Gym Culture Research Articles

Perceptions and beliefs of community-based fitness professionals working with people with disability: a qualitative study

Purpose There are many benefits of sport and exercise however people with disability experience barriers to participation including negative interactions with fitness professionals. To understand this barrier further, this study explored the perceptions of community-based fitness professionals working with people with disability. Materials and methods Thirteen fitness professionals took part in one semi-structured interview. Data were analysed inductively using an interpretive description approach. Results Theme 1, “Understanding your client’s individual needs” highlighted the requirement for fitness professionals to be flexible to the needs of their clients. Theme 2 “You have to have a little bit of the knack” discussed the importance of maintaining a mutually respectful relationship, and the skills required to achieve this. Theme 3 “It needs to be a team approach” called for greater interprofessional collaboration with health professionals. Theme 4 “The barriers of gym culture” explored the negative stigma placed on people with disability in relation to sport and exercise. Theme 5 “Change is needed” highlighted changes required within the fitness industry to better support people with disability. Conclusion To facilitate inclusive service delivery, changes are required within the supports and resources available to fitness professionals thereby allowing them to cater to their diversifying client population.

Examining Individual Versus Group Exercise Preference Among Maltese Gym-Goers

This paper presents a study of exercise behaviours among Maltese gym users where it seeks to understand what factors govern choices among gym users to exercise either alone or in a group. It is argued that being able to predict the propensity to exercise alone or in a group presents an opportunity for fitness providers to organise their efforts more efficiently in the broader context of contributing to improving public health and, therefore, possibly providing a more relevant gym product. Exercise and fitness literature highlights various factors likely to influence participants’ proclivities to exercise solo or in a group, including motivation, competitiveness, sporting background, age, and gender. To explore the possible influences of such factors in the Maltese context, a cross-sectional survey was carried out via an online questionnaire, which was analysed statistically using logistic regression. This was conducted by first incorporating the above factors with a propensity to exercise alone or in a group as the dependent binary outcome. Finally, a most parsimonious model was applied following a stepwise iterated process of factor elimination. The results show that gender and age were the most significant predictors of training modality, with being male increasing the likelihood of engaging in solo gym exercise behaviour by over five times. Increased age was also a significant predictor of exercising alone. We present a discussion of the findings in terms of exercise and fitness service provision, as well as broader issues related to the interaction between gym culture and gender norms.

Anabolic steroid consumption among gym-goers in Amman: knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors.

The use of Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) among gym members has become a significant concern due to their impact on physical training and performance. Research worldwide indicates a notable prevalence of AAS use among athletes and gym attendees, often involving substances that are neither safe nor legal. This study aims to determine the prevalence of AAS use among gym attendees in Amman, Jordan, and to explore the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with AAS use. The study involved 399 participants from 35 randomly selected gyms in the metropolitan area of Amman, Jordan. A cluster sampling technique was used to select a diverse and representative sample of gym attendees. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire that assessed AAS use, knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral factors. Statistical analyses were conducted using chi-square tests to explore the relationships between AAS use and categorical variables, while logistic regression was employed to identify predictors of AAS use. The analysis revealed significant associations between AAS use and various factors, including knowledge, attitudes, behavioral factors, and demographic variables such as gender, age, exercise frequency, reasons for exercise, and total exercise duration. The study identified key predictors of AAS use among gym attendees in Amman, highlighting the importance of demographic and behavioral factors. The findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to address misconceptions and promote safer practices among gym-goers in Amman. The study provides critical insights that can guide the development of strategies, policy adjustments, and educational initiatives aimed at reducing AAS misuse and fostering a healthier gym culture in the region.

"You know what, I'm in the trend as well" - Understanding the inter-play between digital and real-life social influences on the food and activity choices of young adults.

To understand young adults' perceptions of online and real-life social influences on their food and activity choices. A qualitative study involving seven focus groups. Thematic analyses using both deductive and inductive techniques were performed. A polytechnic and a university in Singapore. A total of 46 full-time students, 19-24 years of age. Participants revealed that social media meets multiple needs, contributing to its ubiquitous use and facilitating content spread between social networks. Food-related content shared on social media were mostly commercial posts, marketing foods and eateries showcasing price-promotions, emphasizing sensory properties of foods, or creating narratives that activated trends. Subsequently, real-life social activities frequently revolve around marketed foods that were not necessarily healthy. In contrast, physical activity posts were rarely being followed up in real life. Portrayals describing a toxic gym culture could contribute to negative perceptions of peers' physical activity posts and a disinclination towards sharing such posts. Participants expressed that close, supportive social networks in real-life strongly influenced initiating and maintaining healthy lifestyles. However, in a society that highly values academic achievements, participants prioritized studying and socializing over healthy eating and physical activity. Overall, our findings reveal that virtual and real-life social influences have complex interactions affecting Asian young adults' behavioral choices and should be considered when designing interventions for this group. Regulations related to the digital marketing of unhealthy food, and improving the availability, accessibility, and affordability of healthier food options, particularly in the foodservice sector, would be of value to consider.

Post-industrial masculinities and gym culture: Graft, craft, and fraternity.

This article theorizes a link between contemporary masculinity in post-industrial spaces and 'hardcore' gym culture. Over the last three decades the health and fitness industry has grown exponentially, with bodily modification and the proliferation of gymnasia, health supplements and wearable fitness trackers now a dominant means by which many construct their identities. Simultaneously, the onset of wholesale neoliberalism, which has caused large-scale de-industrialization and the global outsourcing of labor, has resulted in a macro-economic shift from production to consumption in the West. Set against this backdrop, this article draws upon two ethnographic studies in 'hardcore' gyms to examine the significance of bodywork in the lives of men in two working-class, post-industrial locales in England. First, gym work is conceptualized as a form of both graft and craft within our samples, and the role of the male body as a post-industrial project is considered. Following this, the gym is presented as a site of fraternity which, following the loss of collectivizing industry in both areas, allows men to bond over a shared endeavor and build genuine kinship. Ultimately, we conclude that the gym is a space of production within consumption, furnishing our sample with a means of performing their embodied masculinity and repurposing formative notions of graft, craft, and fraternity in a new adaptive space.

A 20-year analysis of motives and training patterns of Swedish gym-goers

ABSTRACT Using questionnaire data collected from one gym in 1995, 2005, and 2015 this study examines 861 women’s and 1827 men’s training patterns and their motives for weight training. Between 1995 and 2015, the gym increased its membership, equipment, and machines. The analysis shows that the participants increased the time they trained in gyms and changed the muscle groups they prioritized. The motives to become stronger, healthier, and more fit remained stable over time, but both the men’s and women’s training de-emphasized building muscles and firmer shapes and emphasized fun, attractiveness, and endurance. The analysis suggests that how the socially constructed body should be shaped and the goal with the shaping has changed. In conclusion, the 20-year perspective captures changes that have not been reported previously and contributes to knowledge about the intersection of gyms and gender, shedding light on how gym culture has changed and the reasons for these changes.

Tracking towards care: Relational affordances of self-tracking in gym culture.

In the past few years, self-tracking technologies have been celebrated for the possibilities they offer to 'optimize' fitness and wellbeing, yet also criticized for being rigid and isolating. In this article, we identify complex tracking arrangements that consist of a variety of data and multiple modalities of tracking emplaced within arrangements of actors and objects (digital/analog tracking devices and data output). We inquire into how these arrangements afford care. Based on our ethnographic research of gym culture in Denmark, we find that individuals make the technologies 'work' for them in ways that shield them from bodily or emotional distress. Fitness practitioners combine digital tracking technologies with analog methods and enrol other human actors in recording, interpreting, questioning and tinkering with their data; in other words, they perform data work in ways that mend or prevent ruptures and brokenness and thus afford 'care'. We highlight the role of the personal trainer, who often complements or salvages the outputs of digital technologies. We argue that tracking has the capacity to afford care and wellness when it is emplaced within socialities and when actors are able to exercise their capacities and knowledge in ways that mitigate the data outputs.

Book Review: Gym Culture, Identity and Performance-Enhancing Drugs. Tracing a Typology of Steroid Use by Ask Vest Christiansen

Book Review: <i>Gym Culture, Identity and Performance-Enhancing Drugs. Tracing a Typology of Steroid Use</i> by Ask Vest Christiansen

Superheroes – Image and performance enhancing drug (IPED) use within the UK, social media and gym culture

Anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) are the drug of choice in many cultures of the UK. Whilst there is an abundance of evidence relating to the physiological and psychological effects of steroid abuse on the individual, surprisingly there is a paucity of information relating to the perspectives of steroid users regarding the social impact of steroid use on self and society. The lack of data from steroid users has implications for forensic and legal medicine. Specifically, evidence is limited in terms of the user's voice. This is a crucial omission; the unheard voices of steroid users have much to offer into future research. 24 IPED using participants (using substituted names to protect anonymity), engaged in semi structured interviews to discuss their own personal usage, culture issues, social media and more.

Bodybuilding and Fitness Doping in Transition. Historical Transformations and Contemporary Challenges

This article describes and analyses the historical development of gym and fitness culture in general and doping use in this context in particular. Theoretically, the paper utilises the concept of subculture and explores how a subcultural response can be used analytically in relation to processes of cultural normalisation as well as marginalisation. The focus is on historical and symbolic negotiations that have occurred over time, between perceived expressions of extreme body cultures and sociocultural transformations in society—with a perspective on fitness doping in public discourse. Several distinct phases in the history of fitness doping are identified. First, there is an introductory phase in the mid-1950s, in which there is an optimism connected to modernity and thoughts about scientifically-engineered bodies. Secondly, in the 1960s and 70s, a distinct bodybuilding subculture is developed, cultivating previously unseen muscular male bodies. Thirdly, there is a critical phase in the 1980s and 90s, where drugs gradually become morally objectionable. The fourth phase, the fitness revolution, can be seen as a transformational phase in gym culture. The massive bodybuilding body is replaced with the well-defined and moderately muscular fitness body, but at the same time there are strong commercialised values which contribute to the development of a new doping market. Finally, it is possible to speculate on the development of a fifth phase, in which fitness doping is increasingly being filtered into mainstream gym and fitness culture, influencing the fitness doping demography.

A qualitative focus group study of perceived barriers and benefits to exercise by self-described exercise status among older adults living with HIV

ObjectivesAlthough exercise interventions have been shown to improve health outcomes among older people with HIV (PLWH), this population remains highly sedentary. The purpose of this study was to examine the...

Gravity by Sarah Deming

Reviewed by: Gravity by Sarah Deming Deborah Stevenson, Editor Deming, Sarah Gravity. Make Me a World/Random House, 2019 [400p] Library ed. ISBN 978-0-525-58104-8 $20.99 Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-525-58103-1 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-525-58105-5 $10.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 9-12 Sixteen-year-old Gravity Delgado is half-Dominican, half-Jewish, and all boxer; she's been fighting for four years, and now the undefeated lightweight is aiming for a slot on the U.S. Olympic team. She's got to earn her spot, though, and along the way she deals with an array of opponents, her alcoholic single mother, her budding love life, and friction with her beloved coach, learning by losing as well as winning. That's a classic sports story, and Deming, herself a boxer and a boxing coach, turns it out with assurance and style. The details of boxing as a sport, from specifics about injuries and recovery times to facets of gym culture and aspects of global politics, bring the world close enough for the reader to smell the sweat. What really lifts the story, though, is the savory cast of credible characters, from the whip-smart women's boxing journalist to the young heavyweight guy who'd rather turn photographer than pro to teammates both friendly and not-so-friendly. Gravity's believable in her first serious relationship and her takeaways from it, but boxing is the real romance here; as with any romance, the reading pleasure lies not in genre surprises but in the way the story brings freshness and joy to the familiar turns. Deming delivers with love for her sport and appreciation for her star, and the book may inspire readers to strap on a pair of gloves themselves. Copyright © 2019 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

The lived experience of CrossFit as a context for the development of women\u2019s body image and appearance management practices

The purpose of this interpretive study was to explore how women’s participation in the sport of CrossFit sets a context for the development of their body images—including their thoughts and feelings about the body and their lived experiences of embodiment—as well as their perceptions of culturally constructed ideals of beauty and gender. Analyses were informed by feminist cultural studies. In-depth, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 16 women who regularly participate in CrossFit. Data were analyzed using constant comparison processes. Findings illuminate how women experienced the culture of a male-owned, co-ed, CrossFit gym and how their immersion and participation in that gym culture gave rise to varied bodily experiences and practices, including body/appearance ideals, bodily appraisals, appetites and diets, physical fitness ideologies, appearance management routines, perspectives on gender, and identity development. Participant narratives revealed diverse lived realities across accounts as well as some evidence of contradiction or ambivalence within individual accounts. Implications for professionals who work in the body image area (e.g., nutritionists, counselors/therapists, sports psychologists), for the apparel and merchandising industry, for the sport of CrossFit, and for future work in the area are discussed.

Exploring Women’s Embodied Experiences of ‘The Gaze’ in a Mix-Gendered UK Gym

Feminist and gaze researchers have conducted ongoing discussions surrounding issues relating to the gaze and its impact on female experience. Women have the ‘to-be-looked-atness’ characteristic, with the gaze being directed at the female body, commonly by a male. To date, the focus of feminist research surrounding men looking at women and the analysis how women make sense of looks between women remains limited and scattered. Drawing upon ethnographic data obtained from a PhD research project, this paper delves into the embodied experiences of female exercisers within a UK ‘working-class’ gym. By exploring the women’s own accounts of their living, breathing and sensing bodies as they exercise, I attempt to understand how they make sense of this physical culture, their embodied selves as well as broader constructions of the gendered body. Utilising a feminist phenomenological approach, I explore the social-structural position of women in a patriarchal system of gender relations, whilst simultaneously acknowledging and analysing the structural, cultural and historical forces and location, upon individual lived body experiences and gendered embodiment. Discussion is provided on how women make sense and interpret specific ‘gazes’ encountered within the gym culture from both men and women.

Provider, father, and bro--Sedentary Māori men and their thoughts on physical activity.

BackgroundMāori (indigenous peoples of New Zealand) men have a disproportionate prevalence of lifestyle-related illnesses and are targeted for national physical activity initiatives. While physical activity impacts on physical and mental health and overall wellbeing, current approaches to health promotion often lack cultural relevance. Having better understanding and incorporating relevant cultural values and motivators into program designs could improve the success of health initiatives for indigenous and minority men. Nevertheless, little is known about Māori men’s preferences, attitudes, or perspectives about physical activity, which are often interpreted through a colonized or dominant Western lens. Understanding perspectives of those groups whose values do not align with dominant cultural approaches will better equip health promoters and trainers to develop relevant community initiatives and private programs for indigenous and minority men.MethodsAn indigenous research approach informed a qualitative study with 18 sedentary, ‘overweight’ Māori men aged 28 to 72 years. From 2014 to 2015 these men participated in three focus group discussions aimed at understanding their views about physical activity and exercise. Data were thematically analysed and interpeted using a Māori worldview.ResultsFour key themes were identified – Cameraderie and ‘Bro-ship’; Adulthood Distractions and Priorities; Problems with Contemporary Gym Culture; and Provider Orientation. Key motivators for physical activity included a sense of ‘brotherhood’ in sport and physical activity and accountability to others. Participants reported the need to highlight the value of people and relationships, and having an orientation to the collective to enhance physical activity experiences for Māori men in general. Modern lifestyle distractions (such as being time deficient, and family responsibilities) along with other priorities contributed to difficulties incorporating physical activity into their daily lives. In addition, particular aspects and characteristics of the modern fitness culture and gym environment acted as barriers to adherence to physical activity.ConclusionsSedentary Māori men understand the importance of physical activity well, and have a desire to be more active. Nevertheless, they find it difficult to do so while balancing other priorities, especially cultural obligations to community and whānau (immediate and wider family). This research provides valuable insight for those promoting physical activity or designing health initiatives so that they better resonate with indigenous and minority men.

Reconceptualising the Gender of Fitness Doping: Performing and Negotiating Masculinity through Drug-Use Practices

This article analyses self-portrayals and gender constructions among Swedish male bodybuilders who are engaged in fitness doping. The empirical material comes from a larger ethnographic investigation into gym culture. The results show that there is a strong propensity to conform with particular gender fantasies that rests heavily on a binary understanding of gendered, doped bodies. However, this storyline does not apprehend the entire self-presentation of the analysed drug users. Negotiations and inclusive subversions of traditional gender norms are also expressed. For example, the narratives show how the use of performance-enhancing substances makes it possible for (heterosexual) men to approach, touch and express feelings of desire towards other men and their bodies. As such, this practice can be viewed as a contestation of hegemonic gender values, in which masculinity and fitness doping are detached from a quite heterosexist understanding, and turned into a symbolic world of homoerotic pleasure.

Reconceptualising the gender of fitness doping: Performing and negotiating masculinity through drug-use practices

This article analyses self-portrayals and gender constructions among Swedish male bodybuilders who are engaged in fitness doping. The empirical material comes from a larger ethnographic investigation into gym culture. The results show that there is a strong propensity to conform with particular gender fantasies that rests heavily on a binary understanding of gendered, doped bodies. However, this storyline does not apprehend the entire self-presentation of the analysed drug users. Negotiations and inclusive subversions of traditional gender norms are also expressed. For example, the narratives show how the use of performance-enhancing substances makes it possible for (heterosexual) men to approach, touch and express feelings of desire towards other men and their bodies. As such, this practice can be viewed as a contestation of hegemonic gender values, in which masculinity and fitness doping are detached from a quite heterosexist understanding, and turned into a symbolic world of homoerotic pleasure.

‘Doing for group exercise what McDonald's did for hamburgers’: Les Mills, and the fitness professional as global traveller

This article analyses fitness professionals' perceptions and understanding of their occupational education and pedagogical pursuance, framed within the emergence of a global fitness industry. The empirical material consists of interviews with personal trainers and group fitness instructors, as well as observations in their working environment. In addition, printed material from different occupational organisations and educational companies has been included. The narratives of the fitness professionals and a case study of Les Mills are presented and analysed through the concept of the McDonaldisation of society, or more specifically of fitness culture. The results show that, even though gym and fitness franchises differ from hamburger restaurant chains, there are crucial similarities, but also differences. One can, for example, discern a tendency towards the construction of predesigned and highly monitored programmes, such as the one developed by Les Mills. Homogenisation is also apparent when looking at the body ideals produced, as fitness professionals work on their own or clients' bodies, which makes it possible to anticipate a global body ideal. The social and cultural patterns of self-regulation and self-government found in gym and fitness culture can be understood and analysed in a global context. What we find is an intriguing and complex mixture of regulation, control and standardisation, on the one hand, and a struggle to express the body, to be ‘free’ and to transgress the boundaries set by the commercial global fitness industry, on the other.

Understanding exercise adherence and dropout: an interpretative phenomenological analysis of men and women’s accounts of gym attendance and non-attendance

This study was designed to investigate experiences of maintaining and dropping out of a gym-based exercise programme. Interviews were carried out with 14 people, aged 19–32 years, comprising seven men and two women who had maintained their gym membership and three women and two men who had not. Member validation interviews were conducted 20 months later with one man who was previously maintaining but had since dropped out, and one woman originally not maintaining who had at the time of validation been maintaining for three months. Data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis, highlighting five themes. Upward social comparisons, gym culture and exercise habit were discussed by both adherers and non-adherers. The different ways the participants experienced these themes led to different outcomes in exercise status. Adherers discussed exercise dependency in relation to the meaning of the gym and their long-term commitment. Loss of social support contributed to dropout. The role of gender was highlighted with particular relevance to social comparison, culture and social support. Participants described a masculine gym culture, which produced contrasting effects on adherence. Upward social comparisons and lack of social support impacted negatively on adherence in females with poor body satisfaction. This is the first study to investigate qualitatively exercise adherence in males and females who have both adhered to and dropped out of an exercise programme. It identifies themes that have previously received little or no attention in the adherence field and results have implications for our understanding of factors influencing adherence to gym-based exercise programmes in men and women.

Doping and the perfect body expert: social and cultural indicators of performance-enhancing drug use in Danish gyms

Most doping studies focus on the incidence of performance-enhancing drugs and devote little attention to the training sphere or the social factors involved in this process. In this study, Danish doping data from different social arenas of sport and physical exercise (7,039 respondents) form the basis for analyses of the relative importance of social indicators. More respondents from gyms admitted to having experimented with legal as well as banned performance-enhancing substances than did respondents among elite athletes, and the relative importance of education is only indicated among gym users with experience of anabolic-androgenic steroids compared to respondents within the sphere of competitive sport. These results are discussed in the light of findings from qualitative studies of the doping phenomenon. Two patterns of doping practices are discernible in the analysis: whereas aesthetic modification appears to be a primary goal behind certain training regimes and the potential use of pharmaceutical substances in gym and fitness culture, the desire to improve physical capacity appears to underlie the training regimes as well as the use of certain pharmaceutical substances in competitive sports. It is argued that the notion of the perfect body expert is useful in developing a theoretical understanding of the role of drug use within physical training spheres while conceiving different patterns of doping practices.