Cowley Emma S, Schneider Jekaterina
School of Sport and Exercise Science, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Department of Sport and Health Sciences, SHE Research Centre, Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Campus, Athlone, Ireland.
PLoS One. 2025 Jan 29;20(1):e0316756. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0316756. eCollection 2025.
Despite an increase in gym memberships, women are less active than men and little is known about the barriers women face when navigating gym spaces. This study explored women's body image and experiences exercising in gyms. Two-hundred and seventy-nine women (84% current gym-goers; 68.1% White) completed an online mixed-methods survey. Thematic analysis of qualitative data produced four themes and nine subthemes: (1) "Never enough" ([perceived] judgement about appearance, [perceived] judgement about performance); (2) "Often too much" (self-criticism, clothing challenges); (3) "Always on display" (harassment and safety, fighting for space, the appearance contingency); and (4) "Sometimes empowered" (empowering places, empowering self). Qualitative and quantitative data showed that women often feel judged for their appearance and performance, leading to a persistent sense of inadequacy, as well as having to fight for space in the gym and to be taken seriously, while navigating harassment and unsolicited comments from men. Despite this, women showed signs of resistance towards gendered and appearance ideals permeating gym environments and some experienced empowerment through skill acquisition, breaking gender norms, and exercising in supportive environments. Based on our findings, we suggest a multi-level approach to tackling these barriers and creating more inclusive gym spaces for women.
尽管健身房会员数量有所增加，但女性的运动量仍低于男性，而且对于女性在健身房活动时所面临的障碍，我们知之甚少。本研究探讨了女性的身体形象以及她们在健身房锻炼的经历。279名女性（84%为当前健身房常客；68.1%为白人）完成了一项在线混合方法调查。对定性数据的主题分析产生了四个主题和九个子主题：（1）“永远不够”（对外表的[感知到的]评判、对表现的[感知到的]评判）；（2）“常常太多”（自我批评、着装挑战）；（3）“总是在展示”（骚扰与安全、争夺空间、外表偶然性）；以及（4）“有时获得力量”（赋予力量的场所、赋予力量的自我）。定性和定量数据表明，女性常常因自己的外表和表现而感到被评判，从而产生持续的不足感，并且在健身房里还要争夺空间、争取被认真对待，同时还要应对男性的骚扰和无端评论。尽管如此，女性表现出了对弥漫于健身房环境中的性别化和外表理想的抵制迹象，一些女性通过技能习得、打破性别规范以及在支持性环境中锻炼而获得了力量感。基于我们的研究结果，我们建议采取多层次方法来克服这些障碍，并为女性创造更具包容性的健身房空间。
