Fit Femininity

Exploring the intersection of culture, gender, and exercise.

Pirkko Markula Ph.D.

Does Living a Yoga Lifestyle Mean Strict Discipline?

Does living a Yoga lifestyle mean being always disciplined, calm, and effortlessly flexible? Dedicated practitioners can understand their daily Yoga in multiple ways.

Is Turning Out Your Feet at the Barre a Good Glute Burner?

Is pointing your feet outwards at the barre bad for your knees? A barre workout can be effective with proper alignment.

Does Research on Physical Activity Not Include Black Women?

How do African-American women find empowering exercise spaces? Recent research suggests that social connection is an important factor.

Why Marathons Work for Moms

Are you looking for alternative ways to exercise that aren't at a gym? Running outside can be empowering.

Have You Wondered If Pilates Is More Than an Ab Workout?

Are you looking for a well-balanced workout? Pilates exercises can benefit both mind and body.

What Happened to "Real" Yoga?

Are looking for a good workout or a spiritual transformation in your yoga class? It may possible to have both.

Why Are We Hooked on Self-Tracking Fitness Devices?

Using tracking technology can have unintended consequences. How often do you check a fitness app?

The Gym Workout: Does Sweating with Others Energize You?

Do you feel energized when exercising in a gym? Some women continue to have contradictory feelings about fitness clubs.

What Is the CrossFit Secret?

Why is CrossFit so popular? Measurable goals and a community of like-minded people draw exercisers to the "box."

When Can Diet and Exercise Be Unhealthy?

Disordered eating is common in the fitness industry. Do you know when exercise and diet can turn unhealthy?

From Using Mirror Muscles to Using Deep Muscles

Is training mirror muscles tiring you out? Sifting the focus on deep muscles can revitalize your workout.

Are You Having Fun Yet?

Do we need to enjoy exercise? Having fun can be a feminist issue.

Can Better Body Awareness Improve Your Workout?

Are you working out to feel the burn? You might need to adjust your attitude to avoid muscle damage.

Why Can Training the 'Mirror Muscles' Cause Pain?

Are you exercising but also feeling chronic pain? A functional exercise program can help.

'My Butt Actually Looks OK in This'

How to choose your exercise outfit? Women exercisers talk about their strategies for looking good in fitness fashion.

Is There Feminine Muscularity?

Is sculpting a muscular body feminine? There are several options for women to display visible muscularity.

The Ideal Fit Masculine Body

Do men exercise to improve their appearance? Men's reactions to the muscular body ideal differ.

Muscle Tone Is Sexy, But You Don’t Want To Look Too Buff

Women athletes need to be fit and strong. Are they happy with their bodies?

Does Competitive Attitude Help Persevere With Exercise??

Not motivated to exercise? What are the lessons from mentally tough exercisers?

Resisting “The Biggest Loser Effect”

Many exercising women are dissatisfied with their bodies. Can self-compassion help with body acceptance?

Why Do Women Strive for Abdominal Perfection?

Abdominal workouts that promise sexy, sculpted abdominals fast are common. Why are we enticed by their promise?

Embrace Your Inner Ballerina

Do you like to embrace your inner ballerina by exercising at home? The online barre exercises workouts need to used with caution.

Can ‘Sexy’ Fitness Be Empowering to Women?

Women can now choose between many different fitness activities to feel more self-confident, strong, and empowered. Why would 'sexy' activities like pole dancing be considered particularly particularly liberating for women?

Can Feeling Sexy in Fitness Class Lead to Body Confidence?

Looking to feel sexy, self-confident, and have fun? Then pole fitness, say some researchers, might be for you.

Is CrossFit a Feminist Issue?

Many CrossFitters testify that their workout has changed their lives and allowed them to build strong, muscular bodies. But is Crossfit safe and empower exercise for women?

Can We Exercise Too Much?

Physical activity has been proven to improve physical and psychological health. However, is any amount of exercise good? Too much exercise can prevent psychological well-being. When excessive exercise develops into exercise dependence, it becomes compulsive behaviour that controls the exerciser's life.

Figure 11

Feeling Exercise Guilt?

Confessions of feeling guilty about eating too much but exercising too little are particularly common among women and particularly after holidays. But do these feelings always motivate us to start working out or to sustain an exercise program beyond January? Is it possible to think about exercise without automatically feeling guilty?

Feminine Physique

Many women now work out with weights to reshape their bodies, but can visible musculature be feminine? Building 'feminine physique' continues to be a part of bodybuilding where women can now compete in bikini and fitness categories with emphasis on feminine presentation, not muscle size. Many women feel empowered, but also avoid becoming 'too big.'

The Mirror Tells It All?

Nearly all gyms have mirrors to improve physical exercise performance. The presence of mirrors can, however, reduce psychological benefits of exercise. Women's psychological wellbeing tends to me more affected by the presence of mirrors than men's wellbeing. How can mirrors be used for improved health benefits?

Spot Reduction

It is a common assumption that exercising certain areas of the body will reduce the surrounding fat storage in that area. It is also a biological fact that this is impossible. Why, then, do we continue to believe in 'spot reduction?'

  • Previous
  • Page 1 (current)
  • Next