>A regimented dancelike experience, as in aerobics or Zumba, is fine, but unsupervised dance moves reek of hedonism, and working out is supposed to be a form of work. Most people come with a plan like “legs and shoulders today” or “forty-five minutes of cardio and fifteen minutes of abs,” usually preceded by a warm-up and topped off with several minutes of stretching on a mat.

>[Insert:] Despite the pulsing pop music and comfortable clothes, gyms are not sites of spontaneity and play.

>Working out very much resembles work, or a curious blend of physical labor and office work. Members not only lift weights, for example; they often carry clipboards on which to record the number of reps and sets and the amount of weight lifted for each workout, like a supervisor monitoring a factory worker’s performance.

God forbid people set goals for their bodies and approach them in an efficient, systematic manner instead of running around like children. This article is beyond useless, and there are few things I find more pathetic and loathsome than condescending social critics who squeeze other people's pursuits into their sentimental, rigor-averse narrative. Any lifestyle or socio-economic conclusions drawn from this set of assumptions about how a gym ought to be are just begging the question.