Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal introduced readers to bikini bodybuilding, a fitness competition billed as the woman-friendly cousin of the contests that made Arnold Schwarzenegger famous. Basically, it involves strutting and posing in a bikini and high heels. Journal writer turned competitor Alyssa Abkowitz relied on four-times-a-week weight-lifting sessions and a diet of chicken and hard-boiled eggs to achieve the super-toned-but-still-has-boobs look prized by judges.
With its emphasis on “figure, body tone and poise” over muscle size (to say nothing of its eveningwear portion), bikini bodybuilding is a much closer relative of the beauty pageant — before pageants added talent portions, Q&As, and scholarships to make up for all the objectification. It’s unclear how the campy relic of the pre-women's-lib era became the Iron Man for hot chicks, but it’s not the first ritual of questionable sexual politics to be celebrated (Co-opted? Reclaimed?) by women under the guise of fitness.
Crunch gym recently relaunched its Stiletto Strength classes, aimed to “improve posture and strengthen the core so that you can strut in your stilettos confidently.” (The class is B.Y.O. Heels.) If that’s too easy, Groupon and the like are lousy with deals for stripper-inspired cardio pole dancing classes, the Female Chauvinist Pigs–era fitness trend that won’t die. (Also B.Y.O. Heels.) Carmen Electra turned taking your clothes off into a sport with her Aerobic Striptease DVDs, variations on which are now taught at gyms across the country. (Heels not required.) The question is, what comes next?
Via: What Sexist Ritual Would Make the Next Great Workout?
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