Analysis of Born Fitness Blog - Essay Example

Blog Analysis Introduction In everyday life, humans engage in different behavioural activities that may pose a danger to their lives. Health risks associated with irresponsible lifestyles are serious concerns to health service providers. Among the many factors that influence behaviour include cultural practices and beliefs. Dieting, for example, is a behaviour profoundly underpinned by cultural norms, values and practices. Specific groups of people eat certain foods owing to the meanings they attach to them (Coe 2012:168). The modern culture has influenced different social groups to exhibit distinct behaviours especially those related to eating. Some of these eating behaviours have resulted in numerous health problems that extensively challenge individuals’ well-being. Food, cooking and eating have, therefore, become topics of interest that have caught the attention of many health providers. This paper critically analyses Born Fitness blog and comprehensively explores some of the cultural issues it addresses about cooking and eating. The blog theme circumnavigates around body fitness and how it can be achieved. According to Volpe (2007: 32), a healthy body is one that is fed on the right meals and exposed to regular exercise. One can physically stay fit and health-wise if they are conscious about what they eat. Regular exercising cannot be ignored if one is to achieve a healthy body. With this understanding, the blog seeks to painstakingly address the issue of body fitness by providing information on what one needs to do and what should be avoided to achieve healthy bodies. In the blog, there are different segments containing varied articles addressing diverse topics. The blog targets those who could be mindful of their health especially those who seek to find information regarding the do’s and don’ts in keeping body fitness. This could be men, women or even children. The prime message that the blog writer is broadcasting concerns nutrition and how health and fitness can be attained. This can be attributed to the fact that the blog’s name bears the word ‘fitness’ to suggest it tackles the issue of body health. Also, it has several articles that give advice on what people should eat and what they should avoid. It primary purpose is to direct the society to finding better ways of achieving bodily health. As highlighted, the key topic in the blog is proper nutrition for good health. Nutrition is a grave topic the blog explores because of the evidently changing eating and cooking behaviours that many nutrition researchers have found to be causing numerous health problems. According to Vileisis (2008: 61), the rise of technological applications and advanced methodologies has seen people resort to junk fast foods that result in adverse health outcomes. The modern culture has seen people especially the youths embrace a culture of feeding on snacks and foods rich in fats among other unhealthy diets making them susceptible to illnesses. Also, owing to what most people describe as a ‘busy schedule’ exercising is a forgotten culture and this exacerbates the problem even more. Food has become an item that gratifies one’s appetite. The culture has evolved in such a way that people hardly take the time to think about the health benefits of the food they take. With its simplified recipes that describe the easy steps one can use to make a nutritious and healthy breakfast, the blog minimises the work for those who cannot find time to think about what they should eat before leaving to work. Shils and Shike (2006: 116) argue that the contemporary society has reached a point where people hardly get enough time to prepare the right meals. Sitting around the table with family members is a tradition that was long buried. The modern culture has influenced women since they are busy just like men and cannot find enough time to prepare meals. Almost everyone is busy with other activities and less attention is given to cooking and eating. The blog has gone ahead and used very captivating photographs in the recipe provided to attract the audience. It the recipe has a direct message to the audience: simple but sweet. Information about the nutritional content of the ‘protein-packed’ food described has also been provided. The blog has articles written describing to the audience foods that fight can help them fight inflammation in the bodies. According to Sharkey, Gaskill and Sharkey (2007: 88), most people want to stay healthy and younger but they do not wish to lead healthy lifestyles. The industries producing foods have taken advantage of this by supplying foods that are most preferred regardless of their effects on health. In the end, consumers get various lifestyle diseases and conditions such as cancer, obesity, high blood pressure, heart diseases among several others. In this blog, the writer suggests some foods that one can include in their diet so they may protect their bodies from inflammation. These include cinnamon, ginger, onions, walnuts, pineapple, turmeric and flaxseed among others. The blog considers certain classes of food to be more beneficial health-wise and should be consumed if a healthy body is required. Physical appearance is one of the many aspects the society judges people with and eating foods that can help make the body healthy becomes a prerequisite. Significantly, the blog appreciates the fact that the contemporary culture do not give people enough time to work out in a gym that has professional instructors. It has, therefore, composed simple instructions that work can follow to achieve body fitness. The exercises are personalised in a way that virtually everyone has their workout procedures captured that correspond to their body sizes. Conclusion In conclusion, the blog Born Fitness has contributed extensively to the understanding of the cultural issues associated with eating and cooking as well as body fitness. As demonstrated, the socio-cultural factors that underprop behaviours related to eating and cooking today have great impacts on the health of individuals. The new wave of modernity and enlightenment has seen people resorting to unhealthy eating practices and it results in adverse health outcomes. People have shifted their attention from proper nutritional choice and most individuals only eat to satisfy their hunger. By providing alternative practices that individuals may engage in to ensure good health, the blog has solved the dire challenge of eating and cooking in the modern culture. References Coe, S. (2012) Calories & corsets: a history of dieting over 2000 years, Nutrition Bulletin, vol. 37, no. 2, pp. 168-170. Sharkey, B., Gaskill, S. & Sharkey, B. (2007) Fitness & health, Champaign, IL, Human Kinetics. Shils, M. and Shike, M. (2006) Modern nutrition in health and disease, Philadelphia, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Vileisis, A. (2008) Kitchen literacy, Washington, Island Press/Shearwater Books. Volpe, S. (2007) A Nutritionists View, ACSMs Health & Fitness Journal, vol. 11, no. 3, pp.33-34. Read More