About the website

Digital devices have become increasingly integrated in our everyday lives and encourage multitasking, but does this really help performance in the gym?

 

This student-led project has used observation, surveys, interviews and content analysis in an effort to tell stories of how individuals interact with screens in the gym.  

 

A multiple choice and open-ended questionnaire of forty gym-goers was conducted regarding their workout routines and how devices hinder or help their performance. 

 

Two experts were also consulted on their personal stories and perspectives on use of media devices in the gym. They were Cato Rutherford, personal trainer, owner and director of Lift Performance Centre and Jess, personal trainer and student exercise physiologist at the University of Wollongong (UOW).

 

Each individuals stories revealed how the media can affect what type of audience is attracted to a place. Commercial gyms, which include multiple digital devices and mirrors to engage with are more commonly associated with participants who want to move and multitask. Thus, the workout may not be as effective. However, no devices in a private gym create a distraction free environment where Rutherford explains the participant can achieve 'flow', the mental state one achieves when they are completely immersed in a task or activity and achieve a state of full involvement, focus and enjoyment in the process (Csíkszentmihályi 2008).

 

So browse through the case studies on each device, to understand how different devices can affect a persons gym routine. The results may surprise you.