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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Protein World "beach body" adverts

447 replies

RunkyJam · 22/04/2015 16:24

Anyone else raging about these?

I've complained to the ASA and just signed a petition taking off over at change.org

www.change.org/p/proteinworld-arjun-seth-remove-are-you-beach-body-ready-advertisements

Absolutely BONKERS this was approved IMO.

OP posts:
TondelayoSchwarzkopf · 26/04/2015 22:28

The man's one doesn't say "Are you beach body ready?"

I wonder why not.

HoVis2001 · 27/04/2015 09:29

CrispyFern

Yes, there is the concept of a "beach body" - which is exclusionary and highly to the benefit of businesses that profit from women feeling bad about their bodies. It doesn't make sense to imply (as this advert does) you are only "beach body ready" if you look like this woman, having taken weight loss supplements.

To those above talking about how "healthy" the model is. I would argue that there is absolutely nothing healthy about using supplements with exercise to persuade your body to do anything other than what it naturally wants to do. I was thinking about this when I was working out this morning. When I'm in training, yes, I lose fat, but I also bulk up A LOT. My thighs and calves gain muscle very quickly due to the type of sport I do and I also get bigger biceps. My stomach muscles do become more defined but it definitely doesn't result in my ribs starting to show as with the model in the advert. I suppose I could use my exercise regime as a way to get "beach body" ready (slim and sleek, apparently), but I don't particularly see the point of discouraging my body from doing what it does naturally, i.e. building muscle in the places it bloody well wants to build it in response to the type of exercises I am doing.

The problem with this advert is not that it depicts a "healthy" woman and that all us people complaining are sad and fat and jealous. The problem is that it implies there is only one way to be a healthy and beautiful woman.

"Are you beach body ready?" Do you have a body, do you live remotely near a beach? Then yes, you are.

Hovis2001 · 27/04/2015 09:37

As a caveat to the above - there may also be women who do the exact same exercises I do and do not gain muscle in the same way - and that is also fine! I see people of all shapes and sizes doing the sport I do and I think anyone observing a competition would be hard pressed to say that strength or fitness are predicated on a specific body shape.

RunkyJam · 27/04/2015 10:37

This "Diet" encourages starvation. It's really dangerous. The pressure these adverts put on young women is immense - look like this else you are "not beach body ready" and don't think about bringing any other shape or size to the beach ladies.

They clearly hate women - the protein world twitter feed over the weekend is the most horrific thing I've ever seen from a brand. Their CEO is clearly a woman hating misogynist and quite moronic to allow his brand to share that message.

I really hope the ASA take some bloody action soon.

OP posts:
BeyondDoesBootcamp · 27/04/2015 10:50

As i've said elsewhere, what isnt being picked up on is that as well as massively misogenist, these posters are ableist.
I'm in a wheelchair. There is no diet in the world that alone would make me look like that (hell, its hard enough to just lose weight). So, oo, maybe add in a bit of false advertising too? Wink

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 10:53

What they've done on Twitter is deeply stupid. Defending their brand and business is one thing; retweeting misogynistic comments from neanderthals is quite another.

meglet · 27/04/2015 10:57

Their twitter feed was a spectacular own goal.

Notice they've not tweeted for 3 days now. Hopefully someone has finally seen sense at PW and stopped trying to offend potential customers.

CrispyFern · 27/04/2015 11:06

But every woman who is dieting and exercising to get a so-called beach body, they do probably want one just like that woman.
The product is trying to sell the idea that you can have that body if you drink their shakes.
If they advertised it with a picture of ordinary women in bikinis, nobody would buy it, there would be nothing to aim for. So using that picture is right for them, it makes sense.

The idea that only women who look like that are considered attractive might be something you disagree with, but the company wants to sell product, not change society's ideas about attractiveness.
The idea that using shakes can make you healthy or thin might be something you disagree with, but that's your business, you aren't their market in that case, they want to sell to (perhaps) more gullible and insecure adults, and it's their right to do so.

Like mamapants, I don't understand what the problem is that people would complain about. A bikini company might use a picture of a bigger woman in a bikini in their advert, or a sun tan lotion company, but a company selling diet products is obviously going to sell them using someone slim.

A company doesn't have to have morals. You can't complain because they don't create adverts that tie in with your personal world view and try to make the world a better place. Well you can, but you won't get anywhere, because it's IMO nonsense to do so.

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 11:18

"The product is trying to sell the idea that you can have that body if you drink their shakes."

Which in itself is grossly misleading. You can only have that body if you're about 5'10, probably under 21, naturally extremely slender, and have been photoshopped to fuck. What percentage of women does that apply to?

CrispyFern · 27/04/2015 11:24

That's why they don't guarantee it. That would be a lie.
They imply it. Which is allowed.

MrNoseybonk · 27/04/2015 11:26

Not sure why Protein World are getting special treatment about this.
As one of their tweets illustrates:
twitter.com/ProteinWorld/status/592297682980450304

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 11:32

It might be "allowed" but it shouldn't be. It's discriminatory, offensive, misleading, triggering to some... I could go on. The ASA is there to make sure that advertising is representative of most people's views, and appropriate to the society we live in. 20 years ago that ad would have barely raised an eyebrow, but thankfully we've come some way since then.

I'm fit, I have a BMI on the low side of healthy, I eat a high protein diet without resorting to supplements, and I don't look like that - or indeed aspire to. It's unhealthy and unrealistic.

Oh, and I'd also lay money on that model having had breast enhancement surgery. Very few women as slim as that with that small a frame have breasts that look like that naturally.

CrispyFern · 27/04/2015 11:39

Triggering?

Like clapping hands is triggering I imagine.

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 11:45

So you're saying the women on this thread who've suffered eating disorders and have said how that ad makes them feel are... what? Making it up? Not entitled to feel as they do?

I can take it as the nonsense it is now, but when I was in my 20s I tortured myself over images like that.

BeyondDoesBootcamp · 27/04/2015 11:48

Crispy, slim and muscular are different things. They can pretend a diet will make you slim (ignoring that most diets actually make you fatter) but no diet will increase muscle mass without exercise.

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 11:53

Also, I'd dispute that that model looks "fit" and "healthy". She doesn't look very muscular at all - professional athletes and dancers don't look like that. She's just very thin. And tall. And photoshopped. And probably surgically enhanced as well.

CrispyFern · 27/04/2015 11:54

I fear the use of the word triggering is becoming so diffuse it's losing any value. But maybe now isn't the time for that argument. Sorry if that was rude!

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 11:56

I don't disagree, actually, but I can see that it's a useful catch-all for a wide range of horrible feelings.

Mengog · 27/04/2015 11:58

The girl is Renee Somerfield. Looking at her Instagram and Twitter I don't think the picture is photoshopped. She actually looks a bit bigger on the poster.

I will defend Protein World a bit. They have a lot of models promoting their products on instagram, most if not all are fitness models. They promote healthy eating and exercise, including weight training for women, the benefits of which are overlooked time and again.

However, I think their response to this has been misjudged, as they generally have a good message. Which has slightly put me off the product.

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 12:02

I have to do some work now, but just to lighten the mood a little....

Protein World "beach body" adverts
justonemoretime2p · 27/04/2015 12:12

I hope the model doesn't see this thread, some of the things being said about her are ridiculously negative about how she looks.

shaska · 27/04/2015 12:14

Well, they lost any chance at claiming it was about 'health' or that they were in any way decent with the spectacular and actually almost hilarious twitter fiasco. Truly amazing, I genuinely wouldn't have thought that level of disaster was possible in this day and age.

But, to those claiming that it's just about health, it's 'just how things are' etc etc, let's take it back to the basics of what the ad says.

Which is 'women on the beach should be thin'.

Is anyone prepared to argue that that statement is in fact true? Because if not, I don't really see how there's any way to make this ad ok.

OttiliaVonBCup · 27/04/2015 12:15

No one has been negative about the way the model looks.

She looks to have a pretty perfect body.
It's the product and the marketing campaign.

Amethyst24 · 27/04/2015 12:17

justone if you're referring to my posts, I don't agree at all. In most of the photos on her Instagram etc, she looks great, for the body type she has. I would actually argue, though, that the photo used in that ad isn't very flattering - the black and white, the extreme shadows on her cheekbones, the visible ribcage etc just say "thin". Not fit or healthy or any of the other things she (presumably) is.

mamapants · 27/04/2015 12:19

Actually people have been quite spiteful about her body. Not a figure I would want, clearly photoshopped, surgically enhanced, unhealthy, unrealistic, too skinny, not healthy and so on.