IF gyms really served their purpose, swiping in would open up the door to Mount Olympus. Gym-goers, 110 per cent committed to their physiques, would pump iron with ease. Instructors would be out of work and we’d be a nation of slim Jims instead of an epidemic of obesity.
Are gyms really that intimidating to those with a bit more than a few pounds to lose? According to Louise it’s not so much the gyms and the minefield of machines in them, but gym members themselves.
As it stands, gyms are a mixed bag. Alongside your average gym-goer there are the meat heads in the free weights area willing on their own biceps reps in the mirror, stressed business types running off their woes on the treadmill and the girl in hot pants and too much makeup (there’s always one) seducing the stepper.
And then there's the overweight.
Body Exchange, a ‘fit camp and adventure company exclusive to a plus-size clientele’ in Vancouver Canada has set tongues wagging of late. Founder Louise Green believes the whole gym ordeal can be as frightening to an overweight person as Nightmare On Elm Street is to a five-year old, and so her ‘safe haven’ for the plus-size community opened its doors to a very select group.
There have been all sorts of reports about this idea for a fitness centre, one even suggesting you have to have at least 50lbs or more to lose before you can join Louise’s club. The real issue however, is why Louise felt the need to open this type of centre in the first place. Are gyms really that intimidating to those with a bit more than a few pounds to lose? According to Louise it’s not so much the gyms and the minefield of machines in them, but gym members themselves.
Gymtimidated?Speaking about the types of gym-goers her clients would rather avoid, Louise told The Province: “The presence of that person in our program will bring down morale. I used to walk into fitness classes where nobody would even say hi. This has got to be fun or it's not going to work. Many of our clients have not had successful fitness pasts so I can see the anxiety before we get started and I can see the relief and happiness after we finish.”
‘Gymtimidation’ is certainly not reserved solely for the overweight. From size 8 to 18, no woman relishes sitting, legs akimbo on the thigh abductor machine with awkward sweat stains on show right in front of the male dominated free weights section.
But if needs must, we get on with it because it’s a gym not a nightclub. We’re all inquisitive beings, and when faced with a 30 minute uphill bike session, eyes will wander. Whether it’s the cottage cheese ripple effect thighs jiggling around on the power plate or the guy with abs you could grate cheese on squatting on the mats, no one’s safe from the eyes of others in such exposed and communal settings.
Do your gym peers look like this?
For the gym-shy however, it can often be the sight of their gym peers that’s more off-putting than the thought of being watched. While it can sometimes seem as though gyms are for the built and the beautiful, don’t let the dolly bird on the stepper fool you.
We all have our own fitness goals and even if everyone else looks in shape, they’re all there for the same reason as you: to improve. When we realise that, there’ll no longer be a need for companies such as Louise’s. And only then will we be well and truly on our way to Mount Olympus.
Follow Lynda on Twitter @lyndamoyo
