Meanings and Practices of Body Construction by Women in Fitness Clubs: the Case of Saint Petersburg

The purpose of the research is to compare meanings of body construction and fitness practices between women of different age groups who attend fitness clubs in Saint Petersburg. The empirical base consists of 16 semi-structured interviews: 6 of them were conducted with women 20-30 years old, 5 interviews — with women 35-45 years old and 5 interviews — with women 46-55 years old. This paper describes in detail the motivations of visiting fitness clubs, the images of the desired body and the ideal body that informants have, as well as fitness practices of informants of different age groups. The results of the study show that the reason for the differences in the practices of body construction is in the type of body that the informants want to create with the help of fitness classes. As a result, three types of fitness clubs’ goers were identified, to each of which women of different age groups belong to. The first type includes women who want to create a slim and toned body, the second — women who want not only a slim, but also a “relief” body, and the third type includes women who are already satisfied with their body and do not want to change it.