Something I learned recently: physical therapists sometimes have gyms, and sometimes offer personal training at much more reasonable rates than a traditional gym. They're also more experienced with making adjustment for different bodies, and don't attract a crowd of teenage boys. Would recommend!
the one i'm going to next month does dance and running mechanics sessions, which i think is so smart. they're not covered by insurance but they're really focused on injury prevention and correct mechanics
Yes, the focus on mechanics is important! I started seeing my physical therapist following an (non-workout-related) injury that kept nagging me for years, and during that process learned that I've probably been doing a lot of my lifts wrong and making the injury worse.
I'm not lifting but I am rowing (on the water and everything) and yes, the sheer muscle mass I can bring to bear on things gives me a lot of power that my smaller teammates don't have. I also excel at carrying boats, so I guess it's rowing with a minor in weightlifting?
I love this! I just started lifting once a week with a coach who is also a fat power lifter and it's so amazing and affirming to be working with someone who is explicitly anti-diet and has created a space that is explicitly anti-diet and where all bodies are explicitly welcomed! This is @theresistancegym in Concord, CA, coach/owner is @itsbossladymandy. I wish I could be an even bigger part of the community she's creating but Concord is a 30ish minute drive on Saturday mornings when I have my coaching sessions. I would erase all the positive energy I get from my sessions if I tried to navigate commute traffic to go to evening sessions!
I even recently agreed to be filmed for IG to help ensure the fat middle aged white lady getting stronger demographic is showing up on their social media!
I'm also lucky enough to (for now, at least) have free access to a pretty solid employee gym that is currently quite underutilized and is very close to home. Usually the only other person there when I go is the manager / trainer. She has the "typical" skinny gym bunny look, but on the very first day I went there I asked if it was okay to take some videos so my trainer would know what was there so she could set up programs for me, and when she asked me about my coach I told her all about the place and why I picked it, establishing early on that I was not going to be there to "burn fat." I do occasionally see one or two other people but it's almost like having my own private gym. As my employer figures out its longer term office space situation this may eventually go away, but for now it's nice to rebuild my gym confidence in relative privacy!
This is so awesome!! I recently get SO lucky to be matched with a HAES-aligned personal trainer at my local YMCA and for the first time, started enjoying exercise *for* my body, rather than exercise as something I do *to* my body. It's been quite life changing and now she's working as a Body Liberation Health Coach - check her out: https://headandhearttc.com/health-coaching
Seeing that there is a HAES-aligned trainer in TC just made my heart soar! I am from Charlevoix and would love to live in Traverse one day but always wondered how I could give up living in an area (Pacific Northwest) that has a lot of HAES and fat positive providers. So excited for you!
I went snow tubing with a delightful 7-year old this week and she kept wanting to race me and I was like, sorry kiddo, but I have the advantage of fat in this contest of acceleration!
omg thank you for the shout-out. i teared up a little. and i'm so glad you got to write this piece-- i'm unlikely to go into lifting but it's so empowering just to hear other people's good experiences with situations that can be intimidating. sometimes i have to take a break from all of the anti-diet culture, fat babe stuff that i engage with because i start to hear stories about people's bad experiences that i didn't even know i had to worry about. so the flip side of that is that sometimes hearing people have positive experiences with something new can be so bolstering.
Also, I do often remind myself that I'm just strong. My bones are strong. I'm carrying more than twice the weight of my tiny mother and I'm also stronger than her, and I have been since I was like 12 (don't ask how this factors into my psyche). It's pretty neat!
I started Liftoff in the beginning of December and I highly recommend the program and Casey’s newsletter. Casey says lifting weights, you start to understand your body in a different way. It’s more about what a body is capable of, not what it looks like. And I have really felt that lately. Walking around feeling powerful thighs and confident shoulders carrying me through my day, I think a lot less about the amount of space I’m taking up. I’m not as brave as Corrine and have been too intimidated to go to a gym. But I’ve been slowly buying all the equipment for a home gym, it’s an investment but can be done on a budget. So cool to see my two loves, Burnt Toast and Liftoff in the same post!
I second how cool it is to see the Swole Woman x Burnt Toast (Swole Toast??) crossover! I’m a big fan of Casey’s newsletter and the community she has built.
I love lifting weights! I’m using Casey’s Liftoff program. I’m still doing it at home, and if I decide to start using a gym, I will definitely get a trainer. The machines intimidate me for sure. I’ve gotten so much stronger. Moving through space and moving things through space has gotten so much easier.
This is so lovely!! Thank you for sharing! I have been lifting for about a year and agree with the Swole Woman recommendation, and Casey’s Liftoff program because it starts you out in your home with just a broom handle and body weight to really think about form, which helps avoid injury. She also has tons of content about “eating like a big beautiful horse” which is a game changer when you realize that lifting heavy things and not feeling like death means you gotta eat! And maybe eventually think about eating more protein.
The app I use for my lifting is called Sculpt You (a rough name) and I’ll say the programming is good and there’s home and gym options with a form video for everything - but the vibe of their social media is very “self love, you’re powerful, funny young millennial/ older Gen Z memes” which are generally aimed toward cis women. It has nutrition and journaling and yoga/dance/HIIT options as well, and for $9 a month it’s non-diet enough for me who only uses the lifting program. Go carefully but check it out if you’re looking for someone to tell you what to do in the gym.
Also want to add my shout out the local YMCA here- often a great place to find reasonably priced gyms and trainers.
I use Liftoff too. The BEST thing about it is Casey’s insistence that you have to eat to lift. I highly recommend checking out her She’s a Beast newsletter.
This is so motivational to read! I have been timidly participating in a gym but doing mostly cardio (Zumba) and I have really wanted to start some weightlifting. I previously have done class based weightlifting and loved how strong it made me feel. Currently the classes are too fast for me to be able to keep up and enjoy myself (all fitness levels welcome, yeah right!). I know I need to find a coach and have found this to be a roadblock. But I love your reminder that I can set my own boundaries. This may have been the push I needed!
Yes!! Get it!! Also, you have totally influenced me to join the waitlist for the strawberry baggu (I'm obsessed with mine so I obv recognized it instantly).
I haven't ever felt like it cuts into my skin. It is tight but the edges lay flat for me. And yes, I feel like it is a very full coverage bra, so side and underarm are covered too.
Corinne! I loved reading all of this. I’m used to telling people I don’t want to talk about weight loss, but it never occurred to me that I could also put nutrition on the “no go” list too. I have a rec center 2 blocks from my house and have been a bit intimidated to go over there, but this post is really making me want to go.
Something I learned recently: physical therapists sometimes have gyms, and sometimes offer personal training at much more reasonable rates than a traditional gym. They're also more experienced with making adjustment for different bodies, and don't attract a crowd of teenage boys. Would recommend!
Ooooh good to know!
the one i'm going to next month does dance and running mechanics sessions, which i think is so smart. they're not covered by insurance but they're really focused on injury prevention and correct mechanics
Yes, the focus on mechanics is important! I started seeing my physical therapist following an (non-workout-related) injury that kept nagging me for years, and during that process learned that I've probably been doing a lot of my lifts wrong and making the injury worse.
I'm not lifting but I am rowing (on the water and everything) and yes, the sheer muscle mass I can bring to bear on things gives me a lot of power that my smaller teammates don't have. I also excel at carrying boats, so I guess it's rowing with a minor in weightlifting?
Oh that’s awesome! Cassi (my coach) is also really into rowing and I sometimes do rowing workouts (sadly not on the water.)
I love this! I just started lifting once a week with a coach who is also a fat power lifter and it's so amazing and affirming to be working with someone who is explicitly anti-diet and has created a space that is explicitly anti-diet and where all bodies are explicitly welcomed! This is @theresistancegym in Concord, CA, coach/owner is @itsbossladymandy. I wish I could be an even bigger part of the community she's creating but Concord is a 30ish minute drive on Saturday mornings when I have my coaching sessions. I would erase all the positive energy I get from my sessions if I tried to navigate commute traffic to go to evening sessions!
I even recently agreed to be filmed for IG to help ensure the fat middle aged white lady getting stronger demographic is showing up on their social media!
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Com9WsVp0ax/?igshid=OWEyOTRmYTI=
I'm also lucky enough to (for now, at least) have free access to a pretty solid employee gym that is currently quite underutilized and is very close to home. Usually the only other person there when I go is the manager / trainer. She has the "typical" skinny gym bunny look, but on the very first day I went there I asked if it was okay to take some videos so my trainer would know what was there so she could set up programs for me, and when she asked me about my coach I told her all about the place and why I picked it, establishing early on that I was not going to be there to "burn fat." I do occasionally see one or two other people but it's almost like having my own private gym. As my employer figures out its longer term office space situation this may eventually go away, but for now it's nice to rebuild my gym confidence in relative privacy!
Omg, thank you for sharing that reel!! More fat, middle aged gym content, please!!!!!
This is so awesome!! I recently get SO lucky to be matched with a HAES-aligned personal trainer at my local YMCA and for the first time, started enjoying exercise *for* my body, rather than exercise as something I do *to* my body. It's been quite life changing and now she's working as a Body Liberation Health Coach - check her out: https://headandhearttc.com/health-coaching
I love that distinction you make here: doing something for your body rather than to it ✨
Seeing that there is a HAES-aligned trainer in TC just made my heart soar! I am from Charlevoix and would love to live in Traverse one day but always wondered how I could give up living in an area (Pacific Northwest) that has a lot of HAES and fat positive providers. So excited for you!
Yes! We moved back to northern Michigan from Seattle and had similar concerns about the cultural shock after the Pacific Northwest!
I went snow tubing with a delightful 7-year old this week and she kept wanting to race me and I was like, sorry kiddo, but I have the advantage of fat in this contest of acceleration!
omg thank you for the shout-out. i teared up a little. and i'm so glad you got to write this piece-- i'm unlikely to go into lifting but it's so empowering just to hear other people's good experiences with situations that can be intimidating. sometimes i have to take a break from all of the anti-diet culture, fat babe stuff that i engage with because i start to hear stories about people's bad experiences that i didn't even know i had to worry about. so the flip side of that is that sometimes hearing people have positive experiences with something new can be so bolstering.
Also, I do often remind myself that I'm just strong. My bones are strong. I'm carrying more than twice the weight of my tiny mother and I'm also stronger than her, and I have been since I was like 12 (don't ask how this factors into my psyche). It's pretty neat!
I started Liftoff in the beginning of December and I highly recommend the program and Casey’s newsletter. Casey says lifting weights, you start to understand your body in a different way. It’s more about what a body is capable of, not what it looks like. And I have really felt that lately. Walking around feeling powerful thighs and confident shoulders carrying me through my day, I think a lot less about the amount of space I’m taking up. I’m not as brave as Corrine and have been too intimidated to go to a gym. But I’ve been slowly buying all the equipment for a home gym, it’s an investment but can be done on a budget. So cool to see my two loves, Burnt Toast and Liftoff in the same post!
I second how cool it is to see the Swole Woman x Burnt Toast (Swole Toast??) crossover! I’m a big fan of Casey’s newsletter and the community she has built.
I think that’s the way I’ll go. At my age, I’m just not interested in the gym (and the possible gym bros I may encounter).
I love lifting weights! I’m using Casey’s Liftoff program. I’m still doing it at home, and if I decide to start using a gym, I will definitely get a trainer. The machines intimidate me for sure. I’ve gotten so much stronger. Moving through space and moving things through space has gotten so much easier.
This is so lovely!! Thank you for sharing! I have been lifting for about a year and agree with the Swole Woman recommendation, and Casey’s Liftoff program because it starts you out in your home with just a broom handle and body weight to really think about form, which helps avoid injury. She also has tons of content about “eating like a big beautiful horse” which is a game changer when you realize that lifting heavy things and not feeling like death means you gotta eat! And maybe eventually think about eating more protein.
The app I use for my lifting is called Sculpt You (a rough name) and I’ll say the programming is good and there’s home and gym options with a form video for everything - but the vibe of their social media is very “self love, you’re powerful, funny young millennial/ older Gen Z memes” which are generally aimed toward cis women. It has nutrition and journaling and yoga/dance/HIIT options as well, and for $9 a month it’s non-diet enough for me who only uses the lifting program. Go carefully but check it out if you’re looking for someone to tell you what to do in the gym.
Also want to add my shout out the local YMCA here- often a great place to find reasonably priced gyms and trainers.
I use Liftoff too. The BEST thing about it is Casey’s insistence that you have to eat to lift. I highly recommend checking out her She’s a Beast newsletter.
This is so motivational to read! I have been timidly participating in a gym but doing mostly cardio (Zumba) and I have really wanted to start some weightlifting. I previously have done class based weightlifting and loved how strong it made me feel. Currently the classes are too fast for me to be able to keep up and enjoy myself (all fitness levels welcome, yeah right!). I know I need to find a coach and have found this to be a roadblock. But I love your reminder that I can set my own boundaries. This may have been the push I needed!
I hope you find someone that feels like a good fit!! And screw the all fitness levels welcome classes. I hate that. :(
So fun to read an article from you, Corinne!
Yes!! Get it!! Also, you have totally influenced me to join the waitlist for the strawberry baggu (I'm obsessed with mine so I obv recognized it instantly).
Omg that’s so funny! I love my baggu although I think it’s an unusual choice for a gym bag.
Enell bra here I come! I have yet to find my perfect sports bra for my high impact sport of choice (dressage)
Enell bras are the shit. No bounce AT ALL. They aren't the most breathable or cute but you will not move.
Do they cut into your skin and do they cover the side boob/underarm area? I'm hoping no on the first and yes on the second....
I haven't ever felt like it cuts into my skin. It is tight but the edges lay flat for me. And yes, I feel like it is a very full coverage bra, so side and underarm are covered too.
Everything about this was wonderful!
Corinne! I loved reading all of this. I’m used to telling people I don’t want to talk about weight loss, but it never occurred to me that I could also put nutrition on the “no go” list too. I have a rec center 2 blocks from my house and have been a bit intimidated to go over there, but this post is really making me want to go.
LOVED this piece !! Thank you Corinne for sharing your journey