Gymnastics is a mens and womens sport that requires balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, endurance and control. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shoulders, back, chest and abdominal muscle groups. Alertness, precision, daring, self-confidence and self-discipline are mental traits that can also be developed through gymnastics. Gymnastics evolved from exercises used by the ancient Greeks that included skills for mounting and dismounting a horse, and from circus performance skills.
Fitness culture is a sociocultural phenomenon which refers to the culture surrounding physical exercises. It is usually associated with gym culture, as doing physical exercises in locations such as gyms, wellness centres and health clubs is a popular activity. An international survey found that more than 27% of world total adult population attends fitness centres, and that 61% of regular exercisers are currently doing "gym-type" activities.
In ancient Greece and Rome, a public place devoted to athletes training, called gymnasion (plural: gymnasia) for Greeks and palaestra (plural: palaestrae) for Romans existed in cities. Fitness was regarded as a concept shaped by two cultural codes: rationalization and asceticism; authenticity and hedonism, respectively. In Greece, gymnastic excellence was regarded as a noble and godly pursuit, and was included in a complete education. Gymnasiums became the center of the community, being associated with the arts, the study of logic, and a source of entertainment. Skilled athletes attained an elevated status and devoted their lives to becoming proficient in exercise.
From around 1800, gymnastics developed in Western countries was meant to enhance body in order to sustain public morals and to mold better citizens. Pehr Henrik Ling was a pioneer in the teaching of physical education in Sweden, and he sought to reform and improve the gymnastics of the ancient Greeks. In 1850, the Supreme Medical Board of Russia reported to their emperor on Lings system, that by improving ones overall fitness, an athlete became superior to those who merely focused on a subset of muscles or actions.
Mass media plays an important role in shaping fitness culture because of the messages of an ideal body image they convey. Media such as TV, magazines and book publications, tend to promote slimness or even thinness as the ideal standards of female body image and slenderness or muscularity as the ideal male body image. Commercial advertisements have also created an influential and powerful force in promoting a stereotype of ideal body image which is not limited to fashion advertisements. Advertisements on commodities such as watches, smartphones and household appliances, have promoted an idealized body image of women and men as well. The perception of being slim and thin for women and slender and muscular for men became a stereotype in society, creating sociocultural pressures and influencing people to engage in fitness in order to pursuit the ideal body image promoted by the mass media.
Exercising and dieting is often seen as the best way to achieve such ideal body image. For instance, fitness publications promote an idea that doing physical exercise is the natural medicine to your body and health. On the other hand, fashion magazines promote slimness and thinness as the ideal female image: to promote high fashion, models are usually slim and thin. There is also a significant increase of diet and weight loss articles in magazines. In addition, the shape of models has changed dramatically towards a “more tubular female form” in high fashion culture, often sparking controversies.
Personal trainers act as representative roles that represent the fitness club. It is a kind of representation for customers in term of satisfaction and loyalty to that particular fitness institution.