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Menopausal bodies have gained in visibility recently. Greater attention has been given to women’s experiences of their changing bodies in a range of public settings, in large part attributed to a partial reversal of medical orthodoxy about HRT and the campaigning efforts of public figures. This has led to the abandonment of taboos and stereotypes about the bodies of maturing women around the end of their reproductive years.
Hyde et al (2010) found that the medical discourse of menopause continues to hold sway. It shapes women’s experiences of their changing bodies. Women seek recognition and validation about their symptoms within the medical model. There is now some evidence that physical activity can contribute to the mitigation of menopausal symptoms.
This paper is concerned with women’s physical activity experiences during the perimenopause years. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 6 women aged 42-49 who self identified as perimenopausal. The interviews were designed to elicit stories of physical literacy as perimenopause was experienced.
Findings suggest that in a bid to seek recognition women search for the elimination of their symptoms within a medicalised or quasi medicalised narrative. Their orientation to physical activity is complex. Using the language of fatigue and anxiety they find physical activity a challenge in a (peri)menopausal body and eschew or abandon it. Nor has physical activity been ‘prescribed’ and they are receiving little support for physical activity. This raises questions about the continued enfeeblement of women’s bodies as they age.
