Lift Up! is a collaborative project by the Gender Resource and Advocacy Center (GRAC), Campus Recreation (CREC) and Residence Life and Housing. Lift Up! aims to provide specific resources and semi-private hours within Sparks Fitness Center, Sparks Pool, and other spaces within Sparks Center.
This time is devoted to centering marginalized students across the spectrums of gender and body types for an empowering experience in Sparks. This work is being done in order to center and empower the nuanced experiences of marginalized students as they attempt to approach the fitness community on campus.
Local trainer Cara Turnquist will help us debunk cultural myths of health and fitness as we "lift up" one another on a self-defined journey of positive movement!
Lift Up! Hours for the 2022-2023 academic year are every Sunday 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Sparks Center.
Have you ever felt uncomfortable in a gym setting? Do you have limited experience in a fitness environment? Have you experienced any of the following in a fitness center setting?
- Gawking
- Fat-phobia
- Transphobia
- Heterosexism
- Racism
- Ableism
- Classism
- Body-shaming
- Loud noises
- Over-crowded spaces
If so, Lift Up! Is for you.
We are creating an inclusive body-positive space for people who are often marginalized in conventional fitness settings: people who are uncomfortable in the gym, queer or transgender, big-bodied and fat-identified and/or disabled.
For questions or accommodations to attend this event, email grac-info@willamette.edu.