The Weight of Leaving: Gender, Identity Shifts, and Health Challenges in the Post-Competition Lives of Women Bodybuilders

Abstract

Drawing from my own experience as a bodybuilder in the bikini division, the purpose of this research is to explore the retirement transition for women bodybuilders. More specifically, this study explores how women bodybuilders are influenced by gendered ideologies and how these ideologies affect their transition experience in relation to identity, health, and well-being. There is limited literature exploring bodybuilding retirement, and no literature exploring women’s experiences during this transition. Guided by a sport feminism theoretical orientation, I conducted reflexive dyadic interviews with 15 women who retired, or were thinking of retiring, from bodybuilding. I used narrative inquiry to guide the methodological process and observed online spaces including Instagram and Reddit. I constructed five composite characters to represent the diverse experiences of my participants and to present the findings, I crafted a series of narratives, authored by these characters, while also including my own narration to provide context throughout the series of stories. The narratives are organized into two parts. Part one highlights the impact of retirement on the women’s physical health, mental health, and well-being, while part two reveals the influence of gender ideologies on the retirement experience regarding gendered expectations both inside and outside of the industry. I conclude that gender plays a significant role in the retirement transition as gender ideologies are engrained deeply within the industry and society, leading to a dynamic experience impacting identity, health, and well-being during the transition, unique to women. This research is the first of its kind to address women’s bodybuilding retirement in the academic literature, sheds light on an understudied topic and offers insights that may resonate and validate women who share this experience.