You don't have to venture to the gym or on the internet for more than five minutes without seeing some dumbass remarks from men who shouldn't be let out of their cages and give the rest of us a bad name. It's hard to imagine why they felt the need to crawl out from under their rock to grace us with their presence, but it's time for them to go back into hiding, post-haste. I can think one specific comment made on the photo of a friend of mine. It reads:
"Whatever you're shooting into your body to gain muscle like a man, has made you look line. Even masculine facial features. Not to mention your man-like body. Why try so hard to not look feminine? Any man that thinks this is sexy should be f*cking another man. Just saying....Do you have to shave yet?"
Just to clarify, the woman in question is the farthest thing from looking manly. In fact, I consider her to be a petite woman. We aren't dwelling in ye olde Victorian England anymore. We live in a world where woman SHOULD be seen and most definitely be heard. Nothing can hold a beginning female back more than a troglodyte who tells her that women need to remain limp and frail creatures.
Why do these things need to be said? Some men need to accept the fact that we don't live in the 1950's and women are actually real people, who are free to do with their bodies as they choose, free from societal presuppositions that are imposed on them.
Without sounding too much like a Pinterest motivational poster, weak men absolutely demand that a woman stays weak as well. Demanding that a woman not have muscle or get strong is implying that you as a man need to exert dominance over the women in question and if you cannot exert that dominance, then she is unattractive to you. Does this sound like a strong man to you?
These are the kinds of things that drive women to count calories, slave away on treadmills, and skip healthy foods for highly processed, fat-free foods. We will never advance as a society as long as we view women as a sub-species that is not allowed to pursue their own goals in strength, competition, and healthy living. If you simply cannot accept the fact that strong women are amazing, then it's time for you to crawl back under the rock from whence you came.
Go forth and prosper, Pastor B out.



I say link everyone to this mongoloid so that he can be "friended"
ReplyDeleteHell.yes. And if I wasn't firm in my heterosexuality, I'd offer to take Streaky to a steak dinner at a nice restaurant.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this. On top of the ridiculous men that say these things, there are WOMEN who say them too! I think that hurts more than men saying it... When women hear about my weightlifting, the first question is always, "Aren't you afraid you're going to bulk up like a man?" My response is always, "I'm never going to look like a man, and I WANT to be strong, so I'm going to continue to chase my dreams, thankyouverymuch." And, don't even get me started on pro-anorexia and pro-bulimia women and websites. They make me see red...
ReplyDeleteAlthough it's hurtful to you, don't be too critical of women who say such things. They've been brainwashed for years in thinking that strength will make women "masculine" looking. As a woman who reached adulthood in the 70's, I'm amazed that women are still fighting the same battles.
DeleteIf the women have been brainwashed and should be forgiven the fucking stupid things they say, then the same goes for the men. If the men should not be forgiven, neither should the women.
DeleteEach gender tends to do its own policing of gender standards. Men get other men to do stupid things, women get other women to do stupid things, the contributions of the opposite gender are relatively minor.
Just look at a bunch of young male football players, now look at a bunch of young women in a nightclub. They keep themselves in line.
Weak men want women to be weaker still. But weak women are even more keen to keep other women weak. Remember there were women who were against women getting the vote...
I told Talia that she may have set a new standard for the next girl I date, especially since seeing that cold dead done in heels. That was impressive. Your female athletes are every bit as attractive as possible in my mind, not to mention they could probably whip my ass to be honest. I think you're doing a great thing for these women. I don't watch sports entertainment anymore, but if I did, these are the true "divas" I would prefer to see in the ring actually bringing respect back to the sport of professional wrestling. Hell, even on the mat for Greco-Roman, Freestyle or even Catch-as-catch-can style I'd enjoy seeing them. They really leave me in awe. So to them, I send congratulations.
ReplyDeleteD-bags are everywhere.
ReplyDeleteThis is so awesome. Thanks for writing this.
ReplyDeleteI remember telling a guy that if my strength and "agressive" hobbies make him uncomfortable, he needs to take a hard look at himself and assess his own shortcoming as a human being, because I don't need to be dealing with that. Being a weightlifter and judo player has been a great filter for large ego'ed and small minded a$$ hats.
ReplyDeleteThat is a great way to look at it! As a filter... Never quite thought of it like that! I CrossFit and do triathlons and unfortunately just came into contact with a MAJOR a$$ hat! Thanks!
DeleteMan that's so hot when I see a girl do heavy squats and eat like a glutton in front of me.
ReplyDeleteI feel so dumb for having an affinity to pretty "hyperfeminine" (as you describe them /inferred that a regular female is)I feel so dumb for like girls like Dianna Agron over the girls in the article.
I am also very ignorant and dumb for expressing my desire for a culture in which women are feminine. Im so backwards I am automatically forcing all women to do what I want just for holding the ideals I do-despite the fact I do not go around shaming or ranting to people.
Thank you for your rude and condescending article that imposes your perspective as the only valid one.
BTW - Fuk you for being such a snob and making people feel weak and dumb for having a different interest in women or a differrent cultural ideal.
And you follow this page why?!?!
Deleteobviously this article wasn't written about you
Deletebut by expressing your unabashed defensiveness, maybe it was written about you. because even if you don't "go around shaming or ranting to people", maybe you do it in your head, so you may fall along the line of jerks who don't think women should be strong (so that you may live in your selfish made-up culture where "women are feminine").
do the world a favor and get over yourself. its not all about you. this little article hurt your little man-feelings and made you feel ostracized? wah. imagine how (STRONG/passionate/vocal) women feel every. damn. day.
Anonymous,
DeleteYou clearly can't read.
The post was not about promoting a new feminine ideal. Nor was it was about bashing men who are attracted to "classically" feminine women.
This post is about bashing men who feel the need to bash women, strangers, with the Internet.
The comment quoted in the second paragraph is the focus. There was no call for that vitriol to be written. So what? You don't find a certain body type attractive? Big deal. Move on.
No one is telling you to whom you should or should not be attracted. This post, and the blog overall, is offering an alternative to the type of woman you say you want. Not every woman will buy into that image. That's OK, too. The point is that there is not one image, and no one should work to say that there should be.
As an aside, if you truly believe what you are writing, have the conviction and sign your name. By being "anonymous" you proved "weak men want weak women." You're a coward.
TROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLL alert.
DeleteGTFO douche bag. The strong women here don't need you spewing this crap. You ARE the person this article is written about. The fact that it offended you so much proves that.
I guarantee I can outlift you AND look like a woman in the process, along with all the other beautiful women on this site.
You spelled f*ck wrong. I'm guessing you don't get to do it much.
Delete^^^^ ::giggle::
DeleteA wuss who posts anonymously, what a surprise.
DeleteThat guy who wrote on Courtney's pic is the biggest jerk ever. She is strong but so pretty! He's obviously uncomfortable with his OWN body.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this! I am a female with hard-earned muscles and some folks think I do steroids. I'd laugh in their faces if they would say it to my face, which they won't. :) I say, flex 'em if you got 'em since you earned 'em!
ReplyDeleteHaha this dickskin^^^ is such a "man" that he doesnt even put his name on here. Hey anonymous^ your pussy is showing. Lmao.
ReplyDeleteGreat article - I have found myself hesitating to wear something that reveals my shoulders/arms at times cuz they have muscle. That just ain't right! Tho' it's cuz of comments that I have too much muscle from both men and women and I don't think I even come close to your athletes (working on it!)... you can't win. You are gonna get comments for being "too fat"... or "too muscley"... so just F* it! Workin' on showing off my guns this summer... grin. Strong women rock! Go sistahs!
ReplyDeleteShow them! RAWR!
DeleteI EARNED all my strength!! Not just my physical, but my mental and emotional strengths to! Any man that says that a woman has a place in the world and it's not the gym...needs to realize something and quick...why you are sitting their passing judgments on us and our bodies...we getting the shit done that you aren't...grow the hell up and stop being little boys!!
ReplyDeleteSo much for the last 10,000 years of advancement...
ReplyDeleteThese ladies are all beautiful, and God bless them for all their hard work. Truly inspiring to see them break the mold society has created for them.
ReplyDelete^^^Who says "f you" to a person writing an article? That guy obviously has issues if he took it personally like that. If he needs validation in liking stick figure with boobs girls, he can just go talk to literally millions of other people.
ReplyDeleteThank you. LOVE.
ReplyDeletelol. There's simply men (90%) that don't find women with big muscles attractive. Because it doesn't look womenly and they are people to and have a right to state their opinion. What you choose to do with it is entirely up to yourself. This is the exact same thing as fat people trying to force people to accept them. But you can't force opinions. Learn to live with them and stop whining like a little bitch if your that tough.
ReplyDeleteOut
I don't remember the article saying anything like "men should be ATTRACTED to strong, muscular women." The situation that sparked this article was clearly stated: some jackhole openly insulting a woman for being strong and muscular. I don't walk up to fat people and say "You're fat." Nowhere did this article say "Men should be attracted to x type of woman." Where did you get this 90%, by the way? I'd love to see a source, because that looks like a completely arbitrary fucking number to me.
DeleteDon't expect anything from someone who doesn't know the difference between too/to. This person clearly isnt a genius.
DeleteMax, the majority of us that train aren't remotely interested in a) your opinion of our bodies, so if you don't like them please just shut up b) being attractive to men with personality disorders.
Deletereading comprehension motherfucker, do you have it?
DeleteYou shouldn't have to worry about what other people think! Your not a little kid and there not your parents! So if you wont to get big, be stronger, or what ever so be it!
ReplyDeleteHow much is that girl on the top squatting?
ReplyDeleteLooks like 175kg or ~385lb. Correct me if I'm wrong... But, I'm slightly (very) jealous of that number! :)
DeleteThis is a great article. As a female who lifts weights, I feel sick when I see those kinds of comments on females' athletic pictures. There is nothing wrong with men (or women) who like different body types--to each his (or her) own. But there is absolutely no point in making hurtful comments about someone's picture as if they were asking you for your opinion--this isn't a physique contest, this is someone's hobby.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't pay too much attention to his dumb ass cause we all know if it comes down to it and all hell breaks loose he's gonna be hiding behind her skirt tail lbvs
ReplyDeleteAs a female lifter lemme just say this: I've never felt more feminine, womanly, and pretty in my life than when I started lifting.
ReplyDelete"We aren't dwelling in ye olde Victorian England anymore."
ReplyDeleteWhat?! haven't you heard of Charmion (Laverie Vallee) or any of the other Victorian Strongwomen? They were hot shit. One of Charmion's admirer's was Edison, who even filmed her doing her trapeze act in 1901. This whole "Ewww, muscles are gross!!1!" bullshit is a relatively new invention.
It is just re dick that people even feel that they have a say in what a woman should look like. i say iff you feel good and happy than thats all that matters.
ReplyDeleteJoan! you are friggin amazaing and beautiful! I admire you for your strength and passion for lifting because YOU love it!
And to that dip shit 'anonymous' i feel so very sorry for you to be stuck in the hell that you are living. you must battle your own demons before you can truly see the beauty in others. and don't worry there are drugs you can take to help your little man syndrome.
Love what you said.
ReplyDeleteFor me, getting strong has nothing to do with the physical results but I think that if a chick wants to look a certain way and works towards that then she has to own it. It seems to have become a sport for men and women to hate on the way that a woman looks (Skinny, fat, muscular). It is completely wrong but I think that if we really believe in what we are doing, the criticism is much easier to brush off
So the last story was whining about negative feedback and criticism of lifts and now we're whining about negative comments. This group is too insecure to post videos or interact online. Such fagile egos from people with such tough T-shirts.
ReplyDeletewho is the girl doing squats with what looks to be 175 kg. Its a wonder she has good legs.
ReplyDeleteWhat really bothers me is how many men, and women, assume a woman's primary role on this earth is to be attractive to men. So we're supposed to aspire to make our sex parts our number one concern. God forbid when we get older/fatter/skinnier/muscled/wear flats/short hair/no make-up we become the object of contempt for such losers. We need to out every person who assumes women are only here to engorge men's fantasies.
ReplyDelete-IronMike's lifting wife
THIS! I lift, but not to be attractive. I do it for my own reasons. What I look like has nothing to do with how well I do my job, run my house, lift at my gym or live my life in general.
DeleteThis article is spot on. Isn't the real problem that if you really want to become empowered and defeat "weak men" that a different platform may be more respectable?
ReplyDeleteComing from a website that disgraces females no matter how playful by posting ass pictures and completely objectifying women's strength by dwindling it down to caveman interest in commenting on Ass pictures like its acceptable.
Its hard to get on board with the actual tone of the article when in two clicks I can view men completely degrading women and their body pictures under the very platform of Lift Big Eat Big that claims to empower them.
What's even more disappointing for women like myself that actually train hard and are looking for information are the girls that allow these pictures to be posted. What little self respect or naivety to think this attention is somehow "good" or "positive."
Hard to swallow as a head strong confident women.
Whoever you are, Anonymous, thank you.
DeleteI have been saying the same thing about Lift Big Eat Big's hypocrisy since the day I liked their Facebook page and found albums of "Yoga Pants and Spandex" for women to post pictures of their asses and for cavemen to salivate over them.
This should not be how lifting weights should be marketed to women. If Lift Big Eat Big wants to be part of a social movement to empower women through weightlifting, then it should not hypocritically draw them in by advertising that they will get big butts.
For women like me, who see powerlifting as a source of true empowerment (NOT related to how juicy my ass has become), this is complicating. Why is it all about our butts?
I love to retreat into powerlifting as an escape from an otherwise patriarchal society. But there are organizations like Lift Big Eat Big that boast that they promote feminism and women's empowerment, but in actuality do just the opposite. LBEB is one example of an obstacle to the lifting world becoming a space for gender equality.
As unnecessary as it is to say female X has too much strength, is it also unnecessary/inappropriate to say Streaky gives me a boner?
ReplyDeleteI don't see that could be inappropriate, it sounds like a compliment to me.
DeleteTrolls are everywhere.
ReplyDeleteWonderful article!
ReplyDeleteAs a newbie lifter, I have not yet heard discouraging comments from men. I have heard the whole "bulky" comments from women. My response is simply "That is my biggest fear in life, that I'll develop visible muscles" and/or "if being fit is unattractive, I aspire to be butt ugly".
I've found a form of fitness I enjoy and this thrills me.
Found this post from Courtney's blog and love this article. I am thankful that I have not run into any haters yet, but I am kind of hoping one day to have the opportunity to be as big and strong as I'm trying for and to have someone try and hate on me for gaining muscle.
ReplyDeleteEspecially when doing Crossfit style workouts, I see very few women that actually look masculine. Sure, the body building women can start to look a little freaky at times, but that is a totally different world than everyday workouts like Courtney's.
I think she's hot, I think all the women above look great and I'm hoping that I can grow up to be big and strong one day, too ;)
PREACH!
ReplyDeleteOnce upon a time I was a skinny armed man, and I found women with muscles to be unattractive. I have found that as I become larger and more powerful, larger and stronger women have become attractive to me. I think part of the problem is how feminine many of the men in our society have become. If a woman puts on the slightest bit of muscle she becomes more masculine than they are, and therefore unattractive to them. So guys: put on some weight, maybe grow a beard, and check out some of these hot and strong ladies.
ReplyDeleteI can get on board with a lot of what this article has to say. I really love the spirit of celebrating the human body & all of its incredible strengths! A day spent not using the awesome abilities you were born with is a day wasted. Any man who doesn't understand that concept needs to do some re-thinking.
ReplyDeleteAnother feminist bitch site, go make me a sandwich
ReplyDeleteWoman can get stronger but at half the rate as a man. Also a woman body converts the muscles into fat way faster the a man do to biological reasons that have to do with are anatomy. Woman can't get as big as a man do to bone density and pregnancy. Yea if you lift heavier weights you will get bigger, you have to lift lighter with more reps to not grow as much. Testosterone is what make men natural stronger, women only have one tenth of it. If you don't believe me start lifting the same time as a man your size and weight and see how the man double the strength and size compared to you.
ReplyDeleteSorry, but lifting heavier weights will NOT make you bigger if you are a woman. You have some correct information in your comment but then you screw it up with that. We do gain strength and size slower because it is the testosterone which give the size which gives the extra strength. So yes, while my hubby is waaay stronger than me and way bigger than me, I am gaining tons of strength NOT size lifting heavy. Low weights high reps is bullshit, I did that for years and got no where. In 3 months of crossfit I went from a 135lb deadlift to a 225lb and guess what? I got smaller! Heavy lifting means strength increase, not size. Woman will build muscle and gain a small amount of size, but unless we are taking testosterone/steroids we will NEVER get big and bulky like a man, just stonger and more kickass!
DeleteYou lost it at "a woman body converts the muscle into fat way faster". Muscle doesn't convert into fat, nor vice-versa. So please don't ruin intelligent articles, written by people who actually know what they're talking about, by commenting with your fucking ignorance and stupidity. You can't even construct a proper sentence.
DeleteI'm sorry, maybe its just where I live. But, I have never seen a man put down women in the gym. Or, for the matter put down women for being strong...
ReplyDeleteI must just live in a good place because "every time I walk out the door" I dont see this bullshit. Where the hell do you people live that women are constantly made to feel like shit for working out??
UGH:
ReplyDelete1. Obviously this woman isn't working out to impress you.
2. You know damn well that if this woman were fat, bro over here would be telling her she should work out or "take care of herself".
3. Women have bodies just like everyone else and the purpose of those bodies is to be strong and healthy and functional, not for you to look at.
4. Muscular women are sexy, just like skinny women are sexy and fat women are sexy and so on and so forth. Since when did you become the authority on what is objectively attractive?
5. Men don't get to decide what's "feminine" or what it means to be a woman. Each woman decides that for herself.
6. Furthermore, if you're going to be a sexist, sizeist jerk, then STFU.
Stay strong, ladies! It looks Great on you.
ReplyDeleteYou get strong, you feel strong. Pretty simple, really. Although it is possible to feel strong without lifting via inner strength. Strong on the inside is enhanced by lifting, too.
Trolls everywhere. Very rarely will the weak, skinny inside/outside male confront a strong female face to face. Except perhaps after some liquid courage. Who gives a rip?
Stay strong, ladies. Nothing is more attractive than a highly capable woman!
The strong on the inside is the most interesting side-effect of lifting... Thank you for this comment.
DeleteHey. Thanks LBEB. :) It's nice to hear someone say this once in a while.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading a slightly sexist article yesterday about women and weight training, coming across this article is inspiring and very uplifting (no pun intended). I want to be the fastest, strongest version of myself that I can be, I'm glad to see there's others out there that agree!
ReplyDeleteSince I started CrossFit (and through that Oly lifting), I have been getting stronger AND smaller. A man I was interested in recently tried to shake my confidence and divert me from my fitness goals, suggesting my "aesthetic" goals require different training (he suggested ONLY cardio). I kept trying to explain to him that what I'm doing makes me happy (I love feeling stronger/faster/fitter) AND is making me smaller... But this article just reminds me that his comments were not about me. They were about his own insecurities and feelings of low self worth. He was putting me down to try and get me to his level. And I refuse to go there...
ReplyDeleteYou are fit. I mean in the attractive way. But those 2 girls in the picture? Oh man. Mmmmm.
ReplyDeleteAmen! Thanks for this article! I used to do a lot of demolition work in the summers to pay for university, and the result was a sweet gun show that intimidated some men. It made me feel damn sexy, but I am lucky that I was raised to strive for strength rather than hide from it. My father taught my sisters and I that we could do anything we wanted, regardless of our gender. I am also lucky that I never encountered any men that put me down for being strong, but perhaps they were afraid to ;) It disgusts me that there are people trying to perpetuate this expectation that women should be weak and underfed. I have been immune to it, but I worry for women who want to be strong, but have abusers (yes, that's what it is, emotional or psychological abuse) convincing them they can't or shouldn't. I am so lucky that I have a husband who appreciates a strong woman, and encourages me to lift big, or not, it's up to me.
ReplyDeleteLove this!!
ReplyDeleteThe problem is, I'm a guy and I started lifting weights because I'm not naturally manly, I'm trying to change that. Lifting is the only thing seems to work. So by the same logic, a girl who lifts more than I do is manlier than me, which is unattractive and downright scary. I'm attracted to women, not men.
ReplyDelete