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Matt Horkey
Instructor Rebecca Agosta
UWRT 1101-002
31 July 2014
Same Goal, Different Route

I walk into this room, everyone is sweating, grunting, pushing themselves to their limits.
Where am I? You guessed it, a gym, but why do people go the gym? All you do is go in there
and make yourself sweat and become exhausted. All members of a gym bring different goals
with them to the gym. I wanted to go deeper into the gym environment in order to get inside
peoples heads, and figure out what makes one become an accepted member of a gym. Ive been a
member of the YMCA for 3 years now, but I never sat down and observed others because Ive
been focused on myself. A fitness center like the YMCA is a community driven facility. They
host running events, fundraisers for the needy, and etc. I first joined this community when I was
a freshman in high school. I had aspirations to get in better shape physically for the baseball
season. Not only did the gym get me stronger, it benefitted my mental game too. I became
mentally tougher as I had to overcome weaknesses and barriers. I met a few friends there a long
the way. Ill see the same people there every week and may even meet other members. The
questions I have to further my understanding of the gym environment intrigue me to research
further.
A discourse community, according to John Swales, is a described as a group of people
that have the same goals or purposes, and use communication to achieve these goals. I found this
description interesting because from what I personally observed, not all members of the YMCA
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gym community have the same exact goals, nor do the members communicate with each other
while striving towards their goal on a daily basis. Some men are lifting heavy weights, while
others focus on cardio and repetitions. Women will either do yoga, or run on the treadmill. It is
rare to see a woman lift heavy weights. Some getting ready for an athletic event, or just wanting
to keep a healthy mind and body. The YMCA is a community driven fitness center. Ive been
attending this gym for several years now, but as interesting as it sounds, Ive never actually had
the chance to sit down and observe other members there. I decided to visit the gym without any
intention to go lifts weights, instead to go there with a pen and pad and write down what I see in
order to grasp information and form my opinions. I observed the fitness center on a Saturday
afternoon from 1pm to 2:15pm. It wasnt the busiest day of the week, but I still was able to grasp
a significant amount of information and noticed some things a long the way. 18 women and 13
men were at the gym during these times, a few here and there walked in and out, but what Im
saying is that there are more women in the gym than men on any given day. Everyone was
listening to music through ear buds; all were wearing light clothing, revealing their bodies. I
know why I personally go to the gym, which is to gain strength so that I can throw a baseball
harder, but from my observations and notes, I can form a heavy opinion about other's goals. I
wanted to focus on the goals aspect of John Swales descriptions of a discourse community. I
say that because a gym is primarily a goal oriented environment. I interviewed a member of the
YMCA. His name is Niko, and he is also a good friend of mine from high school. I decided to
ask him questions that would lead him to tell me about his internal motivations as a ritual weight
lifter.
A quote of Niko that exemplifies the drive that one has in the gym is, I'm my own
inspiration in the gym. I'm motivated every time I work out to be the best I can be and to achieve
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the most I possibly can. The definition of motivation is, the reason or reasons one has for
acting or behaving in a particular way. In this case, Niko wants to see himself one day with 6-
pack abs and a chiseled chest. Thats why he acts and behaves the way he does in this
community. The two main goals of members in this community are to either increase muscle
size, or to lose weight. The 10 treadmills lined up across the room and the wide rack of
dumbbells will justify that. I wanted to focus my attention on the communication aspects in this
community as well. I overheard a quick conversation between two friends at the gym. Yo spot
me real quick, says one friend to another. I got you broone sec, says the other. The
following members of the gym are obviously friends by looking at the way they spoke to each
other. I wouldnt use such slang to a stranger, because Id be coming off as disrespectful. If you
arent on speaking terms with someone else, using a slang term like bro would make them
think that you are being a smartass. Using words like bro and man in a conversation with
another friend is a sign of respect because it shows that you notice their masculine energy. Its a
lexis I noticed in a gym environment. lexis according to John Swales, is a stock of words or the
way vocabulary is used in a group. Using bro in a casual environment such as the YMCA gym
would be considered just that. The YMCA being the community gym that it is, I came across my
high school athletic director and it went like this: Coach: Whats up stud? I thought you were in
Charlotte? Me: Whats goin on Coach! Nice to see you. I have my classes during the week so
I try to come home on the weekends as much as I can.
Coach: Keep working man, cant wait to see how you do in the spring. Ill be keeping up with
the 49ers! The YMCA being down the road from my high school, I will see a few former
teachers and coaches of mine. Its nice to be able to walk in there, immediately feeling accepted
because everyone knows who I am. Being an accepted member of the gym is one thing but to
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consider one an expert or an amateur is another. I noticed a man carrying around a note pad and
pen. He was muscular and walked around with his chin up as if he knew exactly where he was
going and what he was going to do. I can only come to the conclusion that he would be
considered an expert in this community because he was doing complex exercises and was
keeping track of them. From previous experiences, a new member of this community would be
physically weak in most cases, and have a hard time getting to know how to use some of the
machines.
Between the times of 1pm and 2:15pm on the Saturday afternoon I observed, I noted that
there were 13 men and 18 women in the gym. Both genders being in the range of 16 to 55 years
old. Id have to say that the average age in the gym at the particular time was around 24 years.
This can justify the fact that younger aged people feel obligated to have beach bodies in order
to appear attractive and fun to those of similar ages. Middle aged members, less so, as they may
want to maintain a healthy shape to increase their life span, rather than try to attract the opposite
sex. As I think deeply into why there are more women than men in the gym, I can only imagine
that woman feel that they must reach higher standards for themselves only because the media
perceives that one must achieve a perfect image in order to consider themselves beautiful. That
perfect image may consist of a small waist, toned thighs and a proportional upper body. Men
want to have that alpha male look, which would consist of large chest/biceps and a toned
abdomen. Being a participating part of the fitness community brings more to the table than just
physical benefits. My friend Niko states in his interview, Working out at the gym increases my
self esteem and helps me to be more outgoing. His statement is legitimate because he was the
Vice President of the senior class at my high school, so he must be outgoing and confident right?
There are mirrors on all four walls of the gym. I can come to the conclusion that people like to
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stare at themselves in the mirror to fantasize about their bodies. Their conscience may
compliment them or degrade their body, driving them mentally, one direction or another. Also,
those who are on their journey to achieving their best body will usually be wearing tightly fitted
clothing, especially women. Men who lift will want to show off their progress by wearing cut off
shirts. Many of those in the gym will show off their bodies to feed their ego. Personally, I feel
good walking around during a workout without sleeves on because I get to show off my muscles.
Im communicating that I am a committed member of this community with my physical
appearance, rather than with words. For women, I noticed that those who seem to feel satisfied
within the achievement of their goals would wear yoga pants, and a tight fitting shirt or sports
bra. The trends between the men and womens clothing attire in the gym setting seem consistent.
This doesnt necessarily mean that a member of the YMCA has to wear cut off shirts in order to
express their expertise, but anybody can insist that it means, Hey look at me! Please stare at my
big muscles!
From my personal experience, I can tell you right now that you must be motivated
100% in order to achieve your goals, and its not always easy. Motivation and positive
emotions is what drives one towards a good workout. The brightly colored walls of the gym
cheer you on as you hear the fast pace music running through your mind. The music youll
hear on the speakers will be somewhat fast pace. Everything you will see, hear, and feel in
the gym serves a purpose. The up beat music keeping your adrenaline flowing, and the blue
and orange paint on the walls stimulating your visual senses. Ive noticed that there isnt
any wasted space. Between the different groups of machines there is plenty of walking
space. This is enabling others to do exercises outside of what the equipment is offering.
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This discourse community has an interesting twist because it doesnt quite fit in all six
aspects of John Swales criteria for a discourse community when comparing everyones
specific goals, because they all arent the same goal. One member wants to keep a fit body and
stay out of the doctors office, while the other is looking for an ego boost, and lifts weights in
front of a mirror. As I look at the broad spectrum everyones goal at the YMCA gym, I can
conclude that the common goal of all members of the gym is to defeat physical and mental
insecurities.
I felt as comfortable as can be while researching this YMCA. I am recognized in the
community and the community expects to see me in the gym because of my baseball player
identity. I felt a bit uncomfortable while I was sitting at a table by the door because I felt that
people were looking at me with a confused face. It is out of the ordinary for someone to come sit
down in the gym with a pen and notepad. I am fascinated with what I have found. My
understanding of the underlying relations between how one behaves and dresses in this
community will let me create an accurate stereotype of members in the gym community in the
future.