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Young Bodies and Identities in Leisure: A Critical Approach

Abstract This paper provides a critique of the processes by which health, exercise and body have moved forward on the cultural agenda for young people. Contemporary life has transformed the body into an object, a material of ideal appearance and depository of social rules and norms. It is argued that the development and promotion of cultural beliefs among young people flow from and help to reproduce discourses about the human body as a perfect image. Of interest is the body-young person relationship, specifically when young persons attempt this relationship according to ideals and models proposed by contemporary western culture. This idea is explored through a series of critical notes organised around the theme of the construction of a new subjectivity among young people: 1. How health is embodied through sport and leisure practices, and used in the formation of a new self by young people is outlined; 2. The link between sport for young people and the concept of healthy lifestyle, and the meanings of contemporary healthy behaviour are critically examined; and 3. This construction of the self is examined, showing that according to cultural patterns and by means of ascetic behaviors (strict diet, severe training, etc) or new ethical regimes (focus on the body, lifestyle, etc.) young people are led to inclusive and/or exclusive systems of normalisation.