Smartypants Womenfolk

A bunch of really smart women sound off about current trends in strength training, and it's all gold.

Go read it, maybe you'll find a new genius to follow!

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Without further ado, I have asked some incredibly amazing female health and fitness professionals to discuss what fitness trend they dislike. While on any other occasion, I would have made sure that I represented an equal amount of males and females, the fact that females were completely excluded from the article made me want to give women as much exposure as possible. Enjoy!

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http://www.meghancallawayfitness.com/my-blog/the-female-perspective-on-fitness-trends-that-are-downright-ineffective-insulting-and-dangerous

Body Shaming: Never Ever Okay

Erin Brown is the kind of woman I want to be. So much of what she writes feels like a punch to the gut, a light shone on my dark past, and a warm bear hug - sometimes all at once. She is brilliant, articulate, and I will read anything she writes. I recommend you do the same.

Shaming someone based on assumptions we make from our perception of them does nothing at all to encourage healthy choices. That remains the same, regardless of the size of the person on whose body we are commenting. While we are not expected to know what someone is going through, we can offer compassion by not judging, not offering commentary and not making their appearance our business. 

To live in a world where women are regarded as people and not decoration, we need to stop making comments on other women’s appearance as though it is our right to do so. We’ll be doing each other a favor.

https://www.girlsgonestrong.com/body-shaming-any-body/

Everything NAILED

This post covers everything I typically rant about in a thorough, well-written, non-profanity-filled*, manner:

An Introduction To Female Fitness as We Know It

When it comes to attaining a svelte, athletic, and powerful physique, while simply feeling confident and healthy, women have to overcome a massive barrage of mental and physical hurdles. Unfortunately, in today’s physical society, including our fitness industry, women and young females are incessantly pressured or shamed into feeling like they should work out, or diet, solely to change their appearance. That they should strive to become a smaller, skinnier, more ‘’feminine,’’ and subservient version of their current self. Though that may seem a bit rash, this is the harsh reality that we need to start facing in order to make a market difference for the future.

In women’s-focused fitness marketing, you will generally hear or see the words – “diet”, “shrink”, “lose”, “tone”, “sculpt”, “calories”, “detox”, etc. However, rarely do you hear/see the words “stronger” and “fitter”, “adding muscle”, and “gaining confidence”. 

*But it's still good, really:
https://drjohnrusin.com/the-dangers-of-todays-female-fitness-industry/

Women: Master Defusers

I don't even know what to say about this post, other than it makes me want to Hulksmash everything in sight, because I fully identify with far too much of it.

I have too many similar stories in my own life, and I bet you do, too.

Share this post with the men in your life, more than anyone.

Maybe it will help to create a world where your daughter won't see any bit of herself in this post.

It is the boss who says or does something inappropriate. It is the customer who holds our tip out of reach until we lean over to hug him. It's the male friend who has had too much to drink and tries to corner us for a "friends with benefits" moment even though we've made it clear we're not interested. It's the guy who gets angry if we turn him down for a date. Or a dance. Or a drink.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gretchen-kelly/the-thing-all-women-do-you-dont-know-about_b_8630416.html