Background
Methods
Data collection and setting
Research question | Interview question |
---|---|
Part I: Exercise in your biography | How often do you exercise on a weekly basis? How old were you when you started to exercise? Which role did exercise play in your childhood? Which type(s) of exercise did you perform? Can you remember any emotions regarding exercise in your childhood? Did you have important friendships or other social relationships combined with your exercise? Did you prefer team or individual exercise? Did you like to compete? |
Part II: Motivation for exercise | What is your main motivation for exercising? Did you have any benefits or disadvantages caused by your exercise? How did your social environment react to your exercise activity? Did your friends accept your sporting interest? |
Part III: Exercise in your family and peer biography | Do you have siblings? Have your parents or siblings been active in sports or did they participate in exercise? Have you been playing games (e.g. ludo, chess) in your family? If yes, was winning an important issue? Do your friends or classmates have the same attitude towards exercise? Did this change during your life? |
Part IV: Body image and visibility in a social context | Do you like your body? Has your relationship to your body changed over the years? How is it for you to compete and train public places, where other athletes or strangers can see your body? How much do you reflect about your body? |
Participants
ID | Age | Occupation | Exercise or sport (for C: years of competition experience) | Exercise environment | |
Competitive athletes | C1 | 23 | Student | Running, hurdles (6) | With a trainer, in a group |
C2 | 30 | Employed | Hurdles (24) | With a trainer, individually | |
C3 | 20 | Student | Running (4) | Trainer/group | |
C4 | 20 | Sabbatical | Running (6) | Trainer/group | |
C5 | 28 | Employed | Hurdles (20) | Trainer/group | |
C6 | 19 | Student | Running, hurdles (13) | Trainer/group | |
C7 | 35 | Employed | Running (15) | Trainer/group | |
C8 | 18 | Student | Running, long jump (13) | Trainer/group | |
C9 | 22 | Student | Running, hurdles (8) | Trainer/group | |
C10 | 53 | Employed | Heptathlon, high jump (25) | Trainer/individually | |
Age | Occupation | Actual exercise or sport | Exercise environment | ||
Recreational athletes | R1 | 24 | Student | Running, cycling | No trainer/individually |
R2 | 27 | Student | Badminton, pilates, other cardio | No trainer/individually and in a group | |
R3 | 26 | Student | Cycling, weight-lifting | No trainer/individually | |
R4 | 28 | Student | Cycling, weight-lifting, kickboxing | No trainer/individually and in a group | |
R5 | 25 | Student | Cycling, weight-lifting, yoga, other cardio | No trainer/individually | |
R6 | 25 | Employed | Running, cycling, weight-lifting | No trainer/individually | |
R7 | 22 | Student | Running, cycling, dance | No trainer/individually and in a group | |
R8 | 22 | Student | Running, cycling, weight-lifting, yoga | No trainer/individually | |
R9 | 27 | Student | Running, weight-lifting, dance | No trainer/individually and in a group | |
R10 | 26 | Student | Skiing, climbing | No trainer/individually |
Analysis of the interviews
Results
Individual biography (part I)
Motives for exercising (part II)
Parental influence (part III)
“My family never took part in my decision for choosing a certain sport. I could start or stop whatever I liked to do. Probably, my brothers were influenced by my choice to choose football.” (R7).
“My father went riding, too. But he would never watch me when I was riding!” (laughs) (R4).
“As children, we had to participate in a sport. Sport was seen as something positive and healthy. When we had chosen a sport, we should participate on a regular basis, even if we didn’t feel up to go to training a certain day; it was a way to learn discipline” (R5).
“Especially me and my sister, we have more fighter genes than most of other families; we always had to compete, even during holidays. (…) But we have always been happy for each other’ success. (…) But my age records are still better than hers.” (smiles)(C8).
“My father asked my trainer: ‘How far can she make it? Which level will she reach?’ (...) and at a certain point I had to push him back and to say, ‘you have no idea what I am doing; please, stay out of my sports life.’” (C3).
Social settings (part III)
“I was not very popular at school, so sport gave me an identity, a niche!” (C2).
“My first trainer (…) has known me since I was five years old, he knows exactly, how I am thinking, and he knows how to treat me, I trusted him, and I trained maybe seven times a week for 1.5 hours.” (C5).
Bodily appearance and self-understanding (part IV)
“It is great to exercise, you feel good about yourself” (C1);
“I feel better about myself, when I have been exercising” (R7).
“If I have to look really good before going to a party, I push myself in the gym beforehand” (R7).
“I shave my legs the day before a competition; if I don’t, I will run slower, because I am heavier. I have also the ritual of fixing up my nails, as a form of competition preparation” (C8).
“I hate to train by myself; I need to compete with others under the training” (C1);
“I also like the way I look naked when I have been exercising.” (R7).
“The most important part was to become better at something, by myself.” (C5).
“Your self-worth gets better when you look into the mirror and think your abs are just great!” (R7).
“I am using my head the whole day (...), sometimes it is really nice to do something with your muscles.” (R1).
“[Exercise] is a distraction for me. To come into your body and out of your head.” (R8).
“I would like to have that six-pack, but I can’t use it for my running. You are more focused on what you actually need. I would not profit from losing some pounds, I would lose muscles instead. Of course, I would enjoy less weight, but that would reduce my speed, so I don’t care. I don’t need a flat tummy; I just want to run fast!” (C1).