{"id":50,"date":"2017-01-01T19:12:34","date_gmt":"2017-01-01T19:12:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.blog.buprojects.uk\/2016-2017\/sachagardener\/?p=50"},"modified":"2017-01-22T21:14:11","modified_gmt":"2017-01-22T21:14:11","slug":"instagram-generation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blog.buprojects.uk\/2016-2017\/sachagardener\/2017\/01\/01\/instagram-generation\/","title":{"rendered":"An Instagram Generation: Bodybuilding and @BigNattyDaddy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Happy New Year Everyone!<\/strong><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s officially January 2017 which means one thing only\u2026 New Year\u2019s resolutions. As each year reveals one\u2019s own personal aims and goals, without a doubt, the most popular resolution of all-time will always be commitments regarding fitness.<\/p>\n

As of May 16, 2016, it had been estimated that there were around 9.2 million gym members in the United Kingdom alone, approximately 1 in every 7 – a high rate which is constantly on the rise (LeisureDB, 2016). So, what could be the cause of this increase in gym membership?<\/p>\n

Social media has become more and more ubiquitous in people\u2019s everyday lives,\u00a0fostering a\u00a0new form of communication and interaction\u00a0through media platforms. With the global accessibility to the Internet, social media allows us to view and connect with people from all over the world. The line chart below, analysed by TrackMaven, revealed which social media platform achieves the highest social engagement and interaction, with no surprise, Instagram highly dominates. (Smart Insights, 2o16)<\/p>\n

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Social media hugely plays an important role in shaping attitudes towards the fitness industry, as it gives the freedom for individuals to publicly express themselves and influence others. It is difficult to scroll through your Instagram timeline without coming across a posted photo or video in relation to \u201chealthy\u201d lifestyles and workout regimes. The fitness industry has become a socio-cultural phenomenon, even the bodybuilding community is becoming mainstream and attracting new followers every day \u2013 once being a very niche sport.<\/p>\n

Instagram can have negative effects on our self-esteem.<\/h3>\n

Influential Instagrammers, who are driving the bodybuilding community, include the likes of Simeon Panda<\/a>, with over 2.7 million followers, Bradley Martyn<\/a>, with 2 million followers, and Phil Heath<\/a>, with 1.9 million. All who share many similarities such as posting photos of themselves working out in the gym, presenting the supplements they apparently take, and, of course, posing and showing off their muscular physiques. What\u2019s more, these men have most definitely sculpted the modern epitome of the male body and what is means to be \u201cmasculine\u201d.<\/p>\n

Scrolling through Instagram, flooded with perfect depictions of the male body, it is unsurprising that it can have negative effects on men such as depression, lowered self-esteem and even cause self-harm including steroid abuse.<\/p>\n

The infamous 15-year-old, known as BigNattyDaddy, openly used anabolic steroids illegally, in attempt to reach the idealistic male body that is exploited all over social and digital media. He became a viral topic on the Internet when he started posting his bodybuilding journey on his own Instagram page.<\/p>\n

In this 7 minute BBC Three documentary below, attracting over 700,000 views just on YouTube, we get an insight into BigNattyDaddy\u2019s world of bodybuilding and his perspective on taking performance-enhancing drugs.<\/p>\n