We keep coming back to a comment we left on post last week. Something like 'Less performative fitness and more fitness that supports joy'.

For a brand that sells a 'health product' this may seem counter intuitive. Shouldn't we be pushing you towards peak performance? Telling you that if you fuel right and train well you can close in on the 2 hour marathon? We're hawking dreams, right?

Not quite. What we're actually selling is simpler: reduce the complexity, do the basics right, and you'll get further than any promise of immortality in a gummy. 

That's the whole reason  we built TOTEMIC. People are confused by the supplement space. Most don't want a cupboard full of tubs, jars and pouches, plus a Wikipedia nutrition page to make sense of them. So we made it simple. Choose based on your goals, not your knowledge of chemical compounds. One sachet, delivered regularly.

The same complexity fatigue is beginning to play out in the whole wellness area more generally. One clip framed it as a change from "Health Optimism" (let's get out and run) to "Health Overwhelm" (I can't come to the party, it'll affect my sleep score). It feels like this is about to become the new anxiety. If it hasn't already.

We keep it brief here, we're not going to drive this into a huge essay when there's already some good sources we've found.

Before the links we'll just add the best summation of this that we came across. Oddly, in a marketing podcast by the guys over at Sweat Equity. They were interviewing Brian Mazza who runs what you might call an experiential fitness group. The line that really crystalised this for us was when he said:
"People have to stop training for the craziest stuff. Just to be seen.'
"Be Authentic. Be yourself. [ ] you should be OK.
[People need to start thinking, like] I'm training to be a really healthy, fit dad"

What's great about that insight is that it gets at the fact that it's the intersection of social media algorithms, creator culture, health and wellness monetization that's driving this anxiety.

As one of the links points out. Health should really be a series of fun experiments. What if I change this, do I feel better? Does doing this regularly make moving easier? It shouldn't be a weight (no pun intended) around your neck.

So if you're seeing or feeling it and want a few good reads we'll point you at these links.

Good overview. Probably relatable for many. 

We've had this one in a tab for months. It points at the release, or what happens on the other side, of this.  It's over on Dazed: The Wellness Anarchist. This would previously been called 'balance'.

Over on Super Snake Sami Reiss tackles it in his usual style. Watch out for the rabbit holes.