Screw you society. I am a REAL athlete. DEAL WITH IT.

Before writing this blog, I thought of this past week's subject, embodiment, like it was a cloud floating above my head; I knew it was there and it existed, but I felt unable to fully grasp it. The notion that society constructs gendered bodies in unhealthy, unrealistic, and disempowering ways was built by a wide variety of texts; from the one about Magic Johnson to the one about a dying anorexic young woman. And yet, I was stubborn and did not allow myself to see my reflection in any of them. You see, I thought of myself as a girl who had skipped the whole attempting to conform to society's expectations thing. And therefore I felt unable to relate and fully understand it. Unlike what seems to be 99% of young women my age, I really have never felt a need to eat less, lose weight, or go on some sort of diet. I mean, I would prefer any day to have the bulging biceps of a gymnast versus the upper arms of a runway model that are as tiny as my wrists. And I happen to love the quote, "Real girl's have six packs; other girls just drink them." (Even though I have a lot of ab exercises to do before I can claim owning a six pack!) But as I reflected on this truth, I came to realize that although I personally did not care about conforming to society, I did find myself becoming self conscious as a female athlete and wondering how me and my body could fit peacefully in this society.

Since the passage of Title IX in 1972, girl's participation in sports has increased tremendously. Today, female athletes make up only a little less than 50% of all athletes in the United States. And with this trend, you would think society (as it worships it male athletes) would at least modify itself to fit these females who are working to empower themselves through athletics. But sadly this is far from the case. Look no further than the fashion industry. Male models= athletic build. Female models= sticks with virtually no muscle (actually I would like to hypothesize that they have negative muscle mass. No joke, I think by their example this is possible).

By high school, it was clear that the fashion sector of our society hated me: I could not for the life of me find a pair of jeans that were the right waist, hip, thigh, and length all in one. Jeans apparently aren't made for the 3 million female high school athletes that live in America. Wait...no...I take that back. They ARE made for female athletes- but only the ones who fit society's definition of "female athleticism": having no fat and no muscle. But excuse me...what kind of real athlete has no fat and no muscle?! I think a female like this would break in half if a ball accidently hit her or she attempted to swing a tennis racket. Never-the-less, this is the expectation constructed by society for female athletes. Therefore, I, as a female athlete, am encouraged by society to hold a glass ceiling over my head. It is acceptable for me to work to become a "beautiful athlete" by slimming up; not a "good athlete" by bulking up. Society expects us to look good; not play good. Girls like myself must never believe in the opportunity to reach our best potential because God forbid we gain a little healthy fat or work hard for some muscle. Thus, it is acceptable for female athletes to be entirely unmotivated to increase their muscle mass and muscular endurance; and therefore we are encouraged to slam the door to the world filled with true female athletes: one's who refuse to give up on a dream just because society craves something else.

But when we refuse to slam the door, we as female athletes do not find ourselves alone. As a high schooler, I became self conscious about being an athlete with an athletic build. Why did I have to give up fashion (aka skinny jeans and the like) in order to be an athlete? Why did I enjoy EATING at lunch instead of sitting and gossiping about boys and make-up while pretending to nibble at my salad and obsessing over trying to get my body to become skin and bones? Why was I one of the only girls in the weight room after school? However, just in time, a couple role models of mine gave me the below ads from Nike. These images from a Nike Women's campaign ad can be both inspirational and empowering for young female athletes. They have the ability to teach girls that athleticism is a part of them that they should not let go of, and instead work hard with; no matter what society thinks or says about how their bodies should look. Every one of the ads speak to motivate female athletes to stand up and say, "Screw you society...I am a REAL athlete...deal with it."