From Bk To The Uk: Exploring The Social Geographies Of Place-based Fitness Communities

: Physical activity (PA) disparities persist across diverse global contexts and social categories. Several ecological factors contribute to these wide-ranging disparities, including access to safe and accessible built infrastructure, cultural barriers, unequal communication environments, among others. Yet, many PA interventions focus primarily on individual and interpersonal-level influences and do not address nuanced socio-spatial and geographic contexts, which may facilitate or undermine positive PA behaviors. PA interventions that do account for built environment and place-based contexts often focus on individual access and assessing the extent to which physical place impacts PA adherence among groups. One unique model to explore the intersection of place-and-space influences across diverse PA contexts are free, grassroots fitness communities. Emerging evidence suggests that these models can reduce structural barriers (e.g., cost) and promote social capital among community members. Despite the rising interest in this work at the community-level, there is limited scholarly work exploring how these models situate within broader place (e.g., geographic) and space (e.g., social, political, cultural)-based contexts. PURPOSE: Investigate how members at three geographically and culturally diverse locations (Austin, Texas; Brooklyn, New York; London, United Kingdom) of a global grassroots fitness community describe (1) perceptions of community, culture, social and built environment, and (2) how place-based contexts influence perceptions of belonging, social support, and identity. METHODS: In-depth, semi-structured interviews (n = 25) with community members and co-leaders at a global grassroots fitness community headquartered in the US northeast. RESULTS: Thematic analysis uncovered four primary themes: (1) perceptions of fitness community and local culture, (2) sociality and public space; (3) place-based inequities, and (4) shared values CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study demonstrate the potential of place-and-space-based contexts to diminish PA inequities and identify existing challenges that limit the scope of communities to meet these goals. Takeaways offer formative evidence to incorporate social and physical geographies into PA interventions.