Wellness Warriors, I’ve got a post today that has been on my mind for awhile. It is a loaded topic and one that I feel usually gets either pushed to the side in the name of discomfort or gets pigeonholed into a specific box. I’d like to talk a bit about inclusivity in the exercise community.
My Background
In the name of disclosure and transparency, I’d like to share a bit of my background. Because you should know where I am coming from. I am a cis gender heterosexual white woman. There is not a lot of intersectionality there, but as a woman I have been subject to gender biases on size, weight, looks, and the various roles in my life. As someone who has worked in the fitness and exercise community for almost two decades, I have also seen (and been part of) some of the weight and size centric stigmas.
I am also a person who has lived much of their life in a body that the prevailing standard has deemed not quite right. Again, to be open, I still fall within the averages in terms of height, weight, and size. But I was also usually one of the bigger kids growing up. I have mentioned before that I was bullied a bit. And, because of my work, my size/shape has at times contributed to Imposter Syndrome and affected my mental health.
Growing up, I was always an active kid. I loved, and still love, to be outside. I tended towards the more tomboy (using the 80s/90s term since that is when I grew up) end of the spectrum, so I played sports. Soccer, basketball, and softball mostly. But even at a very young age (5 or 6) I remember somehow feeling that my body wasn’t appropriate for ballet or tap. My parents were very encouraging; my dad played endless catch in the street and taught me to set a screen, my mom almost never missed a game, and I don’t remember any weight related comments from either of them (i.e. you’d run faster if you lost weight).
At some point during middle school, the organized sports began to peter out and around the time I started high school I had made the switch to walking regularly. My house was almost 2 miles from the high school on mostly back roads, so it was a safe loop to do while rocking my AM/FM Walkman. I also joined the track and field team because my school didn’t cut anyone and throwing a sharp spear or giant disc sounded like fun.
After I moved away to college, on a large pedestrian friendly campus, I added kickboxing with friends to the mix. And then as I got into my major, I tried more classes and strength training, which were free on campus. Even though I was one of the bigger bodies in my graduate school class, I could keep up in labs and I was competent. Movement and exercise was not only something that I did/do very regularly, but something that I looked forward to. While exercise wasn’t without derogatory comments based on my size, they became fewer and further between as I moved into adulthood.
Privilege
Why, Warrior, am I telling you this? Because it underlines my privilege. Other than my weight/size, I was able to access movement and physical activity. I grew up in a safe neighborhood where I could walk without fear. I was able to participate in organized sports. My parents could afford the sign-up fees and encouraged me to play. While I did experience some bullying, I was lucky to never experience dread over my personal safety.
This access allowed me to move from experiencing exercise as a way to control my physical body to experiencing exercise as a way to celebrate my physical body. Instead of being focused on losing weight or trying to emulate a certain shape (which in my formative years was heroine chic), I was able to learn to appreciate the fact that my body can move.
Being able to appreciate how my body moved, and not what it looked like, saved me from, well, honestly a lot. I believe it saved me from disordered habits, both eating and exercise. I was happy to nourish my body with what it wanted and needed at any given time. It helped me deal with at-the-time undiagnosed anxiety (and still helps me remain calm and grounded). And it has helped me view exercise for both myself and my clients as an extremely important tool in overall wellness, not just Physical Health.
Inclusivity
Which brings me to the point of this very long winded post. We in the exercise community need to do better about inclusivity. And I don’t mean individuals, like myself, that lie barely outside societal norms. We need to think about all individuals and intersections and start coming up with solutions to make exercise and physical activity accessible. Because the only way for people to reap all the possible rewards that movement can provide, is if it is accessible. Wellness practices should not be available just for those doing well.
We need to think about members of society who may be income challenged. Their bodies still have the right to move and exercise. Making low cost or free services available that are safe is paramount. I have many resources available in the Wellness Toolbox and long time readers will know that Fitness Blender is a favorite recommendation for at-home, no equipment workouts.
We need to think about our differently abled friends. Just because a person was born with different abilities, or had that become a circumstance of their life, doesn’t mean that their body doesn’t want or need to move. Any and all movement is beneficial, especially from the standpoint of Mental Health. Creating workouts, exercises, and spaces for these individuals to come and showcase their strength should be a focus and I hope to add more here on MMW.
We need to think about our BIPOC friends and the size/shape/weight norms that a white society foists on them. Norms that do not account for the genetic differences that shape their bodies in culturally unique and beautiful ways. Those bodies will still call on the same muscles to deadlift as ours. We should be mindful of promoting our own cultural body biases and focus instead on proper form and technique.
We need to think about our LGBTQIA+ friends. Just as weight/size/shape centric programs can be damaging to anyone, they might be especially so for this group. I have not lived the experience of a Black trans person or a Hispanic/Latinx gay person, but I do know that there are gifts regular movement can provide. It can help shift the focus to what the body can do, rather than what it is or isn’t. It can lend a sense of agency over something that may seem foreign. And representation, actual and supportive, always matters.
If you are a member of the exercise and fitness community, whether that be a gym owner, a trainer/coach, or just a regular exerciser, I want you to know that you have great power. And as Spiderman taught us, with great power comes great responsibility. Movement and exercise creates intersections with many other Dimensions of Wellness and it can become a cornerstone for improved health in those other Dimensions. It is our responsibility to create safe and non-stigmatizing environments for everyone to experience movement.
The opening image to the article is Warrior 2 yoga asana. The Sanskrit name for the pose, Virabhadrasana 2, breaks down as follows: vira = warrior/hero, Bhadra = friend.
Until next time, be well friends!
