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The Lively Intra-Actions of Athleisure: A Baradian Analysis of Fit Femininity.

The Lively Intra-Actions of Athleisure: A Baradian Analysis of Fit Femininity.

Authors :
Brice, Julie
Thorpe, Holly
Source :
Somatechnics; Aug2021, Vol. 11 Issue 2, p228-245, 18p
Publication Year :
2021

Abstract

Since the early 2000s, athleisure (clothing designed for physical activity) has been gaining popularity as both a functional and fashionable clothing trend, particularly among women. Thus far, scholars have explored the gendered nature of athleisure and the neoliberal, postfeminist, and healthism discourses present within this fitness clothing phenomenon. However, the research has yet to account for the materiality of athleisure and its impacts upon women's experiences of fitness and the construction of idealized female bodies. In this article, we use new materialist theory, specifically Karen Barad's agential realism, to explore the material-discursive dimensions of athleisure. Drawing upon a diffractive analysis of interviews conducted with 22 women in Aotearoa New Zealand, in conjunction with social media analyses, we explore two lively intra-actions of women's athleisure-clad moving bodies – the 'muffin top' and the 'big booty' – to reveal what athleisure does to/with women's bodies. We highlight how these athleisure-body intra-actions work to create boundaries around acceptable femininity and give rise to particular constructions and meanings of women's bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
20440138
Volume :
11
Issue :
2
Database :
Complementary Index
Journal :
Somatechnics
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
151153202
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3366/soma.2021.0353