The word “cozy” might be the last thing you think of when you see the word “cardio,” but one TikTok creator hopes to change that. Though, if you watched a recent segment on The Today Show, you might be confused on which one.
Before we get into all that, what is “cozy cardio?” The creator of cozy cardio, Hope Zuckerbrow, describes it as “a movement for women to reclaim their relationship with exercise.” She’s quick to say cozy looks different for everyone, but for her, it often consists of ambient lighting, protein coffee, a comfort show, and a leisurely stroll on her walking pad.
Zuckerbrow had already focused on fitness content on her account when she posted her first cozy cardio video in 2023. Since then it’s safe to say the concept has been a success; Zuckerbrow has amassed 1 million followers, trademarked “cozy cardio,” and gained attention from mainstream broadcasts like The Today Show.
The Today Show did a (wonderful) written feature on Zuckerbrow and cozy cardio in November of 2023. When they reached out to Zuckerbrow as part of a filmed feature on cozy cardio, she accepted. From her posts, it appears Zuckerbrow was under the impression she would be the main focus of the segment, and while The Today Show credited her as having “popularized” the term, the majority of time was spent on creator Megan Roup. You can watch the video below.
Roup is a content creator and personal trainer who has helped sculpt the bodies of celebrities like Dakota Johnson and Miranda Kerr. Recently, Roup has founded her own company, Sculpt Society. To hear her tell The Today Show, Roup discovered cozy cardio on TikTok (though the clip doesn’t show here saying from which creator) while struggling with body image issues after giving birth to her second child. She then embraced the concept and now sings the praises of low-intensity workouts to her clients.
That’s all well and good, but does it not seem a bit shady that The Today Show spent the majority of a segment about cozy cardio with a creator who isn’t known for that kind of content? Zuckerbrow posted a video shortly after the feature to express her disappointment with both The Today Show and Roup. “She’s never interacted with my videos that I know of … yet she felt compelled to be the face of the entire interview.” Zuckerbrow went on to address one theory The Today Show chose to give Roup more screen time: “A lot of people said they decided to give her airtime because she is the skinnier version of me basically … I kind of agree and that stings so bad.”
It’s hard to disagree with Zuckerbrow’s assessment. Roup is a well-established personal trainer and fitness entrepreneur and is visibly thinner than Zuckerbrow. Did no one at The Today Show sit and think showcasing her over Zuckerbrow (in a segment about Zuckerbrow’s brand, no less) might not go over well?
According to the segment, Roup has created “cozy sculpt” classes for her clients as well (Zuckerbrow mentions she believes Roup began selling these right after the segment but I can’t confirm when the classes first began). This isn’t the first time Roup has been accused of misusing another creator’s intellectual property; according to Page Six her old boss, fitness instructor Tracy Anderson, is suing Roup for claims including alleged copyright infringement. While the bulk of these claims have yet to go to court, it’s worth noting Roup won the first case in this legal battle. Her lawyer states the lawsuit is “an anti-competitive lawsuit meant to bully a rising competitor.”
Zuckerbrow’s fans have been tagging The Today Show and Roup for comment but neither have responded. After her page was inundated with comments, Roup has limited or turned off comment sections on her TikTok videos completely. It’s very possible Roup didn’t know she would turn out to be the main focus of the segment, in which case, The Today Show really did these women dirty.
Since the segment aired, Zuckerbrow has continued to post her usual content, has adopted a cat, and has said she is otherwise grateful for the exposure. Roup has stopped posting on TikTok but continues to post on Instagram, where she announced a new merch drop for her business Sculpt Society.
I have reached out to both Zuckerbrow and Roup for comment but have not heard back.