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Fitness blogger forever exposed the difference between real life and Instagram in photos

A young blogger exposes the tricks people use on Instagram to mask reality.

Fitness blogger forever exposed the difference between real life and Instagram in photos

Photo by saggysara/Instagram.

For decades, scholars have researched the damage caused by images of unrealistic body types presented in the media. Now, they're starting to investigate social media to see if it has similar effects. A recent study by The Conversation found that people are more likely to compare themselves to the images they see on social media than in advertising and magazines.


“Women reported being in the worst mood after social media comparisons relative to other comparisons," the study revealed. “When women made social media comparisons, they also reported being unhappier with their appearance and more motivated to start unhealthy weight-loss activities ... than when they made comparisons in person." Given the negative impact these images have on women, Sara Puhto, a 20-year-old body-positivity blogger, is exposing the techniques people use on Instagram to mask how they look in real life.

Puhto recently posted a series of photos that show the difference between her body on Instagram versus real life. She also highlights how taking photos from different angles can create a drastically different impression.

Instagram vs real life If I saw the photo on the left a year ago I would've instantly thought so negatively about my body, that all my hard work from working out was non existent, that if someone looked at me they would've never thought I've been working out for 2 years and think I wasn't trying hard enough. But the thing is is that all bodies look different. Nobody's booty looks round and peachy from all angles. Nobody's body looks the same from all angles. Don't eat less or miss out on your favorite meals/drinks or over exercise to "look good for a holiday" or to "look good in bikini photos" because there will always be angles that are "unflattering" that might make you feel bad when you see them. Instead workout and eat healthy because it makes you feel good, not as a punishment. Start loving and accepting your body at all angles with all your "flaws", instead of trying to fit into societies image of 'beauty' because that image isn't inclusive of all individuals, which is so messed up. Don't hate yourself just because of bad photos, they do not define you as a person. You look the best when you're living life to the fullest and happiest. There's no point in missing out on things and stressing yourself out so much. Life isn't meant to be a competition on who can look the best and we should normalize not having to "look perfect" all the time because it's a ridiculous concept. You are perfect the way you are ------------------------------------------ . . . #instagramvsreallife #beforeandafter #lawofattraction #bodypositive #bekindtoyourself #lifeisgreat #dowhatyoulove #veganbooty #youareenough #progressnotperfection #bodyimage #vegansofig #girlswhoworkout #selflove #youarebeautiful #veganfitness #loa #fitnessjourney #bopo #bodyacceptance #bodyconfidence #effyourbeautystandards #bepresent #justbe #moderation #balanceddiet #staypositive #thinkpositive
A post shared by Sara Puhto (@saggysara) on
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“If I saw the [real life] photo [above] a year ago, I would've instantly thought so negatively about my body," Puhto wrote. “But the thing is is that all bodies look different. Nobody's booty looks round and peachy from all angles. Nobody's body looks the same from all angles."

Photoshop vs reality I wanted to post this because the other day I saw an instagram post by a celebrity who had clearly photoshopped their body to make it look more curvy (the tiles behind them were curved). I'm not gonna name anyone because I don't want anyone to come at me, but I see tons of people do this. I know people always talk about this and I know there's nothing I can do to change it. All I want is for people to know not to ever feel bad about their body when looking at someone else. I used to feel this way and always wanted a more curvy waist like you see all over social media now a days. But it's silly to want that. It takes 30 seconds for me to photoshop this image on the right on a free app, but it can take someone a lifetime hating their body and wishing they had what all these photoshopped bodies look like. Please don't wish you had someone else's body. Love the body YOU have because there's nothing wrong with it. There's no point in wasting time wanting to look like someone else because the reality is that everyone is different and you will never have the same body as someone else. Start embracing everything you used to feel bad about. The beauty industry strives off our insecurities, and only shows so few body types, please don't let this make you hate yourself. Because being you and having confidence is what makes you beautiful, not what some beauty magazine portrays as beautiful. I hope you all have an absolutely amazing day, you deserve it! PS: excuse the clothing choice, I was feeling cute while trying on bikini bottoms while packing ------------------------------------------ . . . #photoshop #lawofattraction #bodypositivity #bodyshape #lifeisgreat #dowhatyoulove #bootybuilding #beautytips #beautyaddict #progressnotperfection #bodyimage #sweatwithkayla #bikinibody #vegansofig #girlswholift #girlswithmuscle #weightlifting #selflove #youarebeautiful #fitnessmotivation #screwthescale #weightlossjourney #beyou #beconfident #selfconfidence #embraceyourself #manifest #flaws #confidence
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Booty pop I was scrolling through my old photos and came across these photos where I was trying to take one of those sandy bum pics I posted the right one back in January, but the left is the reality behind that photo ?? I still sometimes get a slight pang of sadness and jealousy when I see all the big beautiful bums on instagram and wish I could magically have what they have. Because sometimes I feel like all my booty gains are gone when I take photos where it looks smaller, but then I remember that I shouldn't compare my body to theirs. I have a great booty and so do they! It's all about posing/angles and nobody looks like that all the time. There's nothing wrong with posting a good photo of your booty, you should post it if you feel like it! Just remember that when you're scrolling through social media and see all the posed bums that you too have a great bum and that nobody looks like that 24/7 ?? It seems like big butts are the thing that so many people want currently. But remember that you don't need a big booty to be beautiful. All butts are good butts ?? All of our bodies are different and you don't need a specific body type to fit into what society defines as beautiful!! It's stressful and so messed up that body parts and types are going in and out of style- before it was being really thin, now it's having a big booty. That shouldn't be a thing. It causes so much stress and self hate to people who do not have these things. I know it's hard but instead of trying to obtain these things, love how you look now. Not how you'll look if you loose X amount of weight or get a bigger booty. Because trust me when you get to those things you'll just want something more. Be comfortable in your own skin no matter what angle, posed or unposed, and you'll radiate beauty! ------------------------------------------ . . . #bopowarrior #bootypop #allbodiesaregoodbodies #bootyfordays #bootybuilding #instagramvsreallife #beforeafter #selfconfidence #youareyou #dontchange #acceptyourself #bodypositive #lawofattraction #everyoneisbeautiful #selflove #bepresent #findyourself #dontcare #cellulite #effyourbeautystandards
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Thank you I flew to South Africa yesterday and when I landed I saw that I have 100k followers firstly I just wanted to say THANK YOU! Thank you for allowing me to have this platform to spread the body positive and self love message. Thank you for constantly supporting me, which in turn has also allowed me to grow as a person. You guys are the best and I appreciate all your comments and messages so much I just felt like making a little story time post about my instagram journey so far (swipe to see) ?? So this has always been my only instagram, I began posting on here in 2014 with photos of my personal life when I used to have crazy colored hair and would post photos of random things (2014). Then around 2015 I posted my first progress photo after I started doing BBG workouts and decided to keep posting fitness related photos of my progress until late 2016. I don't think there is anything wrong with posting your progress or having a fitness instagram btw, you should share and show off your hard work! But for me it became less and less of a hobby to post these types of photos and felt like I wasn't telling the truth by posting these photos all the time because that wasn't what I looked like 24/7, so I decided to use this platform to post body positive and self love photos and that's what's brought me to where I am now. I never imagined that I would be posting my biggest insecurities online but thats how life needed up working out and I love it so much because I love hearing how much it helps people when I share these posts! I hope you guys liked that little story time I'm so excited to see what the future brings! Thank you for reading and I hope you all have a lovely weekend!! ------------------------------------------ . . . #enjoythejourney #thankyou #100k #bopo #selflove #positivelife #lawofattraction #fitnessjourney #allbodiesaregoodbodies #youareamazing #bebrave #trustyourself #bodypositivity #staytruetoyourself #behumble #nonegativity #pasttopresent #loveyourlife #dowhatmakesyouhappy #liveyourbestlife #createyourownhappiness #choosehapiness #attitudeofgratitude #liveinthemoment #findyourself #embracelife
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Bikini body I'm sure we've all had that feeling where you're feeling cute at the beach but then you sit down and all of a sudden feel insecure and don't know how to sit without your tummy feeling oddly too exposed. The other day I went to the beach and would have slight moments where I felt like people were looking at my tummy and these feelings of insecurity where I wanted to hide my tummy because "it didn't look good" sitting down. But I realised that I was being silly and ruining my time at the beach and not enjoying it fully just because of this small silly thing. You really shouldn't feel that way! Everyone looks like this when they sit down! Nobody is judging you and even if someone was then that's a reflection of their inner insecurities, not yours. You are not fat. We all have fat, especially on our tummies and it's completely normal. And that fat does not make you worth any less as a person! Nobody has abs or a flat tummy 24/7 when they sit down. Don't let this idea ruin your time because it's completely normal! If you want to wear a bikini, then wear it cause life's too short not to wear what you want!! You look amazing so wear it with confidence and you'll radiate beauty! ------------------------------------------ . . . #bikinibody #bodypositive #lawofattraction #beachtime #insecurities #bodyposi #fitnessmotivation #positiveenergy #manifest #bodyfat #allbodiesaregoodbodies #bodyacceptance #selflove #bopowarrior #allbodiesarebeautiful #fitnessjourney #weightlossjourney #bopo #vegansofig #veganfitness #bbg #positivethinking #positivelife #positivemind #loveyourself #youareenough #youmatter
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Puhto also used her real life versus Instagram shots to provide women with a healthy outlook on diet and exercise. “Don't eat less or miss out on your favorite meals/drinks or over exercise to 'look good for a holiday' or to 'look good in bikini photos," she wrote. “There will always be angles that are 'unflattering' that might make you feel bad when you see them. Instead workout and eat healthy because it makes you feel good, not as a punishment."

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