The Before and After Myth

As I've done many times in the past, I happened to come across one of those cheesy "before and after" pics that are so common in the fitness industry today. You know the ones I'm talking about.....some sad, overweight guy suddenly transforms into a ripped beast in just 6 mois. And all you need to do to make the same improvements is buy product A so you can make the same changes.

So today I've been thinking about a lot of the tricks that people use when taking (creating) these pictures. The first trick is the positioning and lighting used in the actual photographs. Here the transformed person is simply put into better lighting and positioned in the best possible way to show off their muscles (they're probably flexing too). You can spot this trick by the before picture when the person is just standing there in dark lighting.

Another trick used is the old unshaven, unhappy look. This hits on the psychological aspects because the person is frowning and unkept so they will look so much happier in the after picture. It's like the product changed their whole outlook on life!

One last thing is the most obvious aspect of all these before and after shots: the stance. In the before picture, the person is usually slouched in a way that makes them look as unfit as possible. Bien sûr, the after pic always sports a tall-standing, flexed position to really bring out the muscles.

Now I'm not saying that you won't get legitimate results through a product advertising with before and after pictures, but don't expect to look like the change you see in the photo. No incredible transformation happens overnight so use discretion when choosing these products.

Auteur: George Spellwin