Bikini Bodies – Since 2012 the ‘bikini body’ has been a rising obsession with women, thanks to it’s huge media hype. High intensity work out routines such as the popular and sought after ‘Kayla Itsines Bikini Body Guide’ are almost impossible to miss on social media. These bikini body workouts show numerous before and after images to motivate consumers and convince them to give the routines a go, however these results are of an extreme level and also require drastic changes to diet and supplement intake. The rise in bikini body fads has resulted in a mass rise in both Anorexia and Bulimia in New Zealand.
Dieting – Diets have always been viewed as a way to lose weight. Many of the detox and cleanse kits that are advertised on social media contain little depth of research and proof of health benefits, but assorted bold headings that read slogans along the lines of ‘LOOSE WEIGHT FASTER’. Dieting has and always will be engaged with as a way to loose weight, however it is becoming less popular as the ideals around healthy bodies and lifestyles changes.
Rising Health Concern – As technology has developed and improved, so have our abilities to test, diagnose, and cure illnesses. With a better understanding of our bodies, has come an interest in bettering health. Diseases are no longer a death sentence, and most can be fixed by simply changing your lifestyle and/or nutrition to give your body the nutrients it needs. This has created a consciousness within the population of watching and monitoring their health.
Micro Trends
Active Wear – The rise of exercise as a popular trend has also drastically affected the retail market. There is now a much bigger and specific section in retail stores for sports wear. This clothing is not only worn whilst working out, but it has become trendy to wear it in any casual situation.
Smoothie Bowls – The famous Nalu Bowl bar in Bali, Indonesia started a new fad called smoothie bowls; a blend of frozen fruits into a thick shake texture, topped with various super foods such as Chia seeds, Goji berries and Spirulina powder. These promote a healthy and well balanced, nutritional option.
Waist Trainers – Waist trainers are a promotional product used by and made a trend by reality tv celebrities the Kardashian family. The device is a corset that is worn to make the waist appear thinner and to keep the appropriate posture necessary for an ‘affective work out’ - these have been proven to be completely unnecessary for proper exercise by health and nutrition experts.
Skinny Tea – Skinny tea is a detox diet that boosts your metabolism speed. They are sold online with accompanying eating and exercise plans and the promise of weight loss and increased energy levels. However health professionals believe the nutritional advice is misguided, and intense social media marketing promote dangerous eating behaviours.
Paleo – Paleolithic diets are a based off nutrition assumed to be available to Paleolithic humans (cave men / stone age). Paleo diet includes vegetables, fruits, nuts, roots, meat, and excludes foods such as dairy, grains, sugar, processed oils, salt, and alcohol or coffee. The Paleo goal is to avoid any processed and unnatural foods.
Strong Bodies – Motivated by the incredible spike in eating disorders, a new trend of ‘strong’ bodies has risen. It is a movement that promotes healthy athletic bodies rather than skinny ones. This trend is positively fighting eating disorders such as Bulemia and Anorexia and supporting healthy and nutritious lifestyles.
Seed - The apple seed is a woman who has never heard of Body Love NZ and doesn’t understand what they do. She’s nervous and unsure about anything to do with fitness and wellbeing and she doesn’t fully understand the benefits to her.
Transformational Needs - Encourage Me, Inform Me
Blossom - The apple blossom is a woman who has become interested in Body Love NZ through friends or social media. She knows she needs improvement in her mental and/or physical wellbeing but is very unsure about how to go about it. She is intimidated by the group environment and sharing with women she doesn’t know, but knows she needs the support from a group to make real changes.
Transformational Needs - Assist Me, Involve Me
Apple - The apple is a woman who has been a Body Love NZ regular for a while now. She has been attending regular events and loves the support network of women that she has met. She understands all the improvements she needs to make within herself but wants to remain within the Body Love NZ framework with all the friends she has made.
Transformational Needs - Connect Me, Support Me
'The Team' Blurbs
Hi, I’m Georgia. 50% designer, 50% farm girl, 100% daydreamer. I like to stick my hand in lots of different cookie jars so I have skills in a range of areas such as graphic design, web design, illustration, photography, film, writing and many more. Before coming to Massey to study visual communication design I lived on various farms in the deep south (think near Invercargill). Although my first love will always be animals, I decided to study design to challenge myself and grow my creative skills. The best part of university so far has been forming connections and meeting new people.
Hiya, I’m Samantha ☺ I’m a lover of print based design, but am slowly learning to see the potential of digital platforms like web, app, and more. Whilst my first love has always been Visual Communication Design, I am also passionate about marketing and communications. Between work and study there isn’t time for much else, but when I can I really enjoy adult colouring ins, getting to the gym and spending time with my friends/family. The best thing I’ve learnt while studying is to break projects down into task lists, that way I can prioritise them and it all seems much more achievable.
Hey I’m Sydney, I’m a textile designer with a focus in surface print and embroidery. I came to Massey to study fine arts but fell in love with textiles so now I spend my spare time painting and printmaking. I love fashion, reality TV, pets and food. Especially pizza. If I’m not at uni I’ll be working with first years at The Cube or binge watching Jeremy Kyle. Coming to Massey has taught me to take all the opportunities you are offered, ‘cause you’ll never know where you end up or the cool things you might do.
Hey I’m Phoebe aka a pocket rocket and a Visual Communication Design student. I'm a creative with a core focus of fashion and blogging. The fashion and design industry has taught me to always put yourself out there and stand by your work and accomplishments with pride in order to achieve your goals. I currently work for NZ designer Karen Walker and love making the most of my skills and gaining as much experience in both the Fashion and Design industry as possible. “Just for fun” hobbies of mine include film photography, illustration, painting, consuming as much fast food as physically possible and travel.
Hi I'm Rebecca but everyone calls me Bex. I major in photography and aim to become a fashion photographer and editorial stylist when I finish my degree. I've always known that I've wanted to work in the fashion industry but I've now learnt that I want to work for a fashion magazine where I can style and photograph fashion shoots! I like to incorporate both of these into my university assignments by making my photography projects mainly fashion based. I have learnt that collaboration is the best way to create something amazing. I love working together with like-minded people who bring different ideas to the team.
Graph Statements
From 120 responses, on average, women only rate their body confidence at a 6.18/10. Whilst it is pleasing that people lean more towards the confident end of the spectrum, 6.18 was a slightly surprising result, lower than expected.
¾ of our responses placed more importance on being fit over losing weight. This result follows trends; which promote healthy lifestyles and well-being far more these days compared to weight loss, also reinforcing the importance of groups like Body Love NZ.
Responses to this question were shockingly balanced with a 45/35 split from 80 responses, of people feeling nervous going to the gym vs those who weren’t. This reveals that a large portion of respondents feel nervous going to the gym and what would be interesting further to this would be to know why they feel that way.
We can clearly see here that social media; Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat specifically, are really influential promotion platforms with the target market. Emails are another digital format accessed by respondents, with posters also rating relatively highly. These platforms will therefore be key when considering solutions.
75% of women felt that exercising improves their confidence.
2/3 of women were willing to spend money to improve their physical and mental wellbeing.
Respondents said that friends, cheaper gym memberships, seeing results, easily fitting it into their schedules, and a personal trainer would encourage them to work on their wellbeing.
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