Aerobic Dancing, one of the first fitness instructors to
publish a book of aerobics routines. Missett and
Sorensen had worked steadily during the 1970’s
teaching classes and popularizing aerobics, but it was
actress Jane Fonda who made aerobics the exercise
trend of the 1980’s. Fonda’s 1981 book,The Jane
Fonda Workout,was number one on theNew York Times
best-seller list for nearly a year. An enormously popu-
lar series of exercise videotapes followed, at the rate
of one a year, for the remainder of the decade. While
Fonda was the best known of the decade’s celebrity fit-
ness experts, many other stars—including Raquel
Welch, John Travolta, Linda Evans, Victoria Prin-
cipal, Jayne Kennedy, Marie Osmond, and Debbie
Reynolds—also took advantage of the interest in fit-
ness to publish books, videos, or both. In a reversal
of the trend, some fitness instructors became stars.
Peppy exercise guru Richard Simmons became fa-
mous, as he encouraged overweight Americans to eat
less and exercise more onThe Richard Simmons Show.
Changes in the Fitness Industry The explosion in
fitness clubs helped expand the popularity of aero-
bics. In the past, group fitness classes in gyms had
taken second place to weights and machines. As
aerobics entered gyms, it made exercise classes an
important source of revenue and drew significant
numbers of women into gyms, many of them exercis-
ing for the first time. By 1986, 24 million Americans
were doing aerobics, 90 percent of them women.
Jane Fonda’s mantra, “Feel the burn,” was evi-
dence of the trend toward intense workouts seen
in 1980’s exercise. Aerobics classes often featured
jumping, running in place, high kicks, and other
potentially damaging moves. Many participants
suffered injuries from repetitive stress on the feet,
knees, and back. One study found that more than 75
percent of instructors and 43 percent of participants
had exercise-induced injuries. As a result, low-impact
aerobics classes (in which one foot was kept on the
floor at all times) and classes incorporating ele-
ments from other types of exercise, such as martial
arts and yoga, were developed toward the end of
the decade. The development of the aerobic step,
launched in 1989 by Reebok, was part of the trend
toward vigorous but safe workouts.
The large number of injuries was also related to
a lack of training and certification among fitness
instructors, and especially among
celebrities portraying themselves
in videos as fitness instructors. To
teach aerobics in the early 1980’s,
one needed little more than a
shapely body and an upbeat per-
sonality. By the end of the decade,
a number of professional fitness
organizations, such as the Ameri-
can Council on Exercise and the
Aerobics and Fitness Association
of America, had formed, calling
for standards and certification
measures.Cultural Influences of the Fitness
Movement The widespread pop-
ularity of aerobics, as well as the
larger fitness movement, greatly in-
fluenced popular culture. The phys-
ical ideal of the decade called for
fat-free bodies with visible muscula-
ture, for both men and women. In
fashion, trendy workout clothing
became suitable street wear. Leg
warmers, large T-shirts worn off the22 Aerobics The Eighties in America
Actress Jane Fonda, who helped popularize aerobics, works out in her Beverly Hills exercise
salon in 1979.(AP/Wide World Photos)