“CrossFit Has Proven You Can Be Muscular and Still Be Feminine”
Exploring Comparative Practices Within CrossFit
Keywords:
CrossFit, social comparison, body ideals, transformation, exerciseAbstract
Women in sport struggle to navigate feeling and acting feminine with wanting to achieve a high-performance standard in their sport and find themselves toeing the line and attempting to strike a balance between socially appropriate femininity and strength and power. One such exercise modality where females are encouraged to push beyond the “acceptable” cultural norms is CrossFit. While there is a heavy emphasis on body functionality over appearance, women who CrossFit still experience disapproval from those around them and society as a whole; their transforming bodies do not agree with societal gender norms. The purpose of this qualitative paper was to explore how women who CrossFit engage in self and social comparison, aiming to understand the various facets that may influence body image within CrossFit, and how women who CrossFit are impacted by the potential comparative practices around them. Three different and distinct comparison themes were uncovered: comparison of self to self, comparison of self to other athletes, and comparison of self to ideals. The comparative themes found in this study highlighted females’ personal transformations while also recognizing that there is more to address within societal norms before this environment can be experienced by all women.
References
Arigo, D., Schumacher, L., & Martin, L. M. (2014). Upward appearance comparison and the development of eating pathology in college women. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 47(5), 467-470.
Bordo, S. (2003). Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body. University of California Press.
Coyne, P., & Woodruff, S. J. (2020). The impact of the CrossFit environment on women's body image, self-esteem, and eating behaviors. International Journal of Multiple Research Approaches, 12(1), 78–95. https://doi.org/10.29034/ijmra.v12n1a2
CrossFit, LLC. (2020). CrossFit Training: Level 1 Training Guide. CFJ_English_Level1_TrainingGuide.pdf
Dworkin, S. L. (2003). “Holding women back”: Negotiating a glass ceiling on women’s muscular strength. Sociological Perspectives, 44(3), 333-350.
Festinger, L. (1954). A Theory of Social Comparison Processes. Human Relations, 7(2), 117-140.
Gipson, C., Malcom, N., Hauff, C., Bennett, H., & Kaur Mallhi, A. (2022). A Qualitative Exploration of Social Media Consumption and Use Among Everyday Women Who Participate in CrossFit. Research Directs in Health Sciences, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.53520/rdhs2022.10425
Grabe, S., Ward, L., & Hyde, J. (2008). The role of the media in body image concerns among women: A meta-analysis of experimental and correlational studies, Psychological Bulletin, 134(3), 460-476. 10.1037/0033-2909.134.3.460
Heywood, L. (2015). ‘Strange Borrowing’: Affective Neuroscience, Neoliberalism and the ‘Cruelly Optimistic’Gendered Bodies of CrossFit. In C. Nally & A. Smith (Eds.), Twenty-first Century Feminism: Forming and Performing Femininity (pp. 17-40). Hampshire: Springer.
Hauff, C., Gipson, C., Bennett, H., & Malcom, N. L. (2021). Badass Crossfit women; Redefining traditional femininity, one handstand push-up at a time. In Sportswomen’s Apparel in the United States (pp. 231-248). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Krane, V. (2001). We can be athletic and feminine, but do we want to? Challenging hegemonic femininity in women’s sport. Quest, 53(1), 115–133.
Krane, V., Choi, P. Y. L., Baird, S. M., Aimar, C. M., & Kauer, K. J. (2004). Living the paradox: Female athletes negotiate femininity and muscularity. Sex Roles, 50(5/6), 315–329.
James, E. P., & Gill, R. (2018). Neoliberalism and the Communicative Labor of CrossFit. Communication & Sport, 6(6), 703-727. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167479517737036
Leahey, T. M., Crowther, J. H., & Mickelson, K. D. (2007). The frequency, nature, and effects of naturally occurring appearance-focused social comparisons. Behavior Therapy, 38(2), 132-143.
Malcom, N., Edmonds, S., Gipson, C., Hauff, C., & Bennett, H. (2021). Negotiating the Funhouse: CrossFit Women and the Looking Glass. Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal, 29(2), 95-105.
Morrison, T., Kalin, R., & Morrison, M. (2004). Body-image evaluation and body-image investment among adolescents: A test of sociocultural and social comparison theories. Adolescence, 39(55), -592.
National Collegiate Athletic Association. (2021). NCAA Sports Sponsorship and Participation Rates Report. 2021RES_SportsSponsorshipParticipationRatesReport.pdf
Paterna, A., Alcaraz‐Ibáñez, M., Fuller‐Tyszkiewicz, M., & Sicilia, Á. (2021). Internalization of body shape ideals and body dissatisfaction: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 54(9), 1575-1600.
Podmore, M., & Ogle, J. P. (2018). The lived experience of CrossFit as a context for the development of women’s body image and appearance management practices. Fashion and Textiles, 5(1), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40691-017-0116-y
Prichard, I., & Tiggemann, M. (2008). Relations among exercise type, self-objectification, and body image in the fitness centre environment: The role of reasons for exercise. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 9(6), 855-866.
Rodgers, R. (2016). The role of “Healthy Weight” discourse in body image and eating concerns: An extension of sociocultural theory. Eating Behaviors, 22, 194-198.
Roth, A., & Basow, S. A. (2016). Femininity, Sports, and Feminism. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 28(3), 245-265. https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723504266990
Tiggemann, M. (2004). Body image across the adult life span: Stability and change. Body Image, 1, 29–41. doi:10.1016/ S1740-1445(03)00002-0
Tiggemann, M., & Lynch, J. E. (2001). Body image across the life span in adult women: The role of self-objectification. Developmental Psychology, 37, 243–253. doi:10.1037/00121649.37.2.243
Vartanian, L., Whatron, C., & Green, B. (2012). Appearance vs. health motives for exercise and for weight loss. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 13, 251-256.
Zach, S. & Adiv, T. (2016). Strength Training in Males and Females – Motives, Training Habits, Knowledge, and Stereotypic Perceptions. Sex Roles, 74, 323-334.
