Fitness

Oof that's hard. I was eating disordered as a teen (restrictive, anxious, not endlessly losing weight but stayed under 100lb and I am 5'9") before social media, my kids seem less hung up about it, there is more diversity in women's beauty images and so much obvious fakery I think they see these more like art and not aspiration.

My husband watches workout stuff though and he says any guy with unusual gains is on steroids.

I do think plenty of the men's images are doctored too.

Healthy living is healthy, that's not in question. Obsessive healthy living is not healthy, when it's causing you anxiety. I have been there even as an adult, was doing the intermittent fasting and when I went to eat felt that dragging fear, instantly recognizable from my youth, did not want to eat. I can think my way around it now, but WTF? If you feel that way about occasional sugar or beer or whatever, that is not a healthy impulse, it's a bad sign.

Almost anything can be taken too far. What's clear to me here is that this issue is stemming from image and desired outcomes. Eating protein isn't necessarily bad for you, drinking lots of water isn't going to hurt you, getting exercise and building muscle is good for you. It's when you take these things too far that they become a problem. Social media has convinced a lot of people that they're not enough. Most people don't realize that they are a solid 3-5 points higher on the hotness scale than they think and even us guys aren't immune to image issues. If it feels good to exercise, if it improves your sleep, if it gives you energy, if it helps your digestion, do it! But don't do it just because insta tells you no one will ever love you if you're not ripped. That one is mostly your personality and there's no supplements for that, you just have to work hard to continuously become a better person. Also, if someone doesn't like you or even puts you down, there's a good chance it's just incompatability, which is okay, or maybe they're a piece of shit human, which also isn't your problem.

You are fine just the way you are, and I hope that you continue to get better in a safe and sane way.

The primary issues seem to stem from a) celebrities who are using steroids to achieve their on-screen physiques, and then lying via outlets like Men's Health about their "chicken, rice, and broccoli" diets, and b) social media "influencers" who are also using steroids.

In other words, young men are being inundated with lies from all angles, and then feel a natural sense of failure when their own efforts don't yield anything close to the same results. Because natural lifters will never look like an actor on steroids, regardless of how much chicken and broccoli they eat.

Man, I veg out and eat junk food, society makes me out to be a slob, now I want to eat right, hydrate and work out, now they’re trying to make that sound negative, tf should I do?

If you want a reality check then go to your local beach or swimming pool.