Guest Blog Post by: Rosalyn Solomon
“Wow, you sweat a lot,” some stranger commented to me as I wiped down a bench he was waiting to use.
Yes, I’m sweating.
Power-walking? Sweating.
Bicep curls? Sweating
Shadow boxing? Sweating.
Two minutes in the sauna? Drenched.
I am always the sweatiest girl in the class, people tell me it’s a good thing, it means my metabolism and my body is working hard and ridding itself of toxins. Sure, I’m for it. But I can’t help but be utterly embarrassed when some bro comments on how much sweat I’m actually cleaning off a bench, or I’m next to one of those insta-model girls (you know the kind) on the stepper at the gym and my machine looks like I’ve poured water on it while, she still has her blowout and makeup intact.
Sweating makes me look like I’m struggling. Like I don’t know what I’m doing. Like I’m out of shape, fat or new to the gym. I’m not. I work hard in the gym, I run, I kickbox, I even dance. I am active and while I’m no female Adonis, I am healthy and I actually love getting my sweat on, though the amount of it makes me feel less than sometimes.
I nearly always wear black when working out, yet my everyday out of the gym style is vibrant and print-friendly. I try to hide the amount of sweat but like the other day during a kickboxing class where we were all doing push-ups why was I the only one to get up from a puddle of my fat crying?
Well, that’s what it felt like anyway. What is this all about? Not trying to gross you out with my sweatscapades.
The dude’s comment caught me off guard, it’s not the first time I’ve heard it or felt it, but it is the first time I was frozen for a response, initially I was pissed, but as I sit furiously writing this, I understand this is all too common.
My point is this. Everyone. Every single f-g person at the gym is at one point or another in their fitness journey.
We all come from different places, mentalities, genetics, and social status, all of our journeys will look different, our methods will differ, our goals will differ. I mentioned Insta-model girls in the beginning I AM NOT HATING. I appreciate the work they put in. I just cannot help but notice the shade, the weird glances the sheer judgment people (male and female) pass at the gym.
It’s definitely one of the barriers for a lot of new gym-goers. I’m guilty of it too but believe me when I say I’m being way more mindful about these thoughts because I’m tired of the negativity. It weighs on you heavy and brings nothing but misery in return. Exercise is supposed to raise our endorphins; how can we truly get the most out of our workout when some time is spent peeking at what the person at the squat rack over is doing or not doing? This isn’t true for everyone. I know, there are people who have tunnel vision at the gym, focused on their workout and out of there, for the rest of the people — well you know what’s up.
I will learn from my own rant. Maybe wear yellow to the gym next time, let the sweat stains show. Let it be proof of the hard work I’m putting in, not my lack of confidence — straight up, I could probably put up a pretty good fight. So, look at me sideways again. Trust me …
I’ll just give you a sweaty smile.