Dropping the Weight of Body Shape Shame During a Multi-Day Race
I thought I was there to accumulate miles in a six-day race
I came into day four of Six Days in the Dome with over 150 miles run, aching feet, sore quads, and exhaustion coursing through my not-rested-enough body. To give myself a slight morale boost, I put on the brightest-colored clothes I had brought, not caring if they matched.
As I started onto the track, I asked one of my new friends to snap a picture of my fashion diva self to send to my wife. Then, I spent two laps around the 443-meter track with my finger hovering over the delete button.
My man boobs and sixty-year-old middle shamed me greatly.
Imposter syndrome set in.
As they have often been over the last fourteen years, my thoughts have turned to all the reasons I’m not really a runner.
I’m not thin.
I’m not fast.
I’m too broad in the shoulders.
I’ll never fit in with all these svelte, incredible-looking athletes.
That was the precise moment my life forever changed and a weight I didn’t even realize I was carrying dropped from my shoulders. A familiar, still, small voice whispered in my heart…
