To what lengths would you go, to be thin?

Book Review of Fitness Junkie — Lucy Sykes, Jo Piazza

Fitness Junkie by Lucy Sykes, Jo Piazza
Published by Doubleday on July 11, 2017
Genres: Fiction, Humor
Pages: 304
Format: eBook
Goodreads

Rating: 3/5

Janey Sweet, co-founder of wedding dress company B has committed a mortal sin.

She’s fat. And was caught on camera eating a ‘bruffin’ — “the lovechild of a brioche and a muffin”.

In a wedding dress company notorious for not making dress sizes above size 4, Janet is out of a job until she loses enough weight to get back into the good books of her scheming business partner, Beau.

“You’re out until you drop thirty.”

Can Janey do it?

The rest of the novel details her journey down the oh-so-enticing health and fitness movement. Intense spin classes, exclusive access to a fitness instructor ‘movement’ bordering on idolatry, countless skinny celebrity blogs, and questionable food choices are just some of the things she encounters on her ill-fated quest towards self-love, moving on from an abusive friendship and reclaiming her self identity.

To what lengths would you go to be thin (and fit)?

With Fitness Junkie, Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza aim to satirize the ‘elite’, brown-nosed culture of the modern health and wellness movement. Throughout, they pose the questions: does wellness require $20 green smoothies, countless fitness classes, and $200 ‘sweat-wicking’ activewear?

How did health become exclusive to the rich and well-connected?

Sykes and Piazza know the movement is ridiculous. But sometimes we get too caught up in chasing the latest fads, trends and quick fixes to have the awareness that it’s another kind of rat race. How often have you chased a weight-loss goal with a passion, only to realize that you aren’t any happier than when you first started?