Gym Culture and IPEDs: The pre-history of IPEDs and the golden era of bodybuilding, 1900-1980s

Citation

Andreasson J & Henning A (2022) Gym Culture and IPEDs: The pre-history of IPEDs and the golden era of bodybuilding, 1900-1980s. Think Steroids [Blog post] 15.02.2022. https://thinksteroids.com/articles/gym-culture-ipeds-prehistory-golden-era-of-bodybuilding-1900-1980s/

Abstract
First paragraph: Transforming from a subcultural enterprise that began in greasy, masculine, exclusive basement environments, gym and fitness culture has broadened and developed into a multibillion-dollar global industry. It now welcomes both men and women, young and old, and individuals with a range of goals. Today, any self-respecting fitness facility seems to offer professional guidance and technical knowledge, as well as the equipment needed for almost anyone to establish an active and healthy lifestyle. At the same time, this culture continues to be associated with extreme body ideals, an excessive preoccupation with diet and looks, and the use of image and performance enhancing drugs (IPEDs), including steroids, human growth hormones, insulin, and more. Paying attention to the historical development of gym and fitness culture and fitness doping inevitably means engaging in a discussion about the relationship between, the subcultural phenomenon of bodybuilding, doping, and extreme bodies on one hand, and the more general approach to the body found in contemporary gym and fitness culture, as well as in mainstream society, on the other.