“Male” ways to be “fit”. Comparative analysis of selected polish blogs

Abstract

The aim of the article is to describe the specificity of selected Polish blogs devoted to healthy lifestyle, addressed to men and run by men. Author makes an attempt to investigate the specificity the “masculine” approach to a healthy lifestyle, namely the way in which the bloggers referred to the ideals of masculinities as well as stereotypes concerning men. In particular, the analysis focused on three aspects of the blogs’ content: the way in which bloggers understood a healthy lifestyle, the body ideals they preferred and the ways they used to motivate the audience to a greater care for their physical appearance and fitness. As a theoretical background, two opposing models of masculinities were used: “traditional masculinity” vs. “new masculinity” model (as described by Krzysztof Arcimowicz 2008). The contents of seven arbitrary chosen blogs were analyzed. The method used was qualitative content analysis. The findings of the research study show that the body ideal most preferred by bloggers was a mezomorphic body silhouette. The dominant ideal of health was the holistic approach in which three aspects were considered the most important: health, physical attractiveness and fitness. Various discourses concerning masculinity and masculine bodies were identified in the blogs’ content, however no dominant model of masculinity was identified, rather the bloggers referred to many competing models and used them as a source of inspiration.