When there was no inclusive fitness space available, this MUN student pioneered her own

There are four universities in Canada that offer female-only fitness spaces at their recreational facilities, and Memorial University isn't one of them.

Sabah Kadir, a recreation student at MUN, is hoping to change that.

"This project kind of originated from the challenges that I faced when trying to engage in recreational activities," said Kadir.

Kadir said that as a female, Black, Muslim student, she struggled with culturally sensitive spaces at MUN.

"I would have to think about, 'OK, what kind of clothing do I need to wear?' Because, you know, the space does not accommodate that," she said.

For Kadir, like many Muslim women, part of her cultural background involves dressing modestly, which can pose barriers in recreational settings.

Clothing constraints combined with male presence at the university's gym added to feelings of low self-confidence and a lack of belonging for Kadir.

"I felt that I couldn't connect to the individuals that utilized the space, and that decreased my ability decreased my engagement in physical activity levels."

Kadir said she knew if she were feeling this way, there may be others who were in a similar situation, and she set out to create a space for them.

In a recent research methods class, Kadir's professor, Katie Wadden, asked students what problem they would solve if they were to imagine a scenario where they had no constraints, and all the resources in the world.

Kadir proposed the idea of women-only hours at recreational facilities at the university.

As an educator and a women's health researcher, Wadden said, she felt a sense of responsibility to support Kadir and help her address the need for more culturally sensitive spaces in university settings.

And so the idea for Moment for Movement was born.

To celebrate International Women's Day, Kadir organized the first instalment of Moment for Movement, a space for exclusively women and female-identifying people to engage in physical activities.

The event will involve a dedicated time in the physical education building gym for women to enjoy various student-led activities like yoga, Zumba and aerobic exercises.

"[The] event is a celebration for International Women's Day," said Wadden. "But it's also an event to raise awareness for the need to start to think about this current student population that we have, and the access to recreational spaces."

Wadden says these types of inclusive spaces are especially needed as the student population at MUN grows and diversifies.

"By providing an inclusive space, it allows for individuals of different cultural backgrounds, whether it's religious, you know, different physical activity levels, to comfortably use the gym," said Kadir.

Moment for Movement volunteer Sarah Higdon says the cultural barriers to fitness that students like Kadir face are in addition to the regular barriers posed to those who use the university as their main fitness hub.

MUN's gym, Higdon notes, is not open 24 hours a day like some other private gyms in town.

"Having an opportunity to bring students, females in particular, to the same space to do low-impact exercises really gives people the opportunity to find that school-life balance and participate in physical activity in an inclusive, and just really accessible, fashion that they might not get if they have to go and try to do it on their own," she said to CBC News.

Higdon says lifelong physical activity in very important for long-term health benefits.

"So any step we can take to remove some of the barriers or the intimidation surrounding physical activity is a step in the right direction," said Higdon. "Even just one person, then that's a help, right?"

The original Moment for Movement event was scheduled for International Women's Day on Friday but was postponed until March 15 due to weather conditions.

Kadir says she hopes this sort of inclusive space will become a permanent fixture at MUN.

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