Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the ugliest of us all?

Wall-to-wall mirrors in gyms and dance studios might stop women getting the exercise they need because women who work out in front of a mirror get discouraged and feel tired, Canadian researchers said.

The study, published in the journal Health Psychology, focused on young women who exercised less than 15 minutes a week. It found that, regardless of how they viewed their bodies, women who worked out in front of a mirror felt worse, or no better, and less at peace after 20 minutes of activity.

"The mirrors make women more self-aware, they think of their shortcomings. Things like: 'I look fat, I should be more active'," said Kathleen Martin Ginis, lead author of the study, and a professor at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario."When women are more introspective, they might feel 'I'm not that great' unfortunately."

The survey questioned 58 women with an average age of 22--young enough to be concerned about body image.

Participants took turns on stationary bicycles, working out either in front of a mirror or with the mirror curtained over.

And whether the participant felt comfortable about her body or not, the outcome was the same--women who did not have to watch themselves exercise felt calmer, more positive and more revitalized at the end of their session.

Still, Martin Ginis stressed that mirrors can be positive and functional. "I don't want to convey the idea that we should rip out gym mirrors," she said, noting that exercisers often needed to see their form, or assess if they are using the correct muscles groups during strength training.

But things were different for beginners. "For beginner exercisers, mirrors can be daunting," she said.
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Martin Ginis suggested gyms provide areas without mirrors to encourage novice exercisers.

"Women don't need to exercise in a gym," she said. "Thirty minutes of walking, or hiking is good too. There are other ways to get your exercise."

镜子啊镜子，墙上的镜子，谁是我们当中最丑的一个？

健身房和舞蹈房内四周的镜子可能会妨碍妇女们得到她们所需要的锻炼，因为当她们面对镜子锻炼身体时，会感到灰心丧气，精疲力竭。这是加拿大研究人员作出的结论。

该论文发表在《健康心理学》杂志上，主要研究对象是每周锻炼时间不足15分钟的妇女。经研究发现，无论她们如何看待自己的体形，在镜子前进行锻炼的妇女会感觉更糟或者不好，锻炼20分钟过后，她们就感觉不那么心平气和。

该论文的主要作者，安大略州汉弥顿市麦克马司特大学的教授凯瑟琳·马丁·吉尼说：“镜子使女人更有自知之明，让她们想起自己的短处，比如‘我看上去很胖，我应该多运动’。当妇女变得更加自省的时候，她们可能会很遗憾地认为‘我没有那么好’。”

此项调查询问了58位女性，她们的平均年龄为22岁——正是关心体形的年纪。

参加调查的人轮流在健身脚踏车上进行锻炼，有的面对着镜子，有的则把镜子掩盖起来。

无论参加者对她们自己的体形感到满意与否，结果都是一样的——那些不用照镜子的人在运动结束时更平静，更自信，更加充满活力。

尽管如此，马丁·吉尼强调说镜子也可以发挥积极有效的作用。她说：“我不是说我们应该诅咒健身房里的镜子。”她谈到锻炼者经常需要看到自己的形态，或者在进行力量训练时观察自己运用的肌肉组织是否正确。

但是这对于初学者来说就不一样了。她说：“镜子会令初学者感到畏惧。

马丁·吉尼建议健身房应该提供周围没有镜子的场地来鼓励新手。

她说：“妇女们其实并不需要在健身房中进行锻炼。散步30分钟或徒步旅行也不错，锻炼还有许多其它的方法。”