Body image in ads

[shootingstar]

The focus is all on doing some half marathon or tri event. Cycling is only mentioned in a tangential way, as something the athletes do as part of a tri, even if that was their original sport (which is mostly not). There's a few mountain bikers.
I wish they would focus, at least partially, on people like me, who are serious recreational athletes, who never will enter an event, who are not training for anything except fitness and health, and are not all runners or paddle boarders.

+1
I don't like companies that advertise their products primarily in this manner --that gives the impression of exercise and health as "competiton". That immediately knocks off probably a significant % of wannabe folks who are thinking about being healthier, but haven't done anything about it.

Because they might be afraid of looking too fat, too dorky in "athletic" clothing because they know they are unfit. So they continue to wear loose fashion clothing styles, etc.

It gives the impression that "competitive" behaviour in exercise and health as some sort of pinnacle/desired goal. It doesn't need to be and is not the best/only perspective for a person to be continously self-motivated to continue exercise for...several decades of their life.

People have to be shown how to integrate daily healthy habits in physical exercise and diet for life. This is not competitive behaviour at all. I'd rather that women/men modelling the clothing be shown walking their children to school (or biking them to school/daycare), doing gardening, they can be golfing, just regular exercising at home, running after their young children, etc.

Maybe TE can consider their marketing ads to include women doing such activities. For certain, this would broaden their potential market.

I have never bicycled-competed/raced in my life. And never will. But my level of fitness for the past few decades, is clearly a result of adopting exercise, etc. into daily lifestyle and recreational activities. It is a form of self-discipline, like brushing teeth. Cycling is like brushing teeth for me: it is necessary for me, but it's an ordinary activity. When I don't do it, my body misses it. Like forgetting to brush your teeth, I notice it.