Not to detract from the broader point, which I completely agree with, but the gym example didn't strike me as a Valley-specific phenomenon. I could imagine something similar happening at a gym in a working class neighborhood, and I could also think of gyms which welcome all, regardless of being a beginner or not.
People not near the median get critiqued often for their weight, and it happens to underweight people too.
She didn't really elaborate on why she didn't feel welcome in the gym. I've felt out of place and unwelcome in gyms - but it was all in my head. Nobody said or did anything to make me feel that way, they were all just in really great shape.
I've also had it made explicitly clear to me that I wasn't welcome in certain places.
People not near the median get critiqued often for their weight, and it happens to underweight people too.