More often than not, I find that my time exercising coincides with a biology lab on the female anatomy. While there is no physical dissection, my mental dissection on this issue is what led to this column.  

In a survey of roughly 200 St. Thomas students conducted by yours truly, more than 64 percent of respondents reported feeling distracted, bothered or offended by women who dress inappropriately at the gym. Fifty-nine percent admitted to witnessing women in inappropriate dress at least every week.

And what exactly constitutes inappropriate dress, you ask? Survey participants had varying answers, but the most common were spandex shorts, excessive cleavage, anything see-through, sports bras and tops that reveal the belly button. If I’m seeing more belly buttons than an obstetrician, somebody call Houston because we have a problem.

In addition to clothing, students who took my survey also cited wearing make-up to the gym as another no-go.

I’m all for the comfort of spandex, but too much cleavage should be avoided, and navels should be covered. I’m bothered by the fact that a handful of women feel the need to treat the treadmill like a moving runway.

However, not all women who wear “inappropriate clothes” are necessarily seeking the spotlight (and I use quotes around inappropriate clothes because of the term’s subjectivity). For example, the so-called “booty shorts” that some people deem risqué are what the women’s track team run in and volleyball team play in. For them, they’re simply wearing their typical uniforms.

Another example involves “busty” women. I’m sure finding athletic tops that fit appropriately can pose as a challenge, though it’s not an impossible find.

Makeup is another gray area involved in this topic. How can you differentiate who had work or class before coming to the gym, from the women who put on layers of makeup solely for looking like a dime at the gym?

The circumstantial nature of what’s appropriate apparel at the gym makes it difficult to classify who’s inappropriate versus who’s busty or a runner. Why doesn’t St. Thomas make a gym dress code to put aside all judgment and confusion?

The University of Minnesota’s gym is known for upholding its T-shirt policy. This means no sleeveless cutoffs, no tank tops and certainly no sports bras can make their debut.

My survey found that 44 percent of participants want a policy similar to the University of Minnesota’s in hopes of eradicating over-revealing clothes in the AARC. While 2 percent are indifferent, the majority of respondents cite the policy as unfair and restricting.

Director of Marketing and Communications at the University of Minnesota’s Department of Recreational Sports Brad Hunt said people “respect” the university’s gym dress code.

“We cater to a very wide demographic. Some people haven’t gone to a gym in four or five years, and we want them to feel comfortable working out at our gym and not think everyone there has the perfect body,” Hunt said. “The policy puts people on the same level as much as possible.”

And people truly seem to agree with the dress code. It is brought up at the university’s Recreational Sports Advisory Board every year for voting, and for “at least the past 10 years, people vote in favor of the policy,” Hunt explained.

AARC staff declined an interview, but Athletic Director Steve Fritz believes “that we would expect all AARC users, male and female, to be respectfully dressed for the activities of this facility.”

So with a gym dress code not in the works at St. Thomas and inappropriate clothing being hard to differentiate, what conclusions can be drawn? Women, cover up.

As for male athletic wear, that’s a whole other animal I can’t tackle in one article. But for now, keep your shirts on, guys.

Geena Maharaj can be reached at maha8007@stthomas.edu.