Strong Minds: A Digital Intervention Targeting Body Image and Psychological Well-being Among Adolescent Male Fitness Club Members

Overview

The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether a digital intervention can improve body image and psychological well-being among adolescent boys who attend fitness clubs. Fitness club environments and social media often promote appearance ideals related to muscularity and leanness, which may contribute to body appearance pressure, body dissatisfaction, and psychological distress among boys. In this cluster-randomized controlled trial, approximately 260 boys aged 15 to 18 years will be recruited from fitness clubs in Oslo, Norway. Participants from fitness clubs assigned to the intervention group will receive access to a 12-week website-based program consisting of four interactive modules focusing on body image, psychological well-being, critical social media literacy, and attitudes toward food and sports supplements. Participants in the control group will continue their usual activities. The study will examine whether the intervention reduces internalization of appearance ideals and body appearance pressure and improves body appreciation, health-related quality of life, psychological well-being, social media-related behaviors, and attitudes toward food and sports supplements. Outcomes will be assessed at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and at a 6-month follow-up.

The prevalence of body image concerns among adolescent boys has increased in recent years, accompanied by growing internalization of appearance ideals emphasizing muscularity, leanness, and physical performance. Fitness clubs represent an important social and exercise arena for adolescent boys and may contribute both positively and negatively to psychological well-being. While regular physical activity is associated with health benefits, fitness club environments often expose young males to appearance-focused norms, body comparisons, and social influences reinforced through social media and commercial fitness culture. These factors may increase body appearance pressure, body dissatisfaction, unhealthy attitudes toward food and supplements, and vulnerability to psychological distress. Despite the increasing participation of adolescent boys in fitness clubs, few evidence-based interventions have been developed for this population. The Strong Minds study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a digital intervention designed to promote positive body image and psychological well-being among adolescent male fitness club members. The intervention targets body image-related constructs, social media literacy, psychological well-being, and attitudes related to food and sports supplements. The study further seeks to examine mechanisms through which the intervention may influence outcomes, including body appreciation and social media-related processes. The study will be conducted as a cluster-randomized controlled trial involving fitness clubs in Oslo, Norway. Fitness clubs will serve as the unit of randomization and will be allocated to either an intervention condition or a usual-routine control condition. Approximately 260 participants will be recruited. Data collection will occur at baseline, immediately following the intervention period, and six months after completion of the intervention. Participants assigned to the intervention group will receive access to a website-based program delivered over 12 weeks. The intervention consists of four modules released at three-week intervals. To maximize engagement and feasibility, the intervention has been designed as a brief and interactive digital experience requiring approximately 75 minutes of total participation. Participants in the control group will continue their usual activities and will receive access to the intervention after study completion. The intervention content has been developed using evidence-based approaches from body image prevention research, social media literacy interventions, positive psychology, embodiment theory, and sociocultural models of body image development. The website uses an interactive narrative format centered on realistic situations encountered by adolescent boys in fitness club settings. Through short episodes, quizzes, reflection exercises, and individualized feedback, participants are encouraged to critically evaluate appearance ideals, social media messages, body-related pressures, and health information encountered in everyday life. The intervention addresses four core themes: body image, psychological well-being, critical social media literacy, and attitudes toward food and sports supplements. To enhance relevance, usability, and participant engagement, the intervention will be co-created with a Collaborative Competence Group consisting of young males with lived experience of body image concerns and/or disordered eating related to gym participation. User involvement will contribute to the development of content, design, language, functionality, and overall user experience. Data will be collected through online questionnaires assessing body image-related constructs, body appreciation, health-related quality of life, psychological distress, social media use and appearance comparison, food-related attitudes, attitudes toward sports supplements, exercise habits, and demographic characteristics. Intervention adherence will be monitored through website analytics, including module completion and login frequency. The study is funded by the Dam Foundation through ROS (Counselling and Support for Eating Disorders). Ethical approval procedures have been completed in accordance with Norwegian regulations, and all participants will provide informed consent before participation. The findings from the Strong Minds study will contribute to knowledge regarding scalable and accessible strategies for promoting positive body image and psychological well-being among adolescent boys in fitness club environments.