The Revolution of Fitness: A Contemporary Analysis of How Technology and Personal Training Influences Consumer Behavior in Two Atlanta, Georgia Fitness Centers

The Revolution of Fitness: A Contemporary Analysis of How Technological and Personal Training Influences Consumer Behavior in Two Atlanta, Georgia Fitness Centers Krista Cross (Kennesaw State University) Krista Cross Today, fitness gyms and private health clubs are globally recognized as multi-billion-dollar establishments. This study explores the development of the modern gym and fitness culture, particularly the emergence of fitness trends such as personal training and technology. This paper aims to understand how and why training in the gym has become so important for people. A comparative case study approach was used to consider personal training and technological influences, which are both contributing to the prevailing phenomena of the fitness industry. While both facilities under investigation entered the market in 2013 and both utilize group-based personal training instructed classes, they each incorporate different workout regimes. How are gym members’ behaviors affected by the fitness centers’ culture? Why do consumers seek to use technology while working out? Why do they rely more on personal training in studio-based gyms versus the “big box” gyms. In this study, “fitness culture” is the embodied culture found inside health studios and clubs amongst members. I purposefully observed two gym locations during class times through continuous monitoring and conducted semi-structured interviews with the management experts. I also used participant observation to gain experiential data through immersion. I found that technology and personal training both have tremendous benefits and purposes for the members taking the classes. The analysis also suggests that the practices, apparatuses, and physical exercises used today in these two Atlanta area gyms are the result of a physical fitness culture established and currently refined throughout the twentieth century. The physique ideals, exercises, and incorporation of technology have turned fitness into a highly customizable popular movement based on fitness culture and modern trends. Further results should reveal the complex motives underlying the members’ participation in these two modern fitness fashions alongside their individualized optimal fitness goals