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As we encourage more people to spend time in the mountains, it's worth thinking about the many barriers that they might face. In the coming months we'll be devoting time to exploring this and the work of those seeking to put solutions in place. Here's an extract from an article by Eva Wiseman that highlights the challenges faced by women who want to exercise...

"Last week it was reported that almost half of British women have done "no vigorous exercise" in the past year. The headline bothered me. I kept reaching for it again, like a sock that would not stay up. It was the feeling of discomfort I remembered when, in those twilight months of early parenthood, I read in the papers about a study on breastfeeding that had suggested the longer a baby is breastfed, the more successful and intelligent they become. The headlines dropped and shattered on the tiles in that way they often do, into a selection of shards sharp with judgement. Though the study was important, the way it was reported left many of my motherly peers, each one trying desperately to keep their newborn babies alive through the spring, feeling shamed and guilty. It was not that they hadn't tried breastfeeding their child, it was that no milk had come, or that they had to go back to work after six weeks, or that the world outside was inhospitable for a woman, on a bench, with her left nipple leaking.

Sport England's Active Lives Survey defines an "active" person as being someone who undertakes more than 150 minutes of exercise per week. Since the publication of the first survey in 2015/16, men have found to be consistently more active than women. The most recent survey (2020/21) revealed that 63.1% of men were active compared to 59.8% of females

This exercise study landed in a similar way, inspiring a familiar guilt. Everyone knows the reasons why women exercise - health, fitness, lose a stone before Alison's wedding. But the reasons why women don't exercise are rarely discussed. To do so requires a sullen breaking down of factors, the telling of which becomes quieter and sadder as the list goes on. Why do half of women do no exercise? Because it takes time, time alone, which, if they have children, many must pay for. The National Childbirth Trust reports that the average cost for a part time nursery place today is over £7,000 a year, or more in areas like London. Two thirds of parents spend more on their childcare bills than they do on their mortgage or rent. Out of office hours women carry out an overall average of 60% more "unpaid work" than men, such as caring for children or elderly parents, and cleaning the house, and preparing a meal for five people that takes less than 30 minutes and costs less than £6. Their time is not their own - the clock has melted.

We've been organising the Hathersage Night Race for a number of years. Typically, we attract a much higher proportion of female runners than other races in the area. Here's a recent comment from a female competitor that may offer one possible explanation,  "Everyone was so friendly. I loved being out in the dark. Noone could see me. I felt so free..."

And of those who are able to carve out the NHS's recommended 150 minutes a week from their schedules, some continue to battle with poor body image, which means they feel anxious and vulnerable about presenting their Lycra-ed body to the world. A recent survey by Women in Sport found a significant number of girls disengage from sport in their late teens due to "self belief, capability and body image concerns". Others feel "unsafe exercising outdoors" - Runners World found 60% of women said they had been harassed when running: 11% told them because of the harassment they had stopped running altogether. And that's before we even start talking about gyms - their cost, the intimidation found there, the way they smell like somebody has spritzed dewberry body spray over a terrible crime.

After a minute, it seems the original headline was the wrong way round: isn't it more notable that half of British women have exercised in the past year?"

Thanks to Eva Wiseman and The Guardian for granting permission for this extract to be republished. If you've got something to say about this subject please leave a comment below!

The next "Barriers..." post can be found here.