{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-c03aa079.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-517835be.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='Exercise gyms on the increase in Baghdad' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54c19cd8eafeecae153760' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54c19cd8eafeecae153760' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nExercise gyms on the increase in Baghdad\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eBaghdad, May 19 20091. Men entering bodybuilding gym in Karrada neighbourhood2. Close up of photo of former World Champion Bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger above door 3. Wide of interior of gym 4. Close up of weights5. Various of men...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eBaghdad, May 19 2009\u003cbr/\u003e1. Men entering bodybuilding gym in Karrada neighbourhood\u003cbr/\u003e2. Close up of photo of former World Champion Bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger above door \u003cbr/\u003e3. Wide of interior of gym \u003cbr/\u003e4. Close up of weights\u003cbr/\u003e5. Various of men working out in bodybuilding gym\u003cbr/\u003e6. Man doing sit ups \u003cbr/\u003e7. Man doing a bench press with a weight\u003cbr/\u003e8. SOUNDBITE (English) Zeid Osama Kazim, Gym User : \u003cbr/\u003e''This gym is one of the famous gyms in Baghdad. You can go to other gyms, you don't find like these equipment, like this gym, like this big and air-conditioned and everything.''  \u003cbr/\u003e9. Man lifting a weight\u003cbr/\u003e10. Various of men working out \u003cbr/\u003e11. Containers of supplementary protein formulas\u003cbr/\u003e12. Various of man running on treadmill\u003cbr/\u003e13. Close up of feet on treadmill\u003cbr/\u003e14. Various of Adel Askir on cross trainer exercise machine \u003cbr/\u003e15. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Adel Askir, Gym User : \u003cbr/\u003e''The purpose behind my exercise in this gym is to reduce my weight. My weight was 135 kilogrammes and the doctor advised me to decrease it, so I joined this gym and in five months, I was able to lose 35 kilogrammes.'' \u003cbr/\u003e16. Adel Askir working out\u003cbr/\u003e17. Various of men working out in gym\u003cbr/\u003e18. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Thair Subhi, Gym User:\u003cbr/\u003e''I was suffering from pain in my back and I was thin. My doctor advised me to do bodybuilding exercises. I actually came to this gym and I gradually recovered and felt better. I love still coming to the gym.'' \u003cbr/\u003e19. Mid of gym interior\u003cbr/\u003e20. Man using gym machine\u003cbr/\u003e21. Close up of weights moving up and down \u003cbr/\u003e22. Various of same man using machine\u003cbr/\u003e23. Mid of man doing arm exercises\u003cbr/\u003e24. Reverse shot of same man doing exercises\u003cbr/\u003eIt's boom time for Baghdad's health clubs, fitness centres and bodybuilding gyms.\u003cbr/\u003eAt least 300 gyms and fitness centres are believed to be operating in Baghdad, compared to about 30 before the 2003 US-led invasion, according to people who work in the industry. \u003cbr/\u003ePumping iron in the Karrada neighbourhood. \u003cbr/\u003eWhen Iraq's political and cultural isolation came to an end with the toppling of Saddam Hussein, exposure to the Internet, satellite television, mobile phones, and imported consumer goods followed. \u003cbr/\u003eAt this gym the pin up is former bodybuilding champion Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime. \u003cbr/\u003eBody building has had a following in Iraq for years, but it was mostly practiced in hot rooms with dim lighting and little ventilation. \u003cbr/\u003eThe new generation of gyms are very different with music, mirrors covering the walls and supplementary protein formulas available for sale. These formulas are legal products used to increase muscle bulk.\u003cbr/\u003eAt this gym in Karrada, a central district that has become Baghdad's trendsetter neighbourhood, men use the weights and bodybuilding machines throughout the day.\u003cbr/\u003eAlthough young Iraqi males play plenty of soccer, the solitary pursuit of fitness is so far an indoors-only affair. \u003cbr/\u003eJoggers and cyclists are rarely seen on the streets.\u003cbr/\u003eMost Baghdad gyms are for men only, although some do have designated women-only hours. \u003cbr/\u003eFor the men it's the muscle-building equipment they are mostly interested in. There's a much longer wait at peak hours for the weight racks than for the cardio equipment. \u003cbr/\u003eIT engineer Zeid Osama Kazim says this gym is one of the better ones and has good equipment and air conditioning.\u003cbr/\u003eThe popularity of gyms reflects the improved security in Baghdad.\u003cbr/\u003eWorking out is one of the few diversions available to young Iraqis as Baghdad has no functioning cinemas or discos and no Western-style cafes where men and women can meet or surf the Web.\u003cbr/\u003eBut these new style gyms attract people of different ages for a variety of reasons.\u003cbr/\u003eGym user Adel Askir says he has come to the gym to lose weight.\u003cbr/\u003eWhile Thair Subhi says he uses the gym to gain weight and to help strengthen his back.\u003cbr/\u003eBut not everybody is using these gyms for health reasons.\u003cbr/\u003eOne gym manager says muscle growth hormones and steroids smuggled from neighbouring Iran are widely used by people to illegally gain bulk and increase muscle size.\u003cbr/\u003eHe adds there is very little regulation of gyms and the government has no specifications for fitness centres, allowing what he says are below-standard gyms to operate in the city.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='action-container flex justify-between'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' aria-label='Read more description' class='rp-full-description' type='button'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cspan id='read_more'\u003eRead More\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-report'\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-labelledby='resource-details-heading' class='rp-info-section'\u003e\n\u003ch2 class='title' id='resource-details-heading'\u003eResource Details\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-resource-details clearfix'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eCurator 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