Barbie feet, thigh gaps and Toblerone tunnels
EXTREME FADS SURROUNDING WOMEN’S BODIES ARE BEING POPULARISED THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA. AND ITS NOT HEALTHY
Losing weight is hard, but what’s even harder is learning to love my body through the whole process and learning that there’s no ‘finish line’ in self-love and acceptance.”
@mnquecrtny | Tweep
What does the Swiss chocolate brand have to do with taking a picture, you ask? Well, the challenge requires women to fit the triangle-shaped chocolate bar between their upper thighs.
In the constantly evolving world of social media and trends, fads involving women’s bodies are always circulating. Having a thigh gap, Barbie feet, protruding rib cages, and the recently popularised ‘Toblerone tunnel’ are highly sought after.
What does the Swiss chocolate brand have to do with taking a picture, you ask? Well, the challenge requires women to fit the triangle-shaped chocolate bar between their upper thighs and if they are able to do so, they supposedly have a “Toblerone tunnel”.
The triangle-shaped gap is coveted by some women to increase the number of likes on social media, mainly Instagram. Social media influencers and ‘Instagram models’ greatly feed into the hype.
However, the majority of social media users do not fancy such bizarre crazes and feel they promote an unhealthy body image among average people.
Twitter user Charlotte Ord, @charlotteord, posted: “The thigh gap craze makes me want to weep. So damaging. Anyone with any sort of muscle is going to struggle to achieve this.”
Tweep @AniMiaOfficial, wrote: “As if people don’t have enough problems with body confidence, now there’s the ‘Toblerone tunnel’, this year’s thigh gap. Anyone promoting this is part of the problem.”
On the same sentiment, Twitter user, @BermondseyBoy68, posted: “Why do women put themselves under all this pressure for the perfect body shape? We have the ‘thigh gap’, now apparently there’s the Toblerone tunnel, whatever that is? Don’t ruin Toblerone for me, that’s one of my favourite chocolate bars.”
Twitter user @DontTouchMyWine, refused to participate in the fad: “A ‘Toblerone Tunnel’? Really? Do I have one? Yes I do. Will you find any Toblerone in there? No. No you will not.”
Tweep Tabatha Smithson, @ tabathalouise, wrote a quirky post: “Yeah I’ve got a Toblerone tunnel … Otherwise known as my throat #TobleroneTunnel”
Comedian Gregory Behrendt, @gregorybehrendt, also commented on the trend: “If that’s where you are putting the @Toblerone then clearly you don’t understand how candy works, because if you did you’d know the only place for it is in your mouth … also you’d have no room to put it anywhere else. #TobleroneTunnel”