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February 24, 2006

Running, The "Perfect" Body, and Going Inside the Locker Room

I mentioned in my previous blog that I have been writing for a new magazine in Chicago, For Her Information, and I have been writing a diverse range of articles. I am just finishing up one article, and I think it relates to something that we face as runners. The author, Leslie Goldman, is releasing a book titled "Locker Room Diaries: The Naked Truth About Women, Body Image and Re-Imagining the Perfect Body" in June. Goldman spent five years observing and interviewing women in a local Chicago gym . . . inside the locker room. Beneath the flourescent lights, she exposes a lot of not-so-sexy truths about the ways women view their bodies and construct their body images. She is candid about eveything from pregnancy, boobs, bikini-waxes and eating disorders. What she discovers is a diverse range of perspectives and bodies: some women are comfortable with their naked bodies, while others live in a constant state of exercise and starvation. She attaches a microscope to all of these issues and dives into the complexity and tangled webs that animate them. Her words are jarring, provacative, honest, sad, and sometimes even funny.

After I read her manuscript and sat down with her, I started to think of the locker room that I frequent the most: the locker room of our running culture. I have known so many runners who have struggled with their body image, or who have totally crumbled under the enormous weight of an eating disorder. I have tumbled into these arenas as well, and I am not convinced that the wish to lose 10 pounds will ever go away. But it makes me utterly depressed to think about all of the time, energy (mental and physical) and miles that I have wasted negatively thinking about my own body. It's difficult to want to fly in a sport that stereotypically favors the bodies of damn near emaciated men and women. I will never be stick thin or completely sucked out - yet I think I look athletic and healthy.

I have reached a point in my life now that I cringe at the media objectification of women's body and the hegemonic beauty and body norms that our culture perpetuates. Granted, there are women out there who like to flaunt their curves, but even they collapse under the scrutinizing lens of the camera - most the them recycle the same 10-15 pounds over and over again. Is there are a point when we finally toss our hands in the air and say, "Enough! My body is my body and so long as I treat it well, it is what it is!" After struggling with the same 10 pounds for over a year now (and not losing one of them), I have finally thrown my hands in the air . . . and it feels so liberating and weightLESS. This doesn't mean that the desire to lose them will shrink, but it does mean that I am finally at peace with the idea of NOT losing them :)

I don't know if I am making sense - I just feel like eating disorders and distored body images are a huge part of our sport, but they are the parts that we like to sweep under the carpet and not speak about.

Posted by bridget at 12:49 PM | Comments (10)

February 22, 2006

Stayin Alive

I have a ton to say, but I just wanted to quickly update my blog before my mom thinks that I have totally disappeared from the face of the earth (she is my one faithful reader!).

Running has not been the best lately because my mileage took a little tumble. I hit my 60 mile week and then hibernated for the next two weeks (43 and 47 miles). This week is already on the upswing with 9 miles posted on Monday and 10 yesterday. I am crossing my fingers that I deliver another 8-9 tonight! I woke up with the intention of running 3 miles this AM and more the in the PM, but - as usual - work has usurped my morning time. I am busy writing 4 articles for the magazine that I working at (www.forherinformation.com). We launched our preview issue and now we are hard at work on the real stuff. My articles are quite diverse: a feature on CSAs (community supported agriculture), an article on a local author, Leslie Goldman, who is publishing her first book: The Naked Truth about Women: Body Image and Re-Imagining the 'Perfect Body' (technically, it's an ethnography from inside the women's locker room - I highly recommend it - and I am sure I will write a lot more about its brilliance!), an interview with a numerologist and psychic (www.carmenharra.com), and a feauture on HOT MOMS.

Now I have to swicth gears and attend to my other life - that of a graduate student! I have to work at the writing center all afternoon, come home and run, write a paper, read, and then work on the magazine.

Posted by bridget at 10:47 AM | Comments (11)

February 5, 2006

Computers, School, and - oh yeah - Running!

Things have been a little crazy lately so I have unconsciously neglected my blog - which I feel very badly about. My mom reminded me this morning that I have not posted in a really long time. She is my one loyal web blog subscriber - she never misses an entry :) Moms are so wonderful.

Things have been slightly hectic with my return to school - I am still working on my MA in English, but it is going to take me another year to graduate. I was supposed to graduate this Spring, but I took last semester off, and the university I am attending dropped my MA program in language, literacy, and rhetoric. Technically, I should have been grandfathered in, but since I missed last semester, I have to start over (the two classes that I would have needed to graduate will never be offered again). It's kind of a drag, but I have decided to make the most of it . . . so I added a new gender and woman's study concentration to my english studies "major." I think everything will work out in my favor. Plus, there are a lot worse things in life than being in graduate school. As much as I loathe the constant 30 page paper hanging over my head, I LOVE the flexibility that graduate school offers.

I recently got a new computer and I could not remember how to log into our blogging site . . . obviously, I finally figured it out! I am still doing well with my new coach and my new training plan. I spent this week super sick so I cut back to 40 miles. I finally hit 60 miles last week and it was kind of a disappointment - it did not feel that different from 50 miles/week. I guess that means I need to hit 70 miles soon! We are gradually progressing in that direction, which is really exciting. And I signed up for a Spring Marathon in 4 months . . . that makes all of this training suddenly "real" and touchable. I have not been getting in many long runs, but I have been diligently working on my marathon pace and leg turnover. I typically do one hard run a week of about 10 miles where I move from 7:30 pace to 6:30 pace. This run never seems to get easier, but I love doing it.

This week is going to be another easy week of about 45-50 miles. I only have one semi-difficult workout to do, but after this week, we are going to move to 2-3 solid workouts/week. I am hoping to throw in some doubles to increase my miles, but that all depends on my school schedule. I rarely get to bed before 1AM and I am usually up before 7AM.

This is a remarkably boring entry so I am going to stop now and try to think of something more entertaining to write!

I am also going to try to post a picture of my most loyal running partner, Mr. Ajax. He is my two-year-old Vizsla. I hope it works!

Posted by bridget at 5:37 PM | Comments (8)