Body Image in the Locker Room

The gym spawns erratic behaviour

© Lori Henry

Locker Room Diaries, Da Capo Press

An insider's look into the crazy atmosphere that is a woman's locker room

Leslie Goldman was a regular gym-goer while earning her master’s degree in public health. But what she took away from the weekly trips was more about what she saw and heard behind the females-only doors than out at the gym.

Some women would parade around in the nude, letting all of their glory hangout for the world to see; others had developed intricate rituals to get from the shower to their locker and into their clothes without baring one inch.

She began taking her notebook with her to jot down poignant moments and observations, keeping her inconspicuous, and sometimes not, eyes alert for the action. From there she began talking to various women about their body image and experiences in the locker room.

Full-fledged interviews abounded and she ended up collecting her notes into a book called Locker Room Diaries: The Naked Truth about Women, Body Image, and Re-Imagining the “Perfect” Body.

The author’s writing style is relaxed, personal and humorous. Always one to crack a joke at herself, she uses her witty intelligence to flesh out the narrative and delve into her own struggles with disordered eating.

The women she meets and talks about are so real, you can remember seeing someone like them yourself. The book entices laugh-out-loud moments, as well as silent chuckles.

This is a book about the extreme lengths women will go to keep up their appearance, or not, and the crazy things they do in the “privacy” of the locker room.

An entertaining read from beginning to end, it’s also a perfect gift for your best girlfriend, who will understand the humour and sometimes devastation of being a woman at the gym.

You can find out more info on the book at: www.lrdiaries.com and order the book from Amazon.com


The copyright of the article Body Image in the Locker Room in Body Image is owned by Lori Henry. Permission to republish Body Image in the Locker Room must be granted by the author in writing.




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