Overview

The Mental Gymnastics meme humorously illustrates the contrasting reasoning of two groups with opposing interests, highlighting one group's straightforward logic versus another's elaborate justifications.

How It Began

The meme originated on December 11, 2016, when the Facebook page Vegan Sidekick shared a cartoon depicting two individuals discussing their stances on veganism. One character presented a simple rationale for their choice, while the other offered multiple complex reasons, visually representing the concept of performing 'mental gymnastics.'

Meme Evolution

The meme gained traction on January 15, 2018, when an anonymous user on 4chan’s /v/ board posted the earliest known edit, comparing different attitudes towards selecting in-game gender. This was followed by a reverse version of the meme in the same thread. Over the next few years, both images circulated widely on 4chan and other platforms. Notably, on November 24, 2020, Redditor caterpillerman shared a Santa Deniers version of the meme, which garnered over 2,900 upvotes within three months. A related post on Twitter by @Anna1312__ achieved 13,400 retweets and 87,700 likes shortly after. The success of these adaptations triggered a surge in popularity, leading to numerous viral instances shared across Instagram and Twitter.