I Don't Want To Cancel My Planet Fitness Membership
But it looks like I'm heading in that direction...
As I said in a previous post, it’s the gaslighting that pisses me off. That’s a man. If he wants to pretend he’s a woman and call himself a woman, he is free to do so, but that should be the end of it. Why does his identity require outside participation? Why does he need to violate the privacy and boundaries of others to feel validated
And why the hell do I have to play along?
While in the women’s locker room at Planet Fitness in Anchorage, Alaska Patricia Silva snapped a picture of a man (above) in the women’s locker room while he was shaving.
Planet Fitness responded by canceling her membership, saying she violated their policy by taking his picture and posting it online.
This keeps happening, but thanks to Patricia we have proof. Planet Fitness’s policy reads:
5. Subject to Section Three above, all members and team members may use Planet Fitness locker room facilities and programs based on their self-reported gender identity; these facilities include bathrooms, showers, and all other facilities separated by sex. Wherever possible, Planet Fitness clubs should maintain private changing areas in each locker room for the comfort of all members and team members. Where applicable, gender-neutral bathrooms may also be made available as needed for the privacy and comfort of members and team members.
Use of a gender-neutral bathroom is voluntary.
6. Planet Fitness team members and members should address transgender and nonbinary members and other team members with preferred names, titles, pronouns, and other terms consistent with their self-reported gender identity. If a team member or member accidentally misgenders someone, please apologize. Ask the member or team member for their preferred pronouns and use those going forward.
The part in bold is what pisses me off the most because what does your “self-reported gender identity” have to do with me? Why do I have to participate? Does your identity cease to exist if you hear the wrong pronoun? Are you so weak you allow random strangers to have power over you? Your identity, however you see yourself, is for you and your emotional and mental well-being. Your identity helps your lens through which you see the world, not a compass for random strangers. I don’t need atheists to acknowledge and respect my Christian faith to feel validated in my Christian identity. Why is Planet Fitness forcing people to participate in an ideology they don’t believe in? More importantly, why are they forcing women to be human shields for weak men?
Women shouldn’t have to ask or beg because it’s basic human rights. Women shouldn’t be forced to share vulnerable spaces with men. Women have a right to assemble without men. So much work went into protecting women from domestic violence and sex-based crimes only for women to be called bigots because they don’t want to undress in front of a man. So much work went into legally recognizing female autonomy only to be told it doesn’t exist. Anyone can be a woman as long as they self-identify as such. That’s the world we live in.
We live in a world where the response to college girls being sexually violated in a locker room is reeducation. We live in a world where Planet Fitness employees will tell female patrons to change in a stall if they feel uncomfortable with a man in the locker room. We live in a world where women have to break basic locker-room ethics just to prove we’re not crazy.
We live in a world where inclusion takes precedence over safety, and I’m wondering how much longer it can last. How much longer can Planet Fitness last?
Planet Fitness is getting the Bud Light treatment and I'm happy to see it. I have a Planet Fitness membership. I love the gym and I love the staff. Whenever a male employee is entering the women’s locker room a female employee always walks in and lets people know and they hang a sign at the entrance. It seems hypocritical they wouldn’t apply this same to members. A male employee can’t walk in unannounced and if he did and I complained there would be consequences, but male members are allowed to walk in unannounced and undress. I have decisions to make.
Saying I don’t want to cancel my membership doesn’t mean I won’t, it just means I’m not going to do it without giving it considerable thought. While I prefer outdoor cardio, I like to have a gym alternative and Planet Fitness is in my budget, but I want to be safe. Planet Fitness doesn’t care about my safety, and that’s disappointing. I do have more expensive options that are closer to me and won’t break the bank. If you’ve canceled your Planet Fitness membership, please share your experience because I could use the encouragement.
I’m tired of begging for privacy and safety as a woman. I can’t believe we have to. This awful policy aside, Planet Fitness’s “Judgement Free Zone” mentality makes it a truly inclusive spot. Those who are afraid to go to the gym or be seen in workout clothes feel comfortable at Planet Fitness. They’ve created a space for people like me to work out and get healthy despite our insecurities. Inclusion is having access to that which you are entitled. Everyone is entitled to a good workout, but men are not entitled to women’s spaces. I’m hoping they make a change sooner rather than later, but until then my gym of choice is going to change.
"Inclusive" of sex offenders, and exclusive of women and particularly girls.
I'm so sick of the fugue state our society appears to have entered with regards to "gender", but grateful that it has at least thrown how little women and girls remain valued to this day into sharp relief - despite the fact that women make the majority of household economic decisions.
My new mantra is YOUR REQUEST IS NOT MY RESPONSIBILITY. It's exhausting to try to remember and live by all the new rules and created definitions of words. You stated this so perfectly. Sadly money talks and pulling our hard earned cash from something is the only way to make an impact. And even if it doesn't make a dent, what is it costing you to play along if you are being forced? Hard to believe this is how things are now. BTW there are a plethora of free work outs to keep yourself healthy found on YouTube to be done in the comfort of your own home and it's free. That's what I resorted to.