LIFESTYLE | Reinventing Social Media
In a world where social media = the epitome of ‘fake happy’ and the playground of ‘FOMO’, now is the time for truth and honesty and prevail.
If you’ve read the ‘About Me’ section of this site, you will have noticed I was not always as healthy as I am today. I was ashamed and embarrassed by my adult acne, and quite a bit chubbier than I am now – and at the time, I didn’t know it.
Following my exit from an unhealthy lifestyle of fast food and inefficient exercise, I began blogging, and posting my progress to social media.
Now, social media gets a bad wrap. And I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve seen the ugly side of social media more times that I care to remember. However, today I use it to my advantage, because I believe change will come if we action it.
Like anyone who manages their social network with caution, I was lucky to feel I could share my experiences honestly and openly with a trusted network of friends, colleagues and close acquaintances. I didn’t have to worry about what “that friend” would think, or if “that guy” would be turned off if I posted an unflattering photo. I could be, was, and continue to be MYSELF on social media. So sharing my fitness and nutrition progress with this network meant massive support and encouragement, which inevitably kept me going strong for the years to come.
Beyond the words of encouragement, congratulations, and compliments, I started to notice a trend: people were inspired by my blatant honesty.
One thing you should know about me: I’m not one to shy away from the truth. I’d rather face issues head on, and strategise to reach a sensible and passive conclusion. I never ignore a problem and hope it goes away, or worse - follow like a sheep.
In 2015, I posted a blog about inner-happiness and self-acceptance, accompanied by a makeup-less selfie, with my wet hair in a turban. It was daggy, unplanned, and best of all, showed me at my absolute happiest-to-date. I’d had enough of social media and its taunting effects, especially when it came to beauty – or “what is beautiful”. It was time to reinvent the (digital) culture.
Soon, four of my girlfriends and I found ourselves checking in with one another’s health and fitness progress via Snapchat. Yes, Snapchat: the SM platform teens were notorious for using for unsavoury reasons. But hey, there was nothing stopping us from using it to our advantage!
We chronicled our bad acne photos bi-weekly, sharing photos of our minor and major skin improvements, and likewise, passing on selfies with the cleansing products we used that actually worked (scientifically proven, not necessarily expensive, highly marketed lines) and newly learned beauty tips – just because it was fun and boosted our confidence that little bit.
(1) Sporting a honey and green tea face mask. Very soothing, but clearly very messy! (2) Sports days are much more fun as a teacher.
Snapchat was also a great way for us girls to share funny workout photos, sympathise with each others’ ‘leg day’ discomfort, celebrate in completing those difficult physical challenges, and of course, sharing pics of those delicious post-workout snacks – pronto.
Snapchat felt like the secure way for us to share in the same health journey from opposite sides of the country, and sometimes the world, as if we were side-by-side at the gym.
Today I continue to share my health journey on social media under the Bluebell Healthstyle name, where I remain truthful in my posts and feel lucky that I get to share the health tips and tricks I’ve learned and practised over the years with a whole new audience.
