Clashing commercials; or, What does "toned" actually mean?
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posted by Athletic Women Blog Female muscle, women in sports, amazon feminism |
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Reebok has a new line of shoes, and of course new commercials to promote them. Called Easytone, the shoes condition a woman's butt and legs, so we are told anyway. No gym. No workouts. Just wear shoes. Snake oil? Perhaps. But that's not what I'm concerned with today.
What bothers me is the image peddled to women as the ideal. A "toned" look suggests, to me and many others, I'm sure, an athletic physique. Maybe not a bodybuilder's, but manifestly athletic. What is presented instead, though, is the same soft, smooth, size 2 look we are informed constantly is the feminine ideal. Is this model's physique really much different from that seen in a thousand other advertisements?—
Contrasted with that of fitness athlete Jelena Abbou seen in this Fahrenheit commercial, it becomes obvious how paltry Easytone's "toned" look is:
In the Fahrenheit commercial we see a woman lucidly strong and athletic, yet strikingly attractive by any reasonable standard. Why can't there be more like this?
View Original Post at blog.athleticwomen.com
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- Filed Under:
- SportsPLUS, Health & Fitness, OpEd, Media/Marketing
There are 3 comments on this post. Join the discussion!
AnnGaff
Rob, I agree that the second commercial is better in that it shows a very strong physique as the ideal as opposed to the same old model-thin and soft ideal. But both commercials still disappoint me. I want to see commercials about a product intended to aid a woman's performance on the court, field, track, and so on...not a product aimed only at her appearance. Yes, I realize many men's supplements and workout equipment advertisements focus on how to get a certain look as well, but those make me cringe too.
Here's a commercial that an old friend brought up on Facebook. Now THIS is a great commercial! Unfortunately it was pulled at the time, because it was "too violent." I personally think it's hilarious AND it uses a real pro athlete (Suzy Favor Hamilton) as opposed to a model AND it does not focus on up-close shots of her T 'n' A....AND of course, she wins in the end, leaving Jason in her dust :)
Friday, November 13, 2009 at 1:31pm EST
robm
Ann: Thanks for your comment. As always, you raise some interesting points. I will only add that Jelena Abbou is an athlete in addition to being a model; she is a professional bodybuilder. (Essentially a bodybuilder, that is. She competes in what is called "pro figure," a division the result of the IFBB's sexism, oddly enough.) Also, Fahrenheit is a product marketed to athletes as a performance enhancer; most obviously to bodybuilders but it could be any athlete requiring lean muscle mass.
I love the commercial you've posted! (In fact, I think I remember seeing it.) Yes, too bad there aren't more commercials starring female athletes--though that does seem to be slowly changing for the better. Is it really that violent? I'm pretty sure I've seen worse. But then, if ads are to be at all screened, it's probably better done for violence than mere skin.
Friday, November 13, 2009 at 3:41pm EST
AnnGaff
Rob,
That's great! I LOVE it when they use real athletes to promote their products. It makes perfect sense, but for some reason it doesn't always happen.
I don't know how that commercial was considered too violent. It is from the early 90's so maybe we are now so desensitized that this commercial seems PG rated to us! I remember it being something about violence against women specifically. But to me, it was a hilarious commercial and Suzy was never even touched. No more violent than the home alarm commercials where the woman is running on the treadmill and someone breaks in.
Ann
Friday, November 13, 2009 at 3:48pm EST