Weight loss should never be your goal
If you clicked on this page, you’re probably thinking something like…“Can running help me lose weight?”
Here at the Badass Lady Gang, we call this Poison Punch. We live in a world where it’s impossible to escape diet culture. Diet culture is a multi-billion-dollar industry that relies on us constantly feeling like we’re not good enough and that our size is a problem.
That, my friends, is the textbook definition of Fat-Phobia or Anti-Fatness.
Fat-Phobia: Noun Also known as anti-fat, is the implicit and explicit bias of overweight individuals that is rooted in a sense of blame and presumed moral failing. Being overweight and/or fat is highly stigmatized in Western Culture. Anti-fatness is intrinsically linked to anti-blackness, racism, classism, misogyny, and many other systems of oppression.
Anti-fatness contributes to individuals not receiving adequate healthcare for a number of reasons, 1) the assumption is if someone is overweight they cannot be healthy, 2) clinical care teams typically lack experience in treating diverse body sizes, 3) weight-related structural barriers, e.g., size of exam tables, gowns, blood pressure cuffs, and scale limits.
Fat-phobia is diet culture’s not-so-secret weapon. It’s the poison inside of the poison punch.
YOU CANNOT TELL HOW HEALTHY SOMEONE IS BY LOOKING AT THEM.
Running with a weight loss goal in mind can lead to unhealthy behaviors and short-term solutions with long-term consequences. It leads to a calorie deficit mindset. As a female athlete, your only job is to stay out of Low Energy Availability. As an athlete (you’re an athlete!), you must fuel your body to kick ass and take names. Running fasted or dieting is terrible for training and can lead down a path too many of us have succumbed to growing up.
Reasons why you should run that have absolutely NOTHING to do with weight
To get stronger
A sense of accomplishment.
Community!
Having something to look forward to.
An opportunity to see what you’re capable of.
DITCH THE SCALE. THROW IT AWAY. There are plenty of ways to chase down outcome goals (think black-and-white goals that you can check off a list) that aren’t a number on a scale.
We know that ditching diet culture is hard. It’s a lifelong battle. But it does get easier. If you’re looking to lose weight, I encourage you to ask yourself what you hope to feel if you were to lose weight. Are you looking to feel more energetic? Stronger? Have an easier time running around on a daily basis? THESE are goals you can work towards without tying them to a weight goal. And running is an excellent vehicle to make the changes you think are only possible with weight loss a reality. And you don’t even need to lose weight.
Can you lose weight running? Maybe! But maybe not. Health is not a look. It’s a lifestyle. We know that making physical activity apart of our daily lives makes us healthier mind, body, and spirit. Running is one of those things that is great for your health. If it sounds like a fun challenge, then join us. Put your curiosity goggles on and spend 8 weeks with us. We have plenty of plans and experiences available to help you chase down your personal best.
Starting from scratch? Looking to go from couch to 5K? Or are you getting back to running after time away? Try our free Become A Runner / Get Back To Running 5K Running Plan. It comes with guided runs to make you laugh, think, and put one foot in front of the other throughout the entire 8-week training cycle.
Just remember, you’re pretty great just the way you are.
Fuck dieting and fuck diet culture,
We know that ditching diet culture and moving towards body image neutrality is hard. Here are some pieces to help.
Train with us all year long!
Join our Training Team!
There’s nothing we love more than watching our athletes chase down their goals. Regardless of what that goal is: If you want to like yoga, run a marathon, become a runner, or feel stronger and more energetic, we’re here to guide you, help you, and support you every step of the way.
We’ve designed our plans, practices, and experiences with the everyday runner in mind because too many running plans and programs were created by professional or elite athletes who don’t know what it feels like to be terrible at running. We get struggle runners. We get women who are spread too thin and won’t be able to do their training perfectly.
We believe in focusing just as much attention on your mental game as we do your physical one. We believe in finding fun on every run because if you’re not enjoying the process, WHAT’S THE POINT? We believe in helping our athletes build connections within our community and providing them with education and resources so that they can ditch diet culture, develop self-efficacy, and feel good about the choices they’re making in every aspect of their lives.
Stop running and training alone, stop overtraining, and train like the badass you are.