Monday 3 October 2011

Do women need sport to be spoonfed?

Spoonfed sport?

 
Last week after the Team Bangs graduation at Run to the Beat, there was an interesting debate going on in Twitterland about the dumbing down of sport for women.

Do we really need runs like the Boutique Run and Grazia Bootcamp to lure us into getting sweaty, or is it an insult to our femininity and intelligence to powder puff exercise and give it a spray tan presentation?

I think there is a certain amount of fear when it comes to exercise and taking part in new things that maybe these "glam sport" efforts go some way to reducing. As a non-sporty bod myself by trade, when you take up a new exercise such as running it is easy to feel that everyone else knows what they are doing, that you don't fit somehow. True, this is all down to confidence, but is it so bad to lure women to getting fit by making it a more approachable environment?

Take, for example, the Bike Shop Thing. Most bike shops are, for some reason, manned by guys who think they are god's gift to the activity of riding on 2 wheels. There is an attitude palpable on walking into the shop that THEY KNOW FAR MORE THAN YOU and don't even TRY to pretend you know anything.

Well, yes it's useful to have staff who know more than you, but I can't deny if there was a bike shop I could take Steve Specialized to where they had a coffee machine doing soya lattes and I could learn in a judgement free environment how to change my tyres better, I would spend more time in them.

Perceived or not, there can be a certain amount of  exclusion when it comes to sports activities, and I can see where the organisers of glam sports events are coming from. Hell, anything that gets lazy women off the sofa and prevents an early death by obesity is a good thing I would think.

Don't get me wrong, I am not a full-make-up-to-the-gym woman. Oh no, I LOVE a good sweaty run, a bike ride with mud splashed all over and some good, honest working out - but I am not adverse either to a drinky poos and manicure afterwards.

What do you think? Do glam sports have a place?

DD
x

8 comments:

  1. I think it's great in some respects that there are female-focussed events like Boutique Run etc, because sport can genuinely be intimidating to those who haven't grown up as the sportiest person ever but want to get moving. I think worse than that is this idea that we're spoonfed by the media that we have to look beatiful *whilst* doing the activity itself, *or* on the flipside there are columns from writers talking about going to gyms/classes and encountering bitchy, horrible people there. Both things are massively off-putting if you're self-conscious.

    For me, though, I feel like the biggest problem - especially in London - is the massive lack of information on the internet about sports if you don't want to go to a gym. I really, really miss team sports and used to play basketball, rowing etc at uni. I really want to get back into it, but the websites are often so poor, or non-existent, that getting the information I need (even down to whether teams are wanting new players or not) is ridiculously difficult.

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  2. "Hell, anything that gets lazy women off the sofa and prevents an early death by obesity is a good thing I would think."

    I agree with that.

    However, I really do not like the idea that you have to look "beautiful" while you excercise - that it'll somehow make you feel good if you sweat with your face covered in "sweat proof" foundation.

    I love women's only events like Race for Life, etc, but the focus of these event should be "come as you are, do the best you can, encourage each other and don't freaking judge". I almost like events with mostly men because I know that no one there looks at me and thinks oh my god, she's not wearing ANY make up and her hair is all messed up!

    So do I have a point after all this rambling? I think my point is that women have to try to be easier on each other... Once we're nice to each other and encourage and guide each other, newbies will not feel insecure joining in...

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  3. I definitely enjoy sporting events targeted at women, and would love to do the boutique run sometime.
    I think its a matter of luring people out of their comfort zone with something that looks familiar (beauty, make-up, glamour) and then letting them realise they can actually enjoy it without all that!

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  4. As much as there is a tremendous international tradition for independent bike shops to be staffed by snobby self-interested know-it-alls, I think it should be noted that more often than not, underneath that is just a mine of useful knowledge that fails to be articulated in a sociable manner, but mostly - why tar everyone with the same brush?

    Despite this tradition being fiercely upheld in the East End, I struggle to find many shops that truly demonstrate this. And the issues the staff have to deal with should be equally considered. I.E, the customer who viciously enforces the fact that they've been 'riding for years [read - I'm older than you and therefore know better]' while spouting pure bullshit. These regular situations result in the staff member's carefully directed advice being thrown back as needles into his/her eyes. This is quite annoying.

    Furthermore, re. learning to fit tyres. As far as I'm aware (correct me if I'm wrong) cookery lessons in supermarkets only happen in Sainsbury's adverts. However, many bike shops run, be it occasional or regular, Open Toolbox sessions. The one I work on provides wine and crisps. It's also free.

    The experiences you've had are a real shame, and the shop(s) have let the rest of us down, but don't give up. To save time, I think you can find the BikeBiz Mystery Shopper reports around, and they've covered basically everywhere in the UK.

    Good luck.

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  5. Hi Jack, thanks so much for your response and you are quite right I did grossly generalise. I really appreciate your comment, and love the Open Toolbox session idea! Unfortuntely I did live in the East End and so my bike shop experiences were hipster-led :)
    I do think I should learn to sort my own tyres out properly and stop fearing being judged/looking daft, and I am going to make sure this is something I do :)
    Thanks Jack xx

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  6. Bloody hipsters. (Says me, looking like I do...). Evans Cycles run a fortnightly Fix It sessions in most branches - though in Brighton we only did it in the summer, but worth keeping an eye on as the Tesco-esque virus of a chain spreads across the nation. Alternatively, this website; http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help covers pretty much everything you could ever need to know, or there is the guru that is Sheldon Brown; http://www.sheldonbrown.com/ (Enjoy the medieval coding there).

    Or obviously feel free to direct queries at me.

    Death to Brick Lane Bikes *raises revolutionary fist*

    xx

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  7. Hahahaha, cheers Jack - I will be bringing Steve to Brighton for lessons with Miss Allen and your good self over beach cocktails. Think thats a much better plan. And Glam biking lessons? Yes please :) xxx

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  8. I think anything that encourages exercise and wellbeing is a good thing. Not everyone is a born athlete who excel at bootcamps, that's why I think activities like zumba or tai chi, which has a fun and social aspect to it as well, are so popular.
    On a side note, what's a drinky poos?

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