Let’s talk about fitness in the 1960’s! President John F. Kennedy, inaugurated January 20th, 1961, continued what Eisenhower started in the 1950’s, leading the White House and the American people into a different era of fitness in the United States. Kennedy spoke openly about the need for American citizens to improve their fitness levels, quoted...Read More

The 1950’s were an important time in the history of fitness, especially within the United States. As we talked about last week, World War II’s record breaking draft brought attention to the plummeting levels of fitness that plagued the US. And this time, the government decided to do something about it.   The Cold War era...Read More

Reviewing the effects of war we don’t often consider, it becomes evident that war often brings about changes in how we view the overall health and fitness level in societies as a whole. And the events surrounding World War II in the United States were no different. Today we are going to discuss how WWII...Read More

Welcome back to our series on the history of fitness. Last week we talked about a time in America of great excess and celebration. Today however, we are going to discuss a much darker time in United States History, The Great Depression.  In October of 1929, the stock market crashed. This ushered in what would...Read More

Welcome back to our series on the history of fitness! Last week we talked about the World War I era, and the heightened interest by the United States government and the American people in the importance of fitness, but today we will discuss the era directly following that and the decline in that interest. Welcome...Read More

Welcome back to the History of Fitness! Today we will discuss the interest in fitness in the United States at the turn of the 20th Century through the World War One era! As the United States entered the 20th Century, there was a renewed interest in the overall health and fitness of its citizens. For...Read More

In the United States in the post Civil War era (1865-1900), as the country made great changes politically, things changed a lot in the fitness world as well. This is exactly what we are going to explore today! One of the most important events with respect to what we consider modern day fitness in the...Read More

Welcome back to the history of fitness! Today we will be talking about the National Period in the United States (1776-1860).  Fitness in the early days of the United States was very much influenced by European fitness culture. Immigrants from Germany and Sweden brought over many aspects of their own cultures, including German and Swedish...Read More

Let’s talk about the history of fitness! Today we are discussing The National Period in Europe (1700-1850). Following the Renaissance, Europe saw many cultural changes. However, one thing that didn’t change was the understanding of the importance of fitness! There were many emerging nations in Europe at this time, many of them with intense feelings...Read More

Welcome back to the history of fitness throughout the ages! Today we will explore fitness during the Renaissance (1400-1600 AD). The Renaissance is perhaps most famous for prolific artists and philosophers, such as Leonardo da Vinci, William Shakespeare, and Rene Descartes. However, did you know that this time period is also famous for a renewed...Read More