Relationship between Vigorexia, steroid use, and recreational bodybuilding practice and the effects of the closure of training centers due to the Covid-19 pandemic in young people in Argentina

Abstract

The advance of stereotypes and preconceptions of what should be correct in relation to body image and the standards that society directly or indirectly imposes, as a measure and canons of what is socially accepted and weighted, leads many people to reinforce the idea of not falling within these ideals. The aim of this study was to relate the variables Vigorexia and steroid use, with the practice of bodybuilding in a group of people attending training centers for recreational or aesthetic purposes in Argentina. In the present study we will work with an observational, descriptive, and mixed non-experimental research approach; through the application of a validated questionnaire (Adonis Questionnaire), with the purpose of gathering information on the perception of concern about physical exercise and body image. The units of analysis corresponded to the 20 participants residing in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina in the period from June to December 2020 who practiced physical exercise in sports facilities. Fifty percent of the respondents belonged to the female sex, and 40% were aged between 25 and 31 years. The mean score of the Adonis Questionnaire was 7.45 points. The results of this study do not show any general impairment in relation to the overall score of the Adonis Questionnaire, where 50% of the sample studied had scores corresponding to body image concerns that did not affect daily life. A detailed analysis of the individual results of the study shows that the subjects show good academic-work perception.