New all-women weightlifting club builds confidence, muscle

group and Schorr’s assigned workout buddy. Friedlander added that she has “found an incredibly supportive and inclusive community at Girl Gains.”

BY CHINMAYI RAJARAM CONTRIBUTING WRITER

After Katie McCallum ’25 came across a TikTok video of Girl Gains in February, she began looking into how she could start a women’s weightlifting club on Brown’s campus. McCallum successfully formed the Girl Gains Lifting Club at Brown last semester, and the group has been active since.

Girl Gains aims to empower women at Brown, whether “you’re a dedicated gym goer or you’re looking for some guidance to jumpstart your fitness journey,” according to an Instagram post from the group.

The group falls under the national Girl Gains organization, founded in 2020 at San Diego State University, which aims “to promote female weight lifting and empower women to feel strong and beautiful in a judgment-free community,” according to the organization’s website.

For Angelina Schorr ’24, vice president and marketing director of Girl Gains, the group’s main objective is to “break down … ‘gymtimidation,’” explaining that many women don’t feel confident going to the gym because there is a lack of female presence.

“Going to the gym as a woman is so scary and intimidating,” McCallum said. “You feel like you want to be smaller and not take up as much space.” location in Providence.

Girl Gains has made it possible for women to be able to “go to the gym and almost always see another woman (they) know there,” said Kennedy Compton ’24, the group’s marketing director.

In its first semester, Girl Gains hosted gym training sessions and events aimed at informing students about a variety of topics, including Olympic weightlifting and bodybuilding, according to McCallum.

For one informational session, Girl Gains invited Dan Wenikoff, owner and sports nutritionist at Champion Athletes, to speak with the group. He led a discussion about the importance of nutrition and “fueling your body” with members, according to the group’s Instagram. The club has also partnered with other organizations on campus such as the Women’s Health Advocacy Group, where they discussed proper form and the benefits of weightlifting, Schorr said.

Both Schorr and Compton said that their favorite event last semester was the free, professional session in functional training provided to group members by F45 Training.

For Schorr, who was a varsity athlete throughout high school, coming to Brown without such a built-in community was scary, but Girl Gains has allowed her to find a close group on campus. “I’ve met some of my closest friends on the (group’s) e-board,” she said.

The group also implemented a buddy-pairing system further to further build community among its participants, McCallum said. Within this buddy system, a group member with more gym-going experience is paired with a workout buddy with less experience.

“I’m beyond thankful for (Schorr’s) support and lifting suggestions,” said Alana Friedlander ’26, a member of the cookie butter, as well as drinks such as coffee, teas imported from Paris, freshly squeezed orange juice, smoothies and matcha.

For Friedlander, the group is particularly unique because it strives to build confidence for women in the weight room, which has traditionally deterred women due to a lack of female presence.

“Girl Gains helps address this issue by creating an empowering community that helps women feel safe and comfortable in a traditionally male space,” she said.

The group is also hoping to secure “women-only time” at the Nelson Fitness Center, McCallum said, adding that this program would ideally have the Nelson open one hour earlier every week exclusively so women have the chance to workout without intimidation or discomfort.

McCallum said that hosting a women-only hour at the gym is important because seeing only other women at the gym can be empowering.

About 20 people showed up at Girl Gains’ first meeting, but the club’s membership has since grown to over 120 members, McCallum said. Support for the club is coming not only from the current student body but also from University alumni who have reached out to the club’s Instagram page.

“This club has become more than I could have ever imagined in such a short time,” she said.

Nguyen and Tran — or, as they like to be called, “Brussels” and “Liège” respectively — began their journey with Zinneken’s in Connecticut, when they were invited to the soft opening of the Glastonbury location.

They recalled marveling at how different the restaurant’s waffles were from other cafes across the country and quickly began discussing opening another location with the franchise owner.

Knowing that Zinneken’s Harvard Square location was frequented by R.I. customers, Nguyen and Tran decided to bring the specialty waffles directly to the Ocean State. Thayer Street, in particular, “has a lot of foot traffic,” Nguyen said, explaining the choice of

The process of opening the Providence cafe took over a year for Nguyen and Tran, who cited problems with their permit as one of the reasons for the delay.

But prospective customers have been eagerly anticipating the store’s opening. “We’ve been following it since August,” said Melissa Esteban, a student at Providence College.

“I’ve been seeing the process of it being built,” said Isabella Steidley ’23 as she looked at the cafe’s sleek finished exterior.

The small restaurant has a black and white checkered theme, with small wooden tables and a staircase leading down to the main seating area. Opening morning, the cafe buzzed with excitement as families and friends huddled together, dining on waffles.

“I’m definitely excited about the restaurant. I live very close by,” Steidley said, adding that Zinneken’s is a rare sweet alternative to the many savory food options available in the area.

For Steidley, the cafe also seems like an optimal spot for studying.

Clara Lee Molina ’25 had previously visited the Zinneken’s in Harvard Square and, after hearing about the Angell St. opening, she decided to accompany her friends to the new R.I. location. “I had a liège waffle with Nutella, and it was incredible,” Lee Molina said.

Restaurant-goers like Esteban were already planning on returning to the establishment, adding that they would bring more friends during future visits.

For Tran, Providence’s lively community was one of the biggest motivators when it came to choosing the newest Zinneken’s location.

“Moving to Rhode Island is one of the things that excited me the most,” Tran said. “New people, new life, new business.”

EDITORS’ NOTE

Saying hello and looking ahead

Today’s paper marks the first issue of The Herald for the 2023 calendar year and our first as the 133rd Editorial Board.

Winter break came and went quickly — and it’s been both exciting and nerve-wracking to prepare the office at 88 Benevolent St. for the year ahead. We’re ready for the countless hours to come working with our staff and cannot wait to see what this new chapter brings for The Herald, but most of all, we’re excited to serve you, our readers.

2023 promises major changes at Brown, in Providence and well beyond College Hill. On campus, teaching assistants in the computer science department will continue their unionization efforts while the University completes construction on two landmark projects, the Lindemann Performing Arts Center and the Brook Street Residence Halls.

In the meantime, Brown will continue to navigate its complex and evolving relationship with the city of Providence — renegotiating its Payment in Lieu of Taxes agreements — as the world of higher education awaits the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action this summer.

We can’t wait to see how our talented reporters, editors and multimedia staff engage with these stories and find ways to add insight and depth to the news, as our business staff continues to ensure we can do the work. We want to get better at meeting our readers where they are — not just in print, but in their inboxes and on our website. We’re excited to produce engaging data and multimedia projects and tell rich stories with the help of our podcast team.

We also hope to write stories that serve the public good, produce reporting that holds power to account and cover the news at the pace that it breaks. We’ve introduced Breaking@Brown — a newsletter that sends critical news to subscribers as it breaks — and we’re working on plenty of other stories and projects that we can’t wait to share with our readers soon.

We will also remain committed to ensuring that 88 Benevolent is an inclusive and comfortable environment for all our staff. In our engagement with the rest of campus, we hope to responsibly foster a meaningful discourse — while equitably and accurately covering our community.

Most importantly, we’re looking forward to working with our kind, relentlessly impressive and exceptionally talented staff, who will do the work that powers The Herald through this 132nd year. The work that lies ahead will not be easy, but it is a challenge that we look forward to facing.

Sincerely, The 133rd Editorial Board

Editors’ notes are written by The Herald’s 133rd Editorial Board: Will Kubzansky ’24, Katy Pickens ’24, Alex Nadirashvili ’24, Augustus Bayard ’24, Caleb Lazar ’24, Peter Swope ’24 and Kaitlyn Torres ’24.