The Hazards of a Biomedical Exercise Paradigm: Exploring the Praxis of Exercise Professionals

Gray Gray

doi:10.3390/philosophies4030054

Abstract

There is a belief that exercise has a major role to play in the current health and wellbeing agendas. Consequently, health interventions are implemented based upon the recommendations of the ACSM and similar exercise research organizations. However this development has been challenged through both social and political perspectives. Specifically accusations of medicalization have been raised against the increasing relationship between the exercise and medical domains. The purpose of this article is to present a similar critique of the growing emergence of a medical paradigm within the exercise domain. In this instance the focus will examine the relationship between exercise professional, exercise science and the proposed medical paradigm. Through the use of philosophical essay and systematic review of literature, it is argued that a continuing shift by exercise science to mirror the medical paradigm will cause a number of issues and potential hazards in the working practices of its professionals.

Highlights

In 2004 Fred Widland attended his first free personal training session at Manhattan’s CrunchFitness International gym, USA
What becomes evident is that the biomedical paradigm underpinning exercise praxis does not appear to align to foundations of professional knowledge demonstrated as effective in related disciplines [80,81] Summarizing previous literature, Fox et al identify that professional knowledge consists of four intersecting dimensions: propositional, process, personal and value-based [63]
There is a need for critical philosophical reflection on the basis of the science being presented as the panacea for the current societal health and wellbeing issues. Based upon this discussion it is recommended that a critical review of exercise professional education is required if these roles are to provide a key function in future health and wellbeing agendas

Summary

Introduction

In 2004 Fred Widland attended his first free personal training session at Manhattan’s CrunchFitness International gym, USA. In 2004 Fred Widland attended his first free personal training session at Manhattan’s Crunch. As reported in the New York Post, Widland, the self-confessed couch potato and ex-smoker, undertook a supervised training session that left him with severe kidney damage through the toxic condition of exertional rhabdomyolysis [1]. More recently in 2013 Rebecca Johnson, from Brighton, UK, participated in a private personal training session. Mail Online [2], after the session Johnson, an experienced exerciser, stated:. A few times I said to the personal trainer I was finding it tough and I didn’t know if I could carry on. ‘But he encouraged me to dig deep to do the best possible.

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