Making the American Body: The Remarkable Saga of the Men and Women Whose Feats, Feuds, and Passions Shaped Fitness History

by Jonathan Black

If you thought the fitness craze was about being healthy, think again. Although Charles Atlas, Jack LaLanne, Jim Fixx, Jane Fonda, Richard Simmons, and Jillian Michaels might well point the way to a better body, they have done so only if their brands brought in profits. In the first book to tell the full story of the American obsession with fitness and how we got to where we are today, Jonathan Black gives us a backstage look at an industry and the people that have left an indelible mark on the American body and the consciousness it houses.


 

Spanning the nation’s fitness obsession from Atlas to Arnold, from Spinning to Zumba, and featuring an outrageous cast of characters bent on whipping us into shape while simultaneously shaping the way we view our bodies, Black tells the story of an outsized but little-examined aspect of our culture. With insights drawn from more than fifty interviews and attention to key developments in bodybuilding, aerobics, equipment, health clubs, running, sports medicine, group exercise, Pilates, and yoga, Making the American Body reveals how a focus on fitness has shaped not only our physiques but also, and more profoundly, American ideas of what “fitness” is.


 

Genres: History, Nonfiction

264 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just finished:

"Making The American Body: The Remarkable Saga of the Men and Women Whose Feats, Feuds, and Passions Shaped Fitness History."

By: Jonathan Black

Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2013.
Clearly written and interesting. There are a lot of larger than life personalities in here from Bernarr Macfadden, Bob Hoffman, Joe Weider, Arnold, Joseph Pilates, Abbye "pudgy" Stockton, Bonnie Prudden, and Doris Barrilleaux.

That said, I thought the story should have been made up of several entries looking at aerobics in one volume, weightlifting and bodybuilding in another.

One trend that stands out is that many who got into fitness were small or sickly as a kid.

[Kimberly Us · Rating 5 out of 5]

The history of the fitness movement in the U.S.A. is a fascinating read. I picked it up to do research on midcentury pioneer Jack LaLane, but I learned so much more information than I expected. I loved learning about the original muscle beach in Santa Monica because I thought it had started in Venice Beach. I would recommend this to all P.E. teachers so they can add a little bit of history to their curriculum. It is also interesting for people who love history. The general reader should know that it isn't a guide for how to do fitness or select a program, it is a history book.

[Ci · Rating 4 out of 5]

In modern life, being fit is secondly desirable to being rich. One often needs the blessing of Goddess Fortuna to be rich, but being fit is often thought as within the reach of self-discipline. The Fitness is Americana writ large -- the visible triumph over sloth and gluttony to achieve an enviable testament of one's bodily glory. "Feeling good" largely comes from "looking good"; health comes to the fore of the psyche in smaller portion.

Fitness is a highly commercialized industry that only tangentially related to scientific imperatives of health promotion. The author provided a vivid history chronicling major characters and events in American fitness scene from 1900. Outsized talents matching with outsized egos and zeal, these men and women had propelled their own obsessions and insights into a billion dollar industry in America. One only needs to compare the number of people who have a regular gym membership in a US city to a non-US one (say Paris) to see the massive impact these people have had on the American urban life style. Even with the obesity rate holding steadily up, US still boasts the insights that regular exercise is as common as daily shower. One does not always go to the gym, but the idea is that one should. Most urban French would find such "should" surprising.

For more good than bad, fitness industry serves an overall beneficial effect. Its products -- from Pilates to CrossFit -- are largely useful for some people at some time. The pernicious over-hyping resides largely in the intrinsic gullible of modern times push for a quick-fix and superficiality, and it does not matter if the products are clothing, cosmetics, pills, or Hammer Smith machines.

In the end, the Greek sage knew it a long time ago -- "mens sans in corpore sano" . Healthy mind in healthy body, not the gym-rat muscle-heads.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging and informative history of fitness and fitness culture in the US. Spanning from the nineteenth-century circus strongmen to the presen-day fitness trends, the author hones in on some of the key figures and inventions that changed the fitness landscape. I really enjoyed the 1930s-1950s era of Muscle Beach, California, and then back stories of some of the ubiquitous equipment found in every gym, like the elliptical, the cable machines, etc.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable look a the key figures that shaped American fitness. I was surprised to that I tangentially tangentially knew so many of the leading figures. It was also surprising to see how long many of these people have been involved in the fitness industry.