If only actresses could get a clue..

Once upon a time, I used to really like Gwyneth Paltrow. She maintained some semblance of down-to-earthness in spite of her elite family and private school upbringing.

Then one day, the lovely actress who wore the bubblegum pink Ralph Lauren gown to the Oscars, had children and got married. The down-to-earth girl became this evil, warty Mother Superior. As if overnight, everything Gwyn did was better than everything else. She started an arrogant Martha Stewart wannabe website called GOOP with the goal of trying to 'enrich' the lives of everyday people (but let's face it, she's writing for women), most of whom don't have a clue what a macrobiotic diet is and buy their clothes at K-Mart.

Gwyn has been in cohoots with trainer to the stars, Tracy Anderson, herself under fire for her spouting her mouth about why being skinny is the only path to happiness. But that's another story for another day.

Today, Gwyn blabbed to the Associated Press about working out post-pregnancy. While she admits that getting the weight off was no small feat (back in my good books), she immediately says that women should 'make time' and have no excuse not to exercise (oh Gwyn, back in my bad books). Specifically:

"Every woman can make time - every woman - and you can do it with your baby in the room," she said. "There've been countless times where I've worked out with my kids crawling around all over the place. You just make it work, and if it's important to you, it'll be important to them."

Hmm. Gwyn, let's just focus on the fact that you had Tracy Anderson come to your house everyday to exercise with you. You did not have to actually go anywhere with your kids to exercise or find a gym with a childcare or a willing grandparent/friend to look after your kids so you could exercise. That's right. YOU HAVE A GYM IN YOUR HOUSE.

What pisses me off even more is that you undoubtedly have had a hand in the new Tracey Anderson Post-pregnancy workout DVD.

1) Tracy Anderson is hardly a role model for post-pregnant women who feel crap about their post-pregnancy bodies 2) Neither are you.

SHUT UP.

Paula Radcliffe: pregnant and running

As an avid runner, Paula Radcliffe has always been one of my running heroines. I've written about her and running during pregnancy a number of times in the last few years. Well, she's pregnant for the second time around and the Daily Mail recently did a feature on her as she prepares for London 2012.

My girl Paula is still running 14 miles per day in her 5th month of pregnancy:

"I've been running around seven miles in about 45 minutes twice a day, combined with altitude and gravity training on a specially designed treadmill."

American marathoner Kara Goucher is also pregnant and she has been getting tips from Paula on how to proceed with training.

It is generally accepted that running in pregnancy is safe as long as you don't start running when you become pregnant or get too overheated. If you are a seasoned runner, there is no problem with keeping up your normal routines.

What worries me, however, is that in publishing her training regimen (even though Radcliffe is an elite athlete) there are still surely some women out there (who are not elite athletes) that will think that they aren't exercising enough or that they need to keep up with one of the greatest female marathoners in recent history.

What do you think? Are you proud of Paula for being a running queen? Or is it unethical to tell the world about her pregnancy training regimen?

Weight-lifting for two?

The Daily Mail is shocked that British mum-to-be Sarah Jane Cousins is still lifting weights just 11 days before her she is due to give birth:

'I feel fantastic. I have no stretch marks and have kept my blood pressure where it should be. I haven't put on much fat, my muscles have stayed strong and I always feel so much better after going to the gym. My midwife is really pleased with how healthy I am.'

Women are not supposed to gain too much weight when they are pregnant but of course they have to gain some weight. You are supposed to exercise but not too much. Women can never women. This woman is exercising with a personal trainer and her midwife is happy with her health. Why shouldn't she continue to train? It annoys me that pregnant women who do look after themselves are made spectacles simply because they are breaking the mould.

Thoughts?

Source: http://tinyurl.com/4lnyj5

Dara Torres: insane body at 41

Some of you might remember Olympic gold medal swimmer, Dara Torres. She was one of the first athletes to pose alongside models in Sports Illustrated and has been known for her amazing comebacks, first retiring at 25 and then coming back 8 years later at the Olympics in Sydney to win more medals. Now, at 41, and with a 2 year old daughter, she is trying for a spot on the American squad for Beijing.

Her body is amazing (and slightly unsettling). Having to compete with much younger athletes has caused her to devote obsessive attention to her physique. She kept up her insane fitness regimen even when she was pregnant and very soon post-baby:

"At the time, she began swimming again for exercise, because, she says, she had terrible morning sickness and she’d “rather throw up in the pool gutter than next to the StairMaster.” But predictably, Torres soon found herself racing “whoever the middle-aged guy happened to be in the next lane,” even when she was noticeably pregnant. Three and a half months postpartum, she raced at the Masters World Championships. Fifteen minutes after nursing Tessa in the bathroom, she swam the first leg of the 50-meter freestyle relay in 25.98 seconds — fast enough to qualify for this week’s Olympic trials. "

While Torres is an athlete and understandably, she has to train to succeed and her body needs to be conditioned, a recent article featuring Torres in Women's Health says in it's opening sentence:

"This diehard Olympic swimmer is proof that (1) your body can be rock-hard at 40; (2) a baby doesn't have to slow you down; and (3) when it comes to any goal, it's all about how bad you want it"

I think Torres' regimen is pretty unreasonable for the average mum who is just getting back into shape and should in no way aspire to look like her. I don't think the article emphasises enough that Torres is a professional athelete; that she HAS to be lean to do her job. I mean who cares if your body is 'rock hard' at 40 if you don't depend on your body for your livelihood (like a celeb or an athlete)? Go for your life if that is important to you but seriously, it's just another not-so-subtle message that if your body is flabby or you're 'old' then you suck as a woman and a mother.

Sources: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/meet-dara-torres

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/magazine/29torres-t.html