1-31-01: Jana and I went on our first run around the neighborhood this morning. No one else was running, but the people we saw seemed to be pretty active. There were lots of people on bikes and women playing badminton in the yard outside of an apartment building. There is a park in the same block as our university, and there is exercise equipment for both adults and children. There are traditional swings and slides, but there are also leg exercising and stretching machines that I have only seen older people use. Adults also do Tai Chi in the park in the mornings. Occasionally, I have seen other people practicing some sort of group exercise that looks like tai chi or yoga with fans. I wonder if people do not run for cardiovascular exercise here because it is not common or if they don’t run because the pollution is normally so bad.

2-01-01: I have noticed from walking around that there are not a lot of advertisements (I have seen none so far) that have "buff" guys with their shirts off, displaying their muscles and abdominal muscles. I was just in Times Square in New York a few days ago before flying to China, and the biggest ads were Tommy Hilfiger or Abercrombie & Fitch ads that featured men with large muscles and no shirts.

On a similar note, I have seen very few "he woman" ads with very toned and muscular women in exercise gear sweating and playing sports. Those are very popular in the States, especially for companies like Nike that use women like Mia Hamm to promote products. While she is beautiful, she is very muscular and not waif like. The only advertisements I have seen so far in Beijing featuring women athletes have been either gymnasts or divers – all of very slight build. These same few girls promote tons of different products.

At dinner, I met a girl who wrestles at the Sports University in Beijing. I’d like to talk to her more because girls don’t usually wrestle in the US.

• Is fit a new fad here like it is in the US? Or is skinny still the way to go?
• Would someone, a woman, like Mia Hamm be considered beautiful here? Or too manly?
• Because smoking is such a big part of the culture here, do the people that workout on a regular basis smoke? Or do they know that it’s not good for them?
• Do the people who workout know anything about nutrition?
• Do they take supplements, vitamins, or drink protein powder?

2-02-01: Judy saw protein powder advertised on TV today, so now we know that they do sell it. The next question is, do the people that workout at the gyms consume it? I saw the finals of the women’s Australian Open on TV today. That was strange because the match took place almost 2 weeks ago. Also, I didn’t know tennis had a big enough following to be broadcast on the national sports channel. I wonder if the Chinese viewers know that the match wasn’t live.

I spent some time talking with a guy named Dave who was here for Janterm this year. He belongs to the gym that I think I’m going to start going to. He told me that traditionally, it used to be that calling someone fat was a compliment in China because it meant that the person was healthy and to call someone skinny was to imply that they were sickly. Now, with the influence of western culture, and the huge influx of western products, advertising, and body image, fat has become bad (especially for women) and skinny is now the ideal.

We went by the gym today just to check it out. It is near the university in a large office building across from the McDonalds. The receptionists wouldn’t let us look inside because they said that it was closed for remodeling. I did get to pick up some flyers that advertised "Beauty Badybuilding", and I saw the little store where they sell exercise clothes- lots of sports bras and spandex.

• Who is the target audience for the people selling protein powder?
• Do the gyms in China function as a place for the 20-something crowd to meet members of the opposite sex they way that they do in the US?
• Is it as much about social interaction as the actual working out?
• Do women get "dressed up" to work out here?

2-05-01: Today I saw a variety/propaganda show describing how great and modern China is becoming. The program featured little segments of different parts of modern Chinese culture, including women graduating from college. The only parts that were about exercise featured traditional forms like Tai Chi and stretching. There was no weight lifting or youth in exercise besides organized team and participatory sports.

2-06-01: I saw a tennis store today. It was called something like ATP store. The taxi I was in also had an advertisement for "The New Beijing Great Olympics 2008." This city really seems to want the bid pretty badly. A lot of the clean up and the modernization (including the introduction of sports like weight lifting I think) is due to the country’s desire to be more appealing to the rest of the world and to get the Olympics.

I met my research partner today. He is very interesting because he used to be very involved in Chinese dance (Chinese Ballet) in high school, but in the last few years he has started going to the gym and lifting weights. He says going to the gym keeps him "healthy and beautiful." He says that mostly only young people go to the gym and the older people stick to Tai Chi and other traditional forms. The gym is a place for rich people. He says that the women go there to stay thin and to look pretty and that the men go there to lift weights and get stronger. It was very obvious that for men the ideal body is strong, for women it is thin.

2-07-01: I bought a magazine about my topic today in an international bookstore. The publication is called "Chinese International Business" and is written in English. I have yet to really look through the article. I took a lot of pictures of athletic signs and stores while we were out at the shopping mall today. I saw a Nike store that looked just like the ones at home. There were lots of shoe stores around all advertising with NBA players – a very western concept. I wonder if the new influx of western sports like the NBA will reduce racism- if it exists at all.

I found out that they sell weightlifting equipment and protein/dietary supplements at Carrefour. I saw a man looking at hand weights and trying do decide which ones to buy. The weights were light with the heaviest only weighing about 5 lbs. I think. The man was thin and young. He was probably in his late twenties.

I found a clothing and exercise booth in the market across from BIE. It is a little stall and looks kind of out of place among all the other vendors who sell sweaters and coats and mostly clothing items. This booth sells tummy belts and abdominal mats and stuff. I need to go back there, but the products seem to be like the type that you would see on an infomercial at like 6 a.m. in the states – something akin to the "Abdominal Blaster" or the weight loss cremes. The lady running the booth was young and slim but not necessarily any more fit than the average woman I have seen walking around. Her products mostly advertised "sliming and toning".

Levin, my research partner, and myself went to the gym today across from the McDonalds. I locked my things in the ladies locker room, which looked like any normal locker room in the States. The weight lifting area of the gym is what I imagine an American gym, especially like a Golds’ Gym to have looked like in the late 1980s. The equipment is worn-not for lack of desire to take care of it, but just for lack of knowledge of how to properly take care of it I think. The area was very clean, and there were attendants (young women) that were walking around in case you had any questions. The walls were covered with posters of past fitness champions. None were Chinese. The pictures of the women weightlifters were almost pornographic. Their chests and buttocks were barely covered. They were all oiled and unnaturally tanned. On the wall was a free postcard display-the type that has lots of free postcards advertising products or Websites. There was an AIDS prevention card. I thought that was a bit strange because I have seen no other advertisements about AIDS or heard anyone talk about it since we’ve been here. There was also what looked be a bar at one corner of the weight room. I didn’t see anyone drinking smoothies or health drinks, though, so I’m not sure what it was there for. There was no water fountain.

There was one very old scale at the corner of the room. While I was in there, only women got on it. Almost every woman that came into the gym got on the scale before doing anything else. Most of the weightlifters were men. I only saw 3 women, none of who were in very good shape. Most of the men were toned but skinny. I only saw 2 "muscle heads" while I was in there. One was wearing a Golds' Gym T-shirt.

The gym had free weights and nautilus machines, but the lightest free weight I could find was about 25 lbs. That is way too heavy for someone my size to lift. There was rack space for lighter ones, but they just weren’t there. Not very many people were lifting free weights. I think that might I have been because they just couldn’t lift them.

The motions that some of the people used while lifting were very jerky and not fluid at all. Many lifted with a technique that any trainer in the States would tell you is bad for you and could injure your body very easily. They were basically throwing these heavy weights around without any control. I was nervous someone was going to hurt his or her back or shoulder.

I saw one man doing what looked to be stretching/warm-up exercises in the mirror before he lifted. His routine reminded me of the men and women I see doing stretches in the morning when I go run. His movements were a combination of stretching, dance, and martial arts. I wonder if he used to do more traditional exercise/dance before he started going to the gym.

There were 4 treadmills on one side of the room. Surprisingly, each treadmill had it’s own personal TV. It didn’t seem like any of the TVs were actually working. Dave, who had a membership to that gym last semester, said that the treadmills weren’t very safe, and that sometimes the attendants would have to tighten the screws on them while people were running.

The aerobics class that Levin and I did was a very strange mix of exercises. The class had elements of ballet, tae bo, weightlifting, stretching, aerobics, hip-hop dance, and gymnastics. The music was all "club" pop (Backstreet Boys, Brittany Spears, and dance music). It was very high energy. The aerobics room was large and doubled as a ballet studio I think. Most of the walls were either mirrored or glass, and there was a big stereo system and a raised platform for the instructor. The instructor was very young, probably mid-twenties. She was in very good shape, tiny, and beautiful. She had a western haircut and was a wonderful dancer. I wonder if she danced when she was younger before she started to teach classes. She was very high energy but said very little. She would sometimes get down off her podium and walk around to the women to make sure that they had proper form, especially for weightlifting and abdominal exercises.

Only women attended the class. There were a few men to begin with, but they left before the class was finished. The women were all young, maybe young professionals. If they do work, however, I can’t figure out how they could get off work to take aerobics at 2 p.m. in the afternoon. Most were dressed in spandex and T-shirts, some in sweatpants, some in only sports bras and spandex. The clothing was basically the same as it would have been in the US I think. There were only 2 women in the class that I noticed were markedly out of shape and would probably have been considered over weight. Most of the others were thin and in good shape.

• Where did the aerobics instructor get her training?
• Does she teach all of the classes?
• At the sports’ university, are there aerobics classes?
• Do the women who attend the classes go daily, weekly?

This particular gym has been open for about 3 or 4 years. The equipment has not been replaced since then.

2-08-01: Today I found two magazines about my topic. They are called "Fitness and Beauty." They both have pictures of both western and Asian athletes and body builders. Some of the posters on the wall of the gym are the centerfolds from these magazines.

2-09-01: On my run this morning, I saw a mother and her son running for exercise. They are the first people I have seen out running for cardiovascular exercise. The mother was young and in good shape. The boy, about 8, was just trying his best to keep up with her. She would often turn around and say something to him to encourage him to keep running.

2-10-01: Tonight Dr. Farquhar talked to a taxi driver who had an advertisement of a body builder in his cab. She asked him if he found that kind of body to be attractive (huge muscles, tanned skin, oiled). He told her that he didn’t but that he did respect the goal of getting stronger. He just didn’t like the huge developed muscles. For him, strength = good but not when it creates a physical abnormality.

• If strength is considered an honorable goal, just how much evidence of physical strength is the right amount before bodies become unattractive?
• What is the ideal body, if that isn’t it?

2-11-01: Today on the subway I saw two ads for Nicorette gum (the kind that helps you stop smoking). They were both next to other ads for reduced fat milk (50% less fat than other milk). I thought that was interesting because it shows that now the common people (those who ride the subway) and not just the rich have access to products to improve their health. Although it is not directly related to exercise, it does show that the common person is becoming more interested in products to keep them thin and healthy. The country is learning about things that are bad for them, ex. Smoking, and making a conscious effort to curb those habits. More exercise and healthy eating habits are making their way into the middle class.

2-12-01: Today I went to the gym with my research partner again. We went at about 5:45 in the afternoon. There was an aerobics/kickboxing class that we both went too. It was very crowded. There were probably about 100 women and 4 men in the class. The teacher is supposedly very famous. The aerobics part of the gym was full of women, but the weightlifting part was less crowded than it had been when I went before at around 3 in the afternoon. There were more women lifting weights tonight than before, but there were also just more women there in general, so I don’t know if that was just a coincidence.

They had refilled the free postcard dispenser. The only postcard that was not there was the AIDS one. I don’t know if they just ran out again or if they never refilled that one. It would be interesting to find out.

I noticed today that although there are a lot of thin women that work out at the gym, most are not toned or muscular. They are thin but not necessarily in good shape. That makes me wonder if the women don’t want to be muscular and are only there to lose weight or if they just don’t know how to properly lift. Again, it was hard to find small free weights today.

During the abdominal and weights part of the class today I also noticed that the instructor did not give any instructions on proper form for doing the exercises. She did the exercises correctly, but many of the women in the class were doing crunches in a way that can really injure the neck. In America, the instructor usually makes it a point to go around and check people’s form to avoid injury.

The bar that is at the side of the gym is a snack bar, but it’s strange because in the cooler there was bottled water, soft drinks, dove chocolate, milk and other random things. There were no carbohydrate drinks or anything like that. Pepsi sponsors the bar, and there are Pepsi flags above the seats around the bar. I didn’t see any other Pepsi products.

The women in the gym do not wear Nike or any other easily recognizable sports wear brands. Some wear Nike shoes but very few have shirts with slogans or brand names on them.

Monthly memberships to this gym (Hao Sha) are 160 RMB.

I noticed that many women come to the gym and workout with friends or in groups.

• Is 160 RMB a significant amount of money for these people? What percentage of their salary is it?
• Is it a social activity?

2-15-01: Today I had a very interesting time at the gym. I took another aerobics class. It was much more like the classes in the USA. The moves were ones that I knew for the most part. The teacher was a young man who kind of reminded me of Richard Simmons with all of his energy. His class was different than the others that I have taken because at the end, he incorporated a time of personal massage, relaxation and stretching. He also is the first teacher that I have seen give a good explanation of how to properly do abdominal exercises to protect the neck and back. He came down off the stage and walked around correcting people’s form. The most interesting part about that was that he always corrected me first. He would come down off the stage and head directly for me. I don’t know if it was because he thought that I couldn’t understand what he was saying or if my form was really that bad. His body was a lot like the women in his class. He was skinny and barely had any big muscles. Again today, there were only two men in the class and lots of women.

Today when I was lifting weights, I saw this funny machine in the corner of the room. A woman got on it, strapped a strap around her waist, stood on a platform, and the machine began vibrating and shaking her around. I asked my research partner what that was for, and he told me that it was to loosen you up. I’ve never seen anything like that before. It reminded me of one of those machines or hoaxes that are "simple and easy" ways to lose weight without having to workout. I need to ask someone if that machine is for weight loss purposes.

My research partner again brought up the point that you can’t go to the gym if you are poor. He says that a lot. Is going to the gym a status symbol?

I would like to start watching some exercise shows and VCDs soon to see if that type of instruction compares to the instruction given at the gym and to look at the body types of the instructors. I began to wonder today if the type of body that I consider ideal – muscular, healthy, and toned – would be considered too big and somewhat fat in this culture. I am really interested in the connection to modern exercise and body image in china. I think that with the increased consumerism and money flow to china that now, maybe for the first time, many people have extra money for things like gyms and can be concerned with things like fashion and body instead of just every day needs. It is interesting how that phenomenon could have an effect on body image.

• Why do people lift weights and do aerobics instead of traditional exercise like Tai Chi?
• Did/do the people who lift weights participate in any other forms of exercise, e.g. team sports or traditional Chinese exercise?
• Do the parents of the people who lift weights practice any form of exercise? If so, do the children practice the same kind? Why or why not?
• Does the ideal body type for Chinese women include having any muscle tone or just a thin frame?

2-18-01: Today I went back to Carrefour to look more carefully at their assortment of exercise equipment. It took me a really long time to find the display because the store had replaced the sports display with a toy display and moved the weight lifting equipment to a different place. The display I found was bigger than the previous one that I had seen. This one not only included free weights but also had a series of portable, home use exercise machines, including the "Chest Pulling Force Exerciser" for 35 kuai, the "3 Function Exerciser" for 49.90, the "Baode PD-2300 Fat Sport" for 298 kuai, and the "Spring Action Rowing Exerciser" for 49.90. All of the packaging for these products featured Asian models. The equipment looked like the type of thing you would see on an infomercial in the states.

The free weights ranged in size from 1.5 kg to 10 kg and were priced from 11.50 – 100 kuai. For the most part, the price increased with weight. While I was looking at the weights no one else was looking at them. It is likely that it was because I was standing in front of them taking notes on a note pad. I thought that it was interesting that a large crowd of young men was looking at tennis and badminton equipment right beside me, but they did not show any interest in the weight equipment.

• Are there Chinese infomercials?

2-21-01: Today I went to Hao Sha again at about 5 p.m. I bought a membership for 169 kuai, which I think, was the student discount. That’s a pretty sizeable chunk of money to pay on a monthly basis in China. I took an aerobics class from 5-6, and all of the students were women again. The gym got some new equipment this weekend- Stairmasters and new treadmills that are like the ones I’ve seen in my gym in the states. Only women were using them while I was there tonight.

I was surprised at how uncrowded the weightlifting area was at around 5. I figure that that time is about when most people get off of work, and I was surprised that there were so few people there. That is peak time in the states. One thing that I noticed that was different from the other times I’ve been to that gym was that the ratio of women to men lifting weights was about equal. There were far more women than I’ve ever seen before. A few were lifting pretty heavy amounts of weight. Today was also the first time I’ve seen the men go up in front of the mirrors and flex their muscles and assume the poses that I see in the muscle magazines. One man, who worked out the entire time without a shirt, spent a good two or three minutes admiring himself in the mirror. He was very muscular. In fact, he was at least of a comparable size, if not larger, than the man on the cover of the January edition of Fitness and Beauty magazine that I have.

I realized that the gym is very hygiene conscious. They ask that you wear different shoes to work out in than you do to walk around outside. Also, almost everyone showers before they leave. It seems to be to the effect that the exercise and sweat is contained in the gym. You arrive clean, you exercise and shower and you leave clean again. That is different than at home. Showers are available, but most people come in their exercise clothes, leave sweaty, and shower at home. To me, that seems much easier than taking a group shower and having to tote all of your shower stuff to the gym. I wonder why they do that.

2-22-01: Today was the first day my new research partner and myself went to the gym together. It was great because she speaks really great English and can translate stuff really easily. We did an aerobics class, and I taught her some free weight exercises. The only ones she was really interested in doing were the ones for her stomach because she said that her arms and legs were already too muscular and ugly. I’ve heard this idea of muscular women being considered ugly repeated many times by both sexes. My partner is a 26-year-old teaching assistant at the international school in Beijing. She said that she started doing aerobics when she was about 8 years old and was also an instructor. She says that she started because she liked to jump around and still does, but now she also wants to lose weight. She told me that she guessed that probably only about 5 % of all the women in the gym went there to gain muscles, and the rest went there specifically to lose weight. She said that the only reason women would be lifting weights would be if they were waiting to go into an aerobics class.

She told me that although women are becoming more independent in Chinese society, men still like delicate and thin women who need to be protected by their men. She also told me that when she used to go to the gym at her university, she would always feel embarrassed because there would be half naked men working out, and she would always feel like she was being watched.

We talked to two women who were stretching and talking on a mat near where we were lifting weights. One was 49 years old and said that she had been going to the gym for 10 years. I don’t know where she went before Hao Sha. They both said that they come to the gym to stay healthy and mentioned nothing about weight. They were friends from the gym and had met there. They said that they did not do any other forms of traditional exercise and that they go to the gym 4 times a week.

2-24-01: I watched TV for an hour tonight between about 9:30 and 10:30. It was almost all news shows. There was one game show, one sports show, and one soap opera type of show, but the rest was all news.

The only thing I saw about exercise that I thought was interesting was that there was a commercial for a fancy hotel that showed the gym/health center as one of the lures of staying that this hotel. The commercial was in Chinese, so I believe that it was catering to a Chinese, not foreign, audience, especially an upper class audience. It is interesting that a gym could be used as a selling point. Would people chose to stay at this hotel because it has a gym as opposed to others that do not? In the US, gyms are often a deciding factor as to whether or not people stay in certain hotel.

A note about Hao Sha that I find interesting when trying to find a connection between exercise and beauty in China is that the gym is not just a gym. It is attached to the Hao Sha Salon. The salon does hair, makeup and massage. Going to the gym can be a total beautifying experience.

2-28-01: Today was the first day that I’ve gone to the gym by myself. A lot of people were watching a fitness/aerobics competition on the TV at the bar. It was an American competition that was probably previously recorded. There were men hul-a-hooping in the aerobics room. I watched the women in the weight area for a while. A lot of them were just lounging on the equipment instead of actually working out. I saw two women meet in the lobby and then ride the elevator to the gym together. I guess some people do meet to workout together. The women waiting for an aerobics class were also sitting in groups on the floor talking and laughing. Exercise is a social scene in Beijing. There was one really muscular man who looked in the mirror, adjusted his glasses, and smoothed his hair after almost every set of reps. He was noisy too, and would groan and yell when he was on the machines.

I used one of the "new" Stairmasters that the gym just recently got. They aren’t new, though, I don’t think. Some of the lights are burnt out, and the displays are scratched. They are distributed by the Tetricks company from Burbank, California. I wonder why they didn’t use an Asian distributor. I also wonder if the equipment is used. I don’t think many people had ever seen a Stairmaster because there was an employee whose only job was to explain it to people. He was surprised when I didn’t need any help.

2-28-01:Today I went to the headquarters for the Olympic Bid 2008 to get posters. While we were there looking at the models of what Beijing would look like with all the development for the Olympics and choosing posters, we met a man who worked in the office. I asked him if he thought that the enthusiasm for the Olympic bid had increased the number of people who exercised regularly in Beijing. He told me that the enthusiasm had spurred a lot of support for the cause, and many people were volunteering services such as translation. He said, however, that he didn’t think that the bid had changed people’s personal habits because everyone worked in their schedule and had their own preferences. I assume that the increased enthusiasm and interest in exercise and activity like aerobics and weightlifting coincides with the Olympic bid but is not a result of it.

3-03-01: Today was the first time I went to the gym on a weekend. There was no one there. I went with a friend from CET, and besides the occasional two other men who were lifting weights for about 20 minutes, we were the only ones in the entire gym. It was dead. The bar was closed. The clothing displays weren’t hung up, and the employees were watering the plants and cleaning. There were no aerobics classes.

We asked one of the few men who were there why nobody was there. He said that they were working. That didn’t make a lot of sense to me because I’ve been there on weekdays during the workday and people were there.

3-06-01: Today I talked to Yin Laoshi about exercise and how she exercises. She said that for exercise sometimes she walks to her dad’s house, which is about 30 minutes from her house. She said that she thinks that young people don’t do Tai Ji because it is too slow. She also said that most people here don’t start doing exercise until they are older and their health starts getting bad.

In her opinion, it is a good idea for women to lift weights. She said that there is some pressure in China for women to be thin but not as much as in the US. She thinks that the "be thin" ideology is coming from the states to China and making women worry about their weight.

She said that some of our teachers are really concerned with their weight and often skip lunches. They are all around 30 years old and do not participate in any form of regular exercise. They just diet.

I read the TV listings today and found two exercise shows on CCTV 5. The one at 6 a.m. is called "Early Bird," and the one at 9 a.m. is called "Age of Youth."

Wang Lei told me that the most popular form of exercise in China now is "shaping." It is not aerobics, and you lose weight but don’t have to gain muscles. The workout begins with aerobics or something to get your heart rate up but then goes into stomach exercises and dance moves to tone the muscles without building them up too much.

INTERVIEWS: Today I talked to some people at the gym when we went to workout. I talked to two women who took aerobics with me. They were 31 and 27 respectfully. They both worked together in the same architecture firm and said that they come to the gym to do aerobics in order to lose weight, improve their body shape, and to be beautiful. They said that last year they used to lift weights, but this year they do not because they don’t want muscles because muscles are ugly. They do aerobics 3 times a week.

The next person I talked to was a 44-year-old man who worked at a Chinese import and export company. He started lifting weights 6 months ago in order to enlarge his lungs. He goes 3-4 times a week.

I talked to a 32-year-old man who was unemployed and started coming to the gym because he had so much free time. He goes every two days, and his favorite thing about the gym is the equipment.

I talked to a 20ish man who works at a computer company and works out with one of his colleagues.

I saw a woman in her mid to late 60s with what looked to be her daughter in the aerobics class. She was like the ladies I see doing Tai Ji in the morning when Jana and I run. She was trying to keep up with the moves but was having a lot of trouble. She left with a younger lady before I had a chance to talk to her.

3-08-01: Today I talked to the Aerobics instructor who teaches the classes Tuesday and Thursday at 5:30 p.m. She is between 26 and 30 years old. She has taken aerobics since 1988 and is interested in exercise because she has done a lot of things similar to aerobics all of her life, and she likes doing that kind of thing. She says that most of her students start taking classes to lose weight but stay because it is good for the spirit. She also said that coaches such as her do not care if their students actually lose weight. They are more concerned about keeping the students from hurting themselves and designs classes that attractive to women. By making the classes appealing, the coaches hope to increase the profits of the gym. I think it’s really strange that she told me this.

3-13-01: Today I talked to the manager of Hao Sha gym. He was a man in his mid 30s I would guess. He has worked at Hao Sha for about one year but has been a gym manager for five years total. He switched from his old position at another gym to Hao Sha because he knew someone in the Physical Education Bureau who got him the job. He said that he doesn’t workout in the gym. Sometimes he runs, but he doesn’t workout because he thinks that it is a professional activity so only a few people can dedicate enough time to it. He said that about 400 people a day go in and out of that particular gym. He described the gym members as "white collar" workers or students ranging in age from 20-40 who make salaries above 2000 yuan a month. The average worker makes about 1000 a month.

He said that Beijing was far behind Shanghai and Shenghen in starting this kind of modern exercise. He said that people in Beijing didn’t know that aerobics and weightlifting was good for them until many years after other cities. Wang Lei says that in general, Beijing is less open than those cities. The manager said that aerobic exercise is becoming very popular right now in China, but there are only about 4 or 5 other gyms comparable to Hao Sha in the entire city. He said that he didn’t know if the popularity of this type of exercise had anything to do with increasing western influence in Chinese culture. He did say, however, that he thinks that the good status of the Chinese economy has given people more disposable income to spend on exercise. This ties into the article I read that explained how Chinese people are spending money on exercise instead of banquets these days.

Hao Sha opened in 1998. The first gyms in Beijing opened around 1990. The first was Ma Hua’s gym. Hao Sha is a privately owned venture with a Chinese owner. The manager said that most people come here to improve their health. He didn’t mention anything about losing weight.

I also talked to a 41-year-old woman who was lifting weights when we had our conversation. She said that she works out 2-3 times a week. She does aerobics and lifts weights. I asked her why she wasn’t scared of building muscles like a lot of the other women are. She told me that she has designed a special program for herself that involves light weights with many repetitions to give her a good shape but not build big muscles. She also said that lifting helps increase her endurance. This is a progressive strategy for China. She likes the fact that the gym can help give her a triangle shape. By that she means broad shoulders and a thin waist. She is a saleswoman.

I saw a girl with braces today. I noticed because, at least in the US, braces are a sign of wealth. They are a luxury item. I assume it is the same in China.

There was also a cameraman in our aerobics class today filming the instructor and our class. We asked the manager who he was after class, but he didn’t know. It struck me as odd that not only did the manager of the gym not workout, but he didn’t even know who the cameraman was who was taping his instructor. He wasn’t very up to date with what was going on in his gym. As we were leaving he said that it must have been a magazine or newspaper. That makes even less sense because neither magazines nor newspapers need video footage for articles. They would need still shots.

3-15-01: Today at the gym I talked to a 22-year-old woman. She is an art student and likes to take aerobics instead of lifting weights because she is scared of gaining muscle. She said something about nutrition being related to her major, but I didn’t really understand how art related to nutrition. I think she might be some sort of beauty consultant. She says she eats lots of fruits and vegetables everyday. She also said that she thinks that aerobics is becoming more popular in China.

I also talked to a 22-year-old woman. She is a computer student and part-time lifeguard. She said she was at the gym to get in shape for her annual fitness test. She was overweight and spent much more time lounging than lifting. She doesn’t read exercise magazines or watch exercise TV shows because she doesn’t have time.

3-20-01: Today at the gym I talked to a 22-year-old woman. She is a teacher and has gone to the gym 6 times. She has a 10-visit pass. She only does aerobics because she thinks that lifting weights will make her arms and legs (which she considers to already be too big) even bigger and won’t help her lose weight. Although she talked about losing weight, when I asked her what her motivations for coming to the gym were, she told me that she comes for health reasons. Is health the same thing as losing weight to her?

I’ve started observing how women behave in the locker room. Chinese women seem to have no problem being naked in front of each other, looking at other women’s bodies and making comments. The women change in-groups and use this time to chat and laugh. I think these women are much less self-conscious than women in US locker rooms.

I talked to another woman about the expense of belonging to the gym. She told me that it is hard to pay for the membership because she has to give a large portion of her salary to her parents to support them. She said that she thought that a lot more people her age would go to the gym if they didn’t have to give up so much money to their parents. She also said that her parents don’t like her going to the gym and think it’s a waste of time. They would rather her save her money and do other exercise like running.

3-27-01: Today I talked to a 28-year-old man who is a farmer from Beijing and sells seeds for a living. He is what I would consider to be a "muscle man" and has been lifting for 8 years. He likes training his body and researching about the body. He is the first person I have met who reads the fitness magazines. He reads "Fitness and Beauty" and likes the sections that explain how to build specific body parts the best. He doesn’t follow a special diet. He thinks that exercise is very popular in Beijing and said that about 80% of his friends (approx. 20 people) all do some kind of exercise in a gym. Most of his friends go to different, less expensive university gyms. He comes to the more expensive one because he likes the better equipment. He said that he prefers skinny girls to muscular ones and thinks that women only come to the gym to lose weight.

4-09-01: Today in CST class we talked about something that might really relate to Modern Chinese exercise if I can put it all together right. We talked about how during the Cultural Revolution women were turned into men in a sense. They could become things like Red Guards and hold equal positions as men. This equality was great, but it kept the women from being allowed to be feminine. Now, women are allowed to act like women, and the two genders are freer to associate themselves with characteristics specific to their gender. Presently, members of both genders seem to be making concerted efforts to express their membership to their gender by doing specific things. I think that gym membership and how men act differently from women in the gym environment might be an example of this. Women seem to associate being female with being feminine, being feminine with being beautiful, and being beautiful with being skinny. Their attempts to lose weight are all part of this effort to be as female and feminine as possible. The men associate manliness with strength and, therefore, lift weights and gain strength to associate them more with what they perceive manliness to be. The goals that people have for going to the gym are closely related to goals of gender identification.

4-10-01: Today I talked to a 28-year-old man who described himself as an international businessman. His English was almost perfect, but he said that he had never been to the US. He used to play on the national soccer team and comes to the gym because he likes running on the treadmill. He also lifts weights. He said he has no time to read exercise magazines or watch exercise shows on TV.

These rules are posted on a wall near the reception of the gym:

1. Bring three pictures to get your membership card.
2. Wear soft-bottomed shoes, cotton T-shirts.
3. If you have no experience you have to work with a coach.
4. Be polite. Don’t curse or spit. No smoking or shouting. We reserve the right to kick you out.
5. Put the equipment back. You break it, you buy it.
6. Newcomers have to exercise according to coach’s instructions.
7. No one under 15 is allowed.

4-18-01: For the last few weeks I have been narrowing the focus of my project to concentrate more on women, specifically, women’s motivations for exercising and how that relates to their idea’s about body image. From what I have discerned so far, these differences in motivation correspond with differences in age. I have outlined two categories of motivation.

1. BEAUTY/APPEARANCE (EXTERNAL MOTIVATIONS)

Women who name beauty, appearance, shape, and other external, physical characteristics such as weight as their main reasons for going to the gym and working out are usually between the ages of 18 and 35. From the interviews I have conducted among this age group, weight has been the leading motivation for these women. Weight is followed by a desire to be more beautiful and to improve shape. These women are not likely to lift weights and express a fear of gaining muscle because muscles are ugly.

2.HEALTH/STRENGTH (INTERNAL MOTIVATIONS)

Women who mention internal characteristics such as health, strength, or endurance as their main motivation for exercising are usually between 35 and 49 years old. More of these women lift weights than those in the other category, and they are less likely to mention weight as a factor in their desires to exercise and be active.

I think that these different motivations can be explained using two different concept of fitness- one held by the younger women and another held by the older women. I think the younger women think of exercise only as a means to get to their final goal, beauty. Fitness and health may be consequences of this exercise, but they are not the goal. The goal is to be thin because thin = beauty. In this sense, I don’t really think that working out for these women is particularly different from wearing makeup as a means of making your face more beautiful. In this example, putting on makeup is the means of achieving the goal of a more beautiful face just as exercising is a means of achieving the goal of thinness or a more beautiful body.

For older women, I think that fitness and exercise is the actual goal of working out and not just a means of achieving a different goal. The fitness isn’t just a byproduct of what might happen when you are trying to be thin and beautiful. Exercise is the end in itself. Because of this, the older women mention health as their main motivation for exercising because health is the goal. Younger women mention beauty because beauty is their goal.

The media caters much more to the younger conception of exercise as being a way to unlock physical beauty regardless of health effects. For example, magazines such as "Fitness and Beauty" are all about using fitness to achieve physical beauty. This helps explain the randomness of the articles (clothes, makeup tips, centerfold pictures of women, exercise). All of these topics have a search for beauty in common. The women’s exercise poster that I found and translated also directly links beauty to women’s exercise.

The focus on using exercise to achieve beauty among young women has manifested itself in basically the same way as it has in the USA. Young women in China also have an almost obsessive desire to be thin. In the surveys that I conducted, girls between the ages of 18 and 22 all responded in almost the same way. The bodies that they chose as the most beautiful corresponded to the thinnest bodies but not necessarily to strength. The most beautiful bodies and the healthiest bodies were not always the same, and the bodies they decided were healthiest weren’t necessarily the ones they wanted to look like.

The other week in CST we talked about how during the cultural revolution women were in some ways forced to be like men in the sense that they were liberated to do basically anything except act feminine. Today, things are different, and women and men are participating in separate activities to try to identify with gender roles. In some sense, men are doing manly things and women are doing womanly things. This is reflected in the gym atmosphere where on one side of the gym you see women working like crazy at aerobics to lose weight and become more "womanly", and on the other side of the room, men are lifting heavy weights and admiring themselves in the mirror building stronger "manlier" muscles. Supposedly in today’s culture, Chinese women, as well as most women around the world, feel more liberated and in control of their lives and decisions than ever before, but just how liberated can they be if they work so hard to conform to this ideal of thinness, this social norm of beauty that has been forced upon them by outside forces? If that is liberation, what would it be like to not be liberated?

This video is an American workout video dubbed into Chinese. It takes place on an American beach in what looks to be the 1980s. There are Chinese people on the cover of the VCD but no Chinese people in the actual production.

Translations from the beginning of the video:

"Use disco in bodybuilding. Body Building aerobics is an artistic program. If you practice for a long time, you can improve your senses of reason and your sensitivity to music. Aerobics is a type of body exercise with music. Music makes aerobics come alive, and the movement of aerobics is full of youth and vitality. People do exercise in a happy atmosphere so that the heart is delighted, and it is hard to get tired. It helps get rid of tension in your mind. This kind can make people’s heart and mentality more pure. You can purify your heart and make your body and mind develop harmoniously. People’s spirits are boosted, and through this self-cultivation, the internal character that can be seen from the outside can also be improved and changed. This disco aerobics is targeted toward modern youth. The character of this program’s movement is original and graceful. The rhythm is strong. It is very popular among youth with great exercise value."

This video has music in English, but the people doing aerobics are Chinese. The women are very skinny and most of the movement is like ballet. It is an instructional video that breaks down the steps of many Chinese aerobics classes and teaches each step in slow motion and individually. This is the first material that I’ve come across that speaks of aerobics in terms of spiritual and self-cultivation value. It is interesting that although it is targeting youth it still appeals to the values such as internal cultivation that I would most associate with an older population.

"Good-bye Fat, Reappear Shape!"

Table of Contents Translation:

1. Women are different.

1. Women and weight
2. Women get fat more easily than men do.
3. Even healthy women still suffer from unnecessary flesh.
4. Too little body fat is dangerous.

1. Goodbye Body fat

1. How to get rid of the shadow of having fat.
2. Suggestions for beginning exercise.
3. Successful weight loss stories
4. The major point of exercise is heart rate
5. Is it true, no pain no gain?
6. The correct way to get rid of body fat
7. Elle’s weight loss story
8. Losing weight in certain places doesn’t work
9. Diet
10. How to increase weight
11. Suggestions for beginning weight lifters

1. How to measure health

1. Your body fat vs. a healthy level
2. Measuring your body fat
3. Simple way to measure health level

1. Exercise, sports, and Physiology

1. Anorexia and bulimia
2. PMS
3. Healthy bones
4. Green body fat

1. Charisma of Exercise

1. What is real health?
2. Reminders from the doctors
3. How to keep a healthy and fit body
4. Misconceptions
5. Center for weight control
6. Women afraid of losing weight
7. How to maintain a positive attitude

1."The Correct Way to Get Rid of Body Fat-Slow Movement"

Many people run fast in order to lose weight. However, this is not correct. When we run fast, indeed more calories are burned, but losing calories is not equivalent to losing an equal amount of fat. When we exercise, it is blood sugar, not fat, that works for the metabolism. Generally, it is said that the fat will transform into sugars when the body needs them, but research has shown that the body does not actually work like that. Therefore, the only way to lose fat is slow or middle movement. Slow movement with oxygen is good for anyone who wants to lose fat. Running 1 kilometer in 7 or 8 minutes is better than running an equal distance in 5 minutes and being out of breath. So, spend more time and relax---This is the only way to lose fat.

2."Diet"

Why is potato considered a fattening food? Why breads and other starchy foods? I really don’t understand where this idea comes from. It is absolutely wrong. A medium size potato contains about 420 calories, yet the two spoons of butter you add could increase the caloric value to up to 1050. In other words, dressings are fats without any vitamins, minerals, or proteins. Only fat results in fat! The caloric values in fats are incredibly high. Take almonds for example. A few almonds equal a big roasted potato in calorie value, so don’t be cheated by the size of the food. On an airplane trip, you might refuse to eat rice or potatoes with 250 calories but eat a small bag of peanuts with 380 calories without hesitation.

The principles of dieting:

1. Eat less fattening food.
2. Eat less sugary food.
3. Eat more fiber.
4. Keep balance.

Suggestions for Women:

1.Eat food with Iron

2. Eat food with Calcium.

1. For fat women, eat smaller amounts but more meals.

Follow the Chart of food elements to make your own plan. After you learn how to eat balanced meals, your questions about vitamins and minerals will be answered. Don’t believe those suggestions about quick weight lose of drug use. Most of the time, those methods make you lose water or protein instead of fat.

**** I find this article especially interesting because it gives some good advice about losing weight in a healthy manner. This shows to me that material about healthy weight loss is available for women who want to lose weight in China, but none of the women I have talked to seem to know anything about nutrition or how it could help them lose weight. Do the women just not know that such resources are available or do they think that taking weight loss pills and starving themselves is okay for their bodies?

3."Suggestions for Beginning Weightlifters"

When lifting weights, you should concentrate on aerobic exercise. You should also know which parts of the muscle you are using. The "sense of muscle" is also very important, especially for women. Following are the major suggestions for weightlifting:

1. Concentrate on the muscle you are exercising. Use machines that isolate certain muscles and prevent unnecessary movement of other muscles.
2. Only work the same muscles every other day. They need time to rest.
3. Don’t forget to breathe. This might sound funny, but many beginners forget to breathe while lifting. Try to breathe deeply before and after each movement.
4. Heavy and less frequent weight training will increase the quality of muscles, while light and more frequent training will increase the pulling force of the muscle. It is difficult for women to build muscles as big as men’s are. The basic principle in choosing the correct amount of weight is to choose an amount that you can lift 10 times but feel tired afterwards.
5. Exercise big muscles first and small ones later.
6. Consult instructors.
7. Don’t forget to exercise muscles that can’t be exercised on machines such as leglifts and pushups.

4. "What is real health?"

When you ask someone if they are sick, the answer is no. If you ask someone if they are healthy, the answer is also no. There is a broad range of states between healthy and sick. Whether or not you are feeling good is the health I am referring to. The new concept about health is that you can live better than just feeling normal. You can also enjoy the comfortable feeling you have never experienced before. Exercisers now have higher standards than before. In a sense, they are healthier than usual health.

Modern nutrition focuses on exercisers. New research has shown that research is not a bad thing like we imagined before. For exercisers, sugar can be transformed and used during exercise. For fat people, however, sugar has different results. Sugar will transform into fat and be stored in the body, but I am not going to discuss sugar here. I just want to provide some new ideas for exercisers. Health not only means lively exercise, but also normal metabolism and bio-chemical functions.

***** This article seems like it could be getting at something, but it is so vague that you don’t learn anything by the time you are finished. Isn’t it common sense that people who exercise will use sugars more efficiently than those people who don’t exercise? I don’t feel like this article gave me a good idea of what "real health" is or even what the author believes it to be.

5."How to keep a healthy and fit body."

Suppose that you have a strong desire to lose weight, and you observe that both athletes and animals have low fat rates. However, when you exercise, the effects are small. Why is that? Exercise has many effects on the body, and losing weight is just one of them. Effective exercise comes in balanced parts. Suppose you want to lose weight through exercise, but your body wants to normalize your red blood cell count first. If your body wants to control your blood first, any attempt to interfere with that process will be in vain. Children and animals never think about that process. For them, exercise is exercise.

I promise you that if you continue to do aerobic exercise, your metabolism will increase. I don’t know how long it will take, and I don’t know how radical the effects will be, but you will lose body fat quickly. Losing weight should be a step by step process. Healthy bodies need the cooperation of every organ and tissue. That is why when you feel sick, it is hard to tell where the problem is. Many fat people don’t understand the relationship between fat and health. They may not feel different from others, but, in fact, their ability to exercise is much less than others.

Those who exercise regularly have an easier time controlling their body weight than those on a diet do.

When: February 8, 2001

Where: Carrefour Sports Department

What: A man buying free weights / the body building section of the store

This photo is interesting to me because the weights were mixed in with other sports equipment like badminton, darts, and tennis. The man buying the weights is relatively young. I would guess that he’s probably no more than 35. All of the weights are very small. The heaviest is no more that 10 lbs. This may mean that these weights are intended more for women. All of the weights in the gym, however, are very heavy, and most women probably couldn’t lift them. It is interesting that they sell weights in a variety store like Carrefour that is like the Wal-Mart of China. Weightlifting must appeal to the middle class and not just the wealthy if the equipment is sold at a store that caters to the common person and does not necessarily stock many luxury items.

When: February 6, 2001

Where: Outside of a shopping mall

What: a huge (about 20 feet) basketball player attached to the side of a building

This is a very western advertisement, especially because it is for basketball, most likely for the NBA. This player has good muscle tone but is not overly developed like many of the weight lifters. He is more skinny than muscular. There is a lot of advertising around Beijing that features NBA players and merchandise. This shows that the Chinese are now being exposed to western professional sports.

When: February 6, 2001

Where: Outside of the same shopping mall as photo 2

What: An advertisement featuring sprinters endorsing luxury watches

This is interesting because sprinters give the image of strength, endurance, power, and speed –all good traits for a watch to have. I would imagine that these watches are expensive, and advertising them with athletes give me the idea that sports appeal to everyone, but, especially the wealthy. This ad also shows China’s exposure to the international sports scene. All athletes, not just Chinese athletes are objects of admiration. These runners are very muscular, but are they too muscular to be the ideal body in China?

When: February 2001

Where: Outside of a shopping mall and outside of a luxury hotel

What: Advertisements for the "New Beijing Great Olympics 2008"

This advertising campaign is interesting because it is as if the government is appealing to the citizens to support the bid for the Olympics. It is as if the officials have to sell the idea to their own people and not just the IOC. There are ads in taxis, subways, buses, hotels, big light displays, clothing, sports bags, etc. that all advertise the games. It is as if the city already has the bid. Is the government trying to foster a sense of pride and responsibility in the people to help clean up and improve the city by constantly reminding them of the games? Does this constant reminder of sports encourage the people to exercise more? In picture 5 at the bottom the words, "Beijing Health and Fitness China 2001" are printed. Is Beijing really making a conscious effort to make it population healthier and fitter? Is it about health of the people or the appearance of the city to better the chances of getting the games? On the whole, people seem excited about the prospect of the Olympics in their town. Does that mean they will exercise more?

When: February 9, 2001

Where: A stall in a clothing market across from BIE

What: Exercise equipment and clothing

This stall is the only one of its kind in the entire market. The rest of the stalls are either clothing or shoes. The woman who runs it is young and would not get in the picture. All of the products that she sells are aimed at "sliming and toning." Some packaging features Asian women on its covers, and some features western women. All of the models are young, fit, and muscular. The most common trend is the "sliming" trend. The key seems to be to make your waist smaller. I think that the idea is kind of like that behind control-top pantyhose. The clothing that she sells in this booth is to disguise your fat and make yourself look thinner than you are. Thin = pretty.

When: February 12, 2001

Where: The Friendship Store

What: An advertisement for An Bi Xin Cellulite Sport Exercise Expert

I thought this advertisement was interesting because I think it says something about ideal body type. This Asian girl is incredibly thin and is advertising an exercising or scale type of machine. It looks like super thin is the way to go. She looks delicate not strong.

When: February 17, 2001

Where: Subway station outside of Beijing train station

What: An advertisement for a supplement called "Energy"

This is the first ad I have seen for supplements outside of a gym or a specialized stall like in Carrefour. It features China’s #1 ping pong coach, and the slogan reads, "To have energy, you can achieve success." This ad is aimed at the common man because it is in the subway where lots of working class people see it every day. I think this is most significant because it shows that this new "muscle culture" is spreading outside of the gyms into everyday life.

When: February 20, 2001

Where: Carrefour Supermarket

What: The weight and exercise display in the sports department

These pictures don’t show the hand weights because they are in picture1. This does show the wide variety of home use exercise equipment for sale in China. I don’t know how accessible this type of equipment is everyone, however, because I have not gone into a traditional Chinese supermarket and looked for similar products. This type of equipment wouldn’t be available in regular supermarkets in the states either, but it would be in an establishment like Wal-Mart (a store comparable to Carrefour). While such items might not be widely distributed, they are available. All of the packaging features Asian models, and most were distributed by Asian companies instead of using American or western products. The most common exercisers were for the Stomach and the Chest. Please see journal entry from 2-18-01 for more specifics about the products.

When: February 20, 2001

Where: Carrefour Supermarket

What: The vitamin and supplement stall outside the checkout lines featuring

This is most interesting because the sign advertises products of "recognized American brand names." This statement presupposes high quality products from American companies that produce nutrition supplements and herbal remedies. This is surprising because so much of Chinese medicine is based on natural and herbal remedies. Would people abandon their traditional medicine for an American alternative just because it was American? Most of the supplements are natural herbs or things like shark cartilage or St. John’s Wart that are designed to cure specific ailments or are said to enhance one aspect of the body or brain. I did not see any protein supplements, weight gainers, or advertisements for such products. Wang Jun says that these supplements are very popular gifts. They cost about 40 kuai a bottle.

• Are the same people that go to the gym interested in total body health to the point where they would buy such products to increase their health from the inside as well? Or are these people only concerned with appearance and don’t know the real specifics of nutrition and health?

When: February 2001

Where: a subway car in Beijing

What: An advertisement for Nicorette gum

I think this is significant because it shows that China is acknowledging that smoking is bad for one’s health. It is putting the awareness of the health risk out into the public sphere for the common man to see and have to opportunity to improve his health by quitting smoking.

When: March 2001

Where: On a road outside of the Temple of Heaven

What: A large billboard advertising a modern gym

This billboard is interesting because it features both Chinese and Western people working out together in the gym. The Western looking woman has big muscles and almost looks like a swimmer or other serious athlete. She has large shoulders and is very in shape. The Chinese woman on the other side of the billboard is riding an exercise bike and is very skinny without any definite muscle tone. I don’t know if the people who designed the billboard included these two contrasting body shapes on purpose, but I think it says something about how westerners view the ideal body vs. how Chinese view as the ideal body. Do the westerners want to go to the gym to build muscles while the Chinese want to go only to lose weight? That seems to be the stereotype depicted on this advertisement.

• www.shuhua.com

This Web site provides both English and Chinese versions of the page. The English version is continuously under construction, so I cannot read the description of the company. The Chinese page is a little better but the text/characters do not show up on this page either. Various graphics including an assortment of Asian men and women lifting weights on what I assume to be Shuhua machines flash across the top of the Chinese page and are followed by Chinese text that I cannot read. Along the right side of the page is a picture of a man in a suit receiving an award. There is no text to accompany the image, and I am not sure if the man receiving an award is an executive of the company or a body builder that has won a competition. The man does not look big enough to be a body builder, but I cannot rule that out. I cannot get a lot of information from this page because there is no text.

• www.wnq.com

Address: Cangshan Gaishan Investment Area Fuzhau, Fujian, China

The WNQ Web site is very nicely done and also has an English page and a Chinese page. The home page features graphics of men racing on a track and the bare chest and torso of a man lifting weights. The page offers links to pages that include a profile of the company, a list of products they offer, and how to contact them.

The profile page says that the FNQ is a Sino-Japan joint venture that introduced "an advanced Japanese product line." The company produces products for home use, gym use and outdoor activity units that are "fit for national use." Does this include the type of equipment that people use in public parks?

The products have won many quality and safety awards from the "China Sports Equipment Exhibition" in the 1990s. WNQ distributes all over the county and has over 40 branch offices. There is a lot of information about the quality control methods used by the company to ensure that good products make it to the market – much more about quality than description of the actual products that they sell.

One particular sentence is very interesting. It reads, "So the WNQ Company is just after its name emanating the glamour of youth." Here again we have an emphasis on glamour and appearance. It is interesting that when deciding what sentence to use to describe a fitness company, the company selected one about beauty instead of fitness, health or muscles.

The products are divided into New Products, Rowing Machine Collection, Stepper Collection, Treadmill Collection, Massage Collection, Exercise Bike Collection, Strength Builder Collection, and Another Collection.

I was curious about "Another Collection." It includes Abdominal benches and machines, a punching bag, a calf raise machine, a multi-exercise machine, a pool table, tennis, badminton and ping pong racquets, a leg swinging machine like in the park, hand strengtheners, basketball nets, weight benches, something called a "slimming instrument" (a small computer looking thing), and roller blades. Why are weight benches and abdominal machines not in the Strength Builder Collection? Some of the portable machines were almost identical to the chest exercisers that they sell at Carrefour. It is possible that WNQ distributes to Carrefour.

The Strength Builder Collection is a lot of Nautilus Equipment that you would find at gyms. The collection didn’t include any free weights, which most people consider to be the basis of strength training.

The New Collection is a lot of cardiovascular equipment, including steppers and bikes.

The same two Asian models demonstrate the products throughout the page. Both are in shape, but neither is particularly muscular.

The Chinese version of the page has many more links than the English version. Although the text does not show up, the Chinese Page includes at least two links that the English one does not, including what looks to be a list of phone numbers for distributors in China and a more detailed explanation of their quality control methods. This link includes pictures of the company’s quality control certification papers. The Chinese pages have the same models as the English pages do. Why is the quality/certification link not included on the English page?

• Are these basically Japanese products sold in China? How old is the company?

www.ifbb.com

This is an English language web site that is based in the United States. It tells you everything you could ever want to know about the federation, how to participate in competitions, how to gain membership, and the code of ethics. It has a special link for a page entitled "Countries Affiliated with the IFBB of which China is included.

In the 2001 World Games, no Chinese person received a medal in any weightlifting event. That is about all the information specific to China that I found on the web site.

• www.dedi.com.cn

This site was advertised in the magazine as Serious Sports Nutrition, but I could not find anything related to nutrition on it.

• www.enutrition.com

This site is an American nutrition supplements site. The entire thing is in English without a link to any other language, yet it was advertised in a Chinese magazine. They sell supplements, protein bars, herbal remedies, weight loss drugs in bulk and wholesale. It’s probably cheaper to buy them through the magazine than in stores. This Website is not aimed at the Asian consumer, but they could order online and have products shipped to China.

• www.cn-orient.com

This site shuts down my computer every time I try to load it. I wish I could get on because I bet it has some interesting information, but it doesn’t look like I’ll be able to.

"The clouds yearn for clothes, the flowers yearn for facial expression. The heart yearns for health, and the body yearns for beauty."

Fast and Effective Plans 4

The secrets to obtaining beautiful body lines 7

Effective methods for a beautiful stomach 36

Diet and accommodations for the breasts 42

Recording card can help you lose weight 15

Eat to gain weight if you are too thin

Healthy diet for a radiant face 40

Drawing Oxygen fight 43

Boxing 11

Free competition in ice and snow 44

You don’t have to endure for a long time 45

Benefits of walking 38

Not just for senior women 18

How to protect your skin in winter 47

How to get rid of wrinkles around the eyes 48

Combing hair and nutrition 22

Athlete in my heart

Graceful expressions of the hands

Self-defense for young women 54

Learn Taiji in Hong Kong

1. Questions and Answers- Solutions to daily life problems.

QUESTION 1: Why does swimming make me feel hungry?

ANSWER 1: Nobody knows the real reason why people feel hungry immediately after they finish swimming. Experts think it is good if you feel hungry immediately after you swim. If you eat within 30 minutes of swimming, your muscles may grow more quickly.

QUESTION 2: Recently I have started a diet, and my nails have become soft and brittle. Are the two related?

ANSWER 2: The answer is: Yes. You probably lack Iron. Foods containing Iron are fresh meat, black beans, and green vegetables.

QUESTION 3: I’ve started to use man-made cooking oil instead of oil refined from a plant. Which one is better?

ANSWER 3: Man-made oil is your best choice because it has less fat.

QUESTION 4: I am an 18-year-old PE teacher, and I weigh 123 lbs., but my ideal weight is 115 lbs. I’ve tried very hard to lose this weight, but nothing is helping me. Why?

ANSWER 4: The reason is because you don’t need to lose weight at all. You should realize that muscle is heavier than fat.

QUESTION 5:I lost 30 pounds by exercising and eating less. How do I maintain my current weight?

ANSWER 5: You can increase the intake of fat in your food by eating things such as peanut oil and olive oil and by exercising.

*****I was impressed by the fact that in question 4, the author responded by saying that this woman did not need to lose weight at all and should concentrate on the value of her muscles. That is a very progressive idea for China.

2. "Female body beauty comes from reinforcing the blood."

Maintaining your blood is very important to women. Chinese traditional medicine supports the idea that the blood is the base for women. Women consume much more blood during their lives than men do. Women shed blood while having their period, pregnant, giving birth, and breast-feeding. Women shed about 25 kilograms of blood throughout their lives. Unborn babies get all of their nutrition from the mom’s blood.

How should you maintain your blood? First, keep a good mood. Second, take vitamin supplements. Third, don’t smoke or drink wine. Fourth, participate in outdoor sports and breath fresh air. Fifth, have fewer babies. Sixth, visit a doctor if you have irregular periods.

****** Does having fewer babies really make the blood healthier, or is that just propaganda to help with the population problem?

3. "Does eating really make people fat?"

Yes. It’s difficult to lose weight but even more difficult to gain weight for those people who are too skinny. The reasons for people being emaciated and needing to gain weight include: food, age, living conditions, genes, illness, and maladjustment inside the body. Chinese medicine says that there are many different reasons causing people to get thinner and thinner.

***** I really don’t feel like that article told me anything. If I was too thin and needed to gain weight, I wouldn’t be as concerned about the reasons I was too thin as I would be about how to gain the weight I needed. This article doesn’t tell you have to help solve the problem.

4. "Weightlifting is an important way for women to gain beautiful shape."

Weight lifting is very important for women who want to build up their bodies. Most women working out in gyms have prejudice against lifting weights because they think lifting will have negative effects on their bodies. In my opinion, the term "lifting weights" is very general and encompasses many different types of movements.

When women lift weights, it is very different from when athletes lift weights for the following reasons:

1.The intensity of practice is different.

2.The way of breathing is very different.

3. The methods are different.

4. The purposes are different.

Doing aerobics is not enough. You have to also lift weights if you really want to change your body shape. Most gyms in China do not put enough emphasis on lifting weights, which is a big mistake. Lifting weights can effectively help you enlarge your breasts, lose fat on your stomach, and lift your bottom.

****This is one of the only articles I have seen that faults Chinese gyms for not putting enough emphasis on women’s weight training. I think there are enough of these articles to convince women to lift weights, however. Almost all of the women I have talked to do fear lifting weights because their only goal is to be skinny. If more information like this was available and convincing enough, I believe more women would lift weights. I also think it is interesting how, again in this article, weight training is linked to beauty instead of health.

I bought this magazine outside of Carrefour, but I have not seen it in most newsstands. It is only available at the bigger ones I think. One of the major things that I noticed from skimming the magazine is that there is no translation for the word "Fit" in Chinese. All throughout the publication the word in English is thrown in among Chinese characters. I don’t know if this is because "Fit" is a new concept in China. The cover of this magazine portrays one male and one female Asian bodybuilder clad in exercise gear and posed in a very sexually suggestive positions. Both are toned and in shape but neither are extremely large. If I saw either of these people on the street, I would probably not remark about how large and muscular they are. They are not exceptionally strong or large, especially by US standards. Throughout the magazine, articles about Asian weightlifters and the weightlifting scene here are interspersed with articles about American weightlifters. For the most part, it is the pictures of the American weightlifters that have the grotesquely large muscles and do not look like normal people.

For me, the most surprising thing about the magazine was the variety of material that it includes. The cover features two Asian weightlifters, but there are articles about clothing, makeup, charm, and losing weight. In the middle of the magazine there is an almost pornographic centerfold picture of two blond women in thong bikinis. On the next page are a bunch of American girls in small bathing suits and suggestive positions. They are in shape but don’t seem to be at all related to the rest of the magazine. The article next to them is entitled "TV Beauties love adventure." I have no idea what that has to do with fitness. That article is arbitrarily placed between an article about two Asian fitness champions and one explaining the guide to a healthy weight workout.

By reading the table of contents, I get the impression that the goal of the readers of this magazine is primarily to lose weight and to change the way that they look. The titles of the articles don’t mention much about achieving "fitness" or the like, but the majority have some reference to physical beauty or losing weight. For example, "Completely change your body shape," "Beauty your body from now on," "Beauty methods from her shopping basket," "Colorful magic plate reveals her beauty," and " Losing weight by breathing."

The most interesting thing that I noticed about this magazine while I was looking through it was that I just could not ever really get a handle on what the main theme was. The articles are a diverse variety of stories about body builders, how to lose weight, how to dress fashionably at work, how to properly apply makeup. The title "Fitness and Beauty" is fitting because it is about exercise and appearance but in a very different way than we would think about it in the US. I think the main difference comes in what the Chinese perceive as "fitness". I think that in China fitness is akin to what in the US would be considered body building instead of just normal people living healthy lives and incorporating moderate exercise and weight training into their daily schedules. I think that this magazine is different from any that you would find in the US because in the US body building is its own entity and would have it’s own magazine that would not include beauty secrets and fashion advice.

The women in the articles about fashion and beauty are obviously not the same women that you see in the articles about the fitness championships and lifting weights. The former are petite and very thin, while the latter are incredible muscular and strong. It seems that this magazine is designed for two totally different audiences. I just cannot see a petite woman interested in makeup tips and how to lose weight being interested in the articles featuring a champion body builder and his tips for how to get great muscular legs in 5 steps.

It is also interesting that this magazine has about an equal number of articles featuring Americans as Asians. I can’t tell if it was written in China. In many ways it seems like someone took an American BodyBuilding magazine and inserted articles that would appeal more to an Asian audience and came up with this publication.

One theme that is present throughout is the concern with beauty, appearance, being thin, and being fashionable.

This article is very interesting because it features the "leader of body building in China" who happens to be female. I was intrigued by the fact that not only did the article discuss her accomplishments (which are numerous), but they also spent a lot of time describing her physically (a detail that had little to do with the content of the article). She is described as "beautiful and tender, having long hair, a pair of eyes, and a soft voice that makes her look like a very common woman." She does, in fact, look like many of the women you see every day on the street, but what does that have to do with anything?

The clubs that she started are "some of the first gyms to give a full range of services for women." This is the first time I have read of a gym being specifically designed to accommodate women.

Wanglan is also interesting in that she acknowledges the superiority of the exercise equipment technology in the US and in Europe, saying "European and American gyms are the best in the world. Our present condition is the same as theirs was 20 years ago. We should adopt their experience. Maybe we can catch up with them in 5 years." However, she also says that she thinks Chinese exercise culture is better than that in the US or Europe because in China "fitness is a life style, while abroad people only exercise to exercise." That is an interesting differentiation between technology and quality of the actual culture. She goes on to say that she thinks that the quality of the culture is more important than making profits.

Wanglan is credited with attracting foreign markets to the fitness situation in China.

The most interesting thing about theses 15 ways to lose weight is that 3 of them directly oppose the methods for losing weight that most nutritionists would tell you. For example, "When you feel hungry, don’t automatically go to the refrigerator," "The feeling of hunger is the same as helping you to lose weight," and "Eat only at set meal times."

Nutritionists would tell you not to eat regular meals but to eat about 5 or 6 times throughout the day but in small amounts to keep your metabolism stable. If you feel hungry, you should eat as long as you eat healthy food like vegetables and fruits.

This article is written for only women, although the magazine is for both genders. It is an interesting assumption that only women would want to diet.

I picked this article because I thought that it was about a woman actually wanting to change her appearance, but instead of "Changing her face," I think the phrase "turn over a new leaf" might be appropriate. The article is about a woman retiring from competitive bodybuilding and why she decided to quit. It is interesting in itself but has little to do with Asian bodybuilding.

This article is interesting because it discusses a problem faced by people concerned with their health and with their weight in both China and the West. It seems to be a universal problem that people take supplements instead of eating or in attempts to make up for not having sufficient time to exercise during the day because of busy schedules. People are often not informed about the proper ways to consume supplements, especially not weight loss supplements. I wonder if because the market for supplements is new in China if they have a more serious problem with misuse than in the US. I don’t know if it would be fair to make a comparison, however, because the number of people taking supplements and getting regular aerobic exercise in China is probably much smaller than in the West.

The most interesting part about this article for me was the pictures and how they seemed to contradict the article in some ways. The pictures are of Chinese people working out in this gym that is advertised in a publication that targets foreigners. Are the people in the pictures just models or do Chinese people workout at this gym too? There is also a picture of a woman weightlifting coach, which is interesting because in my experience here, I have rarely seen any coaches and no women coaches. The facilities are luxurious, featuring new equipment, massages, facials, VIP rooms, and lounges. There is no mention of the price, but I assume it is very expensive to join. It is in the International Hotel. These are two reasons why I wonder if Chinese people, like those in the pictures, actually workout there.

This article came out of a propaganda publication aimed at making Beijing look clean, healthy, and sports oriented to attract people to the Olympic bid. The statistics included are very interesting, especially the one that says that 4.8 million residents of Beijing are involved in regular physical activity. I wish I knew how that broke down in terms or ages and types of exercise. Also, what qualifies as "regular physical activity"?

The pictures in this article are interesting as well. Of all of the pictures that the publishers could have chosen, they picked one of a woman doing aerobics in a sport’s bra and spandex. Aerobics is definitely not the most common or popular form of exercise and is not representative of the physical activity that most Beijingers partake in. Did they include this picture to appeal to western audiences with a sense of modernization?

This article is interesting because it talks about the economic side of the fitness industry in China, especially the impact of the middle class on per capita exercise spending. One interesting idea was that people are now spending their money on personal fitness and fat-burning exercise instead of on large banquets.

In the last few years, investment in health and sports has surpasses that in education. At present, China spends US $4 per capita per year on sports. In the near future, analysts expect this number to increase to US $100 per capita. This has made personal fitness gyms a lucrative investment in China. Today, the US spends $695 per capita on exercise per year. China spends $4 per capita per year.

Ma Hua, the most recognized name in Asian fitness, has a franchise of 14 gyms, and she says that more possible franchisees call her every day.

The picture of the aerobics class that accompanies this article has a woman teacher and all women students just like the classes at Hao Sha.

This article is interesting because it is a compilation of a lot different interviews with Beijingers of all ages about the Olympic bid and exercise in general. There are some themes that are consistent throughout the interviews regardless of age or sport preference.

One 65-year-old man said talks about the importance that swimming has had in his and other elderly peoples’ lives. He says he swims because other sports like basketball or soccer are too hard on old people. Is that a reason why older people don’t lift weights?

Aerobics and weightlifting is not mentioned in the article, although, in the preface of the article it says "new forms of physical exercise have appeared in addition to traditional forms." Weights and aerobics fall into the "new" category. Why are they not mentioned? Instead, people are interviewed about swimming, badminton, table tennis, and bowling.

A common theme throughout is the widespread support of the Olympic bid among all ages. This interesting thing about it is that most mention something about wanting Beijing to get the bid for some sort of personal gain, i.e.- that there would be better facilities built so that they could have better pools or more table tennis courts. The enthusiasm for the bid is as much about how the Olympics will act as a catalyst to get better facilities for the citizens of Beijing, as it is just an honor for the city. I never thought about the personal motivations for wanting Beijing to get the Olympics before I read this article. There is also mention of how the bid will support the National Keep-fit campaign, but it doesn’t say what the campaign entails. I would like to know what it is.

This article is interesting because not only does it show that the Chinese do take nutrition supplements, but also that they are experiencing the same problems with misuse that western countries are. The largest problem is that people take these pills instead of meals or take them without exercising also. The supplements are meant to accompany regular exercise and a healthy diet. They are not meals in themselves. They can, in fact, hurt your health if taken inappropriately. The main point is that supplements can not be used to maintain good health without exercise and proper diet. For people with busy schedules that don’t allow for exercise, these supplements cannot keep them healthy.

This article seems to be written for the busy corporate or working person. One woman interviewed about her supplement diet worked in an Internet company—a modern and new age market. Are those most likely to take supplements employed in high profile, corporate jobs?