Women’s embodied experiences of exercise (sub)cultures

: communities of practice in the CrossFit box

Abstract

CrossFit is a popular leisure activity for women, which is unusual given its similarities to predominantly male dominated strength and resistance-based activities. Traditionally women have been drawn more towards cardiovascular activity, shying away from resistance and weight-bearing activities because of the masculine embodiments associated with these activities. Thus, the aim of this work was to form an understanding of women’s embodied experiences of participating in CrossFit so that lessons could be learnt in how to attract more women to these types of activities.
Three qualitative studies were undertaken with women who participate in and coach CrossFit, across the UK. Operating within an interpretivist approach, these women’s stories have been explored and discussed using Arthur Frank’s typology of body. Frank, among other scholars, argues individuals understand and make sense of their lives in and through stories, which are embodied.
The women who participated in this research explained the importance of the communities of practice and the impact it had on their continued participation within CrossFit. The communities of practice was vital to their continued participation, where they built relationships with other CrossFitters who are supportive and encouraging of goals within and out of CrossFit settings. Therefore, it is important to understand how communities of practice are constructed, maintained and experienced. In CrossFit boxes, women used their bodies in what Arthur Frank (1995) calls communicative ways, a typology of body usage which the true existence of has been questioned. Here it is has been found to not only exist, but to be the main form of body usage within CrossFit spaces.

In addition, CrossFit coaches are key to creating and maintaining the communities of practice, and through combinations of body typologies it is maintained and learned by new CrossFitters. As coaches are key in the women’s experiences of CrossFit and the construction and maintenance of the CrossFit communities of practice, it is important to understand why women progress into coaches. Especially with there being a high membership retention of women (over 50%), and there are less than 25% of coaches who are women. Women’s coaching stories were largely indicative on longstanding structural inequalities and gender relations noted in other coaching and sport research but use of Frank’s typology of body usage enabled the identification of specific combinations of body usage women draw upon to navigate this successfully. Studying women’s coaching stories in this way gave us unique access to their (past, present and future) selves and identities, thus offering fresh insights into the representation of women in sports coaching.

Date of Award	29 Jun 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Abertay University
Supervisor	Rhiannon Lord (Supervisor) & Ross Lorimer (Supervisor)