Being Transgender in a Gym

How Gyms Function to Construct Gender

Abstract

This project aims to disrupt the heteronormative space of a gym by working out in gender-segregated spaces while being transgender. Firstly, it examines affect by recognizing how uncomfortable it felt to be transgender in a gym. Additionally, it identifies how gender norms influence how men and women dress and work out in gyms. Men perform exercises with heavy weights to increase muscle and size, and women perform exercises with light weights to be skinny and slim. Women wear culturally appropriate tight clothes to the gym, and men wear loose and baggy clothes. This study found that gender segregation in gyms enforces the gender binary and excludes gender-diverse people. Some solutions to include gender-diverse people would be to create gender-neutral change rooms and washrooms, diverse advertising, and policies.