Sports and Body Image

Women’s involvement in sports incites “you go girl” enthusiasm from feminists round the globe. I don’t blame them–the image of little ladies running around a soccer field, having fun, or high school athletes gaining a sense of community and tenacity by sweating up and down the basketball court is truly inspiring. I was a serious high school athelte (lacrosse and basketball) and some of my best memories of adolescence take place on the court or the field.
BUT, and this is a big BUT, there is an ugly story that often goes untold. Many young women involved in sports end up disordered–whether over-exercising or under-eating. It’s not just in appearance-based sports, like ballet or gymnastics. While researching my book, I found that women involved in cross country running were among the most at risk. In one NCAA survey of college women athletes, 70% reported aspiring to lose their periods. That’s not a sign of dedication to your sport, ladies, it’s a sign of delusion. Menstruating is one of the first signals of a healthy female body at the college age.
The worst part is that so many coaches and trainers don’t know a thing about these issues. Some are downright disasters. I was speaking on a college campus recently and had a couple of young women approach me from the volleyball team, complaining that their coach weighs every single member of the team every Monday. She substitutes the words “big” for unhealthy and “thin” for healthy, and chastises girls who gain weight for any reason. Not. O. Kay.
Sports have the potential to empower and energize us, but we must beware of crossing the line between dedication and disease.