Our Approach

Boiler Fitmob for Purdue women

Brainstorming

As a group, we brainstormed event ideas with the following criteria:

• requires large public

• rebellious

• unusual

The concept of a flash mob, which is a large public gathering at which people perform an unusual or seemingly act, and it fits the criteria the most. In our context of women empowerment through fitness at the CoRec Basement, we modified a traditional flash mob to Boiler Fitmob for Purdue women.

Let’s Make the CoRec For Everyone. Prove to women that the CoRec basement is not just a boys’ club.

The Power of Rebellious Emotions

Through research, we have discovered the power of rebellious emotions. It is a strong emotion that triggered us to remind ourselves of existing issues that are violating our rights and feelings. Being rebellious prompts us to think about what we stand for and challenge the norms that are not alright. In our context, fitness is often gendered, and the weight training area, Purdue CoRec Basement, feels like a forbidden zone for women. The gym climate has kept women away from using the weight training equipment in the CoRec basement. Most women are not getting enough training comparing to men and do not have the chance to utilize Purdue’s weight training facilities. We need people to be aware of this issue and encourage women to take a stand and help to break the gender line.

Our group decided to emphasize the rebellious emotions in our design. We want to design an event for women that goes beyond simply working out as a group, instead to challenge the current gym gender norm by “dominating” the space. We want to remind people of the existing gender gap at the gym and empower women to train more confidently in a more healthy and friendly gym environment.