For this assignment, I decided to take field notes in a gentrified affluent neighborhood to determine which inhabitants generally participated in more health-inclined behavior. In general, a cursory stroll along the shopping district revealed that the area had a couple of organic grocery stores, coffee shops, gyms, yoga studios, and a multitude of parks and trees in general. This pointed towards the fact that the neighborhood responds well to health-conscious business ventures, and there is ample opportunity to make healthy exercise and nutrition choices. It should be acknowledged that almost half of Americans do not feel comfortable going to exercise classes because of the pandemic, which could have artificially influenced the data1. I situated myself in a cafe overlooking what seemed to be the busiest street to attempt constructing a general demographic profile of people that went into the exercise facilities or chose more health-oriented restaurants.
The yoga studio, pilates center, and gym had a high amount of incoming traffic, mostly from fit, thin women that I would guess ranged from twenty-five to forty. Almost all women greeted each other by the door and tended to chat for a few minutes before entering the building. There was no distinct racial, linguistic or cultural majority that could be identified at this point. However, the few women parked near the studio generally had new cars from the middle range, indicating the prevalence of middle-class socioeconomic status. The healthier nutritional options, i.e., the salad and acai bowl cafe, were mostly visited by young women in sportswear traveling either alone or with other women, possibly before or after an exercise class. A small percentage of men entered, and they were all white, young, and traveling alone, also in sportswear. Male groups, groups with mixed genders, families, and older patrons tended to wear casual clothing and enter Starbucks or the Italian restaurant. Ultimately, my observations revealed that middle-class young women running errands either alone or with other women were most likely to visit health-related businesses.
Reference
Lange, David. “COVID-19: Share of People Who Would Return to Gym/Exercise Classes in the U.S. 2020”. Statista.
Footnotes
- Lange, David. ” COVID-19: Share of People Who Would Return to Gym/Exercise Classes in the U.S. 2020″. Statista. Web.