Why social media can be one of the biggest dangers to female endurance athletes
Here we explore the negative influence of the social media influencers on female endurance athletes. Read on to find out how images and new fads impact the athletic mindset of female athletes and review some best practices to take forwards in order to optimise performance.
What do all top female athletes have a common?
I have now worked with successful female endurance athletes for many years and one common trait they all have is the consistent and knowledge-based approach to their training and therefore performance. This stand-out quality can be hard in a world of social media-led trends, quick fixes and the rise of the Instagram influencers.
This has resulted in social media being the main source of ‘science’ for many hopeful, new athletes and as a result I usually see two types of athletes:
Athletes that are either focussing on the basics and working towards a goal, with a clear plan or
Athletes that look for the big changes hoping that they will make a difference even though these athletes aren’t really clear on the measurable performance difference this change will make.
Inevitably, the former is the more successful athlete.
This generally holds true for any athlete but the balance between the sexes falls against female athletes when we see how influenced women (1) are from a young age on how they look (the well documented princess complex(2)). Celebrity culture means two things: people are advertising methods, products or even lifestyles, without necessarily trying them (Check out the BBC documentary) Secondly, as social media is such a powerful tool, athletes join the band wagon and proudly declare their new fitness fad or methodology which will give ground breaking results. This cascades around social media and helps set trends based on populism, not performance.
It is clear across a variety of sports (e.g. surfing and general fitness, endurance sports or gym) that most successful social media influencers, especially women, don’t correlate with the successful performer. It is more down to how marketable someone looks or blatantly how marketable someone is willing to look over what they can actually achieve.
Not only is this unhelpful but it can sometimes verge on the dangerous. Many of these fads stem from non-endurance focused celebrities or influencers and adopting or following these trends, whether it be diet or training, is not helpful. The unique energy and training requirements of an endurance athlete requires a unique, educated and informed approach to training and fuelling.
Performance and social following don’t always correlate positively!
For female athletes, this is particularly disadvantageous if you get it wrong. Firstly, the amount of research on women in sport is pitiful compared to the research on men and this has been true since the 1980s. If this is the ‘new way’ to do something, it is very unlikely to have been properly tested in female endurance athletes. Secondly, in my humble experience, female athletes are usually different to many of their non-athletic friends. Aims, goals, ambitions are ignored and instead words like “skinny”, “tanned”, “abs” are used sometimes in a derogatory way. Even if they are well-intentioned they can make athletes feel ostracised and different. Instead of being seen as powerful, motivating and successful, the female athlete is almost made to feel ashamed of the body they have trained hard to get to perform far beyond simple aesthetics. On one hand the athlete wants to succeed in training towards their goals and on the other is trying to satisfy a basic human instinct: to fit in. Simple ‘normal’ tasks like lunch or dinner can be a real problem. Why should the athlete be judged on how much they are eating (regardless of their training load and subsequent need) and made to feel they should eat less to be ‘normal’? Endurance athletes are rarely normal – and that is their strength!
Limited levels of responsibility or scientific rigor found on social media content can create a binary, black or white view on food sources and training methodologies which is rarely the case. If a methodology, diet, or product builds an almost cult following, it probably doesn’t work. As a coach, I like to work in the realms of science and fact. How you feel is great, but it is important to allow for any subjective bias when trying new things!
When listening to interviews and video diaries of the top female athletes they don’t talk about diets or fads. They talk about hard work, consistency and balance. If you have or are thinking of making big changes in the new season, reflect on where the source of that knowledge actually comes from and make an informed decision. Making a sudden change usually needs assistance and a period of transition and this should be planned well in advance. Improvements are generally gradual, boring, bloody hard, simple and consistent. The best female athletes I have worked with tend to focus on those small changes to make a big difference. Those who make rash or bold decisions, usually on a whim, tend to end up with lower performances or injured and inevitably, as a coach, I have to ask the question: ‘what was the motivation for such a big change when it isn’t usually necessary!’
Optimisation is a process and rarely a single change. After a successful season, optimisation is several small steps forwards and not a step sideways. Optimisation is about having the self-confidence in your own ability and the plan and sticking to it. This may not generate interesting social content and increases followers…but it does achieve personal bests.
(1) Osaďan, Róbert, Hanna, Rania; The Effects of the Media on Self-Esteem of Young Girls 2015 Acta Technologica Dubnicae, 5 10.1515/atd-2015-0031
(2) Cyone, Linder et al. Pretty as a Princess: Longitudinal Effects of Engagement With Disney Princesses on Gender Stereotypes, Body Esteem, and Prosocial Behavior in Children. Child Development, November/December 2016, Volume 87, Number 6, Pages 1909–1925
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