Gustavus is a very welcoming and safe community. We are inclusive no matter the race, gender, religion, or beliefs. So last spring when the weight room reserved a spot designed only for women, there were some issues. When this first began many women were excited and raved about how fantastic this is. Many said that finally women have a chance to feel good about themselves in the weight room and that they will use these skills for the rest of their lives.

Men, however, had a different view. In general, the male population at Gustavus was not happy with the decision made by Gustavus. They seemed to have two sides. There were  ones who believed that women shouldn’t feel bad about going to gym. Then there were the ones who were furious. Different social media websites and apps were filled with rude, inappropriate and judgmental comments.

As a woman in today’s society, I feel that we are almost equal to men in many ways. However, there will always be biological differences between men and women, which some seem to forget. Women generally have smaller statures, breasts, and larger hips; some of these traits are for bearing children.

While men tend to have larger bodies, a higher muscle mass, and higher endurance, which are traits great for hunting and fighting. Lets look at an evolutionary and historical perspective. Men are larger to protect and provide for their wife and families. But with modern technology women are easily capable of taking care of themselves and their own safety.

As time has moved on roles and stereotypes have changed. Now it is very common to see women without husbands raising children, same-sex couples getting married, and many other changes. These are things that would have almost been unheard of fifty years ago. None of these are bad, they are just examples of change. The word change tends to make some people feel uncomfortable. Many see the word change as a negative thing because its different and they may not know what is to come. Throughout the years change has seemed to have a very negative impact on modern society.

Having time for women in the weight room is very important. Whether you were born, or identify yourself as a female, living a healthy lifestyle is important. This may be a change to some people, but it is a part of the circle of life.

Change is inevitable, and the more we try to fight it, the more it will come back to hurt us. I would hope that such an inclusive community such as Gustavus would not have said such horrible things to such a good healthy idea. Many women are scared to go into weight rooms, and after the response that happened in the spring, many women will continue to be scared.

Weight lifting and weight training is a very important part of keeping your body healthy. However, it is not always a natural way of life. If you are not doing daily weight exercises not only will your muscle mass not improve but also your bone density could go down. On average women begin to lose muscle mass and bone density around the age of thirty.

Keeping higher muscle mass and bone density is critical to a long and healthy life. Hopefully as time goes on more women will understand the importance of weight lifting and its impacts on life.
There will always be people that will put us down, but lets make Gustavus even better and support anyone who wants to go to the weight room.