Gym Intimidation at Lyon: You’re Not Alone
By: Terry Nguyen, ‘20
USC’s gym can be a frightening place to those unfamiliar with the humid aroma of Lyon Center’s testosterone-filled, intimidatingly sweaty crowd. No matter what time of day it is or whatever the weather conditions are, Lyon is sure to be inhabited by at least several weight-lifting fitness junkies and cardio enthusiasts, both of whom make up a sizable portion of the USC student body.
As a female freshman with a love for fitness, I arrived at the University excited and determined: excited for a new workout environment and determined to prove the mythical freshman fifteen wrong.
My first week working out at Lyon, however, proved to be unusually difficult. I was faced with unanticipated moments of frustration as a newcomer to the campus fitness environment — I was unable to complete most of my workouts and often times, it was just too crowded to do so.
Most of my workouts utilized heavy weights, and coincidentally, that equipment also happened to be the highest in demand for Lyon’s bodybuilding crowd.
“How many more sets do you have?” was a question I received countless of times uttered in the same masculine tone, only minutes after I claimed myself a rack.
It took months before I could look some guy in the eye and respond curtly with, “I’ve only started, sorry.”
My first few experiences with this subconscious gym intimidation made me uncomfortable; I felt out of place claiming a rack, only to squat less than 100 pounds. I was socially pressured to feel that my workout was less important than my fellow male peers because I was not physically up to par.
As a disclaimer, I have never been outrightly disrespected by any of the men I’ve encountered at Lyon.
My discomfort could have all been internal, but that does not make it invalid.
Even before arriving at USC, I have always felt that, as a female weightlifter, my presence was not always completely welcome by the bodybuilding bros, especially during gym peak hours when it becomes every man for himself to claim fitness equipment.
Gym intimidation is very real, especially in the weight room, since so many girls tend to stick to the mats or cardio equipment. There is a subconscious voice in the back of my head that tells me what I’m doing is unladylike, or that I simply don’t belong on the floor surrounded by sweaty, grunting men.
Perhaps it is the product of societal sexist pressures I have grown up facing or the prevailing stereotype that women shouldn’t lift weights or attempt to bulk — which is ridiculous considering the vast female fitness community online.
Nevertheless, the gym intimidation that I and many other women — at USC and around the world — feel is real and valid, regardless if we have experienced outright sexism or a more subtle, nuanced version of it.
Just when I begin to feel comfortable in my place at the weight room, a masculine voice interrupts my workout pop-music jam with that redundant, subconsciously misogynistic question: “How many more sets do you have?”
At times, I feel like retorting back, “Why won’t you ask the other guy who’s been here longer than me and is on his phone?” But, I swallow down my snark and respond civilly, attempting to continue my workout and not be fazed by what society has conditioned me to see as a more dominant figure.
To all the girls out there who have just committed to a workout regimen beyond a treadmill: don’t be intimidated. Barely began lifting weights? Commit to it.
We are shattering societal norms and dismantling the patriarchal train of thought — slowly, but one set at a time.
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