Conor Heffernan

Banner for the book ''When Fitness Went Global' by Conor Heffernan, published by Bloomsbury Academic.

How did fitness, exercise and physical culture become a key part of our modern lives?

In When Fitness Went Global, @physcstudy.bsky.social explores how the 19th century was critical for the development of the modern fitness industry.

ᯓ🏃🏻‍♀️‍➡️ Find out more: https://bit.ly/4rcoMNp

Had a really fun chat on The Gist with Mike Pesca about fitness culture. It’s always nice when a conversation about lifting heavy things turns into a broader chat about bodies, culture, and history.

My book When Fitness Went Global pops up, if you’re curious.

Link: open.spotify.com/episode/3aW4...

*me reading a book* “ok ok we get it, it’s complicated. NOW TELL ME YOUR CONCLUSIONS”

*me writing a book* “tis beneath me to burden my reader with anything so crass as a ‘takeaway’ or ‘summary’, they shalt all read mine whole book and make theyn own conclusions”

Step Into the Slipstream of History and Get Jacked with Dr. Conor Heffernan Podcast Episode · Weirdly Helpful (formerly The Best Advice Show) · 01/14/2026 · 12m

I was on the Weirdly Helpful podcast recently, talking about historic stone lifting and why I drifted away from modern gym culture.

No mirrors. No apps. No optimisation. Just effort, history, and people being supportive.

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

Your fitness resolution is 200 years old Humans have been obsessed with fitness for centuries. But how did this fascination start? In the new book “When Fitness Went Global” historian Conor Heffernan examines the rise of physical culture wor...

Your fitness resolution isn’t new — it’s about 200 years old 💪
I joined On Point to talk about how modern fitness culture emerged, and why it still shapes how we think about movement, health, and ourselves today.

A genuine to be on a show I’ve listened to for years.

🎧 www.wbur.org/onpoint/2026...

Defining Success in American Fitness: Physical Culture in Early Twentieth–Century America Abstract. This article examines how American physical culture entrepreneurs between 1880 and 1918 transformed ideas of health and success by merging commer

Really happy to see my new article published in the Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences.

It looks at how early twentieth-century American physical culture defined success through measurement images and commercial claims to science.

Free access: bit.ly/4qvlswy

Thanks David :)

Measurement, morality, and the display of bodily perfection:
@physcstudy.bsky.social on the origins of the 'gym selfie'
@rtebrainstorm.bsky.social
www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...

I am always glad to raise awareness of half naked bodybuilders from a century ago

I mean. Do we do Colm calendars yet? Feels like Daniel has the market cornered

How the Victorians invented the gym selfie. British and Irish men in the 1890s mailed their portraits to fitness guru Eugen Sandow, who created a global business with gyms, books and training kits, writes @physcstudy.bsky.social @ulsteruni.bsky.social @researchireland.ie www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...

How the Victorians invented the gym selfie British and Irish men in the 1890s mailed their portraits to fitness guru Eugen Sandow, who created a global business with gyms, books and training kits

How the Victorians invented the gym selfie. British and Irish men in the 1890s mailed their portraits to fitness guru Eugen Sandow, who created a global business with gyms, books and training kits, writes @physcstudy.bsky.social @ulsteruni.bsky.social @researchireland.ie www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...

Lauren! It's been a minute. Thanks so much and hope you're keeping well

Thanks Chris! Hope you're keeping well

Thanks Vanessa!

Today marks publication day for my book When Fitness Went Global!

It explores how physical culture travelled the world, how ideas about health circulated across continents, and how we arrived at today’s global landscape.

Bloomsbury have it at 10% off today:

www.bloomsbury.com/uk/when-fitn...

Thanks so much Claire. I couldn't have been more honored (and surprised to be part of such a great collection!)

I cannot wait to read this!!

A black and white photo of current WWE women's wrestler Rhea Ripley, leaning nonchalantly on ring ropes wearing black lipstick and black, metal, studded leather and sort of generally being the hottest thing you've seen in your whole life. I am, like, almost straight as well. Perhaps.

Screenshot of Spokane Press newspaper in 1907, in the centre is a curvy Edwardian woman posing arms behind head in white blouse and trousers, above her the headline SIX FOOT THRILLER IS COMING FROM LONDON

Taking a break from The Devil's Dancefloor tonight to work on pinning down Miss Juno May for a forthcoming international essay collection on women's wrestling, past and present-ish. Out 2026 (I don't know how, when, where) edited by @physcstudy.bsky.social & US colleagues!

AMAZONS OF THE ARENA! 🤼‍♀️

On Let's Talk with Giles Brown, from 10.00CET - @physcstudy.bsky.social with 'The Years of the Wizard: The Strange History and Home Life of Renaissance Magicians', and Conor Heffernan (@physcstudy.bsky.social) on 'When Fitness Went Global: The Rise of Physical Culture in the Nineteenth Century'

Mistakes I Have Made What if historians could own up to their mistakes? Or learn to see their mistakes not as weaknesses to be hidden but as a necessary part of the process of growth and discovery? That is what a recent s...

Just out now — I joined the History in Focus podcast from the AHR to talk about my article Mistakes I Carried: Building Strength in a Time of Crisis.

Listen here: www.historians.org/podcast/mist...

AHRC panel outcomes and attendance Details of the outcomes of applications and panel membership relating to the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) panel meetings.

For UK academic folk, in case you don’t know about this service, the AHRC does publish all panel outcomes, with figures for numbers of applicants, numbers of successful awards etc. There is a lag, though, so the most recent info is from January 2025.

Great news!
JSTOR now have a free account with an Independent Researcher category. You can access 100 documents per month

www.jstor.org/action/showL...

Made Of Stone Documentary on David Keohan, also known as

Was proud to be part of Made of Stone on RTÉ — a brilliant doc on David Keohan and the revival of Irish stone lifting. Huge credit to David, director Will Hutchby, and @ulsteruni.bsky.social for backing my madness. Still on RTÉ Player.

www.rte.ie/player/movie...

Well my ego is well and truly fed! Haha thank you!

I just love how ingenious they had to be in their training, literally inventing certain movements on the fly. I presume you've seen the Rogue docs? If not well worth it!

Strongman George Hackenschmidt posing in something like underpants and shoes with calf-length socks.

Hooray! 😁 I'm far from an expert, but whenever I've read about early strongmen it's been a delight. I also have a persistent double take reaction when I see this picture of George Hackenschmidt: "Those are very modern-looking boots! No, wait..."

Wow! I mean obviously he would need a custom bike but I would so love to try this

😅not with a three year old in the next room!