouch.</p><h2>How to do these workouts</h2><p>Trainers love to recommend burpees, simply because they're hard to beat in terms of single exercises that will work your whole body. Instagram-famous fitness trainer <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/kayla-itsines-burpees-best-full-body-workout-2017-2">Kayla Itsines recently said</a> a burpee with a push-up would be the exercise she'd choose "if she had to pick one" for a full-body workout; and if you want a real crazy challenge, you could <a href="http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/prison-burpees">try trainer Bobby Maximus' "prison burpee" workout</a> that he uses to challenge Special Forces soldiers.</p><p>But it's worth starting slow with burpees just to make sure you get the form right. If you start standing, you'll then squat down until you can put your hands on the ground. Kick back into plank position, do a push-up, then kick your legs back into your squat position. Then jump.</p><p>Here's a GIF to show you how it works, from <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wS4OsJ4yzx4">this YouTube video by ScottHermanFitness</a>:</p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZQA08SlJnM">This video by XHIT Daily on YouTube</a> is also useful, showing burpees done with a wider stance, which can be more stable for someone not accustomed to the exercise.</p><p>Jumping rope with a weighted rope is a more straightforward exercise, but the challenge is no joke. You can find a <a href="http://www.mensfitness.com/training/workout-routines/10-best-outdoor-workouts-burn-fat-and-build-muscle/slide/6">variety</a> of <a href="http://www.outsideonline.com/2004026/burn-set-crossrope">recommended</a> workouts, but generally (once you get up to speed), you'll want to do a series of sets, perhaps alternating with another exercise. If you're feeling tough, you can try alternating with burpees, like Joyner.</p><p>Just remember this, though: These workouts are going to be hard. It's great to push yourself, and there's plenty of research showing strong benefits for vigorous exercise. But it takes time to build up to these kinds of exercises (and practice to get them right), and you should talk to your doctor first if you're worried you might injure yourself.</p><p>Anyone who wants to attempts these intense workouts also needs to remember to rest. Most trainers recommend alternating between hard days and easy days.</p><p>"Make your hard days hard and your easy days easy," says Joyner. "Control your pace or it will control you."</p><h3>More from Kevin Loria:</h3><ul><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-burpees-and-jumping-rope-are-best-workouts-2017-5" rel="nofollow">The 2 exercises that will keep you fit for life</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/zuul-crurivastator-armored-ankylosaur-dinosaur-ghostbusters-2017-5" rel="nofollow">Scientists discovered a new 'shin-destroying' armored dinosaur - and named it after Zuul from 'Ghostbusters'</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/bullet-ant-sting-hurt-most-painful-schmidt-sting-pain-index-2017-5" rel="nofollow">These are the worst stings in the world, according to a guy who's experienced them all</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/life-expectancy-in-the-us-disparities-map-2017-5" rel="nofollow">Here's where you're most likely to live longest across the US</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/adult-adhd-psychiatry-questionnaire-dsm-5-2017-4" rel="nofollow">Here are the 6 questions that can reveal whether you have adult ADHD</a></li></ul>            <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/brown-eggs-white-cost-health-grocery-chicken-food-breakfast-2016-7">Brown eggs are not healthier than white eggs, but here's why they cost more</a></h3>                                    Please enable Javascript to watch this video

The 2 exercises that will keep you fit for life

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Dasani/">Dasani</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div>A majority of Americans are </span><a href="http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2014/healthy-aspirations-the-disconnect-between-americans-desire-for-a-healthy-lifestyle-and-actual-behavior.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">"actively trying to be healthier.</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">" </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">T</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">hat means that companies are profit from selling "healthy" products - even if those options aren't necessarily good for you. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">There's a complicated relationship between the brands you purchase and how you want others to see you. In recent years, this issue of identity seems to be increasingly tied up with health.  </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sometimes, that's a negative thing. In 2013, </span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/subway-conducts-mcdonalds-survey-2013-5">42% </a>of </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">people said they'd be embarrassed to be spotted carrying a bag of McDonald's. Eating at the fast-food chain indicated a nutrition fail that went against most Americans' supposed active efforts to be healthier. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">On the other hand, publicly signaling that you're a healthy, nutrition-savvy individual is the new cool. Wearing athleisure brands (even when not exercising) signals a dedication to fitness, whether you're a</span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/reebok-wants-to-compete-with-nike-under-armour-and-lululemon-2015-11"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> CrossFitter wearing Reebok</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> or a trendy pilates-goer sporting Lululemon. Instagram allows users to share whatever health trend they're currently following, from the </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sakara-life-victorias-secret-diet-review-2015-12"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sakara Life diet</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to the </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/australian-fitness-instagram-star-kalya-itsines-2015-3"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Kayla Itsines workout</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Getty Images/Matt Cardy</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Now, the soda industry is ready to cash in on Americans' desire to be seen being healthy. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In recent years, the need to be publicly nutritious has hurt companies like Coke and Pepsi, as soda consumption has declined. However, these soda giants are now pursuing an reputation revamp with major investments in bottled water. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Bottled water is the marketing trick of the century," writes </span><a href="http://theweek.com/articles/447517/bottled-water-marketing-trick-century"><span style="font-weight: 400;">John Jewell in The Week</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">You can get water from the tap that is significantly cheaper and often better for you than the bottled variety, Jewell argues. Why is bottled water a $13 billion industry? </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The answer is, in essence, because of what purchasing a bottle water says about the consumer.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/erikcharlton/2720782431/sizes/l/">Erik Charlton/Flickr</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Perrier was the first brand to successfully market bottled water, </span><a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/business-11813975"><span style="font-weight: 400;">reports the BCC</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. A successful advertising campaign managed to popularize bottled water by selling chic "Frenchness."</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Perrier became a badge," Michael Bellas, chairman of the Beverage Marketing Corporation, </span><a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/business-11813975"><span style="font-weight: 400;">told the BBC</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. "When you held a Perrier bottle up, it said something about yourself, it said you were sophisticated, you… understood what was happening in the world."</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Other companies have since followed in Perrier's footsteps. Today, most bottled water signifies not chicness, but health and wellness, a shift furthered by Evian. By selling bottled water as the ultimate workout drink, Evian doubled global sales from 1990 to 2000, going from </span><a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/business-11813975"><span style="font-weight: 400;">50 billion to 100 billion liters a year</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Now, soda giants Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are trying to tap into that healthy image for their own brands, such as Coke's Dasani and Pepsi's Aquafina.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>@smartwater on Instagram</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Both Coke and Pepsi have emphasized that they are diversifying their offerings with lower-calorie and healthier options. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"We've had some substantial investments in R&amp;D that have allowed us to put out more new products," Al Carey, CEO of PepsiCo Americas Beverages, said at Beverage Digest's Future Smarts conference in December. "Not all of it is skewed toward healthy, but very much healthy and very much single serve."</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevendepolo/4626047848/">Flickr/Steven Depolo</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">While water is clearly healthier than soda, the comparison is a case of false equivalence. Bottled water shouldn't be understood as an alternative to soda - it's an alternative to the much more inexpensive and eco-friendly tap water. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"The purchase of bottled water allows us to communicate our uniqueness and the care we have for bodies and the environment," writes Jewell.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">It looks like Pepsi and Coke have been able to find customers who want to communicate exactly that. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In 2014, the volumes of major water brands, including Nestle's Poland Spring, Coca-Cola's Dasani, and PepsiCo's Aquafina, grew</span><a href="http://www.nasdaq.com/article/energy-drinks-bottled-water-on-tap-for-soda-giants-cm558618"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> 7% to 9%.</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> For comparison, Coke and Pepsi's volumes fell close to 3% in the same time period.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Flickr</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Now, the soda giants are trying to expand into Perrier's chic bottled water market. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Pepsi is debuting new sparkling Aquafina flavored waters. The drinks are the "official hydration sponsor of New York Fashion Week," a glitzy title that continues the elevation of the most basic beverage. At the same time, Coca-Cola is rolling out sparkling Smartwater, with actress Jennifer Aniston as </span><a href="http://greatideas.people.com/2016/01/21/jennifer-aniston-infrared-saunas-justin-theroux/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">spokesperson</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">When selling bottled water, companies are actually selling an image of health and self care. So far, it looks like customers are more than happy to pay up. </span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/water-glasses-drink-america-science-study-2015-10">America's obsession with water -&#xa0;and why we're likely drinking more than we need</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="YzMm9ieDoK6l9RyyAU0DvQ-gAn_Hmvux" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

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