Finish Lines Are Sexy
Thursday, August 26th, 2010
I have been thinking and writing a lot about body image lately so my Trakkers teammate Kelly invited me to contribute to her weekly blog series, Wonderful You Wednesday. Each week she has someone share their thoughts about body image and self esteem and I had the pleasure of sharing my thoughts on her site yesterday.
Sure you can read this post here, but go at least go over to the original post over on Kelly’s blog. She has a whole bunch of other Tri Mommy readers and I love reading all their comments.
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Let’s be honest.
Triathletes are some of the best looking athletes out there and I’m not the only one who let that play at least some small part of my decision in what sport to devote hour after endless hour of my free time.
Have you seen a football player in their 40′s?
Have you seen a pro cyclist with his shirt off?
Have you seen the average body type of most pro golfers, well, ever?
My point is that if you want a fit body that even as you age, will probably still make you smile if you catch a view of yourself in your birthday suit in the mirror, that triathlon is a pretty good good choice to get there.
Hence one of my favorite movie quotes from American Beauty:
- Jim Olmeyer: Are you just looking to lose weight, or do you want increased strength and flexibility as well?
- Lester Burnham: I want to look good naked!
Sure, being fast is nice and age group medals are a nice ego boost but being happy within my own skin is a much bigger reward for me. That it what keeps me coming back to compete in this sport. But it isn’t at all about being self absorbed to the point of relentless narcissism. It is about building confidence in what my body is able to accomplish because of the way that it looks.
Despite how my quads, calfs, hamstrings and gluts feel after a +19 mile run or a +100 mile bike, I almost always find myself with a big goofy smile on my face as I come back through my front door. It is a fresh reminder of the huge distance that I was able to cover with nothing but my own two feet.
Since I started training for triathlons, it has done wonders for my self esteem. Not because of how it has made my body looks (either naked or clothed) but because of what I’m able to do with it. Sure, there are plenty of things I’d still love to change about my body, but so far there hasn’t been any physical challenge that I’ve thrown at it that I haven’t been able to overcome with the right training, so I couldn’t care less about those little things.
24 hour ultra-marathon relay? Hot
4 half ironman triathlons? Beautiful
Training for my first iron-distance triathlon? Sexy
Basically what I’m saying is that the finish line makes me feel pretty. 
Tags: athlete, body image, naked athlete, self esteem, sexy athlete, Triathlon | Posted in Ironman, Life, Training Log, Triathlon | 2 Comments »
