I HATE BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS

I'm sure you know which ones I mean...They're plastered all over products, commercials, social media, and on an individual level. They're the photos where they show how someone's body looked before weight loss/weight gain and then the after.

They are effective for some people, but they have always been something I've struggled with.

If I'm focusing on just a personal level and how I perceive the world, they're just easily manipulated. We all know that for the big-budget commercials they definitely most likely ARE faked or photoshopped in some way, but I think this manipulation goes to an even smaller level too.

I know my angles and I take photos when I feel good and when I'm not bloated in the right lighting. The result is good-looking photos regardless of my gains or losses. Despite being well aware I'm doing this, I find myself comparing myself to these optimized photos of myself a few days later when lying in bed not feeling my best. My mental strength at differentiating my own body from a photo taken a few days ago just isn't there. I do struggle with body dysmorphia and this lends itself to these photos causing more harm than good.

Even if I attempt to follow the same lightning and wear the same outfit in all my photos to keep them consistent, whether on a conscious level or not, I will always try to take a more flattering pic than an ugly one. The result? A skewed vision of my improvement. Photos just don't cut it for me in an age of digital enhancement and social media. We are too trained to be in front of the camera for photos to remain unenhanced.

I do think for some people seeing the visual of you slimming down or bulking up will be helpful to keep you motivated and if that's the case for you then definitely keep it going. If you fall more along the lines like me who struggle with dysmorphia and can't perceive oneself then you really need to look to different ways to keep you motivated when on a fitness journey.

I am on a journey to improve these struggles that I have. I don't want to have body dysmorphia and it's a really big struggle to live with. It demands constant reassurance from your peers and a lot of crying in the mirror. I can't offer the support on that yet because I am not a trained therapist and if you also struggle with the same thing then that would be the best place to start. A lot of questioning your thinking is going to be needed to get to the bottom of why we perceive ourselves like this.

One of the ways I try to manage my body dysmorphia is by avoiding comparison pics and the scale. Not all success needs to be measured the same as the typical commercial way that we're used to. So if you're like me and don't use scales nor photos then your best bet is going to be through your endurance and strength. This could be the length of cardio you do in a day or otherwise the strength of the weights you use. I'm trying to do some gradual overload so I'm slowly adding more and more weight or reps to what I'm doing and the result is the knowledge that I am improving.

Another way would be to keep a journal to make notes of how you feel emotionally and physically. You can track it daily, weekly, monthly, or whatever works for your planned goals. Taking notes on if you have more energy or if you're happier is another way to trace your progress.

I know I tried to tackle some hot issues in one little post so I do want to mention that always do what's best for you and seek help from a professional if you need help with some of the issues I've touched upon. Success can be measured in many different ways so don't feel limited by the one that's easiest for companies to market off of. As long as you know that you're doing what's best for you then you should be proud of how far you've come.

You got this!