Because apparently someone has to. I was going to title this post “Overcoming Fat Runner Shame” and discuss all my hang-ups about shopping for running clothes and how I felt rather disappointed in my half-marathon race photos (I did not look especially fab), but then I decided to do a little research on ye olde Google. At first I typed in that blog title about fat runner shame to see if anyone else was calling it that or dealing with what I’m dealing with. Nothing relevant came up. Then I googled “fat marathon runner” and what I got back was mostly things telling me what a great weight-loss regimen marathon training can be because “You hardly ever see fat marathon runners.” Hm. Not terribly encouraging. But I was not dismayed. I typed in “overweight runner” and came up with a few blogs by big people running, but I couldn't find anything that really spoke to the fat runner stereotypes and insecurities.

Then I found you, Craig. Oh, Craig. May I call you Craig? Mr Ballantyne to you, huh? How ‘bout we compromise and I call you C-bag. What? Sure the C stands for Craig. Absolutely.

C-bag is a “workout routine and fat loss expert.” Ooooo. He has shiny letters after his name and I have no idea what they’re supposed to signify, but I know I’m supposed to be impressed by them. The thing is, Craig, those letters are not MD and even if they were you’d still be a C-bag. The internet is a big place with a lot of people with a lot of opinions and most of the time that’s absolutely fine with me, great even. I like to be challenged. I don’t want to read a bunch of carbon copies of myself all the time. And if I come across an opinion I don’t care for, I shrug it off. Just someone out there entitled to their wrong opinion. (a little self-satire, there, Craig) No problem. But C-bag here writes for Men’s Health and Oxygen and has books to his name. People are treating him like an expert so, I’m sorry, but it’s ON.

Craig tells me that fat people should not be running marathons. I’ll begin with the first sentence in his ignorant little rant: “If you are overweight and training for marathons, then clearly this training is not working for you.” Hm. Well, C-bag, and try to wrap your mind around this one, my primary goal in training for a marathon was NOT to lose weight. Sure I would like to lose some weight, but the goal of marathon training is…wait for it….wait for it….sure to shock…the goal is to RUN A FUCKING MARATHON. If I finish the marathon then my training has, in fact, worked for me whether or not my ass is any smaller.

Unfortunately, Craig continues: “Frankly, I don't think running marathons is a healthy activity for an overweight man or woman. You are going to get hurt. It's not a question of if, it's a question of how soon and how bad are you going to let the injury get before you stop trying to run marathons.” Ok. This part is dismaying to me not because of some jerk with a degree in exercise science or whatever thinking that he knows everything, but because a lot of people seem to share this opinion and it’s wrong.

Let me tell you about my friend from high school, C-bag. This man is six foot and a buck thirty five soaking wet. He is the epitome of what you think of when you think “marathon runner.” Long, strong, lithe. He ran cross country in high school and college and probably averaged a six minute mile. He can now no longer run even five steps to catch a bus. The man has never seen an overweight day in his life and his knees are now shot to hell. Who knows why they’re shot? It could have been the intensity of his training, it could have been bad genes. One thing’s for damn sure, no one will blame his body type. On the other hand, there’s chunky little me who’s been running on and off for years now and has never had a running injury more serious than some bad chafing. It pisses me off that people assume that for fat people running, it’s just a matter of time until they hurt themselves. Anyone can hurt themselves running if they don’t listen to their body and pace themselves. And sometimes, even then, you’re going to get hurt. But running is one of the least risky forms of activity I, personally, have ever engaged in.

“Most runners are smart enough that they wouldn't buy a beat-up used car for $300 and try to drive it across America non-stop, but they'll take their overweight, used up, beat up, weak bodies and try to run 26.2 miles in under 4 hours.” Say what? You did NOT just call my body a cheap-ass jalopy. And overweight automatically correlates with “used up, beat up, and weak?” Interesting set of assumptions you’re making there, C-bag. By the way, you are aware there is a whole range of finishing times, right? I’m not planning on qualifying for Boston, so I don’t need to do 26.2 in under four hours. 

“The reason I'm so "hard" on running is because too many people do it that shouldn't do it. I have no problem with training for a marathon if your body is prepared to handle a marathon. But most folks have bodies that are not suited for running 26.2 miles in one day.”

This opinion is also depressing to me because a lot of people seem to think this way, even some runners. If Pearl Izumi’s “We are Not Joggers” ad campaign is anything to go by, there is a demographic of runners who look down their noses at people like me and maybe even feel like I shouldn’t be running a marathon. There certainly was some of that sentiment going around after the 2007 Chicago Marathon debacle in which there was bad heat and not enough water was supplied to the mid and back-of-the-pack runners. The race ended up being called off with a lot of people going to the hospital.  At first people seemed outraged at the race organizers, but then it turned to victim blame pretty quick. Many were saying things along the lines of, “Who do those slow runners think they are? They shouldn’t be out there in the first place.” I guess the Kenyans are the only ones allowed to run now? I did find one blogger with an awesome defense of the slow, fat runner, though. I agree completely.

Seriously, what body type is allowed to run? There are plenty of thin people I know who couldn’t run a single mile. And what about those muscled athletes? (like our own C-bag with his oiled abs and his dog-in-a-field. You have a “No Fat Chicks” t-shirt somewhere in your closet, don’t you Craig?) Muscle is denser than fat and can be heavier. Are those atheletes told not to run long distances? Would anyone say, “You shouldn’t run with all those muscles, you’ll hurt yourself”? Absurd.

“If you are an overweight runner focused on a marathon, the most important thing you can do is lose body fat.” Wrong. If you’re an overweight runner focused on the marathon the most important thing you can do is get a good pair of shoes and go run. Believe in yourself, educate yourself, and listen to your body. Not C-bags like Mr. Ballantyne.

There. I feel better now.