I think most people know that as long as you're not at a high body fat level and are close to a healthy BMI and you're active, you're pretty healthy. I'd say a very few percentage of people think you need to be ripped to be healthy. I just don't see the problem with wanting to look like some of these actors. It's not a bad thing to strive for.
You would be surprised. I mean, the whole reason this thread got bumped was because of that post where people were saying Jason Mamoa had a dad bod. The perception of what is "average" has been warped and skewed to be above what is the actual average in reality. The higher that perception of normal is raised, the more inadequate truly average people feel when they absolutely should not. It's far more prevalent than you think and I think it will get worse with how Hollywood and instagram influencer culture promotes this one type of body.
It's not a bad thing to strive for a ripped body type. What matters is the motivation and when it comes from a position of self-hate then yes it is completely wrong and unhealthy.
As for denying having said "that", what is the "that" you're referring to? Because I definitely never said anyone would be happier or better with X body, which is what it sounds like you're claiming in the bolded. People have to find where they're going to be most happy and be comfortable with staying around that area. It's gonna vary for different people. If you're gonna claim I said that, I'm gonna ask you for proof.
Offering advice to someone who wants to be more fit isn't reinforcing that they have to be fit (certainly not as fit as a Hollywood actor), especially if you stress (as I have, many times) that nobody needs that shit to feel happy or fulfilled, or to even be healthy. Quite the contrary, many people drive themselves to deeply unhappy and unhealthy places in their journey to looking like Hercules, which is the reason this thread exists.
You need to reread what I wrote. I did not say that you said those things about needing to have a buff, toned body to be happy or better as a person. What I said is that the way you chose to enter this topic reinforced that mindset even if you did not intend for it to be that way. Look at it this way; say you have a friend who confides in you about the insecurity they have with their body. They think they're too fat or too scrawny or whatever. Either way they're pretty upset about it. Do you:
A: Tell them you've never had a problem being fit
B: Explain your workout regimen in great detail
C:Try to comfort them and explain that there's nothing wrong with their body and it doesn't define their worth
If you picked A and/or B, you're being tone death and a bad friend by ignoring the emotional struggle they are going through. Not that you can't give your friend advice for getting more fit if that's what they want but there's a time and place for everything. Fitness advice can always come later but chasing these body types with the mindset that you're fixing yourself or improving your worth as a person is not healthy.
You said it's not reinforcing that you have to be ripped by just giving advice to people who "want to be more fit." The simple desire to be more fit is NOT body dysmorphia. It's shame and hatred of your own body for not being whatever ideal is in your head. When you tell someone with this mindset that you just have to do this workout and X, Y, Z to get that body
without addressing the emotional component where they feel lesser because of their body, you are inadvertently saying "yes, you're right about your body. You have to get that ideal body to be better and happy." A person has to learn to accept themselves before they can chase these body goals because otherwise they will hold on to that toxic view of themselves even as they workout and get more fit. The guy lifting weights will always see himself as not big enough, not toned enough, etc. It will be tied to his ego and self worth in an endless cycle. You said it yourself that people suffer from this mindset. Where do you think that starts?
I think you clearly understand the problem, you do have an understanding of body image issues. I think our disagreement is how we approach these issues. My whole point is that there is a completely lack of empathy and sensitivity going around in this thread. It feels like such a typical thing for us as men to gloss over the emotional aspect of body image issues and jump straight into fitness science and bragging about our own physique. Fitness science is so readily available out there especially with how big "fitstagram" culture has become. People with body image issues know this stuff is out there and can easily get the info if they want. Detailing out your fitness regimen, throwing out all these fitness terms... it's useless to that person. There is absolutely no reason for anyone to need to share how buff they are in a thread like this. It's just reading the room so poorly. So many people here have it completely backwards. That's not what people need, they need to learn to accept themselves first and foremost. It's a phycological problem that can't just be tackled head on.