Studies show Brits are returning to weight loss fixation

Despite the rise in body positivity, 2024 appears to be the year Brits have returned to an era of weight loss fixation. Searches for ‘weight loss exercises’ have skyrocketed, up by 552% in the last year, with ‘quick weight loss’ searches even higher at 581% year-on-year.

This pervasive weight loss messaging is also echoed through a rise in videos on social media and traditional media outlets, with content about ‘fat-burning’ and ‘quick weight-loss’ methods up by 296% a year.

To date, there are over eight million posts relating to weight-loss workouts on TikTok in 2024. Meanwhile, conversations about exercise for mental health remain significantly less frequent. The number of videos focused on ‘exercise + weight losses’ has increased by 204% this year, 33% more than videos focusing on exercise and mental health.

New research from ASICS shows that 42% of UK adults say ‘quick weight loss’ content makes them feel insecure and negatively impacts their mental health. Nearly two-thirds (59%) of people believe that celebrity weight loss content is the worst thing on social media for people’s mental health (59%).

In response, ASICS is highlighting a different kind of weight loss. ASICS has partnered with fitness and body positivity influencers, including Em Clarkson, to disrupt social media with an alternative weight loss message.

To counter the prevalence of physical weight loss content, ASICS’ alternative message will now appear when people search for online weight loss information. This message will disrupt their search and guide them toward content reinforcing the mental health benefits of exercise.

The ‘15 Minute Weight Loss’ campaign features a series of videos that appear to be yet more “instant result” weight loss exercise videos, before revealing that just 15 minutes of exercise can take the weight off our minds. ASICS research, conducted with Professor Brendon Stubbs from King’s College London, shows that just 15 minutes and nine seconds of physical activity is enough to start to experience the positive mental benefits.

Gary Raucher, EVP, of ASICS EMEA, said: “The increasing focus on exercise purely as a tool for weight loss is worrying. Research shows that society’s obsession with exercising for the “perfect” body is adding pressure and putting people off exercise. Today’s campaign is a crucial reminder for people to move for their minds, and not just for how it changes their bodies.”

Professor Brendon Stubbs, a leading researcher in exercise and mental health from King’s College London, said: “By becoming too focused on the short-term and often narrow possibility of losing weight, we are neglecting the profound and multifaceted benefits movement can have on our minds.”

Psychologist Dr Tara Quinn-Cirillo added: "Evidence suggests that quick-fix weight loss, through diet and exercise fads, often leads to only short-term gains and negative long-term consequences. The desire to lose weight quickly, perpetuated by societal norms and pervasive digital weight-loss content, can be damaging to self-esteem and self-worth.”

To find out more about ASICS’ alternative weight loss message, please visit: www.asics.com/gb/en-gb/mk/15minuteweightloss