A New Wave, synth-pop track echoes through the TV, as perfectly primped, gaunt dancers dressed in leotards and leg warmers rhythmically stretch. A neon pink, tubular, ‘80s font covers the screen: “Jane Fonda’s Workout. With Jane Fonda.” 

“Feel the burn!” screams ferally enthused Fonda at the over 17 million women who bought the workout that was later considered to be the start of the women’s fitness industry. 

In the 1980s, women began breaking free from the idea they were inherently physically weaker than men and instead, realized they had simply never tried to be strong. This change in mentality led many to embark on a collective journey to prove women can be strong. 

In 1982, the Jane Fonda Workout ignited that journey by providing women who owned a VHS player a workout that could be performed in the privacy of their own homes. This high-energy, aerobic-style workout made working out appealing and surprisingly, exciting, 

Women’s exercise was beginning to catch mainstream attention, however, in the eyes of society women were still not meant to be seen sweating or exerting themselves in the ways that men did, making it difficult for many women to work out in public. This long-held societal notion is why the Jane Fonda Workout tapes became so popular among women. Finally, they had the tools to get active on their own terms. 

Although this glimpse into the past seems like a fairytale story of women’s empowerment, which in part, it was, it also fueled a new toxic standard. Women were no longer expected to be delicate and sedentary.  They were expected to work out and also look fit and slender.

Fonda and her group of instructors all sported the same body type:extremely slim, with their exposed rib cages as much of an accessory as their leg warmers. Fonda even revealed in a 2018 interview with People Magazine that prior to her first workout tape, she had just overcome a decades-long battle with bulimia that exercise helped her kick cold turkey. While Fonda created her tapes with good intentions, hoping to help women use exercise in the same way that helped heal her, the unattainable bodies seen in the tapes still became the goal for many women. 

This era bred the beginning of a phenomenon that women are still dealing with today: body types being treated as fashion trends. With this increased emphasis and microscope on women being “healthy,” their bodies quickly became the forefront of the movement; skinny was the new standard. 

Throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s, a weight-loss drug ironically referred to by the cutesy sounding name Fen-Phen, according to the New York Times, (the fen referring to fenfluramine, an appetite suppressant, and the phen referring to phentermine, a type of amphetamine) was marketed to women as a miracle drug that would decrease appetite and quickly burn fat. This ‘miracle’ quickly turned into a curse. A 1997 New York Times article reported that Fen-Phen had been discontinued due to a report made by the FDA “indicating that the drugs may cause heart valve defects in as many as a third of patients.” After all, as the age-old cliche suggests, beauty is pain.  

Except, weight should not determine beauty. 

Finally, as the mid-2000s brought new, open-minded ideas to the forefront of mainstream media such as the importance of diversity within races and sexual orientations, the body positivity movement began. 

Plus-size influencers like Trisha Paytas and artists like Lizzo embraced being overweight and even flaunted it online, propelling body positivity forward. While they were not the coveted body standard, they made space in the media for women who looked like them, which was revolutionary. 

But progression always seems to turn back into regression. 

Slim-thick became the new skinny. 

Women of all ages, but especially young women, began chasing the infamous, overly exaggerated hourglass figures of the “Kar-Jenners” and influencers alike, who relentlessly claim to be “natural.” 

Jane Fonda-like cardio workouts were now obsolete, and many women entered the world of weightlifting. Specifically, glute training in an attempt to emulate the influencers that plagued their Instagram explore pages. Social media, undoubtedly the major catalyst of this new slim-thick obsession, saw influencers profiting off videos that showed women how to achieve this body. While glute training can be effective when done correctly and paired with the right diet, it is extremely difficult to alter your body’s natural proportions. 

BBLs (Brazilian Butt Lifts) rose to popularity because they involve taking fat from different parts of the body, like arms and stomachs, and transferring it to the butt. According to the Aesthetic Surgery Journal, BBLs have “the highest mortality rate of any aesthetic surgical procedure.” 

Thousands of women risking their lives to achieve society’s current desired body type  emphasizes just how grave an issue it is to treat women’s bodies as fashion trends. 

The logical thought is no trend is worth risking your life over, but from the emotional perspective of a woman, especially a young woman, it is so difficult to ignore the gnawing feeling of not reflecting society’s idea of the “perfect woman.”

As the world turns, so does the trend-cycle. 

After a decade-long reign, in 2022 a shift in the desired body began to brew. Kim and Khloe Kardashian started to slim down, and their infamous butts did too. Speculation that they had reversed their alleged BBLs ran rampant all over the internet. To no surprise, the sisters maintained the story that their bodies were all natural and they were simply eating healthy and working out. Nonetheless, the skinny standard slowly started slithering its way back. Even unapologetic, plus-size stars like Lizzo have joined the collective weight loss journey. 

Weightlifting is no longer the trend to follow; pilates has become the new craze for slimming down and achieving a toned look. In 2020, female fitness YouTuber Chloe Ting went viral for her hardcore, at-home pilates-style ab workouts. The workouts were predominantly done by teen girls and promised if you did them consistently, you would see results fast—another catalyst responsible for propelling young girls into a lifelong chase to be thin. TikTok’s “For You” page is now inundated with influencers showing the wide variety of pilates workouts possible while emphasizing their slender yet toned figures. 

Exercise for women has never fully been about health. 

The resurfacing of the skinny trend resulted in an aggressive comeback of weight loss drugs. Ozempic, a semaglutide injection created for diabetics, has become liquid gold for people, primarily women, trying to lose weight. According to Columbia Surgery, users tend to “…experience around 10 percent loss of body weight.” while using the drug. 

A slew of celebrities and influencers have been suspected of using the drug. Many deny it but some, like Oprah Winfrey in a 2023 interview with People Magazine, are open about their experience. 

The cyclical nature of women’s body standards has made it difficult to focus on what exercise should be about— being healthy and strong. Fortunately, women can find comfort in knowing they all share similar experiences. Avery Marrs, fitness instructor and founder of Kent State fitness club Ladies Lift, is making a difference in the women’s fitness landscape. “Our members seem to enjoy the bonding events the most. There we get to chat about our experiences in the gym together.” 

Ladies Lift is a club here at Kent State aimed at fostering a community of women who are committed to uplifting each other in their health journeys. “I saw a lack of community of women in the Rec Center…I wanted to create a safe environment that helps women learn proper technique and confidence while in the gym.” 

Even with predecessors like Jane Fonda normalizing women’s fitness, most gyms are still predominantly male. The Kent State Recreation Center is notoriously very male-dominated, making it difficult for women to utilize the space comfortably: “We’re always trying to encourage girls to take up space in the gym, even with the pushback from some men, we have just as much a right to be there and take up space as they do.” Thanks to women like Marrs, communities like Ladies Lift exist as safe havens for women to overcome these struggles together. 

The perpetual trend cycle of women’s bodies and workouts will always exist, but if women make a conscious effort to fight these societal expectations, together we can do the workouts that we love, regardless of what our ‘For You’ pages are telling us to do.