How Safe are Gyms for Women? A Survey

Though we have come a long way, harassment is nothing new for women. We have to face it more often than not. And the gym is one such place where many women face sexual misconduct in some way. Also, when reported the issue hardly gets solved. 

Recently, I came across an article that talks about this issue in length. An online survey was conducted by BarBend recently that raised many important safety issues for women. They did this survey to understand the prevalence of harassment in the training environment. And also to get a proper idea about how it affects the women going to the gym. This way they can address the problems and offer solutions.

BarBend Survey

The survey got a huge response and 1300 individuals offered their viewpoints. Out of these, over ninety-eight percent were females. Though most of the women were from the USA many also were from Canada, South Africa, Australia, and Europe. Thus asserting the fact that harassment is rampant everywhere.

The survey revealed how common harassment is in gyms. It also showed clearly that we still have a long way to go if we want to make gyms a safe place for women to workout. Below are a few of my key takeaways:

• More than half of the women who were surveyed reported that they felt unsafe
• They also stated that they feel unsafe because of staring, following as well as the sexual pursuit by men
• In many cases, women have suffered sexual misconduct in the form of groping, rubbing, and inappropriate touch
• Unsolicited advice is very common through which men try to find a way to harass women
• These issues have been mostly dealt with by women trying to change the way they dress or changing their timings. In some cases, they end up leaving the gym altogether.

To read the full analysis of BarBend’s findings, you can click here!

It is an informative and eye-opening survey. You will not only get the details but will learn about what could be done to tackle the issue. We, women, deserve a safe environment, and this article very well showcases it.