ABSTRACT
This chapter recognizes the quickly growing prominence of social media in contemporary articulations of fit femininity by examining the digital spaces of fitness that exist beyond the physical location of the gym. It argues that the exchange between microcelebrity fitness influencers and their online fitness communities produces ‘girlfriendly’ digital fitness spaces that contribute to the discursive and visual reproduction of ‘ideal fit femininity’ on social media. Instagram was selected as the social media platform for analysis because research has evidenced the important ways that women are using Instagram to visualize their physically active bodies, share their experiences of participation in sport and fitness cultures, build community and seek advice and support. Gym selfies transform the lived experience of working out into a set of conventions for body display, which are made recognizable by their circulation among a shared community of fitness users.
