2022 was a fascinating year for online fitness. As the internet continues to evolve, so too does the way in which fitness is presented online. Reflecting on some of the major developments of this year, there were two core events that can teach us a lot about where we might be going in 2023...

1. The Liver King Phenomenon

Brian Johnson, The Liver King, rose from nowhere to become the caricature of modern fitness culture. He amassed almost 2 million followers on Instagram in a matter of months, and the way in which he did this should be instructive as to (1) how fitness marketing works, and (2) how we can avoid falling for such novelty. 

What Liver King did was create a character, and this character deviated from the norm enough to create shock and awe upon discovering his content, while also identifying very real problems that generated interest. From a marketing perspective, this is very clever. He mastered the attention economy, and even though his solutions are questionable, to say the least, he still used the attention generated to cause the consumer to consider "hmmm, maybe this guy is onto something?". 

He also did something that I see becoming more and more of a threat in the online information space: Bullshit Nesting. This is just what I call this phenomenon, and there may be a better name, but what I am talking about is the concept of mixing a few pieces of BS in with a list of otherwise reasonable advice. This is a trick that enables one to avail of the Motte and Bailey Fallacy. It goes like this:

Hey guys, Gary here, just want to give you guys 5 key tips to live your best life:

1. Exercise daily
2. Sleep well
3. Eat raw organ meats
4. Avoid processed foods
5. Stop drinking

Number 3 is nested within an otherwise reasonable and non-controversial list, and it's this claim (the Bailey) that generates the attention. Then, once the person making this claim is challenged, he will retreat to the Motte and say "so you're attacking me for telling people to eat better, exercise, and sleep more?!". What you'll then observe is that, over time, the individuals challenged for such radical claims will gradually soften these positions and maintain their large following, while now presenting a more reasonable image and pretending they never held such radical positions. It's genius marketing, but you need to watch out for it, as this happens time and time again with fitness trends. 

Overall, I view Liver King as a phenomenon that should be instructive. This is a lot more than just one guy getting popular by spewing nonsense. He simultaneously identified multiple issues, including; 

(1) modern environmental causes of ill health, 

(2) widespread poor diet quality, 

(3) rising rates of depression and anxiety, 

(4) a crisis of meaning and questioning of what it means to be a man among young men, and 

(5) the hidden benefits of voluntary hardship. 

They are all legitimate problems, and by creating a caricature to sell solutions to these problems, Liver King became the most dominant online fitness persona of 2022. 

There will be more Liver Kings, which is why I want you to learn from this and pay attention as to how these strategies are employed. 

2. TikTokification

TikTok became incredibly popular among fitness professionals and gymgoers this year. This was really the year where a lot of people, including me, ditched their "TikTok is stupid" mindset and decided to dip their toes in. What followed was not just the popularity of TikTok, but also Instagram Reels, Facebook Reels, and YouTube Shorts. Suddenly, it seems like the flux of information and content is speeding up once again, necessitating shorter, snappier content with viral potential. 

While many of us in the online fitness space have loyal followers to whom we can still share longer form content, it is worth questioning how this tiktokification might continue to impact our industry. It is already clear that the influencers and content creators that are most successful are those who embody traits similar to those of Liver King. Two that I would like to focus in on for a moment are (1) Controversy and (2) Aesthetics. 

If one is controversial, that wins in today's information economy. Of course, you could opt for humour to grab attention instead, but controversy is a low hanging fruit. This can come in the form of having a "hot take", directly challenging someone else's content, or simply presenting your information as if it stands in stark contrast to that of everyone else. This isn't a bad a thing necessarily, but what can emerge from this is the creation and reinforcement of pathological tribes online. 

You see, if I behave controversially online, let's say 30% of my following love this and share my controversial posts. What this does is give them a voice without having to be directly controversial, and then builds an in-group "us vs them" mentality. This is rewarding for me, as I get more followers that agree with me, and I am incentivised to continue posting content of that same nature. Eventually, as my followers become more homogenous, I don't want to share anything with which they disagree, and this is how one becomes entrenched in ideology, unable to change one's mind. I am sure you can think of examples of where this has occurred. 

The aesthetic appeal of one's content has always been important in the online fitness space, but this has changed quite a bit recently. Previously, on Instagram, a selfie of a great physique was the primary means of dominating from an aesthetics perspective. However, there seems to be more and more aesthetic avenues available, from the quality of your speech, to your videography, to your ability to create slick infographics, and even just your basic creativity when it comes to video ideas. This is actually a win in many ways, as one can now gain traction on Instagram in many different ways, rather than simply having a good physique. 

The downside here is, of course, that the presentation of content can sometimes become more important than the content itself. This is something we are working on, and will continue to work on. We know that we can produce high quality educational content, but there are many others online who have much less knowledge doing far better due to their presentation. For fitness professionals, us included, it's therefore incredibly important to consider presentation along with the quality of the information. 

In summary, the online fitness world continues to change. I am sure there will be further developments that will shock our industry in 2023, but one thing that remains important is to work with what we have, not with what we wish we had. It's easy to sit around and complain about people like Liver King and others, but if we want to spread evidence-based information, we need to ask ourselves how we might learn from these phenomena, rather than simply shouting at the clouds.