Immigrant Girls’ Experiences with Physical Activity: A Focus on Female Only Fitness Classes

Abstract

This research is part of a larger intersectional study that was designed to provide information for creating physical activity programming that is culturally relevant and inclusive for immigrant girls. This article addresses immigrant girls’ experiences in a female only fitness class that was offered as an option in physical education. Following the qualitative methodology of interpretive (hermeneutic) phenomenology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with four high school participants who identified as both an immigrant and as a female in Central Canada. The findings demonstrate that inclusive physical education spaces require more than just gender segregation for immigrant girls’ meaningful participation in physical activity.