Lauren Fleshman, a retired world champion track athlete and co-founder of Picky Bars, dives into her new book, exploring gender dynamics in sports and the power of storytelling. She highlights Stoic teachings on gender equality and discusses the unique challenges faced by female athletes, including body image and mental health. Fleshman emphasizes the importance of inclusivity, empathy, and balancing competitive sports with holistic life pursuits, urging for supportive environments that foster well-being alongside athletic success.
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Fillies Winning the Kentucky Derby
Lauren Fleshman researched horse racing to challenge gender norms in sports.
She found that fillies winning the Kentucky Derby suggested that perceived sex differences in athletic ability might be socially constructed.
insights INSIGHT
Elite is Elite
Ryan Holiday points out that abstract averages about gender differences in athletic performance can be misleading.
He notes that elite performance is relative to individuals and that focusing on individual potential is more helpful.
insights INSIGHT
The Paradox of Gender Equality
Insisting on either total sameness or total difference between genders misses the nuances of gender equality.
Ryan Holiday and Lauren Fleshman discuss the difficulty people have with nuance and how it applies to gender.
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Lauren Fleshman's 'Good for a Girl' is a personal narrative that blends memoir and advocacy, addressing systemic issues in sports that hinder young female athletes. The book explores her own running career, critiques the treatment of female athletes, and calls for reforms to support women in sports. Fleshman shares her experiences with injuries, body image issues, and the pressures of competitive athletics, advocating for a more inclusive and supportive environment for female athletes.
Ryan speaks with Lauren Fleshman about her new book Good For a Girl: A Woman Running in a Man’s World, how the Stoics approached many of the gender equality issues that we still debate today, the unique power of sports to shatter perceptions and shift perspectives, and more.
Lauren Fleshman is a retired world champion track and field athlete who competed in the 1500, 3000, 5000, and marathon events. Lauren graduated from Stanford as a 15-time All-American and five-time NCAA champion, and went on to become the U.S. 5000 meters champion in 2006 and 2010, as well as a top-ten finisher in the 2011 IAAF World Championships. After her running career, Lauren became Co-Founder and Brand Director of a gluten and dairy free energy bar company, Picky Bars, as well as the Co-Founder of Believe I Am, a business creating sport psychology tools for female athletes. She has also Co-Authored the Believe Training Journal as a resource for runners. Her work can be found at www.laurenfleshman.com.
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