Cultivating Neoliberal Bodies: Investigating the Influence of Neoliberalism on the Global Adoption of CrossFit

• In Event: 1483 - Open Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: Table 04. Clients, Consumerism, and Consumption

Abstract

This article seeks to examine the ideological influence of neoliberalism on the consumption of CrossFit worldwide. CrossFit is a strength and conditioning program that gained international popularity since opening its first gym in 2000. I draw on data from the World Bank and World Health Organization to investigate the role of broad social structures such capitalist regulation and health expenditures on global CrossFit adoption. I also draw on data from the World Value Survey through an analysis of a smaller subset of countries in order to assess alternative explanations. With a better understanding of how neoliberal ideology, rooted within particular economic and political structures, influence different rates of adoption between countries, we can illuminate the ways in which consumption practices are shaped at the macro level.

Author

• Jason Edward Pagaduan, University of Toronto