Nearly half of Brits exaggerate how healthy they are on social media, according to a new study by wow, Europe’s first chia seed drink.
The key motivation for over egging how healthy we are emerged as peer pressure from friends, however a quarter of Brits admit they are trying to keep up with celebrities like Lucy Mecklenburg, Millie Macintosh and Mark Wright – by posting fitness pictures.
And the survey revealed the generation of ‘fit-ocrites’ are prone to embellishing their healthy lifestyle or in some cases, completely fabricating it.
Despite regularly posting pictures of healthy dinner plates, one in five claim that their diet is nowhere near as healthy as they portray on social media.
And within 47 minutes of posting a picture online of a ‘superfood’ many of us admit to gorging on junk food, the poll by wow found.
In fact, 14 per cent of the 1,500 adults polled have even updated their followers and friends about a gym visit that never actually happened, and one in ten have uploaded a picture to Facebook or Instagram dressed head to toe in the latest gym gear – only to get changed seconds later.
Of those who do make it for a work-out, nearly one in five said they always breathe in when taking a gym selfie and a cunning 10 per cent always apply a flattering filter to the snap.
Pouting the lips (7 per cent), applying a full face of make-up (9 per cent) and fake tanning (5 per cent) were also common tricks when pulling off the perfect fitness photo.
Flexing muscles (10 per cent) and puffing the chest out (8 per cent) are also the done thing according to the results. Some of those polled even resorted to spritzing themselves with water (3 per cent) in order to replicate perspiration.
Despite Brits regularly posting shots of superfood juices, two thirds said they would have no idea what a goji berry looks like and 45 per cent admitted that they couldn’t identify quinoa, with two thirds unable to identify chia seeds.
A third of adults said they tend to post more about diet and health than any other topic on social media, with a blasé 12 per cent posting misleading pictures ‘all the time’. While one in ten have told colleagues they jogged or cycled to work when in fact they caught the bus or train, and the same number go on big, boozy nights out but tell their followers they are staying in and being ‘healthy’.
Most popular ‘healthy’ posts
Impressive scenery when out for a run/cycle
New trainers
A superfood salad
A smoothie/juice
Gym gear
Bike/other sports equipment
Protein drink
A screenshot of the steps you have walked
A shot of a running app
Your sweaty face/body
A picture of the gym you attend
A shot displaying the calories you have burned
A shot of you lifting weights or stretching
Your tummy/abs
Biceps
About wow
wow’s mission is to give people a taste of what it is to feel amazing through making amazing products, inspiring people to pursue this feeling of amazement in the everyday. The juice drink with chia seeds has been uniquely created using the best natural ingredients – fruit, vegetable and chia seeds – which are carefully sourced to ensure the high quality results. Founded by two friends, Oliver Dickinson and Rory Paterson, wow has been born out of a genuine desire to inspire and make people feel amazing. Find out more at www.wowchia.com.
Top image: Viacheslav Iakobchuk/123rf.com