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BBC LEARNING ENGLISH
6 Minute English
Why more of us are getting fitter together
NB: This is not a word-for-word transcript

Rob
Hello, I'm Rob. Welcome to Six Minute English, where we get together to discuss an
interesting topic along with six useful items of vocabulary to wrestle with.

Catherine
Yes, hello I'm Catherine. And today's topic is all about togetherness – because we're talking
about going to the gym and why gym membership is becoming increasingly popular. So
Rob… do you head off to your local gym after work?

Rob
No – I hate group exercise. I prefer to go for a run on my own. It's free, and I enjoy being
outdoors. How about you Catherine?

Catherine
I really like group exercise Rob. I find it's very motivating.

Rob
When something is motivating it makes us want to do something. So what motivates you
to go to the gym, Catherine?

Catherine
Well I go because I really like the spin classes.

Rob
Is that where you cycle on the spot while an instructor shouts at you?

Catherine
Well, yes that's the one! If I wasn't in a class, I don't think I would push myself so hard. I
need someone to shout at me – to make me go faster and get up those hills.

Rob
Good and if you push yourself you force yourself to try harder – you set yourself a
challenge. OK, Catherine – well you are part of a growing trend of people who like to

6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2017

bbclearningenglish.com Page 1 of 4
work out – or exercise in a gym. So perhaps you can tell me, how many people are
members of a gym, here in the UK? Is it…
a) 1 in 2,
b) 1 in 7 or
c) 1 in 10?

Catherine
I'm going to go for 1 in 10.

Rob
Well – we'll find out if you chose the right answer later on. Now let's listen to Philip Mills –
he runs the sports fitness company Les Mills – named after his father, who was a track and
field athlete who represented New Zealand for twenty years. Philip has a theory to explain
why group exercise has become so popular in recent years.

Philip Mills, CEO of Les Mills International

As people have become more sedentary they've realised that they need to move for their
health. We work about 35% more hours than we used to work in the 60s. And people are
too busy to play sports. Society has become fragmented and a lot of the things that used to
bring people together don't exist anymore. But, you know, we're tribal animals – pack
animals – and the gym has been one of the things that helps people to commune.

Catherine
Yes our sedentary lifestyles! We do all spend too much time sitting down, don't we, Rob?

Rob
Yes, and according to Philip we're probably spending more time sitting down than we used
to because we're working a lot more.

Catherine
And because we're busier with work, we have less time to take exercise.

Rob
So why are we choosing to go to the gym these days, rather than heading down to the park
to play football? Philip Mills thinks it's because society has become fragmented – and we're
losing the social connectedness that made it easy to get together and take exercise.

Catherine
And fragmented means broken up into small pieces, by the way. The thing is, we miss that
social connectedness – that feeling of belonging to a group – because we are essentially
tribal animals. And a tribe is a group of people who live together and they share the same
language and the same culture.

6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2017

bbclearningenglish.com Page 2 of 4
Rob
So even now most of us have left tribal society behind, we still want to feel like we're part
of a group that we can commune with – which means to get close to someone or
something.

Catherine
But the question is Rob, does group exercise at the gym actually succeed in connecting us
with other people?

Rob
Well, Philip Mills thinks in the future we'll be cycling inside a video game using computer
graphics – you know, visiting other planets, travelling to different times…

Catherine
Wow! But people will then be communing with a computer Rob, not really with each
other?

Rob
I'm afraid so. And you won't even have a real instructor barking instructions at you!

Catherine
Well I suppose a computer will have a virtual instructor who will also be equally motivating!

Rob
Yes, I expect so. Now, remember I asked you, Catherine: How many people are members
of a gym, here in the UK?

Catherine
I do remember you asking me that Rob and I said 1 in 10.

Rob
And you were wrong, I'm afraid! Figures collected by Leisure Data Base, a company that has
audited the fitness industry for fifteen years, show that one in seven of the UK population is
a member of a gym. And more and more will be signing up. Total membership could soon
exceed ten million for the first time.

Catherine
Wow!

Rob
OK, now let's talk through the vocabulary items we heard today. Number one is
'motivating' – meaning something that makes us want to do something – 'I don't find the
idea of cycling in a small room very motivating.'

6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2017

bbclearningenglish.com Page 3 of 4
Catherine
Now number two – If you push yourself, you force yourself to try harder – 'It's important
to push yourself if you want to do well in your exams.'

Rob
Good advice there, Catherine. Next up is 'work out' – which means to exercise in order to
improve your health and fitness. For example, 'Catherine works out three times a week by
cycling on the spot.' Our fourth word is 'fragmented' or broken up into small pieces. For
example, 'I suffer from fragmented sleep. I wake up five or six times a night.'

Catherine
Poor you! Alright, number four is 'tribal' – and the noun is 'tribe' – a group of people who
live together and share the same language and culture.

Rob
'Football fans often wear the tribal colours of the team they support – some paint their
faces too.'

Catherine
And finally we heard 'commune', which means to get close to someone or something. For
example, Rob likes to commune with nature when he goes running. He enjoys the way the
landscape changes with the seasons.'

Rob
Well said, Catherine. Now, that's all we have time for today. But if you would like to
commune with us via our Facebook, Twitter or YouTube pages, please do so.

Catherine/Rob
Bye!

6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2017

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