2016 might seem like the year that different bodies were suddenly accepted into the media – with the likes of Ashley Graham fronting for Sports Illustrated, but it takes a big slap, like the one from Fit4Less ad campaign this week that reminds us that there is still a long way to go!
This advert appeared on a billboard for a gym, suggesting (rightly or wrongly that Fat people would be taken first when Aliens arrive so we should save ourselves now lose weight to avoid abduction).
Aside from being a poorly thought through ad – as many people have suggested it would make more logical space sense to take smaller people first – it shows that even this gym hasn’t quite worked out that fitness should be something for all bodies not one physicality.
In an age where there are new and great plus size activewear collections and we are beginning to change the conversation from body size to activity level and being healthy at all sizes, it is a shame that it is down to a gym like Fit4Less to wreck the conversation with this childish ad.
We need to encourage everyone to be as active as possible and instead of encouraging everyone to work out this could very much swing people the other way.