Due to the situation described above, the two fitness clubs that I observed feature an expanding external labor market full of potential young and inexperienced employees. They must also face a tight internal market with high demand for professional trainers with relevant educational backgrounds and technical skills. Hence, these clubs exhibit a dual employment track often seen in the construction and delivery service industries (Shen 2007; Zhang 2014; Lei 2020). This track establishes two categories of employees, namely senior trainers and rotating trainers.
As shown in Table 1, the working conditions of employees vary across these two different working tracks. In both clubs, social insurance is not fully covered. In Club W, both types of trainers are provided with medical and work-related insurance, while in Club B, rotating trainers are not included in the insurance system. Furthermore, unlike senior trainers, who have a written labor contract, rotating trainers are hired with a stipulation of a paid probation period (ranging from 1 to 3 months) and do not have formal labor contracts. In Club B, rotating trainers are recruited as “apprentices” from variegated occupational origins, ranging from food couriers to security guards.
Additionally, as the business model of the fitness industry has transformed from a membership-based model to one that focuses on providing custom-designed fitness training services (see Fig. 2 for detailed descriptions of the revenue composition of the fitness industry), fitness trainers must therefore act simultaneously as personalized trainers and as salespeople. Before checking and cleaning fitness equipment and attending the daily morning assembly, a typical day for fitness trainers both begins and ends with working out and identifying daily sales records.
It is conceivable that a “fit” body shape is a way in which fitness trainers are assessed at first sight. In addition to the visible exercise they receive while coaching clients, fitness trainers have to strengthen their bodies by engaging in training programs such as aerobics and strength-building exercises. In Club W, fitness trainers are required to report their workout and sales progress during the daily night assembly, while in Club B, this information is gathered through a joint training program led by experienced trainers.
Moreover, as salespeople, fitness trainers are aware that “being fit” has very material consequences, which can be seen through sales records. The hiring ratio of senior to rotating trainers is 1:4 in Club B and 1:3 in Club W, which means that the number of rotating trainers in fitness clubs is at least three times larger than senior trainers. As the manager of Club W explained, the club’s adoption of what is called the “best or none” policy aligns with a highly competitive environment:
“We want them to know that we are holding a very high standard here, that one should feel proud being in part of the club. And we also want individuals who regard it [i.e., the club] as their own business because, essentially, it is they themselves who are paving their path to success. You can choose to work harder, and you would be paid accordingly” (MM03, male, sales manager of Club W).
In this respect, fitness trainers, especially rotating trainers, make every effort to win customers’ hearts. Experienced trainers can then engage in flexible negotiations given their personal experiences and relationships with customers. To mitigate their “distance” to customers quickly, fitness trainers first identify customers’ desires, known as fitness trainers’ ability to “sense the taste.”
“I think the most important thing is to have that kind of ‘sense’; you have to know who you are capable of talking with, who has the most probability of buying your courses – it’s all about your ability to ‘sense.’ Anyway, when I first came here, I was so ‘out’ that it was almost impossible for me to talk with clients. No one wants to buy a class from someone they cannot trust” (WM06, male, senior trainer at Club B).
The ability to “sense” refers to fitness trainers’ ability to make the aforementioned “aesthetic judgments” and requires them to combine the “instrumental action of economic production” with “the communicative action of human relations” (Hardt 1999: 95). Unlike young female restaurant workers or careworkers, who try to affect their customers by constructing a “subservient” body, fitness trainers employ a different strategy: They embody “personas” that satisfy customers’ tastes based on their evaluation of their own personal strengths. The formation of a “persona” is thus the outcome of dyadic and relational negotiations between fitness trainers and customers. Here, I divide the notion of “persona” into three types, advisor, friend, and idol, each portrayed by different bodily and affective strategies.
Advisor
Fitness trainers who employ this persona are usually retired athletes or those who have received education at sports colleges, and they tend to target “freshmen,” i.e., those who have limited purchasing power and knowledge of body shaping and the idea of “working out.” Additionally, this persona is adopted by fitness trainers who consider themselves not to be good-looking or physically attractive at first sight, and they consider themselves to be equipped with “cultural prestige” or “kudos” (Entwistle 2002). In most cases, the clothing of fitness trainers reveals their level of professionality. “Professional” trainers tend to wear the company’s uniform, removing any ornaments that could reveal their personal characteristics. In other words, they understand this depersonalized clothing style as a symbolic representation of their expertise and respect for organizational aesthetics (i.e., they abide by the dress code).
Fitness trainers of this variety also erect another kind of corporeal boundary by developing large and firm muscles that cause them to appear robust or even intimidating. They have to spend more time breaking a sweat than other trainers to maintain their body shape and training techniques, which is an identifying characteristic. One female customer explained her choice to purchase a course from a fitness trainer as follows:
“I remember that day I just passed by the gym, and I took a look at their poster. Then, Chack saw me, and he walked out to chat with me; he’s really got a robust figure. I remembered that he was wearing a tight sports suit that day. He was patient, and he told me that I had a problem with scoliosis and a hunchback. I was kind of shocked and then decided to take some training courses to cure these problems” (CF10, female, group leader).
In addition to these attributes, fitness trainers also stress their persona in their distinctive behaviors and dispositions. The “advisor” persona is used by male trainers to justify their lack of communication skills. One of the rotating trainers at Club W recalled his experiences with and reasons for becoming a star trainer, given that he was shy.
“I’m not like those who are talented at communication. I’m often told by my clients that I am too ‘straight’ to communicate with. However, I believe that actions always speak louder. As you saw just now, I was training my back on this advanced equipment; trainers seldom know how to operate it correctly. I’m like always the first to try new types of equipment to break the limitations of my body” (WM03, male, rotating trainer at Club W).
In this example, the trainer noted a symbolic binary—“talented at communication” versus “poor at communication”—to highlight his professionality. This binary was evident when the fitness trainer joked about other trainers’ winning star-trainer bonuses by being good at “dashan” (hooking up with clients). Moreover, male trainers also mentioned another benefit of being less sentimental: a higher probability of attracting male “freshmen.” When asked about their standards for choosing fitness trainers, students with zero experience in fitness training prioritized “professionality” without hesitation.
During the interview, one male client explained why he chose fitness trainers who spoke less. His core demand for fitness training was “to find someone to provide him with virtual instructions on professional training techniques.” He had previously been recommended a digital fitness training application called “Keep” by his classmates, but an accidental injury made him realize the importance of offline guidance for beginners. According to him, a trainer’s body shape indicates his or her professionality.
“I prefer fitness trainers who can cut all the crap and focus on training. I’d love to choose those who look strong, which means they are very strict with themselves. My fitness trainer has a Dwayne JohnsonFootnote 2 type of body shape. And since he has a wonderful musculature, he must know how to train different parts of the body effectively” (CM02, male, student).
Meanwhile, the reaction of female trainers to such demands indicates the hegemonic gender aesthetics of this persona. When a female trainer tries to showcase her professionality, she must consciously embrace her departure from “typical” feminine body ideals.
“As a former weightlifter, my body shape is different from many female trainers. I look stronger than other girls, I know that, especially my back muscles. Many male trainers say I am much better trained than them! They’d call me “buddy” sometimes, haha. I kind of like that, though” (WF01, female, rotating trainer at Club B).
The narrative related by WF01 serves as a perfect contrast to WM03’s description of himself as being “straight” and insufficient with respect to human interaction. According to WF01, her problem does not pertain to communication but to a lack of hetero-feminine attractiveness as a female trainer, which is the (at least partial) result of her appearance. These bodily strategies indicate the domination of heterosexual masculinity in the context of this “advisor” persona, which features the admiration of strength and rationality as opposed to appeals to sensitivity and tenderness.
Friend
Fitness trainers who try to be “friends” with customers typically consider themselves to be sophisticated, emotionally intelligent, and good at understanding other people's thoughts. They oppose the idea that professional ability is the only criterion that defines a “good” fitness service—from their perspective, communicating and making a customer “like you” matters most. They believe that the competition required for sales performance is ultimately the competition of “guanxi.” Fitness trainers tend to employ this persona with clients they consider “experts.” “Experts” refer to young and ambitious boys and girls who work for world-class companies, come from wealthy families, and graduate from top universities. To customers of this type, their body shape functions identically to the brands that they wear. One rotating trainer described one of his female clients in the following way:
“She always meticulously shapes her bodily figure, and she’s also very self-disciplined, although I think she’s already perfect enough. All eyes are on her when she walks into our fitness club. You know, that reminds me to work harder; I have to be good enough to coach her” (WM07, male, rotating trainer at Club W).
In this case, fitness trainers attempt to act as their clients’ friends because they know that these customers are looking for something other than “professional advice.” As a result, they are better able to adapt themselves to the needs of their customers. For example, one client who worked as a group manager for a foreign-funded cosmetic enterprise noted that she wanted a trainer who embraced a similar aesthetic taste with respect to the notion of “fitness.” Such criteria require fitness trainers to be dedicated to their clients in both bodily and affective ways. The former sense is realized by fitness trainers through consumption. The literature on aesthetic labor has particularly discussed the role played by consumption in constructing workers’ brand identification and class habitus (Pettinger 2004; Cutcher and Achtel 2017; Boyle and Keere 2019).
In the fashion retail industry, the consumption of branded clothes is beneficial or even essential as a way for workers to identify themselves with brand aesthetics. This process is usually facilitated by companies offering staff discounts to potential applicants. Such an offer is highly appealing to workers in luxury retail companies, although such discounts are relatively limited compared with their wages (Maitra and Matria 2018). Moreover, mastery of stylish dressing is closely related to work competence in this industry. Williams and Connel (2010) note that, compared with workers from the working class, high fashion brands tend to hire people of middle-class origins because they tend to share similar consumption practices with target customers.
This ability to consume goods entails a better understanding of customers’ demands and the possession of better communicative techniques. On the other hand, consumption is seen as an effective way for workers to refashion themselves for workers from socioeconomically underprivileged backgrounds. They accomplish this task by devoting more time and energy to polishing their personal image as self-disciplined and attractive. When discussing his most unforgettable training experience, one rotating trainer suddenly became extremely talkative, albeit slightly anxious. He confessed that he took cultivating his attractiveness and “middle-classness” seriously by wearing branded clothes.
“I would never have gone to a luxury store before. I would not even think about it! Then, my colleagues reminded me that I could pay by installment. Let me show you my ‘huabei’ (an online consumer credit service). Now, I have almost spent all the amount I saved before. It’s unbelievable to think that I owe more than 60,000 yuan on ‘huabei’!” (WM04, male, rotating trainer at Club W)
As it happened, he did get the chance to approach these upscale clients. After becoming familiar with him, he invited me to dinner with his client, who had become a friend. We met at a Western restaurant in the Jing’an district, and by the time his client walked in, I understood why fitness trainers had to spend time “polishing” themselves to “match” their clients’ styles. The client wore a suit and tie and told us that he had recently been too busy to go to the club. After some small talk, I expressed my interest in knowing how the two got along. The client gently made the following observations:
“I’ve been working out for years, so I wasn’t looking for some intro or basic guidance. I just want someone who can help me with the equipment I’m not familiar with and help me with my training. He did not talk much when we met, but I could tell from his appearance and look that he’s experienced and trustworthy. And one thing I appreciate is that he often sets up a late-night class for me after he finishes his work. That’s really helpful since I can sometimes be so occupied with my work” (CM03, male, bank manager).
As explained by the fitness trainer, a “late-night” class is a training class in which trainers coach after their regular working hours. Such classes usually occur when clients are occupied during the day or require intensive training from their personal trainers. In this case, the fitness trainer (WM04) would wait for his client (CM03) to come to “work out together” or simply record a video demonstrating how to use the equipment. This unpaid training session is “paid off” by clients’ support for the monthly sales performance evaluation by the fitness clubs:
“Whenever I’m desperate to meet the KPI of the month or something, he (CM03) is the first one that I’ll find. He will buy the rest of my training courses without hesitation; he’s such a bro! And I always give him the biggest discount in return.”
The picture of these two individuals having dinner together illustrates or at least suggests the decreasing social distance between service providers and consumers. However, behind the scenes is fitness trainers’ unseen efforts to meet the expectations of these “loyal” clients, who nevertheless take this work for granted.
Idol
In contrast to friends who attempt to develop reciprocal relationships with their clients, the idol persona is typically deployed to attract what fitness trainers refer to as the “big names,” exceptionally wealthy clients. Successfully capturing a “big name” usually guarantees that the trainer will continue to be employed. In this case, fitness trainers strategically form highly exclusive and unique relationships through obedience and desirability. When I asked WM09 to account for his success, he attributed it to his “hard work” and endless patience with clients. The secret to his success, according to him, was remaining confident and alert in the face of “impossible chances,” in general, by “always being prepared.”
“Just keep trying. You will find that nothing is impossible. Once, a client of mine forgot to take her sports suit to class, so I tried to borrow some for her. When I found that she was upset, I directly bought one for her at the shopping mall. Can you imagine that? I’ve also biked a long way down to my client’s workplace to cheer her up when she was troubled by her work and family issues” (WM09, rotating trainer at Club B).
In Class Acts, Sherman (2007) illustrates the similar behavior performed by waiters at luxury hotels, which she called the normalization of customers’ “unlimited entitlement.” Service workers must personalize, anticipate, legitimate, and resolve even the most unreasonable needs of clients through unlimited physical labor and a deferential and sincere demeanor (Sherman 2007: 25). This sense of “self-accomplishment” was expressed in other terms by a female trainer who claimed to be good at “detecting what guys want.”
One female fitness trainer with a palm-like face, big eyes, and a perfect figure narrated how she wisely navigated relationships from reciprocity to intimacy. As she noted, she understood very well “what straight guys want from her.” For her, “maturity” and “the sense of accomplishment” were better reflected by mastering “upper-class” standards of living that were sponsored by her affluent clients, who adored her. On occasion, she secretly received gifts from her clients, ranging from cosmetics to luxury handbags or VIP cards for shopping malls. In return, she managed to (according to her description) “appropriately flirt with clients.” Regarding what was counted as “appropriate flirting,” she explained this term as follows:
“It was very natural, like, once a guy approached me and told me I’ve got a sexy booty and said something like ‘it’s a shame that you are not my girlfriend!’, I smiled back and went, ‘You bet! Come on and get trained; I like hot guys with a great body shape.’ He laughed out loud, and then the next day, he signed up for my class... Also, I like wearing skinny shorts and leggings and makeup, not heavy, but those ‘right on’ types of makeup that make your lips juicier and your skin lighter. You’ve got to dress yourself up since the coat they offer is so ugly” (WF03, female, senior trainer at Club W).
According to WF02, this approach of “dressing up” and “flirting” was considered to be unprofessional and vain. As WF02 told me, trainers have a strict dress code in Club W. They are provided with club uniforms when they are recruited. She herself wears this uniform whenever she is on the selling floor. To her, wearing this clothing is a way of showing her professionality. For WF03, however, the reverse is true. In her words, what she did was completely natural. As she explained, “I’m not crossing the line; anyway, I earned it, and it is a pity that they lack this emotional intelligence to please people. Everybody wants to be pleased; that is human nature, isn’t it?” She also did not seem bothered by the gossip circulating on the selling floor. As she commented, “girls get jealous when they think you’re good-looking, haha. And I don’t know why those girls never dress themselves up.”
These quotations show how trainers defend and justify their personas by erecting symbolic boundaries with respect to gender and work ethos. For quite a long time, the intimacy that trainers and clients develop in the fitness industry has been controversial and even stigmatized. This situation was evident when I asked my consumer interviewees their impressions of the fitness industry: “I would think some of those male trainers are hot and seductive. So, what you mentioned makes sense” (CF07, female, department leader).
Additionally, if you search the fitness industry on “Zhihu”Footnote 3 for the string “what do you think of the fitness industry of China?”, the top-rated answer discusses how fitness trainers manage to “fool around” with their clients. By reference to the story of Cinderella, saleswomen in Lan’s (2003) case were able to answer this “charge of vanity” by overtly expressing their desires for extravagant lives and wealthy men. The narratives of these saleswomen, similar to my observations, showcase how they adopt an idolized persona that is self-empowered and entrepreneurial.
In Dealing in Desire, Hoang (2015) brilliantly interprets workers’ agency by describing them as “shrewd entrepreneurs” who make conscious efforts to realize upward mobility through maneuvering their desires. On the other hand, there have also been cases in which such a relationship has led to negative results. During my last interview with a fitness club manager, he had just fired a rotating trainer for having “affairs” with two of the trainer’s female clients.
“There are opportunities and temptations around here. You cannot control human nature. Because all the ‘big names’ we deal with in this industry are quite rich, those children cannot keep themselves from these temptations. However, no matter how excellent you are, this is the bottom line” (MM05, male, chief advisor of Club W).
Although the opportunity to approach these clients can help fitness trainers satisfy their KPI, it can also lead to the sudden ruin of their careers. If this deviant behavior eventually occurs within a relationship, the boundary between the customer and the trainer is broken.