As someone who grew up in the 1980s and 1990s, I have to admit that I am still fairly ignorant to the usage of social media as a tool for business marketing. Even though I try my absolute best to stay up to date with all the latest apps and technology that is now at our disposal, I find myself overwhelmed at times to remain consistent and relevant with our content that we provide through our social media platforms. As a personal trainer who works within the fitness industry, I can understand the importance of social media, especially when it comes to attracting a younger demographic base. As a business owner I can understand the marketing power that social media can bring to a business if done correctly. And as a company that promotes health and fitness by offering our services, I can understand the importance of portraying a positive and motivational image that will hopefully inspire others to become more active and fit.

Unfortunately, even though many of my counterparts within this industry may share my same beliefs when it comes to using social media as a marketing tool to promote themselves and their businesses, they most certainly do not share my same core values when it comes to respecting oneself and the image that one portrays. When it comes to diet and training posts, it seems that the majority of my fellow fitness professionals have lost their way (and in some cases their shirts and bottoms). Rather than post an instructional video explaining how to do a complex exercise or offering a piece of advice on practicing proper nutrition, they seem as if they would much rather prefer to “motivate” and “inspire” others by taking a shirtless photo showcasing their ripped abs or a bent-over selfie, promoting their fantastic ass in the washroom mirror for the world to see.

Now call me conservative and call me old fashioned but I just call it degrading oneself for self-validation. I may not be the hippest (yes I said hippest) fitness professional on the market today, but I’ve been working in this industry long enough to know the difference between someone who really cares about promoting health and fitness and someone who is just a narcissist looking for “likes” and followers. Make no mistake, I’m proud of my body. In fact, I actually like what I see in the mirror when I see myself naked. Do I have flaws? Ofcourse I do. But those very flaws are one of the things that motivate me to train hard and eat clean. By no means are they my main source of motivation, but we have to accept that even though there is no such thing as perfection, there’s nothing wrong with chasing it.

I don’t see anything wrong with showcasing one’s physique every so often with a tasteful photo, especially when you’re a trainer who uses their body as part of their own marketing image. But if all you have to offer your clients are daily photos of your physique with no concrete health information or informative workout tips, that story is going to get very old very fast.

Do I think I’m great? You bet I do! Do I think I’m better than someone who eats poorly or doesn’t exercise regularly? Absolutely not! We all have our own strengths and weaknesses. I admire many people who have never even stepped foot in a gym or lifted a weight. I’ve been able to find lots of common ground with people who don’t have the best diets and eat the majority of their meals out of a takeout container. If someone contacts me for personal or small group training services, I don’t rely on my body to speak for my work, I rely on my brain and experience to provide this person with assurance and confidence that they are working with the best.

Forever Fit is a common business name for a fitness company. However I chose it because I believe in the concept. I don’t believe in “beach bodies” or “getting shredded” and I don’t promote cleanses and I don’t design restricted diets. Having a short term goal to get into the best physical shape is important but maintaining a long term goal of being fit and healthy for life, in my opinion, is imperative.

Yours in Good Health,

Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit