Before / After Pic Shenanigans

Like most gyms, the gym I go to has a bank of TVs in front of the treadmill / elliptical / spinning machines. A few of these are dedicated solely to promoting the gym, with motivational sayings, promotions, staff profiles, and before/after photos. Every time a before/after display came up I noticed the following:

1) The before pic was in bad lighting, the subject with unflattering clothes, bad posture, stomach pushed out, disheveled hair, and a glum facial expression.

2) The after pic was in nice lighting, the subject with well-fitting clothes, back and shoulders straight, stomach sucked in, a new hairdo, tanned, and with a big smile.

3) The after pic was zoomed in slightly closer than the before, making the after image appear significantly taller.

Points 1-2 have always been a part of the b/a methodology. Make the before pic look as much like a train wreck as possible, then beautify the after person in as many ways as possible to accentuate their fitness, thereby demonstrating your value as a personal trainer.

Item 3 I have more of a problem with, as it is blatantly deceptive; are you promising not only to help your clients get fitter, but to also actually somehow assist them in growing taller? Is airbrushing also fair game? I suspect that it is probably happening as well.

Any personal trainer that uses trickery to get clients is risking coming across as shady and disingenuous, and I don’t think they are fooling anyone…