Junior English major
“Today’s the day. Today I will go into the weight room at Eppley Recreation Center, do a full set of reps and stay in there for more than 10 minutes” … said nearly no woman ever, simply because of weight rooms’ atmospheres in general.
I attempt to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I care about what I put into my body, and I like to burn some calories on the elliptical. I also occasionally like to do some strength training with weights. However, many women, including myself, find that incredibly difficult to do at Campus Recreation Services facilities.
To those students who haven’t been in the weight room at the ERC, picture this: a two-level room filled with heavy round things and protein powder cups and packed with so much testosterone that you can’t think straight. It’s not an inviting place for those who don’t frequent it often.
Whenever I go to the weight room after an hour or so of cardio, I feel self-conscious and ogled. I get self-conscious because I obviously don’t know how to use the equipment properly, so I kind of just sit on the weight machines and hope I’m lifting effectively, while the guys look as though they’ve been on those machines for their entire lives. I feel ogled by all of the men in there who are staring at the one female occupant of the weight room. It’s like women who want to strengthen their muscles are novelties.
Some days I’ll deal with the stares and proceed to do my weight training exercises. But at the end of my workout, I don’t feel as satiated as I should because I was constantly worried about whether I was doing everything correctly.
This uncomfortable feeling of constantly being watched and judged while working out is unhealthy, plain and simple. It’s the antithesis of going to the gym. This is why I strongly feel, as many other women do, that there should be a women-only weight room at the ERC, Ritchie Coliseum or even Cole Field House for that matter.
According to a study titled “Promotion of Physical Activity Among High School Girls: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” conducted by the University of South Carolina, high school girls display higher levels of vigorous physical activity if they are given gender-specific support. Does this not resonate with females today at this university, who are typically at most four years out of high school?
Numerous female friends of mine wait in long lines for BodyPump, a strength training weight class, because they do not feel comfortable enough to exercise in the weight room. The time these women spend waiting in line to participate in strength training could be used to work out in the weight room, where they could perform the same type of exercise without the larger time commitment.
If CRS provided a women-only weight room, women would be able to feel at ease while lifting and therefore could have higher-quality workouts.
Women and men behave differently when they are around each other, and the same goes for when they are working out in the same confines together. These behavioral changes can impact the quality of physical exercise that is sought at CRS facilities. That’s why CRS should attempt to make everyone, man or woman, comfortable while exercising.
Maggie Cassidy is a sophomore English major. She can be reached at mcassidydbk@gmail.com.
