Mary Spencer's Blog

When you think about eating disorders what is the image that comes to mind? Is it one of teenaged vanity? Of emaciated white women agonizing in front of the mirror or hunched over the toilet? For a long time, the same image of eating disorders was (and for the most part, still is) perpetuated by the media. That image of “too-thin” fashion models, ballerinas and actresses. The one of Karen Carpenter or of Lily Collins in To The Bone . When we Google “eating disorder,” it’s this same image that comes up again and again and while it’s great that we largely becoming more open to the conversation about eating disorders, the conversation shouldn’t start and stop at white women. I am a woman of color with an eating disorder. I have been in recovery for many years now and my journey has not been without obstacles. My Own Story I am an immigrant; in my culture, mental health issues and mental illness are overlooked and often met with extreme amounts of denial and shame. Because of this, I h

You can find it in this 2011 New York Times description of an 11-year-old girl who was horrifically gang raped: “she dressed older than her age, wearing makeup and fashions more appropriate to a woman in her 20s.” You can find it in this story shared by Girls Gone Strong co-founder Molly Galbraith: “When I was 11 years old, two men in their thirties followed me around the mall until I alerted security that I was scared. I was told that I shouldn’t have worn such short shorts.” You can find it in dismissals of powerful men bragging about sexual assault as “just locker room talk.” If you’ve spent any time discussing sexual violence, whether in person or online, you’ve likely heard statements like the above — ones that find a way to place blame on the victims or survivors* of sexual assault, which at the same time, alleviate blame from the perpetrators. Harmful statements like these are examples of rape culture in everyday conversation. *A note on the terms victim and survivor in thi

Name: Dr. Shante Cofield a.k.a The Movement Maestro Age:   33 Location: Redondo Beach, CA What does it mean to you to be part of the GGS Community? I’ve always subscribed to the mantra you don’t attract what you want, you attract what you are. I am strong. Those around me are strong. Together, we’re a force of nature. How long have you been strength training, and how did you get started? I’ve been an athlete my entire life but found the gym when I was 15, after tearing my ACL. My mom signed me up at the local YMCA, got me a trainer, and I’d lean my crutches against the machines and hobble around. I’ve never looked back. What does your typical workout look like? Depends on my mood, depends on the day. As it relates to lifting, for the past few years my attention has been held by CrossFit. The beauty of that paradigm lying in its versatility and variability. Some days I focus more on bodyweight and gymnastics training. Other days are more strength biased. And other days have a