Branded fitness: Exercise and promotional culture

Abstract

This article develops a theory of branded fitness within the United States through a focus on two of its most visible examples: CrossFit and Bikram yoga. We argue that highly successful forms of branded fitness such as these give insight into the enormous power and permeation of branded sensibilities into everyday life – in this case, going so far as to inform how we relate to, and attempt to modify, our own bodies. However, we argue that a close examination of branded fitness likewise reveals the inconsistencies, trouble spots, and extraordinary limits of the brand as a way to build a fitness movement – which we contend is instructive in thinking about how branding more generally relates to mediation, community, and cultural commodification.

Elements of rituality in consumer tribes: The case of crossfit

“…The generated data are centred on a tribe of amateur athletes, Reebok CrossFit 33100, who share a common passion for CrossFit. CrossFit is the registered trademark and fitness form developed by Greg Glassman (Powers & Greenwell, 2016). Its core purpose is to improve an individual's overall fitness and performance through versatile practices.…”

“…Stories posted on the CrossFit website, such as 'World-Class Fitness in 100 Words', which is a short description of CrossFit, contain subtle implications and models of romantic values, and they even possess evangelistic characteristics, which then circulate among tribe members, becoming part of their language and manifesting in the physical universe. As the example above shows, crossfit.com is the main source of information related to CrossFit and builds mythical stories around the tribe (see also Powers & Greenwell, 2016). Some key people, such as trainers, then channel these stories towards the tribe, where they circulate and fortify the collective feeling and, again, manifest in physical performance.…”

“…The case tribe consists of amateur athletes united by their shared interest in functional training and communal spirit. The case context represents a contemporary phenomenon of 'branded fitness' (Powers & Greenwell, 2016) where participants invest a considerable amount of time, as well as financial and social resources, in exercise and membership. As the focus is on physical activity, this context allows us to explore the embodied and emotional nature of tribal rituals in more detail.…”

Cyborgs, Robots and Society: Implications for the Future of Society from Human Enhancement with In-The-Body Technologies

“…For example, people follow regimes of extreme physical exercise, such as CrossFit, in order to increase their embodied cultural capital. The extremeness of CrossFit is illustrated by one of its unofficial mascots having been Uncle Rhabdo, which is a symbol for a life-threatening condition brought on by extreme physical exertion called rhabdomyolysis [66]. Human enhancement with in-the-body technologies can also involve experiencing some pain in order to achieve some gain.…”

“…Thus, body projects often involve repeated pain and discomfort, which can be much more than that of implanting in-the-body technologies. For example, people try continually to increase their cultural capital through activities including repeated extreme physical training and repeated plastic surgery [22,23,66]. For example, brain implants can be used to meet biomedical needs, but alternatively can be used solely for capacity enhancing purposes.…”