EDITOR’S LETTER

CUT OUT THE NOISE – LISTEN TO A VOICE YOU CAN TRUST

These new year missives are usually meant to be about looking forward – cheery feel-good gestures that blithely dismiss past regrets and focus instead on greener pastures. New year, new you, new waistline, and better still, if you’re lucky, new car, dog, job, wardrobe and freshly upgraded admirer to boot. I have written many such editor’s letters and most riff upon a similarly positive theme. Don’t worry about the gallon of eggnog you drank over Christmas, and never mind the dustbin load of Ferrero Rocher you dispatched – all will be resolved with a few taps of the wand. This time around I want to offer a little more perspective. Because, let’s face it, if it really was that easy, you’d probably not find yourself in the same old rut again and we possibly wouldn’t still be in business. With all the commitment, know-how and resolve needed to be successful, getting back in shape – both physically and mentally – is difficult enough. But these days there’s an even bigger obstacle in the way of you and renewal. And this is what I call noise. Back in the summer, I read about a phenomenon known as The Hum. A low-frequency murmur, like an incessant yet barely perceptible background drone, it’s a global peculiarity, frequently reported but little understood. Many say that it causes headaches and dizziness; others cite low mood and distraction, even with links to suicide. There are many theories as to what might cause The Hum – electromagnetic charges in the atmosphere caused by lightning strikes; the pulse of thrumming electric cables or mobile phone signal – but none that are conclusive. Either way, the very idea of The Hum strikes me as being eerily symbolic of the constant noise that beleaguers all of us in the digital age. As Jordan Tannahill, author of a novel inspired by this strange interference, recently wrote: ‘As much as our innovations [and technological advances] have the capacity to nurture and sustain us, they also have the capacity to assail us.’ This is how I think we all feel, especially come January, when bombarded by the multitude of wellbeing messages from newspapers, magazines, TV ads, text alerts, sponsored social posts, email marketing, newsletters, paid influencers, internet promotions, celebrity blowhards and Dry January do-gooders. Everyone has an alternative opinion, a different product to sell and a new ideology to hawk. Everyone claims the truth, even when most of it is dressed-up lies – or at least misinformation, which ultimately amounts to the same thing. And all of that becomes noise. An incessant, distracting, vertigo-inducing hum. This issue – and in particular, its advancement of Men’s Health Squad, an exciting new development from HQ – is in part an attempt to address all this. We live in an attention economy. People now have limitless options available to them, with limited time in which to consume them. In the process, content – or journalism, as we used to call it – has become devalued. A piece of QI trivia for you: magazines take their name from the artillery usage, as in a container or storage unit of explosive content. But rather than health and fitness advice being contained, the well now overflows with indiscriminate, unchecked ‘facts’ and opinion. With Men’s Health Squad, it’s our aim to give you all the options to which we’ve become accustomed – the ability to consume information when, where and in the format you want – but filtered via one authoritative, authentic and supportive voice. In short, we want to reinvent the container. By becoming a member of Men’s Health Squad, you’ll receive instant access to trusted training plans, exclusive video content, daily workouts, nutritional advice and hands-on support. By signing up, you’ll gain direct access to the MH Elite, our hand-picked collective of world-class athletes and trainers, covering every area of fitness and catering for all levels. You’ll be invited to join a private Instagram community, take part in live fitness surgeries, receive a members-only newsletter… oh, and you’ll get a magazine delivered to your door every month, too, and not just for old times’ sake. It’s the best out there. You can read all about our new club and the designs we have for it on page 61. As you can probably tell, we’re pretty fired up by it all. And that’s because we believe it’s reinforcing an ambition we’ve always held, just delivering on it in a newer, better, more relevant way than ever before. To wit: if you’re looking for someone to help out, someone you can trust with your wellbeing, we’ve got you.