LIVING - LIFESTYLE
Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington, 19, trains four hours a day, six days a week. But when she wears baggy clothes, people ask her, "are you expecting?" and she says, "No, I'm just fat."
The swimmer tells the Daily Mail:
Do you know why I like shoes? They make me feel feminine. My shoulders
stand out and people always say, "Aren't they broad?" And I think,
"Thanks! You are really making me feel better about myself." I don't
hate them, but I'd like to be more petite.
Without them, though, I know I wouldn't have the power I have – they are what makes me go so fast in the water – but out of the water, they definitely look better with a nice pair of shoes.
Yes, we're all pretty much familiar with the term "feminine" by now aren't we? The first thing that comes to mind is a sleek figure, dolled up and manicured, not getting dirty or sweaty. Adlington adds:
"I think there is a problem in that girls don't think it's cool to be
sporty. I had that feeling when I used to trudge into school after
training with my hair wet, smelling of chlorine, with no make-up on and
thinking, 'Oh God, all the other girls look fantastic.' We need to
change the view that you can't be a sportswoman and be feminine. I am
certainly feminine outside the pool.'"
Then, to show us all how feminine Adlington can be, the Daily Mail added a photo of her by the pool, dolled up in heels and a frilly dress. However, she still can't shake off her low self-esteem: The reporter suggests she's bringing glamour to the sport and Adlington replies, "Me? Bring glamour to the sport? I don't think so. I looked dreadful at the end of my 800 meters when I pulled my hat off and the wet hair was flopping in a face bare of make-ip. Awful!" Imagine, the moment she won the Olympic gold medal in Beijing, that was going through her head.
British Olympic Swimming Champion Feels "Unfeminine" [Jezebel]
