In another disquieting development Eubank, a rising star in the fitness firmament, had a serious brush with mortality. Praised for his ostensibly holistic approach to wellbeing, Eubank amassed a considerable following on social media platforms. Among his preferred health practices was the act of fasting, often stretching to as long as 48 hours at a time. During one recent fast, however, he found himself in a precarious situation, resulting in an emergency hospital admission.

Such trends as lengthy fasting or extreme raw-food veganism have their roots in a paradoxical belief system, according to which extreme diet and fitness routines become paths to enlightenment — akin to religious asceticism — rather than practical, sustainable and balanced programmes for improvement. Depending on the diet they’re pushing, influencers and their followers risk malnourishment, often leading to conditions like calcium and vitamin deficiencies, low B12 levels that can result in anaemia, nervous system damage, and heart disease. 

In any case, studies show that restrictive diets can cultivate unhealthy eating habits and challenging relationships with food over time. For example, starvation and self-imposed dieting of the sort in which Samsonova and Eubank engaged appear to result in eating binges once food is available, or starvation if the food never materialises. 

In this regard, the fitness influencer community, with its stringent belief system, bears an uncanny resemblance to medieval monastic practices. Caroline Walker Bynum, in her book Holy Feast and Holy Fast: The Religious Significance of Food to Medieval Women, examined how women of the time viewed their relationship to food as religious communion. Many were believed to have performed miracles such as living without food for years on end, known as inedia. Just as these women tied their piety directly to their bodies, modern fitness influencers exhibit a similar fixation, presenting their restrictive diets as paths to transcendental health.

It isn’t only those who are in thrall to their fitness regimes who court danger. Consider the case of Brian “Liver King” Johnson, a prominent influencer who has amassed millions of followers by promoting an “ancestral lifestyle” and diet of raw organ meat and testicles. Johnson’s steroid use was exposed when his correspondence, outlining his $11,000-a-month performance-enhancing regimen, was leaked. Despite the exposure that his build owed more to steroids than red meat, Johnson’s followers remained unwavering in their faith. 

The recurring theme in stories like Samsonova’s and Eubank’s is the troubling faith in extreme dietary and fitness practices. The undeniable fact remains that a balanced approach to diet and exercise is the most beneficial path to health and fitness. Adherents of the philosophical golden mean reject extremes and focus on moderation. 

Rather than subscribing to extreme practices that are intended primarily to drive social media engagement, seeking a moderate path can lead to a lifestyle that doesn’t end with your sad demise going viral on those platforms.

---

Oliver Bateman is a historian and journalist based in Pittsburgh. He blogs, vlogs, and podcasts at his Substack, Oliver Bateman Does the Work

MoustacheClubUS

---