Going to the gym is a good thing, right? Today’s gyms are full of machines that make our bodies healthier and our muscles stronger.

Gym is short for ‘gymnasium’, a word that is also related to ‘gymnastics’. But I bet you can’t guess what the word meant originally, back in the days of ancient Greece?

 

WARNING:

reading this may make you snort with laughter!

 

In ancient times, Greek athletes would go to a gymnasium every day in order to exercise and develop their bodies. Nothing new there, but there’s more: the word ‘gymnasium’ had a particular meaning, and that was ‘to exercise naked’!

Naked? Well, an appreciation of the human body was very important in those days, and athletes were keen to perfect their muscles and show them off a little too. And so it was completely normal to work out in the buff!* In fact, anyone not naked would be scoffed at and accused of wanting to hide an ugly body.

*The word ‘BUFF’ comes from the colour of bare buffalo skin…

…Right then. Anyone for a bit of exercise?