A soapbox moment, if you please. I'm just gonna go against the societal grain right now to declare I can't take one more person calling the Peloton's now-infamous ad where a woman is given a bike by her silent husband, "cringy." Why is everyone assuming that he got it for her to send a message to his thin wife that she needs to lose weight?!?! God forbid she asked for one and being the good husband he is, he got it for her!
*Le gasp*
Do you know how many things I have asked the Mr for that are fitness/health-related and knew he'd be the only person who would likely get it for me? The Mr and I never gave this commercial a second thought and we actually liked it. I thought it was sweet that she was taking her "me time" in her posh house with her well-behaved daughter that let her ride in peace to mentally feel better about herself a year later. She didn't say one word about losing weight. She said she had no idea how much it would change her. Why is everyone assuming she's talking about weight!?!?
I suspect if the commercial showed a big woman like me asking for a Peloton, he'd be an effin hero for being concerned about her health. Or there would be jokes about "yeah, your fat ass needs one!" and it would be perfectly acceptable. Yet when TV hubby gets it for his thin wife, he's suddenly a body-shaming monster and the company is trying to say something? Maybe she took SoulCycle classes and he figured with the money she was spending on that or not always being able to make it from her successful, demanding job it would work better to have something similar in the house? Maybe she said, "my job is so stressful, I need to start exercising to relieve my stress because the doctor said I'm setting myself up for a heart attack." Maybe she has depression and wants to use exercise as a tool to help her mood. There are so many things that exercise helps with but the first conclusion we jump to is he's trying to tell her to lose weight. We get all of these self-care articles shoved down our throats where exercise is listed as a way to help with our mental state but society jumps on it like he's an emotionally abusive husband to his thin, beautiful wife.
This article mentions how everyone at some ad exec gathering was talking about the ad but the "CEO remains silent." GOOD! If one more person apologizes for something that doesn't need to be apologized for to appease what are a small percentage of people, I'm going to lose my mind. (Too late.) You want him to apologize for other people jumping to the wrong conclusion? Why should he apologize for one person pointing something out on Twitter and others jumping on the bandwagon?? I think people's reaction to this ad says more about society's issues with exercise like who it is and isn't okay to suggest needs to do it based on judging a book by its cover.
Where do you fall on the Peloton commercial? If you don't give a poo, get on your soapbox about something irritating you.
====================
Like this post? Don't miss another one...subscribe via email or RSS feed. (Or you can follow me on Facebook ) Some posts may contain affiliate links which help keep this blog running at no cost to you. See the Disclaimer page for more info.
I googled this as I thought I had not seen it yet. I realized I had seen it, and obviously it registered nothing with me. Thinking back, I remembered telling my Mom "there's that crazy expensive bike thing Jen bought". The article said the company's stock has plummeted due to the Twitter comments. Really??? Socia media is way too influential!
ReplyDeleteHave people lost their ability to think critically? Scares the shit out of me honestly.
I was not offended, however, I do not search out ways to be offended.
Ridiculous
First time I saw the commercial I just thought "Oh, another sucker paying an exorbitant amount of money for an exercise bike" but the actress, in my opinion, did a good enough job to make me feel like she had felt proud of her progress in the past year. That was it. I never in a million years would have come up with the narrative that the hive mind of the internet did here. We're all in for it if we as a society start looking for ways to be offended. It's like everyone is just looking for a fight. Nobody gives the benefit of the doubt anymore.
ReplyDeletePeople are definitely looking for reasons to be offended by inoffensive things. It must be exhausting. I haven't seen the ad (I almost never watch live tv, I record everything to watch later) but from your description I'll throw that in with all the other ones that piss me off - not the ads themselves but people's reactions to them. Oh boy, just went down the rabbit hole & had to delete. lol. Yeah, people's reactions to ads irritate me more than the ads do in the first place. There have been times when I've asked for a scale, a vacuum, kitchen appliances, and even a treadmill *gasp* for Christmas/birthdays. That's what I wanted so that's what I asked for. I'd love if Peleton would snap back with a follow up "flashback" commercial from a year ago using one of your scenarios.
ReplyDeleteIt's become very trendy to be offended by anything and everything. There's an arrogance there that people feel their opinion is sought after on every blessed thing, thus they MUST go to Twitter, FB, etc. This is precisely why I don't use social media, because I just don't care about the snarkiness of people's opinions or that they find it necessary to share what they had for breakfast. Not interested. As for the ad, I've liked all the Peleton ads, specifically because the endings show people finishing their workouts and the look of pride on their faces like "I did it!" And that can be for any reason...first time they've exercised, first time they completed a 30 min workout, first workout after a heart attack, or losing a job and feeling no self-worth. Or they just did a workout at home for the first time ever because they are terrified of being in public, but want to be a "part of" a group and getting encouragement. Whatever the reason, they look relieved, proud, and just plain happy. And heaven forbid people are happy with their own accomplishments if it doesn't fit the standards of society. It's bandwagon thinking and a lazy way to follow the bullies out there in hopes of sounding cool too, when really that mentality is all about puppetry.
ReplyDeleteI am glad you explained this to me because I had no idea what the problem was with the commercial and it stereotyped her. I was impressed that her fellow bought something she hoped for and I thought it was sweet. I liked the happy look on her face of her accomplishments...whatever they were!!!
ReplyDeleteI had the same reaction! I would love it if someone got me a peloton!! I love work out classes and have a few friends with the bikes and they LOVE them, so it seems like a great gift to me. I definitely didn't even think of the "implication" that her husband was trying to send a message that she should lose weight! People are cray.
ReplyDeleteI can see both sides. I had seen the commercial before and it didn't register. But in watching you kind of wonder why this fit, energetic woman is so focused on the bike that she creates a video journal and turns it into movie and makes her husband watch. How exactly did it change her life? That's why it's a bad commercial: it didn't explain the tangible benefits of ownership, leaving things open to too many interpretations. Plus, the actresses "I'm exhausted from exercising" face does look a bit like a hostage desperate to get message out to the folks that will save her.
ReplyDeleteThe funniest interpretation I've herd is that it's "the remarkable struggle of a 116 pound woman to become a 112 pound woman in just a year." It's easy to ridicule because the folks with the money to buy it and the time to create a vanity video around its use aren't experiencing real life struggles. From that view it becomes something the news shows jump on and start interviewing everyone from the actress to fitness experts. And since it really doesn't matter, it's a lot more fun to cover than say the plight of the immigrants at our borders. I blame the media more than the twitter-verse for this controversy.
AMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnd while we're at it - can we all stop looking for ways to be offended by anything and everything?!
(deep breath)